American Indian Studies Association

American Indian Studies Association
Name	American Indian Studies Association
Abbreviation	AISA
Formation	1970s
Type	Scholarly association
Headquarters	United States
Region served	North America
Membership	Scholars, activists, students, community leaders
Leader title	President

American Indian Studies Association The American Indian Studies Association is a North American scholarly organization linking scholarship on Indigenous peoples across the United States, Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean. It brings together scholars, activists, artists, and community leaders associated with institutions such as Harvard University, University of California, Berkeley, Stanford University, University of New Mexico, and University of British Columbia to advance research, pedagogy, and policy related to Native nations including the Navajo Nation, Ojibwe, Cherokee Nation, Lakota, and Haida. Founded amid intellectual movements connected to events like the Trail of Broken Treaties, the association intersects with work on treaties such as the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the Treaty of Fort Laramie while engaging with cultural figures and institutions including Vine Deloria Jr., Winona LaDuke, Simon Ortiz, Joy Harjo, and The Smithsonian Institution.

History

The association traces roots to conferences and networks developed during the 1960s and 1970s alongside organizations such as the American Indian Movement, National Congress of American Indians, Association on American Indian Affairs, American Anthropological Association, and universities like University of Arizona and University of Minnesota. Early participants included scholars connected to projects at Smith College, Cornell University, University of California, Los Angeles, Yale University, Dartmouth College, and Brigham Young University, and activists involved with events like the Occupation of Alcatraz and the Wounded Knee Incident. Over decades the association convened members from tribes including the Pueblo of Zuni, Tlingit, Apache, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, Muscogee (Creek) Nation, and Blackfeet Nation to address legal outcomes from cases such as United States v. Sioux Nation of Indians and policy shifts following the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act.

Mission and Activities

The association’s mission advances Indigenous scholarship linked to curricula at institutions like Columbia University, University of Michigan, University of Chicago, Indiana University Bloomington, and Arizona State University and supports cultural programming in venues such as National Museum of the American Indian, Museum of Anthropology at UBC, and tribal colleges including Haskell Indian Nations University and Sinte Gleska University. It promotes collaborative research with communities including the Hopi Tribe, Seminole Tribe of Florida, Shinnecock Indian Nation, Mi'kmaq, and Mohawk and engages with issues arising from legislation such as the Indian Child Welfare Act and decisions like Carcieri v. Salazar. The association fosters dialogues across artistic practitioners like Gerald Vizenor, Tsianina Redfeather Blackstone, Lenape, and media outlets such as Indian Country Today.

Governance and Membership

Governance draws elected officers and board members affiliated with centers like the Native American Studies Program at UC Davis, Center for Native American and Indigenous Research at Harvard, Native American and Indigenous Studies Association, and departments at University of New Mexico Gallup Campus, University of Oklahoma, University of Washington, and McGill University. Members include faculty such as those from Brown University, Rutgers University, University of Colorado Boulder, University of Texas at Austin, University of Oregon, graduate students supported by fellowships like the Ford Foundation Fellowship and community scholars from organizations like the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium and the First Nations Development Institute. The association collaborates with tribal governments including the Oneida Nation, Choctaw Nation, Yakama Nation, and Chippewa-Cree Tribe on membership and advisory roles.

Conferences and Publications

Annual conferences have been hosted at venues such as University of California, Santa Cruz, University of New Mexico, University of British Columbia, University of Minnesota, and University of Arizona and have featured panels engaging with archives like the National Archives and Records Administration, collections at American Philosophical Society, and exhibits at the Field Museum. The association publishes proceedings, edited volumes, and journals linked to university presses such as University of Nebraska Press, University of Arizona Press, Oxford University Press, Duke University Press, and Routledge and collaborates with journals including American Indian Quarterly, Wicazo Sa Review, Journal of American History, and Ethnohistory. Special issues have covered topics involving photographers and writers like Edward S. Curtis, N. Scott Momaday, Louise Erdrich, Sherman Alexie, and archival sources from the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Research and Education Initiatives

Research initiatives emphasize partnerships with tribal colleges including Sinte Gleska University, Salish Kootenai College, Navajo Technical University, and community archives such as The Heard Museum collections, while supporting projects on language revitalization for languages like Cherokee language, Ojibwe language, Navajo language, Lakota language, and Mohawk language. Education initiatives collaborate with K–12 programs linked to districts such as Albuquerque Public Schools and initiatives like the Sealaska Heritage Institute language programs and curricular reforms influenced by the Every Student Succeeds Act. Collaborative grants have been awarded through funders including the National Endowment for the Humanities, National Science Foundation, and foundations such as the Ford Foundation and Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Advocacy and Policy Impact

The association engages in advocacy connected to tribal sovereignty issues addressed in litigation like Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta, legislative matters such as the Violence Against Women Act reauthorizations with tribal provisions, and federal policies shaped by the Bureau of Indian Education and the Indian Health Service. It submits amicus briefs and policy statements alongside organizations such as the National Congress of American Indians, Native American Rights Fund, First Peoples Worldwide, and academic bodies including the American Historical Association and Modern Language Association. Through collaborations with cultural institutions like the Smithsonian Institution and tribal museums including the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, the association influences museum repatriation practices under statutes such as the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.

Category:Indigenous studies organizations