Indians- Why and How?

June 26, 2007 11:23 PM

What are MeFi's favorite resources about American Indian law? I'm a fairly well-read person on the letters of the law- I read the appropriate journals and legal briefs- but I'd like a more comprehensive set of rhetoric about the native peoples of the Americas.

I know about some typical web sites- Cornell has a pretty good resource, and so forth- but I'm looking for things that aren't obvious.

I'm willing to dive into complex sources- I lovelovelove Foreign Affairs and several other journals, so I'm not afraid of the real law or academics. I just like big books I can read and refer my friends to.

Thanks!

posted by thethirdman to Law & Government (8 answers total)

Are you looking for US-centered resources, or the whole hemisphere?
posted by mdonley at 11:29 PM on June 26, 2007

The Northwestern School of Law's library. I studied under a professor connected with the school, someone who really knew his stuff because he was constantly involved, and he was always in that library. You're in the right place, as it's one of the few law schools that actually has a very good Native American law program.
Failing that, go pick up A.L. Kroeber's work as an anthropology background, because the background of Native American Indian Law is useless without knowing the ethnohistory behind it.
posted by lilithim at 11:45 PM on June 26, 2007

Why not contact tribes directly? Those that have established tribal court systems will undoubtedly have resources available.
posted by unixrat at 6:37 AM on June 27, 2007

Start with the Dawes Act.
posted by nasreddin at 7:26 AM on June 27, 2007

The Native American Rights Fund's National Indian Law Library is a great resource, with lots of stuff online.

As far as books are concerned, The Cohen Handbook is the essential standard reference, but it's probably too expensive for a non-professional to buy. You might be able to get a copy from the library.

You also might want to check out this book, though given that it's a law school textbook, it might be kind of frustrating for a lay reader.

Finally, I just noticed that one of my old professors has released this DVD on Federal Indian Law. I haven't actually seen the film, but Charles Wilkinson's a very knowledgeable guy, and I bet the film's worth seeing.
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 3:18 PM on June 27, 2007

(With re: the Getches text, I'm not saying that you don't have the background to understand it-- it's just that it's designed to support a Socratically-taught class, and not necessarily to provide solid answers. In other words, it's written for maximum ambiguity, not maximum clarity. But it's still worth looking at.)
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 3:21 PM on June 27, 2007

Check out Braid of Feathers. Indian law in context of daily life.
posted by salvia at 2:45 AM on June 28, 2007

Second Braid of Feathers. It's a wonderful book.
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 10:14 AM on June 28, 2007