Charles A. Eastman

This book contains biographical vignettes of fifteen great Indian leaders, most of them Sioux and some of them, like Red Cloud and Rain-in-the-Face, friends and acquaintances of Eastman. He pays tribute to Little Wolf, the Cheyenne chief whom he knew well, and described the noble career of Chief Joseph of the Nez Perces, who received his assistance in drawing up a document of grievances presented to the government in 1897. In finely honed prose Eastman cuts to the essence of his subjects, including Crazy Horse, Sitting Bull, Spotted Tail, Little Crow, Gall, Two Strike, American Horse, Dull Knife, Roman Nose, Hole-in-the-Day, and Tamahay.

In no other region of the United States has the notion of authenticity played such an important yet elusive role as it has in the West. Though pervasive in literature, popular culture, and history, assumptions about western authenticity have not received adequate critical attention. Given the ongoing economic and social transformations in this vast region, the persistent nostalgia and desire for the "real" authentic West suggest regional and national identities at odds with themselves. "True West explores the concept of authenticity as it is used to invent, test, advertise, and read the West.The fifteen essays collected here apply contemporary critical and cultural theory to western literary history, Native American literature and identities, the visual West, and the imagining of place. Ranging geographically from the Canadian Prairies to Buena Park's Entertainment Corridor in Southern California, and chronologically from early tourist narratives to contemporary environmental writing, "True West challenges many assumptions we make about western writing and opens the door to an important new chapter in western literary history and cultural criticism.

This book of biographical profiles and stories chronicle the astonishing courage and imagination of young people. The lives of the seventeen young men and women profiled here, who range in age from twelve to twenty-three at the time of their heroic deeds, spread across oceans and continents, cultures, races, and ethnic groups throughout 250 years. Each of their lives offers testimony to the human capacity to overcome incredible obstacles, endure, and choose honor, integrity, compassion, and service. The stories of many are told here for the first time.

Spanning the globe and the centuries, Frances Karttunen tells the stories of sixteen men and women who served as interpreters and guides to conquerors, missionaries, explorers, soldiers, and anthropologists. These interpreters acted as uncomfortable bridges between two worlds; their own marginality, the fact that they belonged to neither world, suggests the complexity and tension between cultures meeting for the first time. Some of the guides were literally dragged into their roles; others volunteered. The most famous ones were especially skilled at living in two worlds and surviving to recount their experiences. Among outsiders, the interpreters found protection. sustenance, recognition, intellectual companionship, and employment, yet most of the interpreters ultimately suffered tragic fates. Between Worlds addresses the broadest issues of cross-cultural encounters, imperialism, and capitalism and gives them a human face.

This encyclopedia, designed to meet the curriculum needs of high school and college students, provides the most comprehensive, up-to-date coverage of American Indian civil rights issues. More than 600 entries cover a variety of perspectives, issues, individuals, incidents, and court cases central to an understanding of the history of civil rights among American Indian peoples. Individual demands for equality and civil rights are central themes in U.S. history and American Indian people are no exception. They have had to deal with white racism and its expression in local and national political institutions while trying to define the rights of individual Indians vis-a-vis their own tribal governments. The struggle has made their civil rights movement unique.