From a Native Son: Selected Essays on Indigenism, 1985-1995

This is perhaps the finest work of many by a leading American Indian scholar-activist of his generation. Its superiority is partly because of its comprehensive length, incorporating many of his best essays. Churchill's forte, here and elsewhere, is the power of his denunciation of injustices and genocidal practices against the Native Americans both past and present---the crimes continue even today, as do indigenous peoples' courageous resistance. I assigned parts of this work for a class in American environmental history, and it genuinely shook up the students, who were seeing our history from a radically different perspective. Sadly, those who really need to read Churchill most likely never will.Why 4 1/2 stars? Since many of Churchill's titles reprint essays published elsewhere, there is considerable overlap with the contents of other books. Thus someone who owns, say, 4 of his works (including this one) may actually possess only 3 full books of original material. Churchill's writings are thoroughly documented, but in contrast to Vine Deloria Jr., to whom he is often compared, Churchill's style is decidedly humorless. But Deloria's sensibility is exceptional under any circumstances, and ultimately, what Churchill discusses simply isn't amusing at all---it's tragic and outrageous.

Here is a book that everyone, Indian or non-Indian, should read by tomorrow at the very latest. Ward Churchill is an extraordinarily gifted Indian (a term he prefers over "Native American" or "Aboriginal") activist whose prose cuts like a curve-bladed scalpal. Churchill doesn't want to memorialize what American society likes to think of as ancient (and therefore, best forgotten) wrongs; he wants to talk about how white society destroyed and keeps on destroying the Original People of the New World. And he isn't going to do it with quaint tales and stories. He wants you to understand that his people are dying. Right now. This very second.This book, a collection of essays collected over the years, isn't full of the latest spiritual word from Indian Country; don't read this if you want to learn how to construct a sweat lodge "like the real Indians did." Read this book in order to learn how to be a member of the Wannabe Tribe and you will experience deep spiritual anguish as Churchill's words tear you a new exhust pipe. He doesn't care about your spiritual development; he wants you to understand that genocide is being committed even as you read these words.Get this book. It will hurt a lot to read it, but its better than shutting your eyes to over five centuries of genocide.