Matching Items (13)
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- All Subjects: Native American Studies
- All Subjects: Indigenous
- Creators: Fixico, Donald
- Creators: Tippeconnic, John
Description
Museums reflect power relations in society. Centuries of tradition dictate that museum professionals through years of study have more knowledge about the past and culture than the communities they present and serve. As mausoleums of intellect, museums developed cultures that are resistant to relinquishing any authority to the public. The long history of museums as the authority over the past led to the alienation and exclusion of many groups from museums, particular indigenous communities. Since the 1970s, many Native groups across the United States established their own museums in response to the exclusion of their voices in mainstream institutions. As establishments preserving cultural material, tradition, and history, tribal museums are recreating the meaning of "museum," presenting a model of cooperation and inclusion of community members to the museum process unprecedented in other institutions. In a changing world, many scholars and professionals call for a sharing of authority in museum spaces in order to engage the pubic in new ways, yet many cultural institutions s struggle to find a way to negotiate the traditional model of a museum while working with communities. Conversely, the practice of power sharing present in Iroquois (Haudenosaunee) tradition shaped a museum culture capable of collaboration with their community. Focusing on the Akwesasne Museum as a case study, this dissertation argues that the ability for a museum to share authority of the past with its community is dependent on the history and framework of the culture of the institution, its recognition of the importance of place to informing the museum, and the use of cultural symbols to encourage collaboration. At its core, this dissertation concerns issues of authority, power, and ownership over the past in museum spaces.
ContributorsHeisinger, Meaghan (Author) / Fixico, Donald (Thesis advisor) / Szuter, Christine (Committee member) / Warren-Findley, Jannelle (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
The Kootenai River landscape of southwestern British Columbia, northwestern Montana and the very northern tip of Idaho helped unify the indigenous Ktunaxa tribe and guided tribal lifestyles for centuries. However, the Ktunaxa bands' intimate connection with the river underwent a radical transformation during the nineteenth century. This study analyzes how the Ktunaxa relationship with the Kootenai River faced challenges presented by a new understanding of the meaning of landscape introduced by outside groups who began to ply the river's waters in the early 1800s. As the decades passed, the establishment of novel boundaries, including the new U.S.-Canadian border and reserve/reservation delineations, forever altered Ktunaxa interaction with the land. The very meaning of the river for the Ktunaxa as a source of subsistence, avenue of transportation and foundation of spiritual identity experienced similar modifications. In a matter of decades, authoritarian lines on foreign maps imposed a concept of landscape far removed from the tribe's relatively fluid and shifting understanding of boundary lines represented by the river at the heart of the Ktunaxa homeland. This thesis draws on early ethnographic work with the Ktunaxa tribe in addition to the journals of early traders and missionaries in the Kootenai region to describe how the Ktunaxa way of life transformed during the nineteenth century. The works of anthropologist Keith Basso and environmental philosopher David Abram are used to develop an understanding of the powerful implications of the separation of the Ktunaxa people from the landscape so essential to tribal identity and lifestyle. Two different understandings of boundaries and the human relationship with the natural world clashed along the Kootenai River in the 1800s, eventually leading to the separation of the valley's indigenous inhabitants from each other and from the land itself. What water had once connected, lines on maps now divided, redefining this extensive landscape and its meaning for the Ktunaxa people. However, throughout decades of dominance of the Western mapmakers' worldview and in spite of the overwhelming influence of this Euro-American approach to the environment, members of the Ktunaxa tribe have been able to maintain much of their traditional culture.
ContributorsColeman, Robert (Author) / Warren-Findley, Jannelle (Thesis advisor) / Szuter, Christine (Committee member) / Fixico, Donald (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
This research explores the various and often conflicting interpretations of the Battle of Horseshoe Bend, an event seemingly lost in the public mind of twenty-first century America. The conflict, which pitted United States forces under the command of Major General Andrew Jackson against a militant offshoot of the Creek Confederacy, known as the Redsticks, ranks as the single most staggering loss of life in annals of American Indian warfare. Today, exactly 200 years after the conflict, the legacy of Horseshoe Bend stands as an obscure and often unheard of event. Drawing upon over two centuries of unpublished archival data, newspapers, and political propaganda this research argues that the dominate narrative of Northern history, the shadowy details of the War of 1812, and the erasure of shameful events from the legacy of westward expansion have all contributed to transform what once was a battle of epic proportions, described by Jackson himself as an "extermination," into a seemingly forgotten affair. Ultimately, the Battle of Horseshoe Bend's elusiveness has allowed for the production of various historical myths and political messages, critiques and hyperboles, facts and theories. Hailed as a triumph during the War of 1812, and a high-water mark by the proponents of Manifest Destiny, Jackson's victory has also experienced its fair share of American derision and disregard. Whereas some have criticized the battle as a "cold blooded massacre," others have glorified it as a touchstone of American masculinity, and excused it as a natural event in the unfolding of human evolution. Despite the battle's controversial nature, on 3 August 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, a strong supporter of the National Park Service, approved act HR 11766 establishing Horseshoe Bend National Military Park, the very first national park in the state of Alabama. Hailed and forgotten, silenced and celebrated, exploited and yet largely unknown. This research explores what happened after the smoke cleared at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend. It is a story about the production of history, the power of the past, and the malleability of the American mind.
ContributorsWeiss, Justin Scott (Author) / Fixico, Donald (Thesis advisor) / Schermerhorn, Calvin (Committee member) / Dallett, Nancy (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
In the university setting, when a person wants to conduct research that deals with human subjects, they are required to receive the approval of their Institutional Review Board (IRB). This process takes place to ensure the proposed research is ethical and poses minimal risks to the willing subject. In Indian Country, there is a growing trend where American Indian nations are taking control over regulating research that is conducted within their jurisdictional boundaries.
In my thesis, I discuss the historical background that has led to the IRBs academics are familiar within universities they see today. In addition, I discuss the body of literature that addresses IRBs, human subjects, and the debate on which research should or should not be regulated by universities. I will then, critically analyze the established research protocols that exist in Arizona American Indian tribes. I use Darrell Posey's (1996) idea of Community Controlled Research (CCR) as the framework for my analysis. CCR dictates the people of the community decide the ways in which research is conducted. The purpose of my research is to create recommendations that will assist and inform tribes how to either, strengthen their existing protocols, or create a research protocol that will promotes Community Controlled Research.
In my thesis, I discuss the historical background that has led to the IRBs academics are familiar within universities they see today. In addition, I discuss the body of literature that addresses IRBs, human subjects, and the debate on which research should or should not be regulated by universities. I will then, critically analyze the established research protocols that exist in Arizona American Indian tribes. I use Darrell Posey's (1996) idea of Community Controlled Research (CCR) as the framework for my analysis. CCR dictates the people of the community decide the ways in which research is conducted. The purpose of my research is to create recommendations that will assist and inform tribes how to either, strengthen their existing protocols, or create a research protocol that will promotes Community Controlled Research.
ContributorsTom, Naomi (Author) / Vicenti Carpio, Myla (Thesis advisor) / Killsback, Leo (Committee member) / Tippeconnic, John (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
Description
This study questioned how the Navajo Nation was going to mitigate and/or adapt
to Global Climate Change. By employing a Diné philosophy based research methodology this study seeks to holistically reframe the lens that the Navajo Nation conceptualizes Global Climate Change. The study uses a comprehensive review of literature that pertained to four research questions. The research questions are: 1) What do Diné oral histories say about climate change? 2) How is the Navajo Nation going to mitigate and adapt to changes to the climate using Western knowledge? 3) How can Diné research methodologies help inform policies that will mitigate and adapt to climate change? 4) What type of actions and frameworks can the Navajo Nation use to generate meaningful policy? The study utilizes a Diné philosophy based analytical framework to focus on how climate change will affect the Diné peoples' A) spirituality, B) economic sustainability, C) family-community, and D) home-environment. The findings are: a) the Navajo spiritual ceremonies are process models that can be used to mitigate and/or adapt to climate change, and they must continue to be practiced. b) The economic development section revealed that economic security is not found solely in resource development, but in the security of ceremonial knowledge. The burden of the Navajo government however, is not to promote labor, but the ability for people to live into old age. c) Because families and communities drive Diné philosophy, Diné families and communities must remember how to treat each other with respect. The collective survival of the Navajo Nation always depended on this teaching. d) The findings of the home-environment section is that Diné have to acknowledge that their lives are fragile in the face of global climate change, and the only way that they can live happily is to trust the power of the stories of the ancestors, and seek to embody the Diné philosophy. This study succeeded as an honest attempt to apply an Indigenous Diné methodology to reframe Global Climate Change into a phenomenon that is survivable.
to Global Climate Change. By employing a Diné philosophy based research methodology this study seeks to holistically reframe the lens that the Navajo Nation conceptualizes Global Climate Change. The study uses a comprehensive review of literature that pertained to four research questions. The research questions are: 1) What do Diné oral histories say about climate change? 2) How is the Navajo Nation going to mitigate and adapt to changes to the climate using Western knowledge? 3) How can Diné research methodologies help inform policies that will mitigate and adapt to climate change? 4) What type of actions and frameworks can the Navajo Nation use to generate meaningful policy? The study utilizes a Diné philosophy based analytical framework to focus on how climate change will affect the Diné peoples' A) spirituality, B) economic sustainability, C) family-community, and D) home-environment. The findings are: a) the Navajo spiritual ceremonies are process models that can be used to mitigate and/or adapt to climate change, and they must continue to be practiced. b) The economic development section revealed that economic security is not found solely in resource development, but in the security of ceremonial knowledge. The burden of the Navajo government however, is not to promote labor, but the ability for people to live into old age. c) Because families and communities drive Diné philosophy, Diné families and communities must remember how to treat each other with respect. The collective survival of the Navajo Nation always depended on this teaching. d) The findings of the home-environment section is that Diné have to acknowledge that their lives are fragile in the face of global climate change, and the only way that they can live happily is to trust the power of the stories of the ancestors, and seek to embody the Diné philosophy. This study succeeded as an honest attempt to apply an Indigenous Diné methodology to reframe Global Climate Change into a phenomenon that is survivable.
ContributorsAtencio, Mario (Author) / Killsback, Leo K (Thesis advisor) / Tippeconnic, John (Committee member) / Lee, Lloyd L. (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
Description
This paper primarily focuses on the Hopi Tribe of northeastern Arizona and how historical events shaped the current perception and applications of educational systems on the Hopi reservation. This thesis emphasizes the importance of understanding historical contexts of a community in order to understand the current predicament and to devise solutions to contemporary issues in which I primarily focus on education. Education is broken down in regards to the Hopi communities by history, how this history has affected those communities, ideas of sovereignty and power within education and then future probable solutions to integrating language and culture into Hopi schools.
This research is primarily literature and educational reports on the Hopi Tribe and other American Indian communities. The research was then compiled to find commonalities with other Indian communities to depict barriers to educational success as well as effects of western education such as traditional culture and language decline. Solutions and results that other Indian communities had devised were also researched to determine if they could be incorporated into the Hopi educational system and if they supported the language and culture that the Hopi people are trying to retain.
This research is primarily literature and educational reports on the Hopi Tribe and other American Indian communities. The research was then compiled to find commonalities with other Indian communities to depict barriers to educational success as well as effects of western education such as traditional culture and language decline. Solutions and results that other Indian communities had devised were also researched to determine if they could be incorporated into the Hopi educational system and if they supported the language and culture that the Hopi people are trying to retain.
ContributorsHongeva, Justin (Author) / Killsback, Leo (Thesis advisor) / Tippeconnic, John (Committee member) / Romero-Little, Mary Eunice (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
Early childhood is a special and amazing period in a child's development. It is a period during which all facets of a human being-cognitive, linguistic, physical, emotional, social, and spiritual--are rapidly developing and influenced by a child's interactions with her socializers and environment. Fundamentally, what happens during this critical period will influence and impact a child's future learning. Much of what is known about children's development comes from research focusing primarily on mainstream English speaking children. However, not much that is known about Indigenous children and their early period of child development. Therefore, this thesis research focused on Diné children and their early childhood experiences that occur during the fundamental time period before Diné children enter preschool. It also examines the contemporary challenges that Diné parents and other cultural caretakers face in ensuring that Diné infants and young children are taught those important core elements that make them uniquely Diné. The research questions that guide this thesis are: 1.What do Diné people believe about children and their abilities? 2.What do Diné children need to learn in order to become Diné? 3. What are the Diné childhood rearing beliefs and practices? 4. Why aren't Diné parents and grandparents teaching their children how to be Diné? Findings reveal an early childhood experience in which children are viewed as true explorers and highly intelligent, inquisitive learners and included as integral participants and contributors to the family and community. This thesis concludes with a discussion of the multidimensional transitions, such as the shift from the Diné language to English in Diné homes and communities that have occurred in the Diné way of life and how they have impacted how Diné children are socialized. Creative alternatives for increasing Diné childhood speakers on and off the Navajo reservation are also considered.
ContributorsBia, Sunshine Sallie (Author) / Romero-Little, Mary E (Thesis advisor) / Tippeconnic, John (Thesis advisor) / Martinez, David (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
This dissertation focuses on traditional arts at the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) as a form of place-based education by asking the question, what is the role of traditional arts at IAIA? Through a qualitative study students, faculty, staff, and alumni were interviewed to gain their perspectives on education, traditional arts, and the role of traditional arts at IAIA. Through analysis of these interviews, it was found that participants viewed traditional arts as a form of place-based education and that these practices should play an important role at IAIA. This study also looks at critical geography and place-based practice as a form of anti-colonial praxis and an exercise of tribal sovereignty. Colonization restructures and transforms relationships with place. Neo-colonialism actively seeks to disconnect people from their relationship with the environment in which they live. A decline in relationship with places represents a direct threat to tribal sovereignty. This study calls on Indigenous people, and especially those who are Pueblo people, to actively reestablish relationships with their places so that inherent sovereignty can be preserved for future generations. This study also looks at the academic organization of IAIA and proposes a restructuring of the Academic Dean and Chief Academic Officer (AD&CAO) position to address issues of transition, efficiency, and innovation. The extensive responsibilities of this position cause several serious concerns. The policy paper proposes that the academic programs be divided thematically into 2 schools that will allow greater flexibility and adaptive practices to emerge out of the academic division at IAIA. The combination of restructuring the academic division at IAIA, my theoretical argument promoting place-based praxis as anti-colonial practice, and my research into the application of place-based programming at IAIA all support my overall goal of supporting Pueblo communities through my own work.
ContributorsSwentzell, Porter (Author) / Sumida-Huaman, Elizabeth (Thesis advisor) / Lomawaima, K. Tsianina (Committee member) / Chhetri, Netra (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
Description
This dissertation explores Brain Drain and Brain Circulation phenomena at Taos Pueblo, an Indigenous community located in northern New Mexico, USA. The study examines the push and pull factors that influence the migration of educated Taos Pueblo tribal members. The information contained in this dissertation was derived from a study that was completed from 2016-2017 in Taos Pueblo. It has become evident that Indigenous communities worldwide are currently experiencing massive migration away from reservations, rural, and communities of origin and towards urbanized centers. The research conducted in this dissertation was focused on both patterns and trends and possible distinct reasons for intellectual migration, especially in Indigenous communities. This dissertation is separated into three sections. The first part is a journal article that focused on Taos Pueblo intellectual migration patterns. The article draws from studies literature review, fieldwork methodology, methods, data and findings. The second part is a book chapter that centers on a literature review and theory development. The book chapter includes a discussion on the study findings and contains broad recommendations for addressing brain drain and promoting brain circulation in Taos Pueblo. The third and final section is a Policy Paper is aimed at two audiences, the first is Indigenous Leadership and secondly, college age students who are interested in working with Indigenous Communities. The policy brief provides solutions and recommendations that were gathered from secondary literature and from the data gathered during the various interviews that were conducted during the research period.
ContributorsMontoya, Amanda Jean (Author) / Sumida Huaman, Elizabeth (Thesis advisor) / Chhetri, Netra (Thesis advisor) / Harjo, Laura (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
Description
Conservation is a complicated entity consisting of a multitude of professional fields including social issues, cultural issues, and physical science. This thesis evaluates the positive and negative aspects of two broad types of conservation: top down fortress conservation and bottom up community-based conservation. Fortress conservation has many negative aspects, such as displacing human communities and preventing utilization of resources. However, it also has positive aspects, such as preventing the destruction of delicate ecosystems and slowing down extinctions. Community-based conservation is more inclusive and focuses on including the indigenous populations located within the proposed conservation site in the decision-making process. Its negatives include having an anthropocentric goal instead of valuing nature's intrinsic values. Understanding the differences inherent in these two methods is necessary in order to implement a conservation network with the highest chance for success.
ContributorsFink, Laurel Berylline (Author) / Smith, Andrew (Thesis director) / Collins, James (Committee member) / Minteer, Ben (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor)
Created2014-05