Many Nations under Many Gods: Public Land Management and American Indian Sacred Sites by Todd Allin Morman

Abstract

Reviewed by: Many Nations under Many Gods: Public Land Management and American Indian Sacred Sites by Todd Allin Morman Kari Forbes-Boyte Many Nations under Many Gods: Public Land Management and American Indian Sacred Sites. By Todd Allin Morman. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2018. vii + 248 pp. Notes, bibliography, index. $39.95 paper. Todd Allin Morman’s book, Many Nations Under Many Gods, provides an excellent overview of United States policies and procedures toward Native American sacred land. The book is a compilation of various case studies of sacred places throughout the American West, which are analyzed in terms of the administrative consultation with Native Americans required by law, critical analysis of judicial decisions, and a review of certain legislation. The author successfully intertwines legal theory with a finely detailed narrative. The book is approachable for both the novice and experienced researchers in similar fields. The strength of the work is the author’s unique perspective as a practicing attorney. Morman offers strong analysis of judicial decisions. He deciphers how judicial decisions are made, highlights strengths of arguments, and points out the errors of decisions. He critiques the unwillingness of judges and attorneys to acknowledge the cultural values of place-based religions. He particularly questions the ethnocentrism apparent in the US Supreme Court decisions regarding Native American sacred places. As a geographer, I appreciate his local-level analysis. He effectively examines the land-management consultation process with impacted Native American communities. Through an understanding of what is meant by meaningful consultation, he investigates a variety of cases, commending some administrative decisions while criticizing others. For the scholar interested in the Great Plains, Morman provides examples from this region. His first case study is an analysis of Bear Lodge (i.e., Devil’s Tower) in Wyoming. He also investigates the Dakota Access Pipeline and Standing Rock Reservation. His geographical focus is spread throughout the western US, but the events told are applicable to other conflicts between governmental land-management agencies and Native peoples in the Great Plains. His work will enhance my own research with the Lakota and Bear Butte. I, too, have made the argument that careful and genuine consultation with tribal peoples can open lines of communication. This in turn can help navigate the cultural divide between the settler colonial system and indigenous nations. I would highly recommend this fascinating book for anyone interested in public management, legislative acts, and judicial decisions regarding Native Americans. As a geographer, however, I think the omission of maps and photographs is detrimental. The use of these visual aids adds a contextual layer useful for many readers. But this does not detract from the depth of analysis and the author’s perspective of administrative consultations and judicial decisions that impact the culture and lifeways of Native Americans. [End Page 119] Kari Forbes-Boyte Professor of Geography College of Arts and Sciences Dakota State University Copyright © 2021 Center for Great Plains Studies, University of Nebraska–Lincoln