Immerse yourself into the history of the restoration of Indigenous knowledge as a valid and productive system of knowledge and analyze its utility in addressing contemporary challenges.

This course will be taught by History Professor Joshua Manitowabi. The course will examine the history of the restoration of Indigenous knowledge as a valid and productive system of knowledge and analyze its utility in addressing contemporary challenges.

These include the cultural, political, and economic legacy of settler colonialism within contemporary Indigenous and settler societies in the areas of governance, treaties, environment, education and research. The history of the Anishinaabe nations of the Great Lakes will serve as an exemplar of Indigenous nation–settler colonialist interactions, including decolonization struggles against postcolonial power, the prioritizing of Eurocentric knowledge and the embedded hierarchies of social, political, and economic power. Indigenous knowledge in a ‘post’ colonial context looks at colonialism within the Great Lakes.

This course will define whether colonialism has ended for First Nations or does it still continue as ongoing colonialism through settler nation states such as Canada and the US republic. The first three weeks look at wampum belts, oral history, and Indigenous knowledge. We will also look at how colonialism began in the 17^th century and continued into the 18^th century. This course will also look at the history of treaties with the British and US republic after 1787. The latter part of the course looks at critical cartography, Indigenous research methodologies, and post colonialism within a settler colonial context.