Globalization: A Navajo (Dine)
Case Study
Anthropology
Location
Tuba City, Arizona, Navajo Nation
Description
The Diné (Navajo) were drawn into an increasingly global
system of economic, political and cultural relationships beginning
with the arrival of the Spanish in the southwest in the 1500s.
This course traces the effects of outside influences on the
nation and its people and the roles that the Navajo Nation
and its people have played in shaping these relationships.
The theoretical focus is the many-faceted and much-debated
concept of globalization. Students will also be introduced
to ethnographic methods and data gathering techniques during
the three weeks on location in Navajo Nation territory.
Specific
topics include 19th and 20th century Navajo-U.S. relations,
the Navajo involvement in the two world wars, as well as more
recent wars, transnational energy companies and their impact
on Navajo affairs, global cultural influences on Navajo youth,
tourism, identity and the concept of dual citizenship, and Navajo
local and international political and social activism.
Navajo students and instructors will be an integral part
of this course.
Students will begin the work for the course a prior to leaving
through online collaboration and assignments. Upon returning
from the Navajo Nation students will complete the final assignments
for the course.
Navajo Nation
The Navajo Nation reservation or Dineh Bikeyah (Land of The
People), spans Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. Tuba City is
located in Northern Arizona, nestled within the purples, blues,
and reds of painted desert. Natural beauty and endless opportunities
for cultural learning abound in this community. Recreational
and cultural activities may include presentations from a Navajo
Tribal Delegate, a WWII Navajo Code Talker, and a visit to
a traditional sheep farm. Canyon hiking and visits to various
scenic spots in Arizona, such as the Grand Canyon, may also
be possible. Service projects in Tuba City are arranged through
the local schools and often include tutoring and mentoring
youth.
Details
Instructor: Monica
Frolander-Ulf
Credits: 6
Service-Learning in the Navajo
Nation: May
27 - June 17, 2004
Credits
Awarded: Credits are awarded for this course through
the University of Pittsburgh. This course fulfills Special
Topics in Cultural Anthropology (ANTH 1737) for 3 credits
and Anthropology Independent Study (ANTH 1901) for 3 credits.
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