Reforming Federal Indian Housing Programs: The Socio-Cultural, Political, & Health Benefits of Utilizing Indigenous Epistemologies & Architecture

The relationship between settler-colonial governments and Indigenous nations has been a contentious one, filled with disingenuity and fueled by the abuse of power dynamics. Specifically, colonial governments have repeatedly used power in mapping, cultural Othering, resource control, and research methodologies to assimilate, acculturate, or otherwise dominate every aspect of Indigenous lives. A relatively recent pushback from Indigenous peoples led to the slow reclamation of sovereignty, including in the United States. Revamped federal Indian programs allegedly promote tribal self-determination, yet they paradoxically serve a vast quantity of cultures through singular blanket programs that are blind to the cultural component of Indigenous identity - the centerfold of colonial aggression for centuries. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of Public and Indian Housing is no exception, using a Western framework to provide generic services that neither serve cultural needs nor are tailored to the specific environment traditional homes were historically and epistemologically suited for. This research analyzes the successes of new programs as well as the failures of the federal government to conduct responsible research and promote the authentic self-determination of tribes in terms of housing and urban development. It also considers the successes and failures of tribes to effectively engage in program reformation negotiation, community planning, and accountability measures to ensure their communities are served with enough culturally-appropriate, sustainable housing without mistrusting their own housing entities. Solutions for revising this service gap are proposed, adhering to a framework that centers diverse cultural values, community input, and functional design to increase each tribe’s implementation of self-determination in HUD housing programs.