Reformer John Collier (1884-1968) created the American Indian Defense Association in 1923 to fight the assimilationist policies of the Dawes Severalty Act of 1887.  Collier valued the Indian spirit of community commitment over individual gain, and fought wholeheartedly to preserve their way of life.  As leader of the Defense Association until 1933, he saved Native American titles to remaining reservations, lifted restrictions on their religious rituals, and prepared the 1934 Indian Reorganization Act.  Serving as Indian commissioner from 1933 to 1945, he continued his efforts to save Indian culture and tribal self-government and to increase their land provisions.
– American Indian Studies, California State University, Long Beach.
http://www.csulb.edu/~aisstudy/nae/1900-1950.html