Without Destroying Ourselves: A Century of Native Intellectual Activism for Higher Education

In the twentieth century, Native activism aimed to gain greater access to and control over higher education. John A. Goodwin's book explores how themes of Henry Roe Clouds's vision for Native intellectual leadership and empowerment were carried forward by various activists, including Elizabeth Bender Cloud, DArcy McNickle, Jack Forbes, and others. The movement for Native control in higher education remained a vital aspect of Native activism, and TCUs were fully accredited in the late 1970s.

Format: Hardback
Length: 266 pages
Publication date: 19 February 2022
Publisher: University of Nebraska Press

"Without Destroying Ourselves" is a comprehensive intellectual history that delves into the pursuit of greater access to and control over higher education by Native communities in the twentieth century. John A. Goodwin meticulously traces the themes of Henry Roe Clouds' vision for Native intellectual leadership and empowerment in the early 1900s, leading to the subsequent missions of tribal colleges and universities (TCUs) and education-based self-determination movements of the 1960s onward.

Central to Clouds' work was the notion of how to build upon Native identity while adapting without compromising it. As the movement for Native control in higher education evolved over several decades, a diverse array of Native activists carried forward Clouds' vision. Goodwin explores the contributions of Elizabeth Bender Cloud (Ojibwe), DArcy McNickle (Salish Kootenai), Jack Forbes (Powhatan-Renapé, Delaware Lenape), and other individuals who built upon and contributed to this common thread of Native intellectual activism.

Goodwin's research demonstrates that Native activism for self-determination endured even as the federal government's pendulum shifted away from tribal governance and toward termination. Furthermore, efforts for Native control in education remained an integral component of this activism.

"Without Destroying Ourselves" provides a detailed account of this period through the full accreditation of TCUs in the late 1970s, reinforcing the continued relevance of TCUs in addressing the unique needs and challenges of Native communities today.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781496215611