Indigenous Homelands Research Articles

Preface: Latin American Dance in Transnational Contexts

The idea for this special issue emerged from a panel at the 2006 American Folklore Society meeting entitled “Diasporic Moves in Latin American Dance,” which was sponsored by the Chicano and Chicana Section and the Folklore Latino, Latinoamericano, y Caribeno Section of the AFS. For that panel, three of the authors in this issue explored Latin American dance practices that crisscross national borders. I was a participant in this panel, and reading each others’ work, we each came to an increased appreciation for the importance that dance, as an embodied form of expressive culture, has in identity formation, group maintenance, and pleasure. In our presentations, we were interested in examining how dances associated with one community or group are affected by the ongoing movement of people and goods to new social and cultural locations. The papers investigated relations of power that facilitate, hinder, or impinge upon the transfer/transformation of cultural practices of dancing. We began to develop our work into a larger project, and with the addition of a fourth participant, we noted that all of the dances we document have thrived over the past fifty years. However, the patterns of adaptation to a globalizing environment were as different as the dances and dance scenes themselves. For example, the Dance of the Curpites, a ritual courtship dance examined by Joyce M. Bishop, powerfully ties individuals to their local Mexican community, despite massive and continuing out-migration from a relocated indigenous homeland. Participants in Aztec dance, the Mexican spiritual movement discussed by Sandra Garner, are only partially successful in developing relations of reciprocity through shared ritual with indigenous groups outside the country. Argentines, Ana C. Cara found, market a version of tango for external consumption precisely to safeguard their very different homegrown tradition. And in my work on the salsa scene of multicultural New Jersey, I observed dance instructors self-consciously constructing socially and racially diverse spaces of interaction within North American popular culture, inviting everyone to learn the dance. In the ensuing months of research and writing, each author developed her argument in productive new directions, considerably broadening the themes of this issue. Moreover, I was delighted to welcome Latin American dance scholar and ethnomusicologist Sydney Hutchinson as co-editor of the issue. Her introduction provides a welcome and overdue assessment of the history and current promise of dance ethnography within the fields of folklore and ethnomusicology.

‘Too strong to ever not be there’: place names and emotional geographies

This paper reflects on the emotional geography of a place; one part of the Yanyuwa people's Indigenous homelands in northern Australia. It offers a biography of a Yanyuwa place that is deemed ‘too strong to ever not be there’. There is no discreet past or present chapter in the story of this place, rather there is a continual narrative that exists right here and now, one that is embodied in emotional engagements drawn from people's connections to the spirit ancestors, the ‘old people’, today's youth, land rights, language and education. It is understood as somewhere of great strength, endurance and power, because such traits are revealed through the very name Manankurra. This is the power of a place name. Manankurra remains in memory, despite colonial actions enforcing a physical alienation from this place. Exile and physical estrangement from homelands are too familiar in colonial settings. Despite this, the cultural engagements and emotional geographies that demarcate Yanyuwa homelands, specifically Manankurra, by way of narrative, knowledge and memory were never lost, nor disembodied from the emotional experience of homelands. They surge back to life again and again, across generations, because of triggers in individual and group remembering.

The High Stakes of Protecting Indigenous Homelands

In 2000, eight First Nations and the Council of the Haida Nation formed analliance to protect their traditional territories from powerful economic, politicaland ideological interests that were moving to determine the future of coastalBritish Columbia. Their organization, Coastal First Nations (formerly, the TurningPoint Initiative), has become a significant player with governments, industry andenvironmental groups in defining the parameters for transforming coastal B.C. intoa conservation-based economy, following ecosystem-based management principles.Because environmentalists initiated their Great Bear Rainforest Campaign in thehomelands of Coastal First Nations members beginning in 1995, Coastal First Nationsprovides a window into understanding the complex unfolding of relationships betweenFirst Nations and major environmental groups. Based on an analysis of interviewswith First Nations and environmental group leaders, it is proposed that theirrelationship has evolved through four phases (confrontation, relationship building,becoming allies, and shifting terrains). By speaking with one voice while respectingthe autonomy of its members, Coastal First Nations has provided a strategic vehiclefor increasing Indigenous self-determination and self-sufficiency in First Nationshomelands in the face of ongoing colonization and global forces.

Redefining viability: Aboriginal homelands communities in north‐east Arnhem Land

The current policy debate about the future of small Indigenous homelands communities in remote Australia is being framed in terms of a narrow economic definition of ‘viability’, with little attention to factors such as the social characteristics of such communities and the health, well‐being, and aspirations of those who choose to live there. The debate is taking place in the absence of comparative socio‐demographic data on these communities as opposed to other kinds of settlements in remote Australia. This paper argues for a broader conceptualisation of viability. It outlines some reasons why governments might consider helping homelands communities to become more economically self‐sufficient rather than starving them of support so that their inhabitants increasingly face a ‘choice’ between a marginalized and impoverished existence on the homelands and recentralisation in larger settlements. The argument is based on an analysis of ethnographic data from north‐east Arnhem Land that demonstrate the social cohesiveness and functionality of homelands communities as compared to larger hub settlements.

Toward Sustainable Self-Determination: Rethinking the Contemporary Indigenous-Rights Discourse

More than eighty years since Chief Deskaheh petitioned the League of Nations for Haudenosaunee self-determination, it is becoming clearer that the existing rights discourse can take indigenous peoples only so far. States and global/regional forums have framed self-determination rights that deemphasize the responsibilities and relationships that indigenous peoples have with their families and the natural world (homelands, plant life, animal life, etc.) that are critical for the health and well-being of future generations. What is needed is a more holistic and dynamic approach to regenerating indigenous nations, and I propose the concept of sustainable self-determination as a benchmark for future indigenous political mobilization. Utilizing case studies of indigenous community regeneration such as the Native Federation of Madre de Dios (FENAMAD) in Peru and the White Earth Land Recovery Project (WELRP) on Turtle Island as well as analyzing the existing research on rights, political mobilization, and ecosystems, this article identifies alternatives to the existing rights discourse that can facilitate a meaningful and sustainable self-determination process for indigenous peoples around the world. Overall, findings from this research offer theoretical and applied understandings for regenerating indigenous nationhood and restoring sustainable relationships on indigenous homelands.

Indigenous Homeland Security: A Proposed United Nations Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the International Law of First Contact

The thesis of this Article is that outside, foreign, non-native diseases are the most dangerous threat to indigenous populations. Additional threats include the loss of cultural identity caused by the introduction of new technology, and the loss of religious and cultural identity caused by proselytizing missionaries that seek to replace the indigenous religions. As such, the world community should take all necessary steps to protect indigenous peoples from these threats. The best way to prevent the introduction of disease, technology, and foreign culture is to strictly limit any contact between modern-day society and uncontacted indigenous peoples. While some countries have domestic laws governing the relationship between their citizens and the uncontacted tribes within their country's boundaries, domestic laws are not enough because of the desire of citizens to exploit natural resources within their geopolitical boundaries. Because domestic law is insufficient to protect the indigenous populations, a rule of international law is necessary to ensure compliance in all the countries that have uncontacted indigenous populations. Current international law does not really address the problems of uncontacted indigenous peoples. The most pertinent document is the United Nations Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. According to Professor Clinton, the draft Universal Declaration of Indigenous Rights contemplates the continued international legal protection of the peoplehood and political institutions of indigenous and tribal peoples. While the Declaration has not been ratified by the United Nations member states, the fact that a draft declaration exists is a step in the right direction. The Declaration does address a number of issues facing indigenous peoples, but does not address the problem of first contact, that is, initial contact between foreign (usually Western) explorers and indigenous peoples which have had no prior human contact outside the members of their social group. Thus, I have modified the Declaration to address the issues of first contact, as well as some issues of sovereignty and cultural identity. The modified Declaration, titled Indigenous Homeland Security: A Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the International Law of First Contact can be found in Appendix A of this paper.

Amazonia: Territorial Struggles on Perennial Frontiers. By Paul E. Little. Baltimore, Md.: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2001. xv + 298 pp. Illustrations, maps, glossary, notes, bibliography, index. $45.00

In this study, Paul Little chronicles centuries of territorial disputes in Amazonia. Examining a wide variety of social groups from an environmental and anthropological perspective, Little describes the factors that have created two unique biophysical and political environments at opposite ends of the Amazon River basin's rain forest. Little makes a comparative study of the Aguarico region in eastern Ecuador (at the western upper edge of the rain forest) and the Jari region of Brazil (at its eastern lowland end) using four time frames to examine early European invasions of indigenous homelands, fortune-building attempts in Amazonia, conservation concerns in the tropical ecosystems; and disputes over territorial claims that arose during the 1990s. By interweaving his examination between the two regions within each time frame, Little effectively highlights how similar globalizing forces were locally appropriated to produce widely divergent environmental and political histories. A large part of the study is given to the period beginning in the 1950s. Little outlines the contemporary struggles - social, political, economic and ecological - arising in Amazonia. He also examines the frontier processes of ethnocide and ethnogenesis whereby the indigenous communities of the upper Amazon have retained some control over their lands, while in the lower Amazon traditional riverine communities strive for existence against increasing industrialization.

A Demographic Profile of the Tawahka Amerindians of Honduras

Latin America's lowland indigenous groups have been characterized in contradictory ways. Are populations shrinking or growing? Do groups face cultural extinction, or are they increasingly asserting their ethnic identities? This article uses a case study of the Tawahka Amerindians of Honduras to show how basic demographic techniques can shed light on these issues. A multimethod approach resolves conflicting reports of population growth and ethnic admixture within the 1,000‐strong population. Household surveys indicate a contemporary growth rate in excess of 4 percent; a review of historical sources suggests that this rapid growth has been building for more than fifty years. Although genealogical evidence shows high levels of interethnic mixing since 1900, the Tawahka retain their language and identity. The potentially negative effects of rapid population growth on local resources are likely to be mitigated as the Tawahka translate their renewed ethnic identity into political gains, which in turn have increased educational and economic opportunities. Closer attention to microdemographic processes is recommended for those involved in the long‐term management of Latin America's indigenous homelands.

Amazonia: Territorial Struggles on Perennial Frontiers

In this study, Paul Little chronicles centuries of territorial disputes in Amazonia. Examining a wide variety of social groups from an environmental and anthropological perspective, Little describes the factors that have created two unique biophysical and political environments at opposite ends of the Amazon River basin's rain forest. Little makes a comparative study of the Aguarico region in eastern Ecuador (at the western upper edge of the rain forest) and the Jari region of Brazil (at its eastern lowland end) using four time frames to examine early European invasions of indigenous homelands, fortune-building attempts in Amazonia, conservation concerns in the tropical ecosystems; and disputes over territorial claims that arose during the 1990s. By interweaving his examination between the two regions within each time frame, Little effectively highlights how similar globalizing forces were locally appropriated to produce widely divergent environmental and political histories. A large part of the study is given to the period beginning in the 1950s. Little outlines the contemporary struggles - social, political, economic and ecological - arising in Amazonia. He also examines the frontier processes of ethnocide and ethnogenesis whereby the indigenous communities of the upper Amazon have retained some control over their lands, while in the lower Amazon traditional riverine communities strive for existence against increasing industrialization.

Fieldwork as Commitment

********** To me, fieldwork is the heart of geography. I consider it the most magical, essential, and challenging part of being a geographer. Fieldwork is the ultimate mode of geographical exploration. It renews and deepens our direct experience of the planet and its diversity of lands, life, and cultures, immeasurably enriching the understanding of the world that is geography's core pursuit and responsibility. Fieldwork takes us beyond current frontiers of knowledge and preconception, enabling firsthand discoveries that no amount of theorizing or study of preexisting accounts or maps could ever reveal. Without fieldwork, geography is secondhand reporting and armchair analysis, losing much of its involvement with the world, its original insight, its authority, its contributions for addressing local and global issues, and its reason for being. This essay examines the rewards and responsibilities of long-term fieldwork with indigenous peoples that involves many rounds of returning to communities over many years. Such fieldwork is based on a continuing commitment to people and places. It is built on relationships and reciprocity, requiring a dedication to research that is as relevant to indigenous peoples' concerns as to academic ones. It demands time, sensitivity, and an involvement as much emotional as intellectual. In return, it makes possible research that differs fundamentally from short-term studies in depth and breadth of inquiry. The best fieldwork reflects a level of local knowledge, indigenous insight, and regional understanding attainable only through long relationships with a particular people and particular places. With this come new obligations and responsibilities that may reshape the direction of your career and the goals of your research. FIELDWORK AS A WAY OF LIFE My fieldwork revolves around indigenous communities and homelands. A quarter of my life over two decades has been spent in the Nepal Himalaya. Much of that work has focused on the Sherpa-inhabited areas of northeastern Nepal, including five years in the Khumbu Sherpa villages within Sagarmatha (Mount Everest) National Park and in the many Sherpa settlements of the lower-altitude Pharak and Katuthanga regions just to the south (Stevens 1991, 1993a, 1993b, 1997, n.d.). I have worked in forty-five Sherpa villages in these three settlement areas (Figure 1). For twenty years I have returned annually for fieldwork on cultural ecology, political ecology, environmental history, conservation geography, and tourism studies. This work involves wide-ranging interviews, observations, household surveys, and mapping of many facets of local life, including: indigenous geographical, environmental, and agropastoral knowledge; agricultural and pastoral practices and forest use; community-based natural resource management and co nservation; interregional and trans-Himalayan trade; settlement, economic, environmental, landscape, and cultural history and recent change; tourism development and impacts; and the many issues created by the establishment and management of inhabited national parks and protected areas in indigenous homelands. In part, it was the opportunity to conduct such fieldwork that brought me to geography, and it has become the main focus of my time and work. For me, nothing can compare with the rewards of fieldwork--the intellectual excitement of firsthand discovery and of gaining increasingly deep local knowledge and regional understanding, the satisfactions and meaning of living and working for extended periods in remote and wild country and in magnificent places, the chance to learn from people whose ways of life and attitudes toward living you admire, the opportunity to experience rhythms of everyday life and community that are impossible to find at home in twenty-first-century America, and the way in which the work itself both demands and evokes alertness, resourcefulness, adaptability, self-reliance, judgment, compassion, and original thought and insight. …

Indigenous Peoples and Ecotourism: Bringing Indigenous Knowledge and Rights into the Sustainability Equation

Indigenous peoples are finding that tourism is far from a straightforward issue. The tourism industry, especially ecotourism, is arguably the prime force today threatening indigenous homelands and cultures. Its track record of exploitation, dislocation and desecration is well documented. Meanwhile, there are enough case studies illustrating the potential of community conceptualized and owned tourism programmes to generate cautious optimism. When indigenous communities have access to reliable information on the impacts of tourism on indigenous peoples, they can share strategies for sustainable tourism among themselves and undertake decision-making, planning and negotiations from this starting point. Tourism can be a powerful addition to the toolbox of indigenous peoples fighting for their rights.