Indigenous Studies
Discover Indigenous Studies, an exciting minor exploring the diverse histories, cultures, and knowledge of Indigenous peoples worldwide.
Program Overview
The Indigenous Studies minor at Lafayette College is an interdisciplinary program encompassing academic disciplines from the Arts, Humanities, Natural Sciences, and Social Sciences. It centers Indigenous peoples’ diverse histories and cultures, as well as arts, ecologies, economies, identities, knowledge, languages, literatures, music, politics, and religions.
Indigenous Studies is Global
The field of Indigenous Studies encompasses the globe. Courses develop an understanding of Native America as well as other regions worldwide. Students will learn about Indigeneity and the history and cultures of Indigenous peoples in many different global contexts. Students in this area study the realities of settler colonialism, a form of colonialism found in Australia, Canada, Northern Ireland, as well as the United States. Understanding the environmental, social and political legacy of colonial conquests as well as Indigenous rights, activism, and forms of knowledge and their relation to the environment are all topics that transcend political boundaries.
Opportunities
Christian Muisener ’27 says Land Acts has taught him to value how Native Americans view the land with respect and dignity. | Photo by JaQuan Alston
Students pursuing a minor in Indigenous Studies can collaborate with two federally-recognized Delaware Nations (Delaware Nation of Oklahoma and Delaware Tribe of Oklahoma) on their traditional homelands. Through the upper-division course EVST 370: Land Acts, students delve into the history of the land Lafayette College occupies. On the College’s farm, they cultivate traditional Delaware crops such as tobacco, wild bergamot, coneflower, corn, beans, and squash. These harvests and seeds are then sent to the Delaware Nation in Oklahoma, providing a source of their traditional crops grown on their ancestral lands.
Beyond understanding the historical ties Indigenous communities have to the land, students gain insights directly from Delaware Nation and Tribal representatives. These include Jeremy Johnson, Cultural Education Director for the Delaware Tribe, and Katelyn Lucas, Tribal Historic Preservation Officer (THPO) for the Delaware Nation. Learn more about the Land Acts course.