An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. Native American history has not been taught equally alongside United States history. What have you learned about Indigenous peoples in school? What key events or people come to mind?

Teaching Suggestion: This Short Answer prompt introduces students to the theme of Perseverance of Indigenous Resistance and Sovereignty as Survival. It also speaks to Dunbar-Ortiz’s mission to expose students to a broader American history. Many students may relay experiences of learning about colonial history, which may present an opportunity to emphasize that Native people continue to exist. To encourage student discussion, consider allowing students to brainstorm their responses in pairs. You might also ask them to create a rough timeline of the historical events they have learned about in school.

• This TIME article by Ned Blackhawk emphasizes the centrality of Indigenous history to the history of the United States.
• This podcast episode from Ohio State University explores the ways in which Native history is erased from historical narratives.

Short Activity

There are many ways to learn about history. Reading Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz’s An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States is one way, and it emphasizes the importance of thinking about history from a Native perspective. Looking to art from Native artists provides another opportunity to do this.

Look at the sampling of contemporary Native American artwork from the National Gallery of Art’s website. Pick one piece that stands out to you. Each piece under “Explore Selected Works” includes the piece’s title, the artist, and the artist’s tribal affiliation. As you reflect on your chosen artwork, consider the following questions:

• What might the artist be trying to say through this piece?
• What does it make you feel, and why?
• What questions do you have about it?

Teaching Suggestion: Although students may not necessarily be able to get answers to their own questions or place each work in its tribal context, the point of this exercise is to get them to think critically about different approaches to understanding history. To emphasize the importance of open-mindedness, you might note that their view of land, the United States, history, and/or education might be challenged as they review the text and accompanying resources.

• The Met offers a sampling of work that includes Native Americans, allowing Native American artists and community members to respond to pieces and emphasizing how art by Euro-Americans has also shaped historical narratives.
• The National Endowment for the Humanities provides insight into how cultural institutions can most responsibly display Native American art.

Differentiation Suggestion: Advanced students and those who would benefit from an additional challenge might investigate their chosen piece outside of class and report their findings in a brief research paper. Alternatively, students who would benefit from a more structured approach could be assigned a specific piece and work in pairs to create a presentation that introduces the artwork and the artist to the class.