This whole subject makes me sad. I am proud of my daughter’s 20% native population and I don’t like to hear from FReepers that her genes are loser genes.
Rather, I believe it is the system, the environment, and not the genes that allowed such a passive culture.
Don't let it get you down. You ought to be proud of and hopeful for your daughter.
In my home area the tribal government owns mineral rights and has oil income flowing in, as do many individual tribal members.
That kind of money can bring real trouble but it can lift people out of despair as well.
In my lifetime (largely because of the oil boom) I have seen the town go from virtually NO Indian job-holders along main street, to many, many shopworkers and some shop- and business-owners too.
Indian ranchers in the area often do well, because they know animals, because they own their own operations.
The great threat now is meth and opiates, which has devasted some in my area and even more in nearby Montana (where there aren't the oil jobs).
It can be really tough, nearly impossible sometimes, to get a young Indian man or woman off the Rez to learn about the outside world.
The ticket to success, not surprisingly, is a strong family and also exposure to and work with private businesses.
So many native kids my age are dead now, from booze back then; nowadays it is usually drugs.
But now many are coming out whole too, more all the time. I played sports with Indian students, football, golf, track, wrestling and basketball, with team and individual state honors often coming our way.
Believe me, there is NO DAMNED LOSER GENE.