Facts

The plight of the Native American is well known. Many live without the basic necessities of life such as electricity, central heat and running water, as well as enduring low income, high unemployment, sub-standard housing, high infant mortality rates and alcohol addiction. These living conditions are unimaginable to many of us.

The United States has over 500 Native American tribes composed of over four million people. There are 140 reservations on 56.2 million acres of land. The Navajo (Diné) are the second largest tribe with over 300,000 people. According to 2000 Census of the Navajo Reservation, 56% of the Navajo people lived below the poverty line, there was 43% unemployment, and the per capita income was $6,217. Additional facts about the Navajo, Hopi and Zuni tribes from the 2000 census are shown in the table below.

2000 Census Information * (http://factfinder.census.gov/home/aian/index.html)
	Tribe
Category	Navajo	Hopi	Zuni
Total population **	309,575	14,696	10,374
Median age (in years)	23.5	26.9	25.9
People 45 years and older	19.8%	21.5%	17.6%
Grandparents as caregivers	58.1%	58.8%	48.6%
Education
Less than 9th grade	17.8%	4.5%	7.3%
High school graduate	64.1%	78.4%	68.8%
Bachelor's degree	7.6%	12.6%	5.7%
Housing
Heating fuel - wood	33.1%	13.3%	44.6%
No fuel used	0.5%	0.4%	0.0%
Lacking complete plumbing	20.5%	9.8%	4.3%
Lacking complete kitchen	18.0%	8.7%	3.0%
No telephone service	40.4%	15.5%	16.8%

* All respondents represented in this chart do not necessarily live on their
tribe's reservation.
** All numbers are taken from those people responding as either from that
tribe alone or from that tribe and one or more other ethnic backgrounds.