Politics between the lines: Petition writing on an Indian reservation (1880–1980)
Grillot, Thomas
Politics between the lines: Petition writing on an Indian reservation (1880–1980) - 2016.
95
The examination of 120 petitions signed over the course of a century by the Indian inhabitants of the Sioux reservation of Standing Rock invites an analysis of the specific politicization of a colonized people. The corpus, the majority of which was signed prior to the Second World War, shows how a local political space was shaped by the interactions of Indians, non-Indians, and the US federal government in this period. Between 1880 and 1980, as Indian political mobilization was alternately stigmatized and encouraged, writing and organizational skills developed, which are both revealed and mobilized in the petitions. As an index of politicization, petitions are particularly useful in bringing to light a “silent majority”’s ambivalent relationship to political activity, as well as the specific involvement of leaders, both men and women, in tribal affairs.
Politics between the lines: Petition writing on an Indian reservation (1880–1980) - 2016.
95
The examination of 120 petitions signed over the course of a century by the Indian inhabitants of the Sioux reservation of Standing Rock invites an analysis of the specific politicization of a colonized people. The corpus, the majority of which was signed prior to the Second World War, shows how a local political space was shaped by the interactions of Indians, non-Indians, and the US federal government in this period. Between 1880 and 1980, as Indian political mobilization was alternately stigmatized and encouraged, writing and organizational skills developed, which are both revealed and mobilized in the petitions. As an index of politicization, petitions are particularly useful in bringing to light a “silent majority”’s ambivalent relationship to political activity, as well as the specific involvement of leaders, both men and women, in tribal affairs.
Réseaux sociaux