"What About Dual Citizenship?" Urban Indigenous Students Negotiating Civic Identity

• In Event: Disrupting Social Studies Education

Abstract

Development of student civic identity is an essential component of becoming an active citizen (Youniss, McLellan & Yates 1997, Rubin, 2007). Present day Indigenous civic actions increase self-determination and survivance (Vizenor, 2008) confronting settler colonial structures and asserting sovereignty. Civic actions asserting sovereignty since time immemorial are supported by treaties, case law and the U.S. Constitution. This paper explores how urban American Indian high school students negotiate their civic identities in a social studies class and youth council in order to better understand the unique ways in which schools, social studies classes and youth organizing contribute to civic identity creation for urban Indigenous students.

Author

• Rachel Talbert, Teachers College, Columbia University