1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910456118903321

Autore

Prucha Francis Paul

Titolo

The Indians in American society [[electronic resource] ] : from the Revolutionary War to the present / / Francis Paul Prucha

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Berkeley, : University of California Press, c1985

ISBN

1-282-35540-6

9786612355400

0-520-90884-8

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (138 p.)

Collana

Quantum books

Disciplina

973/.0497

Soggetti

Indians of North America - Government relations

Electronic books.

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Essays presented as the Gasson lectures at Boston College on Nov. 30, 1983, Mar. 14, 1984, Nov. 7, 1984, and Mar. 13, 1985.

First paperback printing 1988.

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references (p. [105]-117) and index.

Nota di contenuto

Paternalism -- Dependency -- Indian rights -- Self-determination.

Sommario/riassunto

American Indian affairs are much in the public mind today-hotly contested debates over such issues as Indian fishing rights, land claims, and reservation gambling hold our attention. While the unique legal status of American Indians rests on the historical treaty relationship between Indian tribes and the federal government, until now there has been no comprehensive history of these treaties and their role in American life.Francis Paul Prucha, a leading authority on the history of American Indian affairs, argues that the treaties were a political anomaly from the very beginning. The term "treaty" implies a contract between sovereign independent nations, yet Indians were always in a position of inequality and dependence as negotiators, a fact that complicates their current attempts to regain their rights and tribal sovereignty.Prucha's impeccably researched book, based on a close analysis of every treaty, makes possible a thorough understanding of a legal dilemma whose legacy is so palpably felt today.