Donald L. Fixico – författare

How a Mvskoke traditionalist leader forged a movement to resist the division of tribal lands and keep his people on the everlasting Medicine WayChitto Harjo (“Crazy Snake”) had several names—Wilson Jones, Bill Jones, Bill Harjo, Bill Snake—and people called him many things: troublemaker, rebellion leader, uncivilized Indian, martyr, murderer. Many called him crazy for fighting against progress and for his commitment to traditions that they believed were outdated and dying out. Yet in the eyes of many Mvskokes and traditionalists of other nations, he was a hero, a defender of the old ways, a Native patriot, and a leader of the Medicine Way.These traditionalists believed in the Mvskoke worldview, which has inspired the Mvskokes and other Southeastern peoples to carry on their traditions as they have done for hundreds of years. In this engaging account, historian Donald L. Fixico tells the story of the Mvskoke people and their fight for survival and unity amid enduring tensions between white “civilization” and traditional culture. A personal story that begins with Fixico attending a Green Corn Ceremony with his father and young son, this engrossing narrative integrates traditional knowledge with historical method to present an Indigenous perspective on Mvskoke and Native American history.

Donald Fixico, one of the foremost scholars on Native Americans, details the day-to-day lives of these indigenous people in the 20th century. As they moved from living among tribes in the early 1900s to the cities of mainstream America after WWI and WWII, many Native Americans grappled with being both Indian and American. Through the decades they have learned to embrace a bi-cultural existence that continues today. In fourteen chapters, Fixico highlights the similarities and differences that have affected the generations growing up in 20th-century America. Chapters include details of daily life such as education; leisure activities & sports; reservation life; spirituality, rituals & customs; health, medicine & cures; urban life; women's roles & family; bingos, casinos & gaming.Greenwood's Daily Life through History series looks at the everyday lives of common people. This book explores the lives of Native Americans and provides a basis for further research. Black and white photographs, maps and charts are interspersed throughout the text to assist readers. Reference features include a timeline of historic events, sources for further reading, glossary of terms, bibliography and index.

From 19th-century trade agreements and treatments to 21st-century reparations, this volume tells the story of the federal agency that shapes and enforces U.S. policy toward Native Americans.Bureau of Indian Affairs tells the fascinating and important story of an agency that currently oversees U.S. policies affecting over 584 recognized tribes, over 326 federally reserved lands, and over 5 million Native American residents.Written by one of our foremost Native American scholars, this insider's view of the Bureau of Indian Affairs looks at the policies and the personalities that shaped its history, and by extension, nearly two centuries of government-tribal relations. Coverage includes the agency's forerunners and founding, the years of relocation and outright war, the movement to encourage Indian urbanization and assimilation, and the civil rights era surge of Indian activism. A concluding chapter looks at the modern BIA and its role in everything from land allotments and Indian boarding schools to tribal self-government, mineral rights, and the rise of the Indian gaming industry.

As a child growing up in rural Oklahoma, Donald Fixico often heard ""hvmakimata"" - ""that's what they used to say"" - a phrase Mvskoke Creeks and Seminoles use to end stories. In his latest work, Fixico, who is Shawnee, Sac and Fox, Mvskoke Creek, and Seminole, invites readers into his own oral tradition to learn how storytelling, legends and prophecies, and oral histories and creation myths knit together to explain the Indian world.Interweaving the storytelling and traditions of his ancestors, Fixico conveys the richness and importance of oral culture in Native communities and demonstrates the power of the spoken word to bring past and present together, creating a shared reality both immediate and historical for Native peoples. Fixico's stories conjure war heroes and ghosts, inspire fear and laughter, explain the past, and foresee the future - and through them he skillfully connects personal, familial, tribal, and Native history.Oral tradition, Fixico affirms, at once reflects and creates the unique internal reality of each Native community. Stories possess spiritual energy, and by summoning this energy, storytellers bring their communities together. Sharing these stories, and the larger story of where they come from and how they work, ""That's What They Used to Say"" offers readers rare insight into the oral traditions at the very heart of Native cultures, in all of their rich and infinitely complex permutations.

As a child growing up in rural Oklahoma, Donald Fixico often heard “hvmakimata”—“that’s what they used to say”—a phrase Mvskoke Creeks and Seminoles use to end stories. In his latest work, Fixico, who is Shawnee, Sac and Fox, Mvskoke Creek, and Seminole, invites readers into his own oral tradition to learn how storytelling, legends and prophecies, and oral histories and creation myths knit together to explain the Indian world.Interweaving the storytelling and traditions of his ancestors, Fixico conveys the richness and importance of oral culture in Native communities and demonstrates the power of the spoken word to bring past and present together, creating a shared reality both immediate and historical for Native peoples. Fixico’s stories conjure war heroes and ghosts, inspire fear and laughter, explain the past, and foresee the future—and through them he skillfully connects personal, familial, tribal, and Native history.Oral tradition, Fixico affirms, at once reflects and creates the unique internal reality of each Native community. Stories possess spiritual energy, and by summoning this energy, storytellers bring their communities together. Sharing these stories, and the larger story of where they come from and how they work, “That’s What They Used to Say” offers readers rare insight into the oral traditions at the very heart of Native cultures, in all of their rich and infinitely complex permutations.

Few people today know that the forty-sixth state could have been Sequoyah, not Oklahoma. The Five Tribes of Indian Territory gathered in 1905 to form their own, Indian-led state. Leaders of the Cherokees, Chickasaws, Choctaws, Muscogees, and Seminoles drafted a constitution, which eligible voters then ratified. In the end, Congress denied their request, but the movement that fueled their efforts transcends that single defeat. Researched and interpreted by distinguished Native historian Donald L. Fixico, this book tells the remarkable story of how the state of Sequoyah movement unfolded and the extent to which it remains alive today.Fixico tells how the Five Nations, after removal to the west, negotiated treaties with the U.S. government and lobbied Congress to allow them to retain communal control of their lands as sovereign nations. In the wake of the Civil War, while a dozen bills in Congress proposed changing the status of Indian Territory, the Five Tribes sought strength in unity. The Boomer movement and seven land dispensations—beginning with the famous run of 1889—nevertheless eroded their borders and threatened their cultural and political autonomy.  President Theodore Roosevelt ultimately declared his support for the merging of Indian Territory with Oklahoma Territory, paving the way for Oklahoma statehood in 1907—and shattering the state of Sequoyah dream.Yet the Five Tribes persevered. Fixico concludes his narrative by highlighting recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions, most notably McGirt v. Oklahoma (2020), that have reaffirmed the sovereignty of Indian nations over their lands and people—a principal inherent in the Sequoyah movement.Did the story end in 1907? Could the Five Tribes revive their plan for separate statehood? Fixico leaves the reader to ponder this intriguing possibility.

Long before Oklahoma became a state in 1907, cattle rustlers, horse thieves, and other criminals saw the land as a place to exploit resources and evade capture. But in the heyday of the outlaw era after the Civil War, Indigenous police officers—mounted Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Muscogee, and Seminole Lighthorse units—brought them to justice. In The Lighthorse Police, Donald L. Fixico weaves a lively history of these Five Tribes’ law enforcement organizations as he explores their origin, operation, and survival from the late eighteenth century to the present.Fixico begins by delving into the Five Tribes’ systems of justice prior to removal to Indian Territory in the 1830s, and their shift from adhering to clan-based law to national laws. He traces the Cherokees’ and Choctaws’ creation of constitutions and lighthorse units as expressions of tribal sovereignty prior to removal, and the Chickasaws’, Muscogees’, and Seminoles’ development of these after removal. In detailing the decades that followed, he draws on the stories of individual lighthorsemen to paint a compelling portrait of territorial violence and justice.In tandem with his exploration of tribal justice, Fixico investigates “white justice” in the region after the Civil War. This justice was delivered by federal marshals like Fort Smith’s infamous “hanging judge,” Isaac Parker, and their deputies. Fixico demonstrates how federal and Native officers clashed and ultimately worked together to catch criminals.After statehood, the lighthorse fell into disuse, but the organizations resurged in the 1970s. Today, lighthorse officers drive modern patrol cars to protect their communities. In its exploration of law and order from an Indigenous perspective, The Lighthorse Police tells a broader story about sovereignty and violence, Indigenous justice and white justice, and the camaraderie and pride shared by law enforcers across time.

What does tribal sovereignty really mean—and why does it matter today?Accessibly written for the nonspecialist, acclaimed historian Donald L. Fixico unpacks the complex history and legal foundations of tribal sovereignty in the United States. From traditional Native governance to landmark treaties, federal laws, and court cases, Fixico guides readers through the evolution of tribal self-rule and its modern expressions—from tribal constitutions to license plates and casinos. Designed for students, educators, tribal members, and professionals alike, this book offers a clear, compelling introduction to one of the most important—and often misunderstood—concepts in American Indian affairs.This book is a go-to source for understanding the federal Indian laws, treaties, and court cases simplified to explain tribal sovereignty.

What does tribal sovereignty really mean—and why does it matter today?Accessibly written for the nonspecialist, acclaimed historian Donald L. Fixico unpacks the complex history and legal foundations of tribal sovereignty in the United States. From traditional Native governance to landmark treaties, federal laws, and court cases, Fixico guides readers through the evolution of tribal self-rule and its modern expressions—from tribal constitutions to license plates and casinos. Designed for students, educators, tribal members, and professionals alike, this book offers a clear, compelling introduction to one of the most important—and often misunderstood—concepts in American Indian affairs.This book is a go-to source for understanding the federal Indian laws, treaties, and court cases simplified to explain tribal sovereignty.

Now in its second edition, The American Indian Mind in a Linear World examines the persistence of Native peoples in retaining their own worldviews, from the pre-Columbian era into the twenty-first century.The book explores the ways in which Indian people who are close to their cultural traditions think in a circular fashion, understand by relying on visual analysis, and make decisions from an Indigenous logic. Yet, Comanches have a different reality from Mohawks, Apache ethos is not like that of the Lakotas, and Indian men and women see things differently. How and why is the Native mind different from the western world? Why have white teachers and missionaries tried to change the minds of Native students? The Indian perspective is not wrong; it is simply different and inclusive, another way of looking at the world and universe. This edition updates the discussion with a new chapter on contemporary American Indian intellectualism and further analysis of the preservation of Indigenous traditional knowledge.Approachable and engaging, this volume is a key resource for students and scholars of Native American and Indigenous studies and Indigenous history.

Now in its second edition, The American Indian Mind in a Linear World examines the persistence of Native peoples in retaining their own worldviews, from the pre-Columbian era into the twenty-first century.The book explores the ways in which Indian people who are close to their cultural traditions think in a circular fashion, understand by relying on visual analysis, and make decisions from an Indigenous logic. Yet, Comanches have a different reality from Mohawks, Apache ethos is not like that of the Lakotas, and Indian men and women see things differently. How and why is the Native mind different from the western world? Why have white teachers and missionaries tried to change the minds of Native students? The Indian perspective is not wrong; it is simply different and inclusive, another way of looking at the world and universe. This edition updates the discussion with a new chapter on contemporary American Indian intellectualism and further analysis of the preservation of Indigenous traditional knowledge.Approachable and engaging, this volume is a key resource for students and scholars of Native American and Indigenous studies and Indigenous history.

This book explores the identity of American Indians from an Indigenous perspective and how outside influences throughout history, from the arrival of Columbus in 1492 to the twenty-first century, have affected Native people.Non-Native writers, boarding school teachers, movie directors, bureaucrats, churches, and television have all heavily impacted how Indians are viewed in the United States. Drawing on the life experiences of many American Indian men and women, this volume reveals how American Indian identity comprises multiple identities, including the noble savage, wild savage, Hollywood Indian, church-going Indian, rez Indian, urban Indian, Native woman, Indian activist, casino Indian, and tribal leader. Indigenous people, in their own voices, share their experiences of discrimination, being treated as outsiders in their own country, and the intersections of gender, culture, and politics in Indian-white relations. Yet the book also highlights the resilience of being Indian and the pride felt from being a member of a tribe(s), knowing your relatives, and feeling connected to the earth.Being Indian and Walking Proud is a compelling resource for any reader interested in Indigenous history, including students and scholars in Native American and Indigenous studies, anthropology, and American history.

This book explores the identity of American Indians from an Indigenous perspective and how outside influences throughout history, from the arrival of Columbus in 1492 to the twenty-first century, have affected Native people.Non-Native writers, boarding school teachers, movie directors, bureaucrats, churches, and television have all heavily impacted how Indians are viewed in the United States. Drawing on the life experiences of many American Indian men and women, this volume reveals how American Indian identity comprises multiple identities, including the noble savage, wild savage, Hollywood Indian, church-going Indian, rez Indian, urban Indian, Native woman, Indian activist, casino Indian, and tribal leader. Indigenous people, in their own voices, share their experiences of discrimination, being treated as outsiders in their own country, and the intersections of gender, culture, and politics in Indian-white relations. Yet the book also highlights the resilience of being Indian and the pride felt from being a member of a tribe(s), knowing your relatives, and feeling connected to the earth.Being Indian and Walking Proud is a compelling resource for any reader interested in Indigenous history, including students and scholars in Native American and Indigenous studies, anthropology, and American history.

This book examines the treaties that promised self-government, financial assistance, cultural protections, and land to the more than 565 tribes of North America (including Alaska, Hawaii, and Canada).Prior to contact with Europeans and, later, Americans, American Indian treaties assumed unique dimensions, often involving lengthy ceremonial meetings during which gifts were exchanged. Europeans and Americans would irrevocably alter the ways in which treaties were negotiated: for example, treaties no longer constituted oral agreements but rather written documents, though both parties generally lacked understanding of the other's culture. The political consequences of treaty negotiations continue to define the legal status of the more than 565 federally recognized tribes today. These and other aspects of treaty-making will be explored in this single-volume work, which serves to fill a gap in the study of both American history and Native American history. The history of treaty making covers a wide historical swath dating from the earliest treaty in 1788 to latest one negotiated in 1917. Despite the end of formal treaties largely by the end of the 19th century, Native relations with the federal government continued on with the move to reservations and later formal land allotment under the Dawes Act of 1887.

Born in 1767 at Saukenuk on the Rock River in western Illinois, Black Hawk of the Sauk and Fox Nation rose from young warrior to fierce defender of his people as the United States pushed relentlessly westward. His autobiography, originally dictated in 1833, is one of the earliest Native American life narratives recorded: a warrior’s unfiltered account of betrayal, resistance, and the patriotic fight to protect his homeland. In 1832, Black Hawk led his people to reclaim Saukenuk. Settlers had destroyed their homes and crops and illegally occupied their land that had been recognized as Sauk and Fox by treaty. After winning the first two battles against the U.S. military and volunteer militia in Wisconsin, Black Hawk’s band lost the final one at Bad Axe. Black Hawk’s people were forced to accept permanent removal to the west, and he became a prisoner of war at the Fort Jefferson barracks near St. Louis. It was there that he dictated his autobiography to an interpreter.Introduced and edited by historian Donald L. Fixico, this new edition of Life of Black Hawk brings fresh context and cultural depth to Black Hawk’s words, illuminating the Sauk and Fox worldview, the sacred traditions of the Thunder Clan, and the spiritual life that shaped this remarkable leader. Black Hawk's account conveys what it was like to be a Sauk warrior in the early 1800s. He explains the Medicine Way of his people and how the traditional worldview of Black Hawk was quickly changing from a harmonious relationship with nature to unavoidable frontier hostilities with an expanding United States. You feel the frustrating dilemma of Black Hawk, who knows that defending his people and fighting to save his homeland is morally right. Timely, intimate, and essential, this volume is both a vivid window into the Indigenous experience on the frontier and a testament to a man who stands alongside the great Native patriots. For readers of Native American history, military history, and American biography, this is an extraordinary story that has never been more important to hear.

This book examines the treaties that promised self-government, financial assistance, cultural protections, and land to the more than 565 tribes of North America (including Alaska, Hawaii, and Canada).Prior to contact with Europeans and, later, Americans, American Indian treaties assumed unique dimensions, often involving lengthy ceremonial meetings during which gifts were exchanged. Europeans and Americans would irrevocably alter the ways in which treaties were negotiated: for example, treaties no longer constituted oral agreements but rather written documents, though both parties generally lacked understanding of the other's culture. The political consequences of treaty negotiations continue to define the legal status of the more than 565 federally recognized tribes today. These and other aspects of treaty-making will be explored in this single-volume work, which serves to fill a gap in the study of both American history and Native American history. The history of treaty making covers a wide historical swath dating from the earliest treaty in 1788 to latest one negotiated in 1917. Despite the end of formal treaties largely by the end of the 19th century, Native relations with the federal government continued on with the move to reservations and later formal land allotment under the Dawes Act of 1887.