John Little, PhD student in history and American Indian Studies, explores what Native American veterans' experiences were like during and after the Vietnam War. "They were fighting on two fronts: they were battling racism and stereotypes, while also fighting for the US Army,” he says.
Juliana Hu Pegues received the McKnight Land-Grant Professorship for her research into the history of Asian immigrants and Alaska Natives. Her work seeks to understand the complex history of manifest destiny and inform the greater public about how settler colonialism shapes modern America.
Inspired by Brenda Child's research, Google commissioned a "doodle" honoring the jingle dress, a 100-year-old American-Indian tradition with roots in MN. "It is still empowering women in their communities today," says Child, the leading authority on the jingle dress.
“Minnesota” comes from the Dakota word “Mni Sota Makoce,” which translates to “the land of cloudy waters.” Canoe Rising encourages students and community members alike to pay homage to the land that sustains them by participating in canoe outings, lectures, and more.
Christopher Pexa, assistant professor of English and of American Indian Studies, researches the important role that oral and written histories have played in preserving the culture of the Dakota. His book, "Translated Nation: Rewriting the Dakota Oyate," is scheduled to be released in June by the University of Minnesota Press.
NPR's Mary Louise Kelly discusses President Trump's tweets referencing Native Americans with David Chang, chair of the Department of American Indian Studies.
The jingle dress dance is a spiritual healing practice dating back to 1918. Guided by the research efforts of Brenda Child—professor and current chair of the Department of American Studies—an exhibit featuring the evolution of the dress will launch in April 2019. How did this tradition emerge from a story, a dream, and the worst pandemic that the modern world has seen?
Last March, three staff members in the Department of American Indian Studies traveled to Hawai’i to observe their full-immersion schools. Potentially implementing elements from full-immersion programs like those in Hawai’i could help facilitate the necessary efforts toward Dakota and Ojibwe language revitalization.
