Fairness is just a reframing of “white goodness” which erases native identities from debate.

Self-perception is a key component of identity. For some, expression of a Native identity may be little more than a personal belief about heritage expressed on a census form.27 Cultural identity is not static; rather, it progresses through developmental stages during which an individual has a changing sense of who he or she is, perhaps leading to a rediscovered sense of being Native.28 There is some level of choice involved in accepting a Native identity, although the range of choices is limited by factors such as phenotypical appearances.29 Choice may also be influenced by social, economic, and political factors.30 For example, a climate filled with discrimination may lead an individual to reject a Native identity, whereas a climate in which a Native identity is seen as fashionable and perhaps financially profitable may lead an individual to assert an indigenous identity. In some instances, asserting an indigenous cultural identity is related to resisting assimilation. Navajo and Ute youth who grow up off the reservation with limited connections to their cultural past or traditional ceremonies often define their indigenous identity and cultural pride through resistance to the domination of the white community. For example, attending and doing well in school are defined as important and good by the surrounding white community, yet these youth often drop out, not because they are “bad” or incapable of school success but as a way of defying the dominant society. Resistance of “goodness” as framed by whites and insistence on living their lives as indigenous people, in the many different ways in which they define it, are at the core of their actions.31