Sovereignty is a difficult word to understand, even though many people use it every day. Perhaps you have wondered what this word means or what a sovereign nation is, or whether Indian nations are sovereign. Our study of sovereignty will answer these questions in this first part. We will define sovereignty. If you have been given a sheet of paper labeled response sheet, keep this handy, I'm going to be asking you some questions. Ready. Here we go. Here is a good working definition of sovereignty. Sovereignty is the supreme power from which all specific political powers are derived. Sovereignty is inherent and comes from within a people or culture. The key word is inherent. Inherent means existing in something as a permanent and inseparable element, quality or attribute not coming from the outside. Sovereignty refers to an attitude or strong feeling held by a people, a group, a tribe or nation. It can't be seen. What can be seen is the exercise of sovereign powers. Sovereignty is not something that is given to one group by another. This power that comes from within a people or culture is the supreme power that forms a nation. Sovereignty is common to all cultures and peoples throughout the world. It is not just a European or western idea. Indian people have offered these definitions of sovereignty. The pilot of Bishop California defined sovereignty as our tribe's inherent right to select its own system of government, to define its membership and to negotiate with other entities as a nation without loss of independence. The Oneida Nation of Wisconsin defined sovereignty as our existence as a nation with the power to govern ourselves in regard to political, social and cultural aspects that meet the needs of our people. Does sovereignty mean complete independence is complete independence possible or even desirable? No nation in the world is completely independent. The need for raw materials, military assistance and other economic and political considerations make nations dependent on each other. Even such large and powerful countries as the United States and the Soviet Union are limited in their capacity to act by the small oil rich nations. India, for example, requires much foreign aid every year to remain economically stable. And while India may be less powerful than those nations which lend support, she is still a sovereign nation and most other nations recognize this. Is a nation sovereignty dependent on whether other nations of the world recognize it as sovereign? In theory, the answer is no. International recognition strengthens a nation's claim to sovereignty and makes it better able to provide for its people, but sovereignty can exist without recognition. Some people fall into the trap of equating nationhood, government or politics with sovereignty. Well, sovereignty is related to nationhood, government and politics, but it is absolute and comes before nations forms of government and political processes. Here are some definitions. What is a nation? The American Heritage Dictionary defines a nation as a people, usually the inhabitants of a specific territory who share common customs, origins, history and frequently language or related languages. What is government? Government is the system or machinery through which a political unit or nation exercises sovereignty. What is politics? Politics is a step between sovereignty and government. It is the art of interpreting the will of the people and influencing the actions and functions of government. We have tried to define sovereignty. Now let's see what we have learned as I ask questions. You circle the letter of the correct answer on your response sheet. Question one Part A Which of these is the best definition of sovereignty? A regulation of land b nationhood. C. Exercise of political powers. D. The supreme power which forms a nation. E. The Constitution of a nation. Number two. True or false sovereignty is a concept that is known only in Western European culture. Question three. Where does an Indian nation get its powers of self-government circle one of the letters A from Congress, B from the members of the Indian nation, C from the Bureau of Indian Affairs, D from the United States, e from the President of the United States. Question number four. True or false? A nation's sovereignty is not dependent on how powerful it is. Question number five, true or false? No nation in the world is completely independent of other nations. Question number six, true or false? And inherent right is a right that is granted by one group to another. Question number seven, true or false sovereignty and the exercise of political power are the same thing. Number eight, true or false for a nation to be sovereign. Other nations of the world must recognize it as sovereign. Number nine, true or false? Government is the system through which a nation exercises its sovereignty. OK, now let's see how we did with those question, number one, which was the best definition of sovereignty. The answer is the letter D. The supreme power, which forms a nation. The other choices are examples of the use or exercise of sovereignty. Question number two, the statement sovereignty is a concept that is known only in western European culture is false. People and cultures all over the world are sovereign. Question number three, where does an Indian nation get its powers of self-government? The answer is b from the members of the Indian nation, from its own people and no one else. Question number four, a nation sovereignty is not dependent on how powerful it is. This is true. Sovereignty does not depend on power or wealth. Number five, no nation in the world is completely independent of other nations, and this is true. Number six and inherent right is a right that is granted to one group by another. Now this is false. Remember, that inherent means existing with them not coming from outside. Question seven. Sovereignty and the exercise of political power are the same thing. This is false. The exercise of political power is derived from sovereignty. Sovereignty is the supreme power that exists first. For a nation to be sovereign. Other nations of the world must recognize it as being sovereign. This is false recognition helps nations claim to sovereignty. But it is not absolutely necessary. Government is the system through which our nation exercises its sovereignty. True, the people decide on a form of government. And this is an act of sovereignty. Well, how did you do if you got eight or more correct? You're doing all right. I told you that trying to understand sovereignty wouldn't be easy. Well, this concludes our efforts to define sovereignty. Next, we will learn what a nation is able to do with its sovereignty.

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think in our first lesson on sovereignty, we learned that sovereignty is the supreme power that brings people together to form a nation. Sovereignty is inherent and enables a nation to govern itself. Now let's consider what a nation is able to do with its sovereignty. Remember to keep your response sheet handy. I'll be asking you some more questions. What are some of the powers that a sovereign nation can exercise in governing itself? Perhaps the foremost power of a sovereign nation is the power to select its own form of government. The type of government a nation has does not affect its sovereignty. Democracies, monarchies, theocracies and dictatorships may all be sovereign. Some governments operate under constitutions and may have highly structured institutions. Others operate under customary and or spiritual laws handed down from generation to generation. The right of self-government is perhaps the most important part of sovereignty a nation is no longer sovereign if it loses this right. In addition to the power to choose a form of government, sovereign nations have many other powers necessary for self-government. Among these are the power to make laws, enforce these laws, define and regulate the use of its territory. Determine membership or citizenship. And the power to regulate trade within its borders and with other nations, impose and collect taxes, appropriate monies, regulate domestic relations, including marriage, divorce and adoption. And also the power to regulate property, establish a monetary system. Make war and peace. Form alliances with foreign nations through treaties, contracts and agreements. There is no magic formula about how many of these a nation must exercise to be sovereign, how and if a nation uses these sovereign powers depends on several things the will and needs of the people, their history and religion, internal and external economics and internal and external politics. Some nations may be able to operate well without exercising certain of the powers listed. Other nations may choose to have another nation exercise certain powers for them. The more powers a nation relinquishes to another, the more interference they will have in their internal affairs. But it does not mean they have given up their sovereignty. But there is one power that a nation cannot give up without losing its sovereignty. The power to do what? Right. The power to govern itself are Indian nations sovereign. Well, let's see. From time immemorial, groups of Indian people have been bound together by supreme sovereign power to become a nation. These nations were acknowledged by one another in the form of compacts, treaties, trade agreements and military alliances. The first Europeans to come to the new world recognize the sovereignty of Indian governments by entering into treaties with them. The United States followed in the pattern set by the Europeans and entered into more than 420 treaties and agreements with Indian nations. Under international law, treaties are a means for sovereign nations to relate to each other. So we see that Indian nations are sovereign because they feel they are sovereign. They have exercised sovereign powers. And because other nations of the world have recognized that they are sovereign. There were two early cases in which the US courts attempted to define the status of Indian nations. In the first case, the Cherokee Nation, the Georgia, a compromise was struck. Sovereignty was not ruled out, but neither was it supported. It was in this case that the court described Indian governments as domestic dependent nations. In the second case, Worcester v. Georgia, the status of Indian nations was further defined. Two points made by the court are of importance to Indians. One The laws of the state of Georgia have no effect in the Cherokee Nation. In a later decision, the Supreme Court stated that Indian tribes have a status higher than that of states. And to Chief Justice John Marshall, who wrote the majority opinion described Indian governments as distinct independent political communities. OK, we've covered quite a lot. Let's have a short practice test and see what we remember. Mark your response sheet under Part B, remember to circle the one correct answer. Ready number one. True or false? A nation can choose to limit the exercise of some of its governmental powers without giving up its sovereignty. Number two, which of the following is the greatest power of a sovereign nation? A the power to determine membership? B The power to pass laws. C The power to tax. D, The power to make treaties. E The power to choose its form of government. Number three, Indian nations are sovereign because a other nations recognize that they are sovereign b, they have exercised sovereign powers. C, they feel they are sovereign d all of the above e none of the above. Number four, which of the following have been said by U.S. courts about Indian governments? Hey. Indian tribes are independent political communities. B Indian tribes are domestic dependent nations. C. Indian tribes have a status higher than that of states in the U.S.. D All of the above e none of the above. Number five, true or false? The United States has entered into more than 400 treaties and agreements with Indian nations. Number six, true or false? A nation must exercise all of its sovereign powers to remain sovereign. Number seven, true or false, only nations with a democratic form of government can be sovereign. Number eight, a nation is no longer sovereign when a new leader takes over. B, it changes its form of government. See, it loses the right of self-government. D It accepts the protection of a stronger nation. E it becomes economically dependent upon another nation. All right, now, let's see how we did with those. Number one is true, a nation can choose to limit the exercise of some of its powers without giving up its sovereignty. Number two, what is the greatest power of a sovereign nation? E. The power to choose its form of government. Number three, Indian nations are sovereign because D all of the above A, B and C are true. Number four, the answer to this is also D, the courts have said all of the things in A, B and C. Number five, this is true. We use the figure of 420 in our discussion. Number six, this is false. A nation can choose not to exercise some of its powers and still retain its sovereignty. No. Seven is false. A sovereign nation can choose any form of government it wishes. People who would select a dictator, however, run a risk of losing control of their government. And the last one. The answer is C. A nation is no longer sovereign when it loses the right to choose its own government. All right, now, add up the number you got correct. You should have gotten at least seven, right? This concludes our discussion of the inherent powers of a sovereign nation and the basis for the sovereignty of Indian nations

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