Subtitle: Tribal Self-Representations in Museums, Powwows, and Casinos
Author: Mary Lawlor
Subject: Native American Studies
Paper ISBN 0-8135-3865-3
Cloth ISBN 0-8135-3864-5
Pages: 240 pp. 10 b&w illus
Praise for Public Native America
"Public Native America provides new insight into the sometimes conflicting self-representations of Native American tribes in public venues, from casinos to museums and memorials. Making effective use of scholarly literature in postcolonial and cultural studies along with her own experience of visiting these sites, Lawlor's admirably straightforward approach takes on the perplexing questions that can arise from this exploration."-Lucy Maddox, professor of English, Georgetown University
Description:
Both glamorous and scandalous, the Native American casino and gaming industry has attracted the American public's attention to life on reservations to an unprecedented degree. At the same time, other tribal public venues, such as museums and powwows, have gained in popularity among non-Native audiences and become sites of education and performance. With the visibility, money, and political access gained through these reservation-owned businesses and cultural centers, individual tribes have taken great strides in redefining their public images to off-reservation audiences.
In Public Native America, Mary Lawlor explores the process of tribal self-definition. Focusing on architectural and interior designs as well as performance styles, she reveals how a complex and often surprising cultural dynamic is created when Native Americans create lavish displays for the public's participation and consumption. At first glance, the use of ostentatious and stylized dcor, especially in gambling establishments, is puzzling. Is it authentic or does it intentionally play into preconceived notions about tribal life?
Drawing on postcolonial and cultural studies, Lawlor argues that these venues serve as a stage where indigenous communities play out delicate negotiations-on one hand retaining traditional beliefs and rituals, while on the other, using what they have learned about U.S. politics, corporate culture, tourism, and public relations to advance their economic positions.
About the Author:
Mary Lawlor is an associate professor of English and director of American studies at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Table of Contents:
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter 1: Identity in Mashantucket
Chapter 2: Displaying Loss at Navajoland
Chapter 3: Wind River Lessons
Chapter 4: Keeping History at Acoma Pueblo
Chapter 5: Indigenous Internationalism: Native Rights and the UN
Notes
Index
