J O U R N A L O F A M E R I C A N I N D I A N E D U C A T I O N – 5 4 , I S S U E 1 1 Editors’ Introduction Sovereignty and Education: An Overview of the Unique Nature of Indigenous Education bryan mckinley jones brayboy, susan c. faircloth, tiffany s. lee, margaret j. maaka, and troy a. richardson According to creek scholar K. Tsianina Lomawaima (2000), “The history of American Indian education can be summarized in three simple words: battle for power” (p. 2). This statement concisely illustrates the larger complex struggle regarding the schooling of American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians. Education was and in many ways continues to be (1) a battle for the hearts and minds of Indigenous nations; (2) a colonial call for assimilation; and (3) a responsibility of the federal government arising from a series of agreements between Indian nations and the United States meant to open up land bases to a burgeoning immigrant population. In short, the education of Indigenous peoples is intricately intertwined with the legal/political relationship between Indigenous peoples and the U.S. government, as well as myriad racist policies and practices that have devastated Indian children and communities.1 In this introduction, we briefly outline this relationship and offer an overview of the articles that follow. Indigenous peoples2 have inhabited the lands that comprise the contemporary “United States of America” since long before its origination as a nation-state. Without the almost 400 treaty3 agreements signed between the first inhabitants and the European emigrants, which resulted in the ceding of over 1 billion acres of land, the United States could not have been established (for more details regarding this subject see, generally , the work of: Vine Deloria Jr., Vine Deloria Jr. and Clifford M. Lytle, Rebecca A. Tsosie, David Wilkins, and Robert A. Williams). Congress later ratified these treaties, or agreements between equals. Today, these treaty agreements remain in effect, holding the United States responsible 2 J O U R N A L O F A M E R I C A N I N D I A N E D U C A T I O N – 5 4 , I S S U E 1 for providing for the general welfare of the American Indian peoples as well as supplying critical social services, such as health care and education (Deloria & Lytle, 1983). This arrangement, which confers a special relationship unlike any other, has historically influenced and continues to influence schooling for American Indians. In order to better understand and appreciate the unique educational challenges facing present-day American Indian and Alaska Native communities,4 it is important to understand their unique history and political relationship with the United States. The legacy of European invasion, incessant attempts to dispossess American Indians of their lands and culture(s), and the cumulative effects of colonization and forced assimilation have resulted in a unique context from which to understand Indigenous education and the persistence of tribal communities . Our hope is to offer a primer for those unfamiliar with Indigenous education and to offer a refresher and framing mechanism for those familiar with the education of Indigenous peoples. What Does American Indian “Sovereignty” Mean? American Indian, as well as Alaska Native (AI/AN) and Native Hawaiian populations, are the most diverse in the country. American Indians, in particular, represent more than 560 distinct federally recognized tribes (sometimes referred to as tribal nations)5 and at least half as many distinct state-recognized groups (U.S. Census Bureau, 2007). Each tribal nation has its own history, culture, and language. Although not all tribes are federally recognized, those who are share in common their distinctive government-to-government relationship with the federal government. Moreover, enrolled members of such tribes have the benefit of multiple citizenships (e.g., to tribal/Indigenous nation, nationstate , state, and in some cases, clan societies) wherein they do not lose civil rights because of their status as tribal citizens, and individual tribal citizens are not denied tribal rights because of their U.S. citizenship (Deloria & Lytle, 1983). Given their unique history and political...