Indigeneity

(4 Credits)

Are people born indigenous or do they become indigenous? If the latter, what is the process of becoming, and what opportunities or tensions does it bring? This course explores trajectories of indigeneity, which may be both more and less than the quality of being "native," paying attention to relationships between indigenous peoples and their respective states, and to how legacies of conflict and accommodation raise difficult questions about economic, cultural, and political justice. Readings are drawn from a wide range of fields, including anthropology, history, environmental studies, public policy, and art history, and also include memoirs and personal testimony. Case studies are drawn from many world regions, including the Nahua, Australian Aborigines, Cree, Tuareg, Algonquin, Nasu, Alutiiq, among others.