The indigenous peoples of Latin America live in conditions of extreme poverty. This book uses empirical data from national survey sources to determine the extent of poverty among Latin American indigenous populations; to compare indigenous and nonindigenous populations with regard to socioeconomic status, living conditions, educational attainment, and occupation; and to develop policy suggestions for the alleviation of poverty. The first four chapters discuss the situation of indigenous peoples worldwide, the "costs" of being indigenous in terms of earnings and social development, demographic characteristics of indigenous peoples, and methodologies used in various national surveys and in this book's analysis. Chapters 5-8 analyze national household surveys as country case studies in Bolivia, Guatemala, Mexico, and Peru, providing data on poverty, demography, educational attainment, school enrollments, employment, health conditions, housing, earnings, illiteracy, child labor, material possessions, occupation, and migration. The results indicate that: (1) poverty among Latin America's indigenous populations is pervasive and severe; (2) indigenous populations suffer abysmal living conditions and severe health problems; (3) educational attainment is strongly correlated both with indigenous origins and with poverty; (4) parents' skills and educational attainment influence the schooling and other human capital characteristics of their children; and (5) indigenous persons work more hours and earn less than their nonindigenous counterparts. The findings suggest that if policymakers concentrate on equalizing human capital characteristics, much of the income differential between indigenous and nonindigenous populations would disappear. Contains approximately 260 references and many data tables and figures. (SV)