In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

Reviewed by:
  • White Man's Water: The Politics of Sobriety in a Native American Community
  • Leo Killsback (bio)
White Man's Water: The Politics of Sobriety in a Native American Community. by Erica Prussing. University of Arizona Press, 2011

I did not have high expectations for this book because the subtitle, "The Politics of Sobriety in a Native American Community," did not identify any specific community. Upon completing the text, my expectations were met. White Man's Water is part of the First Peoples: New Directions in Indigenous Studies initiative of four university presses whose aim is to "publish books that exemplify contemporary scholarship and research in Indigenous studies." While White Man's Water may exemplify research about an Indian community, it is far from an example of honest and meaningful Indigenous studies, since it is flawed by old anthropological perspectives, assumptions, and approaches. If this work is an example of what is to follow, the editors of the First Peoples initiative should reconsider its criteria for publication.

In writing the book, Prussing, an associate professor at the University of Iowa Department of Anthropology, recasts her dissertation, "Warriors and Survivors: The Culture of Sobriety in Northern Cheyenne Women's Narratives," and other related projects. The purposes of this book are, among others, to define and address alcohol-related problems, explore why current approaches to sobriety "alienate" community members, and probe alternative "culturally appropriate" recovery programs (27-28). All proceeds from this book are to be donated to the Northern Cheyenne Tribal Health Services, which is a kind gesture considering the self-righteous attitudes of the old anthropology that mar this study. This text follows a pattern of elitism cloaked in benevolence throughout, and in the end Prussing exploited the Northern Cheyenne community more than she serviced it.

As an American Indian studies professor and a Northern Cheyenne, I find one of the most important, if not the most important element of "contemporary scholarship and research in Indigenous studies," is for researchers, Indian and non-Indian alike, to obtain permission from the proper authorities before conducting research in Indian Country, and to maintain a relationship through publication. In this age, researchers no longer have the privilege of simply ignoring tribal sovereignty and the rights of Indian nations to protect their people, cultures, histories, and intellectual property from academic exploitation. Researchers can no longer choose to remain ignorant of tribally approved, controlled, [End Page 128] and partnered research. Prussing seemed to avoid the highest authority, the Tribal Council, as she passively devalued its existence, which suggests that she may not have obtained permission to conduct her study or obtained permission without establishing and maintaining a healthy relationship with the council. She may have also obtained the blessing from the administration of the tribal college and other community members to conduct research, but the Tribal Council is the ultimate authority in research and permission matters, especially when publishing findings.

In one instance, Prussing struggled to mention another authority, simply identifying "an office devoted to historical preservation in the administrative structure of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe" (37). The Northern Cheyenne Historic Preservation Office is an office that manages and assists in research, and is the primary contact for anything involving cultural and historical intellectual properties among the Northern Cheyenne. Prussing had no endorsement from this office. Further, she mentions the sovereign entity, the Northern Cheyenne Tribe, only when discussing women who had been elected into office, criticizing internal tribal economic politics (48, 98, 199). Through her passiveness, Prussing had "marginalized" a people and made a nation "invisible"—two themes she addresses as significant problems in the community, but which she apparently missed in her own study (43).

Prussing's methods center on anthropological theories and the notable works from scholars of her discipline, though irrelevant to the Northern Cheyenne specifically. In her literature review she praises those outsider researchers who entered into Indigenous communities, earned trust, and completed problematic studies. Though her goal was not to "go Native," it seems that she followed such a formula. I found this phrase particularly troublesome, as I have not heard such a thing in the academic setting except when white scholars study Indian people. I wonder if...

pdf

Share