Circe Sturm takes a bold and original approach to one of the most highly charged and important issues in the United States today: race and national identity. Focusing on the Oklahoma Cherokee, she examines how Cherokee identity is socially and politically constructed, and how that process is embedded in ideas of blood, color, and race. Not quite a century ago, blood degree varied among Cherokee citizens from full blood to 1/256, but today the range is far greater--from full blood to 1/2048. This trend raises questions about the symbolic significance of blood and the degree to which blood connections can stretch and still carry a sense of legitimacy. It also raises questions about how much racial blending can occur before Cherokees cease to be identified as a distinct people and what danger is posed to Cherokee sovereignty if the federal government continues to identify Cherokees and other Native Americans on a racial basis. Combining contemporary ethnography and ethnohistory, Sturm's sophisticated and insightful analysis probes the intersection of race and national identity, the process of nation formation, and the dangers in linking racial and national identities.
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"Blood Politics offers an anthropological analysis of contemporary identity politics within the second largest Indian tribe in the United States-one that pays particular attention to the symbol of "blood." The work treats an extremely sensitive topic with originality and insight. It is also notable for bringing contemporary theories of race, nationalism, and social identity to bear upon the case of the Oklahoma Cherokee."-Pauline Turner Strong, author of Captive Selves, Captivating Others: The Politics and Poetics of Colonial American Captivity Narratives
From the Inside Flap
"Blood Politics offers an anthropological analysis of contemporary identity politics within the second largest Indian tribe in the United States--one that pays particular attention to the symbol of "blood." The work treats an extremely sensitive topic with originality and insight. It is also notable for bringing contemporary theories of race, nationalism, and social identity to bear upon the case of the Oklahoma Cherokee."--Pauline Turner Strong, author of Captive Selves, Captivating Others: The Politics and Poetics of Colonial American Captivity Narratives
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Tackling a Sticky Subject,
By Uyvsdi "Uyvsdi" (Oklahoma) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Blood Politics: Race, Culture, and Identity in the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma (Hardcover)
Sturm provides thought-provoking insights into tribal indentity and shows how the idea of "race" changes and evolves over time. A variety of perspectives, sometimes quite humorous, into the obsession of blood quantum. Her stories throughout the book are welcome breaks from the sometimes stuffy academic writing. I think she neglects to mention that government documentatin of people's blood quantum is arbitrary and often incorrect, usually placing people's blood quantum lower than it actually is. Sturm also seems inexplicably harsh on the Cherokee Nation and in particular Ross Swimmer. Other than these complaints, this book is a great exploration of varying viewpoints.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Enlightening Examination,
By
This review is from: Blood Politics: Race, Culture, and Identity in the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma (Paperback)
Circe Sturm's "Blood Politics" is a thoughtful look at the factors which go into how the Cherokee people define themselves- as Cherokees, as Indians, as citizens of the Cherokee Nation. Sturm takes on some controversial issues that remain hotbeds of political contention. Particularly on the subject of freedmen, Sturm captures a wide variety of thought.
She is a skilled writer and anthropologist. Some of her writing in her opening was difficult for me to grasp, but this is my fault- not hers. I have a limited background in anthropology, and I am still trying to get my head around the notions of "contradictory consciousness" and "counterhegemonic resistance." Apparently these are standard terms in the academic world of anthropology, but I had to rely on Sturm to point out examples of them in Cherokee culture. Even if one does not completely follow "Neo-Gramscian Perspectives on Race and Resistance" (a subtitle in her opening), overall the book is easily readable and understandable for the lay person. I came away with a much broader understanding of the concept and power of blood and blood quantum in Cherokee heritage. I also have a better understanding of Cherokee religion, politics, language and social structure. Sturm includes some stories of her research told in the third person. When she does this, the book reads more like a novel, and I found it to be an entertaining and useful technique in making her point. "Blood Politics" is highly recommended, particularly in light of the recent vote on the status of freedmen in the Cherokee Nation.
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
In a back room outside a bar stand two men estranged by chance from one another, a grandfather and his grandson, tentatively speaking their first words. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
freedmen descendent, blood legislation, minimum blood quantum, tribal endogamy, tribal citizens, original enrollees, tribal complex, multiracial individuals, intermarried whites, blood ideologies, marriage preferences, matrilineal clan system, blood degree, national substance, contradictory consciousness, racial hegemony, blood ancestry, kinship ideologies, social classification, clan exogamy, bilateral descent, racial projects, registration committee, tribal enrollment, southeastern tribes Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Native Americans, United States, African Americans, Dawes Rolls, Dawes Commission, Indian Territory, Cherokee Baptist, Indian Claims Commission, Shoe Boots, Dawes Act, Treaty Party, Politics of Nation, Ross Swimmer, Challenging the Color Line, Civil War, Mexican Americans, New Echota, Sammy Still, Stand Watie, Trail of Tears, Cherokee Indians, Chief John Ross, Fort Gibson, Mary Walker, Bureau of Indian Affairs New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
In a back room outside a bar stand two men estranged by chance from one another, a grandfather and his grandson, tentatively speaking their first words. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
freedmen descendent, blood legislation, minimum blood quantum, tribal endogamy, tribal citizens, original enrollees, tribal complex, multiracial individuals, intermarried whites, blood ideologies, marriage preferences, matrilineal clan system, blood degree, national substance, contradictory consciousness, racial hegemony, blood ancestry, kinship ideologies, social classification, clan exogamy, bilateral descent, racial projects, registration committee, tribal enrollment, southeastern tribes Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Native Americans, United States, African Americans, Dawes Rolls, Dawes Commission, Indian Territory, Cherokee Baptist, Indian Claims Commission, Shoe Boots, Dawes Act, Treaty Party, Politics of Nation, Ross Swimmer, Challenging the Color Line, Civil War, Mexican Americans, New Echota, Sammy Still, Stand Watie, Trail of Tears, Cherokee Indians, Chief John Ross, Fort Gibson, Mary Walker, Bureau of Indian Affairs New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 64
books:
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10
books
cite this book:
See all 10 books citing this book
- Southeastern Indians by Charles Hudson on page 30, and Back Matter
- The Cherokees: A Population History (Indians of the Southeast) by Russell Thornton in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- Cherokee Removal: Before and After by William L. Anderson in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- Mean Spirit by Linda Hogan in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- Native Americans (Sacred Symbols Series) by Mark Lehner on page 30, and Back Matter
See all 64 books this book cites
- Ties That Bind: The Story of an Afro-Cherokee Family in Slavery and Freedom (American Crossroads) by Tiya Miles on 4 pages
- Real Indians: Identity and the Survival of Native America by Eva Marie Garroutte on 4 pages
- Reading Adoption: Family and Difference in Fiction and Drama by Marianne Novy in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- Keeping the Circle: American Indian Identity in Eastern North Carolina, 1885-2004 (Indians of the Southeast) by Christopher Arris Oakley in Back Matter
- Ishi's Brain: In Search of America's Last "Wild" Indian by Orin Starn in Back Matter
See all 10 books citing this book
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