Path to Sovereignty

In Path to Sovereignty, students will examine the cultural, historical, and modern development of Tribal governance. This will include reviewing the role of American Indian treaties between Tribal Nations and the United States, exploring the historical origins of federal Indian law and policies affecting Tribes at the federal and state levels, and evaluating contemporary issues and challenges facing Tribal governments today. Students will study the legal, political, and economic frameworks that pertain specifically to Tribal Nations while also identifying how these governments affect local and regional communities in various ways, constituting themselves as a vital aspect of American society; deconstruct colonial policies that limit Tribal sovereignty while validating Indigenous theoretical and practical demonstrations of self-determination; and describe traditional and contemporary forms of Tribal governance.