http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/keyword/native-americans Inquiries Journal provides undergraduate and graduate students around the world a platform for the wide dissemination of academic work over a range of core disciplines. en-us Tue, 28 Apr 2026 10:59:07 -0400 Tue, 28 Apr 2026 10:59:07 -0400 http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1849/the-role-of-native-american-healing-traditions-within-allopathic-medicine By Rachna Vemireddy - Although spirituality has been an essential part of healing for most of mankind, modern medicine is more likely to embrace a mechanistic view of the human body where illness is an engineering problem and the body is the sum of discrete parts, rather than a complex whole. This may be the accepted norm today, but it is in complete contrast to the Native-American tradition, where the spirit is inextricably linked to healing. Neither approach is wholly sufficient in modern times and Native American (NA) groups have adopted their healing beliefs and practices to work in tandem with allopathic medicine... Thu, 10 Dec 2020 12:14 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1849/the-role-of-native-american-healing-traditions-within-allopathic-medicine http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1669/cacao-cravings-europes-assimilation-and-europeanization-of-chocolate-drinking-from-mesoamerica-1492-1700-ce By James C. Miller - Chocolate is a foodstuff that many people in the modern world take for granted; the sweet treat can today be found plentifully and cheaply in practically any store all across the globe, especially in the Euro-American world. Despite its commonplace, most people do not know exactly where the addictive confection came from and how it became a near staple of industrialized, modern societies. Many in the ‘Western World’ would be surprised to learn the true origins of chocolate and how it first became a European craze. Chocolate was a confection made mostly from powder that originated from... Fri, 27 Oct 2017 12:08 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1669/cacao-cravings-europes-assimilation-and-europeanization-of-chocolate-drinking-from-mesoamerica-1492-1700-ce http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1498/the-use-of-violence-on-the-american-frontiers-examining-us-native-american-relations-in-the-18th-and-19th-centuries By Kaden Prowse - Following the end of the American Revolutionary War of 1776 to 1783, the U.S. government adopted an aggressive and expansionistic policy towards Native Americans on its frontiers. From the closing years of the 18th century to the end of the 19th century, the U.S. continually relied on these policies to open up the western frontiers for settlement and colonization by American settlers and immigrants from Europe. Native American tribes that opposed the U.S., or unintentionally got in its way, were swiftly dealt with by the U.S. and forced onto reservations where they could be controlled. The history... Mon, 21 Nov 2016 08:23 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1498/the-use-of-violence-on-the-american-frontiers-examining-us-native-american-relations-in-the-18th-and-19th-centuries http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1130/an-examination-of-native-americans-in-film-and-rise-of-native-filmmakers By Julia Boyd - This paper explored the role of Native Americans in the Hollywood film industry and their actions to establish authentic representations of their population and culture in the media. Using academic literature, film analyses, and contemporary film reviews and articles, the author created a synthesis of the history of Native Americans in film. The author concluded that by becoming producers, directors, and writers of their own stories, American Indians have regained control of their images and been able to combat stereotypes and the exclusion of Native Americans in the creative process. Positive... Sat, 30 May 2015 11:59 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1130/an-examination-of-native-americans-in-film-and-rise-of-native-filmmakers http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1092/the-human-rights-impacts-of-vawa-2013-a-true-victory-for-native-american-women By Lauren R. Kelly - The level of gender violence against native women in the United States has reached epidemic proportions. Furthermore, the vast majority of Native American gender violence victims are abused at the hands of non-native men. Native American tribes are considered to be “domestic dependents” of the United States, meaning that they have the inherent authority to govern themselves and also maintain U.S. citizenship rights. This system creates multiple overlapping governing systems on tribal reservations, as illustrated by determining jurisdiction over gender violence crimes. Tribal courts... Fri, 01 May 2015 12:00 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1092/the-human-rights-impacts-of-vawa-2013-a-true-victory-for-native-american-women http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/911/humanity-and-its-place-in-nature-rethinking-the-reality-of-wilderness By Thomas R. Smith - The Western concept of wilderness encompasses pristine, untrammeled land viewed as “the last remaining place where civilization…has not fully infected the earth” (Cronon, 1995, p. 69). Indeed, many Americans possess this dualistic vision that separates nature and humanity, thus leading to the creation of preservation areas that restrict human habitation. Of course, the protection of what is perceived as “pristine” and “virgin” land completely ignores the fact that humans inhabited these lands for millennia without permanently damaging them. Instead, these... Sun, 07 Sep 2014 10:42 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/911/humanity-and-its-place-in-nature-rethinking-the-reality-of-wilderness http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/793/visual-persuasion-the-medias-use-of-images-in-framing-people-groups By Caitlin O'Donnell - This article compares the media's framing of five groups in response to a societal catalyst that propelled them into the public and media spotlight: Native Americans during the Indian Wars; women during the suffrage movement; African Americans during the Civil Rights Movement; Japanese Americans following the attacks on Pearl Harbor; and Muslim Americans after 9/11. A tipping point forced each group outside the "status quo," leading to pointed and biased coverage, usually in conjunction with dominant prejudices of the era, with the goal of protecting the ruling majority. While the target may have... Mon, 18 Nov 2013 05:29 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/793/visual-persuasion-the-medias-use-of-images-in-framing-people-groups http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/774/controversial-kin-transracial-adoption-in-hope-leslie-and-ramona By Melissa N. Gilstrap - Critics often ignore transracial adoption as a literary theme in both Catharine Sedgwick’s Hope Leslie; Or, Early Times in Massachusetts (1827) and Helen Hunt Jackson’s Ramona, A Story (1884), as these two texts’ portrayals of the occurrence are often complicated and particularly ambiguous. Yet, understanding these two authors’ depictions of same-race and transracial adoptions is crucial to realizing they were imagining a new ethical paradigm for contact between whites and Native Americans — that of cross-racial care instead of cross-racial violence. This paper argues... Sun, 20 Oct 2013 06:31 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/774/controversial-kin-transracial-adoption-in-hope-leslie-and-ramona http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/659/the-mystery-of-miracles-examining-religious-providence-in-the-sixteenth-century-captivity-narratives-of-hans-staden-and-cabeza-de-vaca By Lauren E. Raubaugh - Miracles are a complex and fascinating phenomenon. Accounts throughout history have detailed remarkable instances of what people have claimed to be divine intervention, instances that continue to confound and mystify. After all, according to countless individuals, the dead have risen. Sure disaster has been averted. Prayer has led to the dissipation of storms or to the bringing of vital rain. Statues of Mary have cried tears of blood. Though such incredible claims has been gleaned from legitimate primary sources, modern historians find themselves in a quandary when attempting to establish their... Fri, 06 Jul 2012 08:05 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/659/the-mystery-of-miracles-examining-religious-providence-in-the-sixteenth-century-captivity-narratives-of-hans-staden-and-cabeza-de-vaca http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/331/defining-a-nation-the-power-of-the-nation-and-its-influence-on-native-american-first-nations By Eve R. Hill - The term ‘nation’ is notoriously hard to define, not only because it has multiple meanings, but because the prevailing definitions change in response to various social and political factors (Ozkirimli 2000). In its most basic form a nation is conceptualized as a distinctive group of people occupying a defined territory between which there is an immutable relationship (Penrose 1993; 1994). However this category has already become problematic as groups of people and territories rarely align so readily. This brings forth the question, is ‘nation’ therefore an unrealistic concept... Mon, 29 Nov 2010 10:02 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/331/defining-a-nation-the-power-of-the-nation-and-its-influence-on-native-american-first-nations http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/77/the-methamphetamine-crisis-in-american-indian-and-native-alaskan-communities By Janet Glover-Kerkvliet - The prevalence of methamphetamine (ME) use among American Indians and Native Alaskans (AI/NAs) is strikingly high in comparison to other ethnic groups in the U.S. (Iritani, Dion Hallfors & Bauer, 2007). However, few datasets are available that allow for estimates to characterize the problem or describe the variation of the ME problem among tribes. Only recently has anecdotal information emerged about the spread of ME use and manufacture into tribal communities in newspapers, radio stories, wire services, agency reports, and on websites. Due to the lack of stable data and other unique problems... Thu, 03 Dec 2009 10:30 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/77/the-methamphetamine-crisis-in-american-indian-and-native-alaskan-communities http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/15/redskin-and-all-american-jim-thorpes-malleable-symbolic-significance By Joshua R. Keefe - Jim Thorpe rose to fame on the heels of his prodigious athletic ability that translated into success in so many different sports nothing like it has not been seen since. And in the modern era of sports where athletes often specialize from an early age, it will most likely never be seen again. Thorpe, like many great athletes, rose to the public prominence because of his play on the field, but remained there because of what he represented and still represents today. He was a Native American, as current vernacular would describe him, or “redskin,” as contemporary discourse often labeled... Mon, 26 Oct 2009 07:24 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/15/redskin-and-all-american-jim-thorpes-malleable-symbolic-significance