DCSIMG
Skip Navigation

Indigenous People

June 2009

June 2009

The June 2009 edition of eJournal USA provides insight into Native Americans and other indigenous peoples. Articles provide historical background and look at issues surrounding their languages and culture, their legal status, and how they are networking around the world.

More Coverage

CONNECT WITH US

 

Translations

Inside This Publication

Volume 14, Number 6, ISSN 1948-4399 (online)

From the Editors

Overview

  • Indigenous People in the 21st Century

    Wilma Mankiller
    Being an indigenous person in modern times means balancing revered traditions, culture, and languages with the demands of a world dominated by technology. Mankiller is former chief of the Cherokee Nation.

  • Living Traditions of Native America

    Gabrielle Tayac
    Coming to terms with a rich and ancient tradition, years of struggle and discrimination, and life in modern times, Native peoples must juggle the valuable old with the new. Historian Tayac is of Piscataway descent.

Relationship with the Land

  • My Place, My Identity

    Angayuqaq Oscar Kawagley
    The traditional worldview of the Yupiat, who live in Alaska and the Arctic Circle, may work with modern science to benefit the planet through adaptation to global warming. Kawagley is a Yupiaq elder.

Photo Gallery

  • People and the Arts

    Indigenous people are leaders, writers, performers,and artists, and they hail from diverse indigenous communities worldwide.

INDIGENOUS DEMOCRATIC VALUES

Resources

LANGUAGE AND CULTURE

  • Endangered Languages

    Akira Y. Yamamoto
    Languages, which embody many elements of indigenous cultures, are rapidly being lost, and the author writes that it is critical to preserve those that remain.

  • Universe of Spirits

    Vine Deloria Jr.
    The universe of earth, sky, plants, animals, and spirit permeates daily life in traditional Native American belief, along with tales of ancestors, writes the late Standing Rock Dakota scholar.

  • Ceremony

    Joseph Bruchac
    Storyteller Bruchac, of Abenaki descent, gives several examples of traditional ceremonies, ranging from personal acts to group rituals, that are central to the mental and physical health of indigenous communities.

HANDS ACROSS BORDERS

  • Indigenous People Today: Interview with José Barreiro

    Lea Terhune
    In this interview, Cuban-born scholar of Taino heritage discusses the challenges and resiliency of Latin American indigenous peoples and what is being done to protect their cultures and rights.

  • CGNet and Citizen Journalism Among Tribals in India

    Shubhranshu Choudhary
    A grassroots, online citizen journalism project is helping rural Adivasis — India’s “original people”— raise issues critical to their well-being.

  • Toward a Worldwide Indigenous Network

    Jonathan Hook
    Programs that link indigenous tribes across the world, such as a new initiative at the University of North Texas (UNT), bring deeper understanding, awareness of shared issues, and a sense of global community. Hook, a Cherokee, directs the UNT program.