ANTHROPOLOGY 370   
Native America Today
COURSE SYLLABUS
Spring 2023
T, TH 11:40 AM to 1:05 PM,  FA 246

Return to Randy's Spring Classes Home Page
 

homeland image

Randy McGuire rmcguire@binghamton.edu Sci.1 228, x7-2100   Office hrs: W 12:30 to 1:30 PM, Th 4:30 to 5:30 PM or by appointment

I will hold simultaneous office hours in Sci. 1, 228 and on zoom https://binghamton.zoom.us/j/9205378216


  The history of native peoples in North America is the tale of an enduring people that have survived 500 years of struggle with the Europeans that conquered the continent.  The first half of the course will examine the history of this struggle as a basis for understanding the current condition of Native Americans in the United States .  We will begin with a survey of the development of United States Indian Policy and the 20th century history of native peoples in out own nation. The second half of the course will discuss the realities, problems, and joys of Native American life in the United States today. Topics covered will include education, health, law, art, and culture.  Throughout the course we will consider how Native Americans have been viewed by European Americans and try to contrast this with Native American's own views of their history and modern reality.  We will use literature, art, plays, and movies to reconstruct the White man's Indian through the history of the United States and documentary films will be used to present the perspectives of Indian people.

    This course is an upper division anthropology course and is open to all majors. The prerequisite for the class is Anth 256/Hist 268 Native American Culture & History.  The course is a C or writing emphasis course so it fulfils the General Education composition requirement and part of the Harpur College writing requirement. 

ORGANIZATION

We will meet two days each week (Tuesday & Thursday) for lecture and discussion.  You are expected to have done the readings for each class before the class meeting. Attendance is mandatory for both the lectures During the semester you will have homework assignments to view a full length, Hollywood movies that feature Native Americans. On weeks that you view a film we will commit 20 to 30 minutes in the Thursday lecture discussing the film..  Please check the schedule carefully because there will be weeks without this homework.

Four Credit Statement: This course is a 4-credit course which meets for 5.5 hours each week. In addition to the scheduled lectures/discussions, students are expected to do at least 9.5 hours of course-related work each week during the semester. This includes things like: completing assigned readings, participating in discussion sessions, studying for tests and examinations, preparing written assignments, and other tasks that must be completed to earn credit in the course.

REQUIREMENTS

There will be two exams during the course.  The first will be a take home mid-term exam.  This mid-term will cover the first half of the course and will be structured to test your understanding of the development of United States Indian Policy.  The second exam will be a take home final.  It will require you to write on a current problem or issue facing Native Americans in the United States today.  You will be asked to place this issue in an historical context as provided in the first half of the course. The answer to the exam should be between 5 to 10 pages in length.   Given that this is a writing emphasis course the take home exams will be graded both on content and on writing.

You will be given two writing assignments during the semester to fulfill the requirements for a writing emphasis class.  You will be required to do at least one re-write of each of these assignments.  You may do more re-writes if you wish and if you arrange them with me within a week after the first rewrite is due.  In each case the grade given for the assignment will be based on the final re-write that I read.  The two assignments will require from 15 to 17 pages of writing.  Each student will be expected to schedule at least one conference with me to discuss their writing.  I encourage you to meet with me to discuss each of the two writing assignments before you do the re-write for each. It is your responsibility to schedule these meetings.

The exams and the writing assignments will be worth a total of 350 points.  The mid-term is worth 100 points, and the take home final 100 points.  The two writing assignments combined will be worth 150 points.

TEXTS

Sherman Alexie – The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. 2007, Little Brown, New York .

Walter R. Echo-Hawk - In the Courts of the Conqueror, 2010, Fulcrum Publishing, Golden Colorado..

Douglas M. George-Kanentiio - Iroquois on Fire, 2006, University of Nebrasda Press, Lincoln

Nora Naranjo-Morse - Mud Woman: Poems From the Clay. 1992, University of Arizona Press, Tucson.

Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is an easily read book that gives much insight into Native American life in the United States today. In the Courts of the Conqueror, will serve as the core textbook for the course.  Iroquois on Fire is a series of essays by one of the most important Native American intellectuals with an insider's view of the Iroquois conflicts at the turn of the 21st century. Finally, Mud Woman: Poems From the Clay is a delightful commentary on Indian identity and Native American art by a major Tewa artist.  

WARNINGS

 All students are expected to read and comply with the Binghamton University Academic Honesty Policy. Any students caught in violation of this policy will be assigned an "F" in the course and subject to futher penalties as perscribed in the policy. Please do not engage in these activities. The correct answer on an assignment is not worth being suspended or expelled from the university. If you have any doubts on what plagiarism is, talk to your instructor and review the definition of plagiarism in the Honesty Policy. You will submit all written work to Turnitin.

A FINAL COMMENT

   Please feel free to contact me with any questions you might have concerning the class or just to discuss the materials we are studying.  If you have any complaints or problems please come talk to me so that we can resolve them as quickly as possible.  I hope that you will feel free to ask questions and discuss issues during the lecture.  Let me know if you are having problems and I will do what ever I can to assist you.

COURSE OUTLINE AND READINGS

 

1/17     Introduction - Native America Today: A Summary ------ First writing assignment discussed
Read:   Alexie pp. 1-82    

 1/19     The Founding of the US
Read: Echo-Hart chapters 1,2 and 3

1/24       Removal
Read:Echo-Hawk chapters 4 and 5

Homework   Documentary 2009 - Reel Injun PRIME


1/26     Assimilation ----------First writing assignment due in Hard Copy

  Read: Echo-Hawk Chapters 7 and 8

1/31     The Indian New Deal
Read:   Alexie pp. 83-129

Homework    Movie 1922 – (Silent version) Last of the Mohicans https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_dRyttFpeU  


2/2      Discussion of writing ----------First writing assignment returned

 Read:  Alexie pp.  130-167

2/7     Discuss Alexie book
Read:  Alexie pp. 168-230

2/9  The New Indians  Termination & Relocation -----------Rewrite of first assignment due in Hard copy and Electronic
Read: none

2/14    Self-Determination and Backlash
           Read:  Echo-Hawk Chapter 14

 

Homework Movie 1956 - The Searchers. PRIME $3.99   PN1997 .S3197 2006  

2/16      Trans-Generational and Historical Trauma  
Read: https://indiancountrytoday.com/archive/trauma-may-be-woven-into-dna-of-native-americans

2/21        The Reservation --------------- Research Paper Assignment Discussed
Read: Echo-Hawk chapter 8

Homework  Movie 1970 - Little Big Man PRIME included
            

2/23        Tribal Sovereignty
Read:   George-Kanentiio chapter 1 &2 
                    

2/28          Nations that Slumber---------------------------Midterm Exam Due 
 Read:   none

3/2        NO CLASS

3/ 7 Who is a Native American? 
Read: George-Kanentiio chapter 3 & 4

 

3/9          Land Claims

Read:  George-Kanentiio chapters 5 & 6

3/14      Who is a Native American?    (Guest Lecture: Lisa Savage)
Read: George-Kanentiio chapters 7 & 8

Homework  Movie 1992 – The Last of the Mohicans https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-yiHZn4qWU   

3/16     Land Claims -Discussion of George-Kanentiio
Read: George-Kanentiio chapters 9 & 10                                                     

3/21     Resources and Dakota Pipeline  
Read:  Echo-Hawk chapter 13 https://libguides.unm.edu/c.php?g=556186&p=3824062, https://americanindian.si.edu/nk360/plains-treaties/dapl                   

Homework  Movie 2015 - The Ridiculouse Six NETFLIX

3/23       Religion 
Read:  Echo-Hawk chapter 11 and 12 

3/28 White Shamanism
Read: https://qz.com/805704/columbus-day-cultural-appropriation-white-americans-need-to-stop-assuming-native-american-culture-belongs-to-them-too   
 https://hiplatina.com/indigenous-style-appropriated-uncredited/               

3/30        Documentary -   Gatherer NETFLIX   
Read:    None    

SPRING BREAK - APRIL 2 TO 10

4/11      Gambling-------------------------------------First Draft of Research Paper Due in Hard Copy
Read:  https://mnindiangamingassoc.com/about-miga/history-of-indian-gaming/#1461601215954-218692c5-6aaa            

4/13     Gender and Sexuality
Read: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/12/us/native-american-women-violence.html
              https://indianlaw.org/issue/ending-violence-against-native-women
              https://publicintegrity.org/politics/murdered-and-missing-native-american-women-challenge-police-and-courts/                                                                                            

4/18       NAGPRA & Archaeology

Read: Echo-Hawk Chapter 10    https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nagpra/index.htm      

  Homework  Movie 1990 - Dances With Wolves HBO Max                      

4/20    Art
Read:  Mud Woman and https://www.rainbowman.com/ricardo-cate-paintings

4/25      Health ---------------------------------------------Draft Research Paper Returned
Read: https://www.mercatus.org/research/policy-briefs/increasing-funding-indian-health-service-improve-native-american-health

Homework  Movie 2017 - Te Ata NETFLIX

4/27       Education ------------------------------------------------------ Final Exam Discussed                                                               
Read:    https://indiancountrytoday.com/archive/10-things-teachers-should-never-do-when-teaching-native-kids-pRpTKzHS0Uuin_fKddytbA
              https://www.kuer.org/education/2018-03-14/will-you-be-here-next-year-keeping-teachers-on-the-navajo-reservation
              https://citizen.education/2016/08/02/teaching-in-a-reservation-school-taught-me-to-walk-in-two-worlds/
              https://www.uclalawreview.org/rez-for-ed-teacher-walk-outs-on-arizona-tribal-reservations/
              https://teachers.net/states/az/topic1909/                                                                                              

5/2 STUDENTS ATTEND MONDAY CLASSES

5/4 Discussion
Read: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbYs7QagnDc (Daily Show) Echo-Hawk Chapter 15


5/5 Sci 1, room 228, 3:00 PM Final Exam Due


5/9 Sci 1, Room   228, 3:00 PM   Research Paper Rewrite due in Hard Copy and Electronic  
                                            


ASSIGNMENTS

First Assignment

Second Assignment - Research Paper

Mid-term Exam

 Final Exam

RESOURCES

Native American Art

Native American Population Map

Return to Randy's Classes Home Page
Go to top
Last Modified March 26, 2023