E-Book Overview
Education among American Indians has lagged behind that of almost all other groups in both the United States and Canada, and it generally has not offered what Indian communities need. It is this disturbing state of affairs—along with the intractable realities, unexamined assumptions, and cultural conflicts and misunderstandings behind it—that Science and Native American Communities confronts. Representing an unprecedented gathering of Native American professionals working in the sciences and advanced technology, the book combines theory and practice, firsthand experience and strategic thinking, in a provocative exploration of the uneasy meeting ground between science and Native American communities. In highly personal, deeply informed, and frequently moving essays, the authors wrestle with a legacy of mistrust and violence. They ask: Is a common ground between science and Native America possible? The problems and prospects that emerge from such a meeting, and that these essays address, include the impact of science and technology on Native lands and environment; economic and technological opportunities and challenges for reservation communities; and the differences and similarities between Native and scientific thought and practice. The authors not only showcase different reactions to the consequences of science, but also energetically propose strategies for renegotiating Native communities' relationships with science, seizing control of their destinies, and moving forward in the twenty-first century.
E-Book Content
Science and Native American Communities
Science and Native American Communities Legacies of Pain, Visions of Promise Edited by Keith James
University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln and London
© 2001 by the University of Nebraska Press All rights reserved Manufactured in the United States of America ` V Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Science and Native American communities: legacies of pain, visions of promise / edited by Keith James. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. isbn 0-8032-2595-4 (cloth: alk. paper)—isbn 0-8032-7615-x (pbk.: alk. paper) 1. Indians of North America—Education (Higher). 2. Science—Social aspects— United States. 3. Indians of North America—Economic conditions. 4. Indians of North America—Ethnic identity. I. James, Keith. e96.s35 2001 305.807—dc21 00-069098
Contents
Acknowledgments, ix Keith James 1. Fires Need Fuel: Merging Science Education with American Indian Community Needs, 1 Part 1. Education Keith James 2. Education and American Indian Communities: A History of Pain, a Future of Promise?, 11 Cornel Pewewardy 3. Indigenous Consciousness, Education, and Science: Issues of Perception and Language, 16 Lillian Dyck 4. A Personal Journey into Science, Feminist Science, and Aboriginal Science, 22 Clifton Poodry 5. How to Get What Indian Communities Need from Science, 29 Frank Dukepoo 6. The Native American Honor Society: Challenging Indian Students to Achieve, 36
Part 2. Culture Keith James 7. Culture: The Spirit Beneath the Surface, 45 Oscar Kawageley 8. Tradition and Education: The World Made Seamless Again, 51 Ofelia Zepeda 9. Rebuilding Languages to Revitalize Communities and Cultures, 57 Gilbert John 10. Trodding the Circle from Indian Community to University Research and Back, 63 Part 3. Economic and Community Development Keith James 11. Building Futures Together, 71 James Lujan 12. Education as a Tool for American Indian Community Development: Needs and Strategies, 76 Dean Howard Smith and Joseph S. Anderson 13. Managing Tribal Assets: Developing Long-Term Strategic Plans, 83 Gerri Shangreaux 14. On the Front Lines of Indian Health: Practical and Political Issues in Providing Community Health Care, 92 Ron Jamieson 15. Innovative Strategies for Promoting Development in Indian Communities, 99 Part 4. The La