Native Americans and the Christian Right: The Gendered Politics of Unlikely Alliances

by Andrea Lee Smith

In Native Americans and the Christian Right , Andrea Smith advances social movement theory beyond simplistic understandings of social-justice activism as either right-wing or left-wing and urges a more open-minded approach to the role of religion in social movements. In examining the interplay of biblical scripture, gender, and nationalism in Christian Right and Native American activism, Smith rethinks the nature of political strategy and alliance-building for progressive purposes, highlighting the potential of unlikely alliances, termed “cowboys and Indians coalitions” by one of her Native activist interviewees. She also complicates ideas about identity, resistance, accommodation, and acquiescence in relation to social-justice activism. Smith draws on archival research, interviews, and her own participation in Native struggles and Christian Right conferences and events. She considers American Indian activism within the Promise Keepers and new Charismatic movements. She also explores specific opportunities for building unlikely alliances. For instance, while evangelicals’ understanding of the relationship between the Bible and the state may lead to reactionary positions on issues including homosexuality, civil rights, and abortion, it also supports a relatively progressive position on prison reform. In terms of evangelical and Native American feminisms, she reveals antiviolence organizing to be a galvanizing force within both communities, discusses theories of coalition politics among both evangelical and indigenous women, and considers Native women’s visions of sovereignty and nationhood. Smith concludes with a reflection on the implications of her research for the field of Native American studies.

Genres: Nonfiction, Christianity, Religion, Indigenous, Race, Activism, Politics

400 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2008

About the author

Andrea Smith is a Cherokee intellectual, feminist, and anti-violence activist. Smith's work focuses on issues of violence against women of color and their communities, specifically Native American women.

Along with Nadine Naber, she co-founded INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence in 2000, and she plays a prominent role in its National Planning Committee. INCITE! is a national grassroots organization that engages in direct action and critical dialogue to end violence against women of color and their communities. Smith was also a founding member of the Boarding School Healing Project (BSHP). According to its website, the BSHP "seeks to document Native boarding school abuses so that Native communities can begin healing from boarding school abuses and demand justice." Smith has worked with Amnesty International as a Bunche Fellow, coordinating the research project on sexual violence and American Indian women. In 2005, Smith was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize "as a woman who works daily for peace" in recognition of her research and work regarding violence against women of color in the US.

http://www.boardingschoolhealingproje...

Smith earned her bachelor's degree at Harvard University in Comparative Study of Religion, and her Masters of Divinity at the Union Theological Seminary in 1997. In 2002, she received her Ph.D. in History of Consciousness from UC Santa Cruz. Smith's Conquest: Sexual Violence and American Indian Genocide won the 2005 Gustavus Myers Outstanding Book Award. She is currently a professor of American Culture and Women's Studies at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, MI.

On February 22, 2008, Smith received a negative tenure recommendation from the College of Literature, Science and the Arts at the University of Michigan. This decision has attracted "an unusual degree of attention from scholars, both at Ann Arbor and nationally" and "prompted some to wage an online campaign saying the University's tenure evaluation process discriminates against women of color and interdisciplinary professors."

A statement issued by an anonymous group of students and faculty from the University of Michigan protesting the decision immediately began circulating via email and among feminist blogs. The statement refers to Smith as "one of the greatest indigenous feminist intellectuals of our time" and highlights Smith's relevance as both a scholar and social justice advocate, noting that as "a result of her work, scholars, social service providers, and community-based organizations throughout the United States have shifted from state-focused efforts to more systemic approaches for addressing violence against women." A Facebook group in support of Smith's tenure bid and online petition to University of Michigan provost Teresa Sullivan soon followed.

Reviews

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

A powerful and expansive look at coalition building and the politics of creating unlikely alliances. Smith is a Native American, Christian evangelical, and a feminist as well as wicked smart academic who shows how groups on opposite ends of the political spectrum can and often must work together in order to achieve real goals. Thick, and intriguing.

[Kristin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredibly interesting discussion. I think it's rare to put down an academic book and feel like I've truly started to question my own assumptions about groups of people. This book isn't preaching to the choir -- or at least, it's preaching to several choirs that you'd never think would be in the same church.

[Myla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the book! Good read on the development and structure of "unlikely alliances." Well done of course - it's Andy

[kylajaclyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Had to read this for school, but I certainly learned a lot. Andrea's theme throughout the book is building coalitions and unlikely alliances, particularly between the Christian Right and Native American feminists. There is some really intriguing stuff in here too about the prison system that I had never considered before. She's also going to be talking to our class, which I think makes the book all the more interesting knowing we will see her this week. I do recommend this book if you are an activist or interested in other sides to Native American culture.

[David Leonard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Powerful historic intervention that not only documents "unlikely coalitions between evangelicals and Native Americans but provides important framework for discussing coalitions, and movements committed to change. Offers an important examination of movements within indigenous communities in a spectrum of locations

[Reise Green · Rating 1 out of 5]

Andrea Smith misrepresents herself as native, and certainly is not. She is neither genetically native, nor is she accepted by any Native Tribe. Her obtuse insistence that she is Native undermines her credibility and leads me to not support her work monetarily in any way.

[LeeRay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mind-blowing. A must read, especially for anyone who considers themselves an activist.