Philanthropy in American Indian and Alaskan Native cultures is not a new phenomenon—there is a long and rich history of indigenous giving traditions, and today there is a growing nonprofit sector devoted to social justice and development of Native communities in the United States. This paper examines overarching themes of Native American philanthropy (there are over 500 registered tribal nations in the continental US, and all celebrate their own giving and receiving rituals and traditions specific to their own communities), how the practice of Native American philanthropy has changed over time, and what the nonprofit sector within tribal communities looks like today. Additionally, this lesson will offer specific examples of youth-centric philanthropy and its focus on preserving Native culture for future generations.
A social reformer dedicated to changing conditions for people who could not help themselves, Dorothea Dix was a champion for the mentally ill and the imprisoned. Through her tireless work of over two decades, Dix instituted changes in the treatment and care of the mentally ill and improved prison conditions.
Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet was a trained minister whose future changed when he met Alice Cogswell, a young girl who was deaf. In 1817, Gallaudet opened the "Connecticut Asylum for the Education and Instruction of Deaf and Dumb Persons" in Hartford, Connecticut; it was the first U.S. deaf school. He had observed European educational methods and recruited a teacher of the deaf, Laurent Clerc, whose work helped develop American Sign Language (ASL).
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