Health Issues and the Pala Indian Reservation, 1903–20

Joel R. Hyer investigates health conditions on one Indian reservation in Southern California during the first two decades of the twentieth century. Hyer contends that unsanitary conditions on the Pala Reservation actually facilitated the spread of diseases among local Cupeño, Luiseño, and Kumeyaay Indians. He also describes how the United States federal government employed doctors, field matrons, and others to promote good health and combat disease among Indians at Pala. The author asserts that, despite their altrustic intentions, some of these government workers attempted to discourage local indigenous peoples from consulting their shamans for medical attention—Native healers whose extensive knowledge of roots and herbs had cured many forms of illness for years. In addition, the teacher at the reservation’s day school sought to prevent the spread of disease among her Indian pupils by exposing them to American modes of health care. Furthermore, Hyer maintains that one national health program, the "Save the Babies" campaign, was successful on the Pala Reservation because Indian mothers believed in it and followed specific guidelines to lower mortality rates among their own children. Throughout his essay, the author addresses the pressures of assimilation and acculturation that were so acute at this time in the United States. Hyer concludes by suggesting that many of his findings reflect broader health trends on Indian reservations throughout the United States during this period.