Red Power: The American Indians' Fight for Freedom

by Alvin M. Josephy Jr. (Editor), Troy Johnson (Editor), Troy R. Johnson (Editor)

Red Power is a classic documentary history of the American Indian activist movement. This landmark second edition considerably expands and updates the original, illustrating the development of American Indian political activism from the 1960s through the end of the twentieth century.

 

Included in the fifty selections are influential statements by Indian organizations and congressional committees, the texts of significant laws, and the articulate voices of individuals such as Clyde Warrior, Vine Deloria Jr., Dennis Banks, Wilma Mankiller, Ada Deer, and Russell Means. The selections are organized around key the nature of the original Red Power protest; tribal identity, self-determination, and sovereignty; land claims and economic development; cultural traditions and spirituality; education; and reservation conditions.

Genres: History, Native American, Politics, Nonfiction

300 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1972

About the author

An American historian who specialized in Native American topics. He served as a combat correspondent during World War II and was awarded the Bronze Star for his coverage of the U.S. capture of Guam. His interest in Native American history started during an assignment from Time Magazine.

Reviews

[Brandon Fryman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I find this book full of useful information, actual letter, court cases, laws, and historical facts. The chapters are neatly organized into various subjects like education, land, etc. It even has a chapter on future population sizes. This is one of those books that is a great resource.

[Indigo Ryder · Rating 5 out of 5]

The formatting in this book is delightfully organized and categorized!! The primary source documents chosen vary in nature and all aid in the different section themes. I loved the intro analysis' for each document and will be refrencing this book often!

[Susan Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick historical summary of the AIM movement and its affiliates, as well as government atrocities during the time period. I would have liked more biographical info on the main leaders but it looks like brevity was the goal. More illustrations would also have been nice.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This work is an important collection of the articles and political statements that were at the core of the Native American Red Power movement of the1960s. Josephy gathered sources from the major events and public speakers of that era, beginning in 1964 with the formation of the National Indian Youth Council, covering the Pan Indian movement, the Alcatraz incident, the protests for the recognition of native rights past and present to certain resources, through to a 1970 article written by one of the most prolific and recognized Native American authors, Vine Deloria, Jr. who highlighted both Indian grievances and successes. While most of the articles are written by Native Americans, one notable exception is the inclusion of President Richard Nixon’s 1970 speech which argued for the right of self-determination of individual tribes and finally put an end to the threat of complete government withdraw from native tribes who want and need assistance. The overall work is thoughtfully constructed, and in general covers the important moments. At first glance, I was surprised that the BIA take over by the Native Americans (1972) was not mentioned until I checked the publication date (1971). As such, the author clearly cannot be faulted for this omission; however, future reprints of this book should certainly include something from that incident as it became the culminating event to an especially tumultuous decade of native-white relations.

On a side note, Josephy begins the work with a quote from Black Elk, one of the most recognized native (Ogala Sioux) spiritual leaders and cousin to Crazy Horse, whose autobiography was central to the spiritual component of the Red Power Movement. However, Josephy has mistranslated the native word "Wasichus" as "white men" in his quote instead of "Others or Outsiders" with no as the introduction to "Black Elk Speaks" makes clear. I feel that this mistranslation purposeful or not, speaks to the highly racialized mentality of the era - the powerless minority (native, black or women) versus the white men in power.