Native Lands- Michael Godwin
This week's readings and discussion on Native lands was very interesting and important to me. I have been interested in Native American culture, history, and lifestyle and I have taken a couple classes during my time at UCR, so this discussion we had in class was very intriguing. I thought that having the author of the reading himself in class for the discussion was also very beneficial since he was able to clarify certain parts of the reading as well as tell his impressive and relevant stories and experiences. I thought that professor Trafzer made a great point when he discussed how many historians are unwilling to actually get to know the people and communities that they are studying, especially when it comes to Native Americans. I also thought the discussion about tribal knowledge and responsibility was important and that Native tribes and their own EPA should be able to make decisions for themselves about environmental issues that they are faced with in order to prevent further white encroachment and interruption. Another part of the discussion that I thought was thought-provoking was when professor Trafzer mentioned how even though it may seem like tribal casinos are beneficial for Native tribes, in some cases they actually interfere with tribal culture and spiritual cites. This is something that I never stopped and considered since it always seems like Indian casinos are very positive for Native tribes.
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