Devon A. Mihesuah

A baffling museum murder that appears to be the work of twisted human killers results in an unexpected and violent confrontation with powerful shape-shifters for Choctaw detective Monique Blue Hawk. Blending tribal beliefs and myths into a modern context, The Hatak Witchescontinues the storyline of Choctaw cosmology and cultural survival that are prominent in Devon A. Mihesuah's award-winning novel, The Roads of My Relations.

The Hatak Witches

Elizabeth Hoover

Winona LaDuke

Restoring Cultural Knowledge, Protecting Environments, and Regaining Health

Indigenous Food Sovereignty in the United States

The disappearance of a young Choctaw leads Detective Monique Blue Hawk to investigate a little-known ceremonial dance. As she traces the steps of the missing man, she discovers that the seemingly innocuous Renewal Dance is not what it appears to be. After Monique embarks on a journey that she never thought possible, she learns that the past and future can converge to offer endless possibilities for the present. She must also accept her own destiny of violence and peacekeeping.

Dance of the Returned

American Indians: Stereotypes & Realities provides an informative and engaging Indian perspective on common misconceptions concerning American Indians which afflict public and even academic circles to this very day. Written in a highly accessible stereotype/reality format, it includes numerous illustrations and brief bibliographies on each topic PLUS these appendices: * Do's and Don'ts for those who teach American Indian history and culture * Suggested Guidelines for Institutions with Scholars who Conduct Research on American Indians * Course outline for American Indian history and culture survey with suggested projects * Outline for course "American Indian Women in History" with extensive bibliography An American Indian perspective on discrimination issues WIDELY ENDORSED BY AMERICAN INDIAN SCHOLARS "Professor Mihesuah goes beyond simply providing responses to common stereotypes. She provides the reader with assistance in efforts to improve understanding of her peoples. Each of the chapters provides solid information to challenge myths and stereotypes. Excellent photographs are interspersed throughout the book.... The implications of this book for social work practice are extensive... A valuable contribution" Journal of Multicultural Social Work "A precious primer on Native Americans for anyone who can handle the truth about how the West was won." Kam Williams, syndicated "This book should be read by every educator and included in the collections of every school and university library." Flagstaff Live "Mihesuah's work should be required reading for elemetary and upper level teachers, college instructors and parents. Let us hope it finds a wide readership in mainstream circles." Joel Monture, MultiCultural Review "Devon Mihesuah has provided precious insight into the racial identity and cultural struggles of American Indians as they strive to succeed in modern America. She has successfully challenged harmful stereotypes and racism in this significant book... If an accurate history is to be learned, then society must accept the truth of cultural pluralism and give equal and fair treatment to Native Americans and other minorities... As an American Indian and a university scholar of history, I applaud Devon Mihesuah for successfully confronting the literature of false portrayal and negative images of Indian people." Dr. Donald L. Fixico, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo

Stereotypes & Realities

American Indians

Established by the Cherokee Nation in 1851 in present-day eastern Oklahoma, the nondenominational Cherokee Female Seminary was one of the most important schools in the history of American Indian education. Devon Mihesuah explores its curriculum, faculty, administration, and educational philosophy. Recipient of a 1995 Critics' Choice Award of the American Educational Studies Association. 24 photos.

The Education of Women at the Cherokee Female Seminary, 1851-1909

Cultivating the Rosebuds

Who was Nede Wade Christie? Was he a violent criminal guilty of murdering a federal officer? Or a Cherokee statesman who suffered a martyr’s death for a crime he did not commit? For more than a century, journalists, pulp fiction authors, and even serious historians have produced largely fictitious accounts of “Ned” Christie’s life. Now, in a tour de force of investigative scholarship, Devon A. Mihesuah offers a far more accurate depiction of Christie and the times in which he lived. In 1887 Deputy U.S. Marshal Dan Maples was shot and killed in Tahlequah, Indian Territory. As Mihesuah recounts in unsurpassed detail, any of the criminals in the vicinity at the time could have committed the crime. Yet the federal court at Fort Smith, Arkansas, focused on Christie, a Cherokee Nation councilman and adviser to the tribal chief. Christie evaded capture for five years. His life ended when a posse dynamited his home—knowing he was inside—and shot him as he emerged from the burning building. The posse took Christie’s body to Fort Smith, where it lay for three days on display for photographers and gawkers. Nede’s family suffered as well. His teenage cousin Arch Wolfe was sentenced to prison and ultimately perished in the Canton Asylum for “insane” Indians—a travesty that, Mihesuah shows, may even surpass the injustice of Nede’s fate. Placing Christie’s story within the rich context of Cherokee governance and nineteenth-century American political and social conditions, Mihesuah draws on hundreds of newspaper accounts, oral histories, court documents, and family testimonies to assemble the most accurate portrayal of Christie’s life possible. Yet the author admits that for all this information, we may never know the full story, because Christie’s own voice is largely missing from the written record. In addition, she spotlights our fascination with villains and martyrs, murder and mayhem, and our dangerous tendency to glorify the “Old West.” More than a biography, Ned Christie traces the making of an American myth.

The Creation of an Outlaw and Cherokee Hero

Ned Christie

Centuries of colonization and other factors have disrupted indigenous communities’ ability to control their own food systems. This volume explores the meaning and importance of food sovereignty for Native peoples in the United States, and asks whether and how it might be achieved and sustained. Unprecedented in its focus and scope, this collection addresses nearly every aspect of indigenous food sovereignty, from revitalizing ancestral gardens and traditional ways of hunting, gathering, and seed saving to the difficult realities of racism, treaty abrogation, tribal sociopolitical factionalism, and the entrenched beliefs that processed foods are superior to traditional tribal fare. The contributors include scholar-activists in the fields of ethnobotany, history, anthropology, nutrition, insect ecology, biology, marine environmentalism, and federal Indian law, as well as indigenous seed savers and keepers, cooks, farmers, spearfishers, and community activists. After identifying the challenges involved in revitalizing and maintaining traditional food systems, these writers offer advice and encouragement to those concerned about tribal health, environmental destruction, loss of species habitat, and governmental food control.

So You Want to Write about American Indians? is the first of its kind an indispensable guide for anyone interested in writing and publishing a novel, memoir, collection of short stories, history, or ethnography involving the Indigenous peoples of the United States. In clear language illustrated with examples many from her own experiences Choctaw scholar and writer Devon Abbott Mihesuah explains the basic steps involved with writing about American Indians. So You Want to Write about American Indians? provides a concise overview of the different types of fiction and nonfiction books written about Natives and the common challenges and pitfalls encountered when writing each type of book. Mihesuah presents a list of ethical guidelines to follow when researching and writing about Natives, including the goals of the writer, stereotypes to avoid, and cultural issues to consider. She also offers helpful tips for developing ideas and researching effectively, submitting articles to journals, drafting effective book proposals, finding inspiration, contacting an editor, polishing a manuscript, preparing a persuasive résumé or curriculum vitae, coping with rejection, and negotiating a book contract.

Devon A. Mihesuah

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