Indigenous anthropologies and the issue of positionality

Social Identities, 2017

A number of Latin-American indigenous organizations are striving to build autonomous indigenous and communitarian universities. According to indigenous leaders from all over the continent, 'Occidental' or 'Northern' ways of producing knowledge exclude by default many forms of indigenous knowledges. From an indigenous perspective, scientists need to think seriously about developing research methodologies that do not automatically discard indigenous knowledges. In this article I look at the emerging network of indigenous and communitarian universities in Latin America and ask how the universities seek to produce indigenous and communitarian research processes and methodologies. How do these methodologies differ from methodologies taught at 'Occidental' universities? As the global indigenous movement grows in confidence and strength, researchers trained and formed in traditional methodologies wanting to work with indigenous peoples, movements, organizations and communities, will increasingly be confronted with research methodologies that are profoundly different from what they are accustomed to. Indigenous peoples in Social Identities Social Identities has published a number of fine studies related to indigenous peoples and communities over the years. Fontana (2015), for instance, explores identity-building and narrative apparatus 'underpinning a land conflict between an indigenous organization and a peasant union in Bolivia'. Brady (2008) makes use of the concept of 'survivance' (survival with dignity) to provide a critical analysis of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) in Washington, DC. Koerner (2015) found 'that white Australian discourses of nation and identity limit most respondents' ability to construct their identity in relation to Indigenous sovereignty'. Trépied (2012) explores cleavages 'between pro-independence and "indigenous" Kanak activists' through an ethnographic description of a conflict concerning a water conveyance project. Suárez-Krabbe (2012) seeks to understand how spiritual and political authorities ('Mamos') of four indigenous peoples in Colombia 'work to preserve their own and their peoples' identity' connected to the larger task of 'preserving the life and being of all that exists'. As this small sample of articles demonstrate, understanding issues such as social formation, identity construction and social conflicts in many localities require serious attempts at understanding indigenous peoples and their worldviews.

A partir da noção de "estilos de antropologia" usada por Roberto Cardoso de Oliveira em suas pesquisas nos anos 1990, que examinou diversas "antropologias periféricas", em países onde a antropologia foi implantada posteriormente, fora dos países centrais -EUA, Grã-Bretanha e França -onde emergiu e se consolidou como disciplina acadêmica, este artigo examina os estilos de etnologia indígena que se desenvolveram no Brasil, no Canadá e na Austrália, ex-colônias de países europeus. Com histórias e culturas muito diferentes, examinam-se os estilos de antropologia no contexto desses Estados nacionais que se expandiram sobre os territórios de povos indígenas, e as maneiras em que as histórias e contextos refletem no que está sendo feito atualmente em pesquisas de campo com povos indígenas. Examinam-se algumas das tensões que surgem ao trabalhar em uma disciplina acadêmica que pretende ser internacional e universal enquanto os contextos são locais. Palavras-chave: estilos de antropologia; Brasil; Canada; Austrália; povo indígenas Abstract Starting from the notion of "styles of anthropology" used by Roberto Cardoso de Oliveira in his research in the 1990s, which examined "peripheral anthropologies" in countries where anthropology was implanted later, outside the central countries -USA, Great Britain and France -where it emerged and had consolidated as an academic discipline, this article looks at the styles of anthropology with indigenous peoples which have developed in Brazil, Canada and Australia, ex-colonies of European countries. With very different histories and cultures, the styles of anthropology within the context of these national States which expanded over indigenous territories are examined, and vibrant v.9 n.1 stephen grant baines

Anthropology and Indigenous People in Brazil: Ethical Engagement and Social Intervention, 2004

Socialist Studies/Études Socialistes, 2013

Abstract This article is a contribution to the ongoing discussions on who should conduct indigenous research and problematizes the notion of insider/outsider discourse in indigenous research. Drawing on my personal experiences in the form of case studies, I argue that self-locating in indigenous research is complex given that researcher self-positioning is not normally done by the researcher but through a process of negotiation with the participants. I argue that insofar as indigenous peoples, communities and problems are not islands onto themselves, immune to the current global flows, processes and barriers, indigenous research cannot be reserved only for indigenous scholars and peoples. Instead, I propose a reflexive researching model as a research framework which should be incorporated into an indigenous research methodology which both indigenous and allied non-indigenous researchers could draw upon. This demands a reflexive practice that is guided by the philosophical underpinnings of the indigenous research paradigm.

2008

Anuário Antropológico, 2023

The growing number of indigenous students enrolled in graduate programs in anthropology is spawning a grouping of indigenous intellectual who, bringing their own knowledge to academia, have great potential to challenge the discipline’s convictions and open new vistas. One hopes the arrival of indigenous scholars in anthropology will expose its illusions, fallacies, blind spots, and contradictions and retrieve it from its present lethargy. The diversity of indigenous knowledge ought to provoke a shift toward an “ecumenical anthropology” willing to embrace new knowledge forms and contents, and benefit from them on equal terms rather than continuing to use them as mere raw material for often idle theories. Higher Education; Indigenous Students; Ecumenical Anthropology. Com o ingresso crescente de indígenas nos cursos de pós-graduação em antropologia, está- se gestando uma ala de intelectuais indígenas que, portadores de seus próprios saberes, têm grande potencial de desafiar as certezas da disciplina e influir no traçado de seus rumos. Espera- se que a adesão indígena ao campo antropológico contribua para expor ilusões, falácias, cegueiras e contradições e tirá-lo de seu atual estado letárgico, provocando uma guinada para uma “antropologia ecumênica”, capaz de acolher e se beneficiar de saberes que atualmente são apenas matéria-prima para teorias nem sempre pertinentes. Educação Superior; estudantes indígenas; Antropologia Ecumênica.

Heritage and Rights of Indigenous Peoples (Manuel May Castillo and Amy Strecker, eds): 25-37, 2017

People's Self-Determined Development

Following a successful campaign to end the unlawful practices of trafficking that brought them to Manaus, indigenous Tukanoan women from the Upper Rio Negro established a local indigenous organization with which to plan and manage their own ethno-development, including cultural heritage activities, institution building, revenue development, health and legal services, community, and other initiatives. The case provides an opportunity to explore indigenous ethno-development, a concept at the heart of the theory and practice of Shelton (Sandy) Davis. No seguimento de uma campanha bem sucessida em Manaus para terminar com praticas de trafego ilegais, mulheres ind ´ ´ıgenas da tribo Tukano do Alto Rio Negro fundaram uma organizac¸ao ind´ıgena local com o fim de planejar e gerir o seu proprio desenvolvimento etnogr ´ afico, incluindo atividades culturais e patrimoniais, reforc¸o institucional, desenvolvimento de rendimentos, servicos de saude e legais, iniciativas comunit ´ arias e outras. Este caso oferece uma oportunidade ´para estudar o desenvolvimento etnografico, um conceito central na teoria e practica de Shelton (Sandy) Davis.