Urban Homelands: Writing the Native City from Oklahoma

Oklahoma is influenced by the South and Southwest, but Native Americans have also contributed to urbanization through mobility, ingenuity, cultural exchange, and creative expression. Tulsa, New Orleans, and Santa Fe are important to understanding Native American urbanization in Oklahoma. Urban Homelands explores the overlooked histories of Oklahoma Indigenous urbanization by engaging literature and film as mirrors of experience and producers of it. This creative reclaiming of Indigenous cities points to the productive possibilities of recognizing untold urban histories and the creative relationships with urban space.

Format: Hardback
Length: 258 pages
Publication date: 01 October 2023
Publisher: University of Nebraska Press

Oklahoma is deeply intertwined with the legacies of conquest and Indigenous survivance from both the South and the Southwest. Simultaneously, the phenomenon of urbanization has played a pivotal role in the lives of the Native American tribes that call this place home. Tulsa, New Orleans, and Santa Fe, with their significant roles in the histories of geopolitical upheaval and mobility that shaped the establishment of the United States, hold the key to understanding the urbanization experiences of Native Americans from Oklahoma.

Urban Homelands, in its exploration of the overlooked histories of Oklahoma Indigenous urbanization in relation to these regions, employs literature and film not merely as mirrors of experience but as active agents in shaping it. Lindsey Claire Smith engages in a captivating conversation with three-time poet laureate Joy Harjo, renowned Cherokee playwright Lynn Riggs, and emerging filmmaker Sterlin Harjo. By challenging civic landmarks and settler histories that often obscure Native origins and appropriating Native culture for tourism, this creative reclamation of Indigenous cities points toward the fruitful possibilities of recognizing untold urban histories and the innovative relationships with urban spaces.

Through this interdisciplinary approach, Urban Homelands offers a fresh perspective on the complex and multifaceted urban experiences of Native Americans in Oklahoma. It highlights the ways in which these communities have navigated the challenges and opportunities of urbanization, while also celebrating their unique cultural heritage and contributions to the broader urban landscape. By engaging with literature, film, and historical narratives, the book encourages readers to reimagine the urban stories of Native Americans and to recognize the importance of their presence and contributions in shaping the cities we live in today.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781496215536