The WPA, a campground for American Indian children, and the thousands of New Deal stories we never hear

Above: Blue Bay Campground, in Polson, Montana. Image courtesy of Google Earth, 2021, used here for educational and non-commercial purposes.

The modern and false framing of the New Deal, vs. reality

In modern America, its become increasingly accepted that the New Deal was pretty much a whites-only endeavor. For example, MSNBC's Joy Reid said in August 2020: "[FDR] didn't exactly set black Americans up for success, while he was excluding them and handing out giant economic goodies to the newly created white middle-class." Many books, articles, and op-eds have also worked towards painting the New Deal as a legacy of racism. 

The whites-only framing of the New Deal ignores the employment of hundreds of thousands of African Americans in the National Youth Administration (NYA); the complete infrastructure upgrade in Puerto Rico; the Indian New Deal of self-government and land restoration; the employment of many Jewish Americans in FDR's administration; the many Asians who benefited from WPA work and art programs; and much more. There were hundreds of thousands of projects and opportunities for non-white Americans.

One of these projects was the Blue Bay Sunshine Camp in Polson, Montana - today called the "Blue Bay Campground," owned and operated by the Confederated Salish & Kootenai Tribes. Between 1936 and 1939, the WPA landscaped the area, improved the beach, constructed about 15-20 buildings and a boat dock (see, e.g., "Among WPA Accomplishments In This Area," The Missoulian (Missoula, Montana), April 8, 1940, p. 2). And in 1940, a crew of 15 American Indians in the WPA installed a new water system ("Work Starts on Blue Bay Water System: Indian WPA Crew on Project Which May Draw Help From NYA," The Missoulian, February 11, 1940, p. 4).

During the New Deal years, the Blue Bay Sunshine Camp was used for the benefit of underprivileged and undernourished American Indian children: "The morning schedule includes rising, flag raising, breakfast, camp cleanup, arts and crafts, swimming and instruction, wash up and lunch. The afternoon program consists of library and medical period, compulsory rest periods, music, boat rides and special programs on alternate evenings, wash up and dinner" ("Indian Children Develop at Sunshine Camp," Great Falls Tribune (Great Falls, Montana), September 1, 1940, p. 13).

The camp supervisor said, "In my opinion, the Blue Bay Sunshine camp is one of the grandest contributions to the welfare of young Indian children. I feel that every effort put forth has been worthwhile. It is amazing that in the short time these children are here [10 weeks] such improvement can take place physically and mentally" (see previous source).

After the camp was constructed, the NYA came in to offer even more opportunities. For example, in November 1940, 40 American Indian women, ages 17-21, took part in a camp program to produce traditional arts and crafts "to renew the arts which characterize the Indian race in previous years and to preserve the Indian culture" and also "for distribution to needy families..." The young women were also allowed to produce clothing for themselves; they managed a display room; took part in recreation activities like hikes and dances; and even received $30 per month - about $550 in 2019 dollars ("40 Indian Girls to Attend NYA Arts and Crafts Project," The Missoulian, November 21, 1940, p. 2).  

The Blue Bay Sunshine Camp is a great example of the New Deal ethos, described by FDR: "We are going to make a country in which no one is left out." That New Deal ethos--which could have been continued and improved upon--has been lost to collective amnesia, false historical framing, and the embrace of a new ethos - the ethos of extreme income, wealth, and opportunity hoarding by the 1%. (Indeed, the modern ethos of greed & selfishness is dependent upon the false framing of the New Deal as racist and unsuccessful.)

Above: The WPA-constructed administration building at Blue Bay Sunshine Camp, 1940. Photograph from the Great Falls Tribune, September 1, 1940, unknown photographer, provided courtesy of Newspapers.com, used here for educational and non-commercial purposes.

Above: American Indian children at Blue Bay Sunshine Camp, 1940. Photograph from The Missoulian, March 31, 1940, unknown photographer, provided courtesy of Newspapers.com, used here for educational and non-commercial purposes.