Native Americans and the Christian Right

“Native Americans and the Christian Right builds a convincing agenda to think outside an either-or political paradigm and continues a long-standing quest to document the internal plurality of social movements.” — Amin Ghaziani, American Journal of Sociology

“Native Americans and the Christian Right is a bold fusion of activism and scholarship that aims to reshape the ways in which Natives and Christians think about one another, targeting as its end political coalitions that recognize commonalities while rejecting insistence on complete ideological conformity among allies.” — Jefferson D. Slagle, Cithara

“For those wanting to explore Evangelical and Native American stereotypes and partnerships in activism, Smith’s book works well. If the desire is to plum the depths of hegemonic authority in the creation of those stereotypes, Smith’s book is a wonderfully honest discussion.” — Terry LeBlanc and Jeanine Lowe LeBlanc, Pneuma

“I think it safe to say that as American Indian studies continues to grow as an academic field, Smith’s voice will often be heard shaping the conversation. I look forward to hearing what she has to say in the future.” — David Martinez, American Indian Quarterly

“People who are interested in understanding how rethinking the politics of alliances can further the goals of Native American studies programs and Native activists will find this book insightful. Native Americans and the Christian Right is also sure to stimulate further conversation on the benefits and dangers of building alliances with those whose political positions are different from our own.” — Michelene Pesantubbee, American Indian Culture and Research Journal

“The topics Smith addresses are some of the most controversial issues facing Native political activists making this work all the more engaging, debatable, and necessary,” — Melissa Olson, The Circle: News from an American Indian Perspective

“The well-chosen cases presented here succeed in challenging readers’ assumptions about the boundaries of social movements and identities. It may be that not all of the reframings here will convince all readers, but reading this book opens new ways of thinking about issues and alliances.”
— Mary Jo Neitz, Journal of American Ethnic History

“This volume goes far beyond the rather narrow boundaries of religion and spirituality, and explores the intersections of religion with critical social theory, feminism, the politics of race, Native sovereignty, prison reform. . .the list goes on and on.” — Heather Devine, Canadian Journal of Native Studies

“Native Americans and the Christian Right is an exciting and important project, one that can be improved by further research and the collection of more stories and accounts of effective change. It is written to encourage that very enterprise.” — Laurel C. Schneider, Contemporary Sociology

“Native Americans and the Christian Right is an indispensible treatise on the radical relevance of indigenous criticism to interdisciplinary theory and all social movements. . . . Smith notably advances indigenous feminism not simply by reading ‘gender’ in indigenous politics but by engaging both indigenous and settler politics with indigenous feminist methodologies of alliance work for social change.” — Scott Lauria Morgensen, Signs

“[A] fascinating and complex argument. . . . Native Americans and the Christian Right is a brave, provocative book. . . . Together with—as well as apart from—the political agenda of the book, Smith’s work presents a powerful analysis of social formation and identity articulation. She persuasively illustrates the ways contemporary Christian and Native groups alike are constituted by parties with varying and variable interests that may align with those of unlikely allies in surprising and telling ways.” — Greg Johnson, Journal of the American Academy of Religion

“In refusing to accept the typical explanations for the motivations of both groups, Smith enriches and challenges the reader to probe deeper into these “unlikely alliances” and offers up ideas for political activism, as well as new ways to understand the deeper issues of race and gender within social and political activism. Her work challenges scholars to re-think how they construct identity, Native peoples, gender, social activism, Native Christianity, and sovereignty. This book is clearly aimed at future scholar-activists who want to envision a new form of progressive organizing that goes beyond the current model, but it is also immensely useful to scholars of Native, religious, and gender studies who are thinking about different theoretical models for how to address complicated alliances and identities within their own work.” — Angela Tarango, Religious Studies Review

“Smith contributes a shrewdly innovative and theoretically ambitious analysis that transforms scholarship about progressive organizing and politics with her new insights on Native women organizing and theory, Christian Right arguments, and the intersections of ideas and interests that often are overlooked in western history.” — Myla Vicenti Carpio, Western Historical Quarterly