I Can Learn Any Kind of Work

Abstract

Beginning with the introduction of the federal urban relocation program in 1952, thousands of Native American people hoped to use the program on their own terms, with their own goals in mind. Many Native participants proved to be much more than passive subjects or victims--especially those who personally wrote federal officials to make specific requests and explain their particular needs within the program. This chapter provides an expansive view of Native American urban relocation program participants and their complicated and sometimes surprising experiences in cities during the 1950s-60s.