This qualitative interdisciplinary study explored the responses of Native American academics to selected contingencies of their tribal identities. Negative stereotypes emerged as an important topic from the narratives of 20 male and 20 female tribal academics in a variety of disciplines whom the author interviewed at 28 universities across the…

Approximately 2,000 teams in the U.S. utilize Native American mascots, the majority of which are associated with schools. Across the nation there continue to be many intense conflicts over these mascots. Most conflicts focus on differences in opinion, rather than on the effects of these mascots. The purpose of this article is to provide…

The year 2017 was successful for the Smithsonian by any measure. Their curators opened insightful and inspirational exhibitions. Their scientists continued to do groundbreaking research that benefits humankind. Their educators are reaching more people than ever before with compelling programming. The years-long, Smithsonian-wide campaign soared…

Empirical examinations of American Indian (AI) mascots have only recently entered into the discourse of mainstream psychology. The present studies examined implicit attitudes of non-AI people towards AI mascots and the extent to which they are related to attitudes towards AI people. Significant concordance was observed between negative bias toward…

This article describes a multicultural training intervention that addresses American Indian stereotypes perpetuated through the use of American Indians and corresponding imagery as mascots by schools and athletic teams. With the Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development's tripartite model of multicultural competence (awareness,…

This essay derives from a course called ‘"The Rhetoric of Native America,’" which is a historical-critical survey of Native American primary texts. The course examines the rhetoric employed by Natives to enact social change and to build community in the face of exigencies. The main goal of exploring a native text (particularly, Simon…

Sinte Gleska University students are all ages. The author's class has an even mix of genders, and there are also non-Indians with various experiences and backgrounds, but they have one thing in common. They are eking out a living in the second poorest county in the nation. The class discusses why NDNs or Natives write. In "Winged Words:…

In a corner of Wright Square in Savannah stands a large granite boulder with a copper plaque commemorating Tomochichi, leader of the Yamacraw Indians and a key figure in the founding of Georgia. Scholars and tourists often overlook this monument and this man, but they should not. Tomochichi welcomed James Oglethorpe and his first band of settlers…

If we are to aim toward a genuine democracy, we must be willing to look at the uncomfortable topics that continue to sabotage what we aspire to as a society. This article aims to problematize the ways we conceive of and implement the social studies. To do so, I investigate the social studies in K-12 practice through critical theoretical lenses,…

The battle over the use of American Indian names and mascots among college and professional athletic teams has a seldom-told economic backstory. It is more than simple alumni sentimentality. Money, influence and power often play a significant role in decisions regarding the use of these symbols. Paraphernalia bearing the images bring in millions…

When prospective teachers are asked to discover something about the Native peoples on whose homelands they live and will earn their living, why do they have such difficulty locating material that reflects a contemporary indigenous perspective? Is it that there are no resources out there to help them in their search, or is it that they only find…

Playing Indian is one of the oldest and most pervasive forms of American cultural expression, indeed one of the oldest forms of affinity with American culture at the national level. This form of expression is "central to efforts to imagine and materialize distinctive American identities." Enacting redface has historically aided European Americans…

Malea Powell has argued that Charles Alexander Eastman "imagined new possibilities for Native resistance and survival in the face of violent assimilation strategies." To Eastman, Natives had little choice but to acculturate to white society if they were going to resist white domination and survive. But gaining full equality in U.S. society proved…

Discusses issues surrounding stereotypes of Native Americans that are held by European Americans. (MK)

Revisiting an episode of his own biased language in the classroom, the author tries to resist a conventional interpretation of events in the hope of raising useful questions. (Contains 2 notes.)