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Business & Politics in Indian Country – Table of Contents

Table of Contents & Chapter Reviews

Front Matter

About the Cover
Dedicated to Our Grandparents—Ann & Titus Samuels
Epigraph
Table of Contents
Foreword
Preface
Introduction
Disclaimer
Editorial Note
Terminology Note
Reading the Fire: How This Book is Meant to Burn

Section I – Historical Assaults and Federal Violence

Government Policies to Eliminate Native Americans
Historical Perspective: Government and Treaties
Treaties & Tribal Govts: Protecting the System, Not the People
Legacy of Harm – U.S. Government
Echoes of a Lost Population
Shadows of the Past—A Reckoning with Historical Atrocities
U.S. Presidents and the Native Dichotomy
The Legacy of Discrimination: Barriers to Progress
Critical Race Theory: Impact on Native America
Erased and Reclaimed: Native Culture and Art
Smoke Screens & Silent Screen
State-Sanctioned Genocide
Saving Souls, Taking Nations
Early Resistance and Rebellions
The High Price of Inequity
The Sacred Unspoken: Hidden Religions
Powwow in Transition: From Ceremony to Competition
The Fire That Built the Future: The CCC–Indian Division

Section II – Our Internal Reckoning

Psychological Transformation of Native American Mindset
The Internal Struggle: Self-Inflicted Challenges
Integrating “Eye Juggling” by Rodney Frey
The “Hang Around the Fort Indians”
In Active Genocide: The Trap of Federal and State Grants
The Food Desert Dilemma
Health & Wellness: Breaking the Cycle of Poor Health
Racial Classification: Blood Quantum
Education & Empowerment
Mental Health and Healing in Native Communities
Substance Abuse and Addiction
Prevalence of Suicide in Indian Country
Before Their Time
Disenrollment, Sovereignty and the Per Capita Trap
The Knowing
Healing Through Tradition
The Old Law Still Stands
Sacred or Spectacle?
Still Ours: The Good We Carry Forward

Section III – Politics, Power, and Leadership

The Politics of Leadership Change
Employment and Accountability in Tribal Governance
Two Worlds, One Rez
Protection for All Except Natives
Reforming Title VII
A Final Provocation
Gender Dynamics in Tribal Leadership
The Key to Thriving Businesses
Native Women: Missing, Murdered, Ignored
The Role of Traditional Knowledge in Modern Governance
Vanishing Nations: The Silenced Tribes
Trapped in the Maze: How Regulations Hold Us Back
Top Ten States Violating Tribal Rights
Emotional Costs of Native Leadership
Community Accountability
When the Enemy Looks Like Your Cousin
Economic Sovereignty and The Role of Leadership
Outsiders on the Inside
Tribal Courts: When Justice Depends on Who You Know
Voices Silenced: Media and the Tribal Gag Order
Consultation or Coercion? Theater of Listening
Governance Before the Council
Rebuilding After the Council
Restoring the Circle

Section IV – Rebuilding the Tribal Economy

Strategic Partnerships for Sustainable Growth
Off-Reservation Businesses: A Path to Prosperity
Building Internal Capacity in Tribal Governance
Renewable Energy: Stewardship and Growth
Technology and Tribal Opportunity
Sustainable Development: Long-Term Strategies for Success
Beyond Casinos – Building a Diverse Economic Base
Mistakes of the Rich Gaming Tribes
Successful Tribal Business Diversity: Case Studies
Preservation and Progress
Digital Sovereignty – Protecting Tribal Data

Section V – Vision, Language, and the Long Future

Youth and the Future of Native Leadership
The Real Cost of Sovereignty and Self-Determination
Legal Reforms and Policy Advocacy
Hard Answers – Ensuring Tribal Success and Thriving
Decay of Tribal Languages: From Thousands to a Few
The Future of Native America - 100 Years Ahead
Native Service in the U.S. Military – Pride and Betrayal
Acknowledging Our Greatest Challenge

Back Matter

Summary and Path Forward
Reparations? We’ve Got the Receipts
Unfinished Conversations: Tough Topics Beyond This Book
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
What Was Left Unsaid: A letter to the Reader
Access the Complete Works Cited
Who Is D.G. Comer?

Who Is D.G. Comer?

D.G. Comer is an Army Veteran, Native executive, and truth-teller whose work bridges tribal sovereignty, business, and modern leadership. As CEO of Red Lake Construction and controller for Red Lake Incorporated, he brings firsthand experience of the political and cultural realities shaping Indian Country today.

His writing blends personal insight, historical truth, and fearless critique to spark honest dialogue and reform. Through Business & Politics in Indian Country – You Can’t Handle the Truth, Comer challenges readers to confront the forces defining tribal governance and to imagine what true sovereignty could look like when the circle is restored.