Daniel L. Everett’s work with Brazil’s Indigenous agency, FUNAI (Fundação Nacional dos Povos Indígenas, or National Foundation of Indigenous Peoples, formerly called the Brazilian National Indian Foundation), situates his narrative within the nation’s ongoing struggle to legally recognize and protect Indigenous lands. In 1910, Brazil’s SPI (Serviço de Proteção ao Índio, or Indian Protection Service) was founded to protect Indigenous populations and facilitate their integration into mainstream Brazilian society. However, over the next several decades, the organization became increasingly corrupt and was responsible for abuses of the very people it was designed to protect. In 1967, SPI was disbanded, and FUNAI was created in its stead. To this day, FUNAI is the government body responsible for policies concerning Indigenous peoples, a central part of which is demarcation: the formal process of identifying, mapping, and legally registering ancestral territories. Brazil’s 1988 Constitution formally recognized Indigenous populations’ right to their ancestral land, as well as their right to live free from pressure to abandon traditional ways of life and assimilate into mainstream culture. Securing legal title is the first and most critical step toward enabling Indigenous autonomy and survival, and FUNAI began the process of demarcating lands in order to shield communities from illegal logging, mining, and agricultural expansion. Everett’s memoir highlights this process, as he describes serving as an interpreter during a FUNAI expedition to chart traditional Pirahã areas of hunting, fishing, and settlement. During the journey, the team discovered that official government maps were inaccurate, underscoring the necessity of on-the-ground work with Indigenous experts to establish correct boundaries. By participating in this effort, Everett directly engages with the political mechanisms designed to safeguard the Pirahã future, illustrating how their way of life is inextricably linked to national land-rights policies.