Power from powerlessness: tribal governments, institutional niches, and American federalism

Since America's founding, American Indian tribes have possessed hardly any social, economic, or political power, and they remain one of the poorest and isolated populations in the country (despite the popular myth that gambling revenue has elevated their socioeconomic status). Yet in comparison to other marginal groups, they have been relatively successful in persuading government at all levels--local, state, and federal--to pursue policies that address importanttribal concerns. How is it that Indian tribes sometimes succeed against very dim odds? More broadly, given the equation between socioeconomic status and power in America, why would seemingly powerless advocates ever win? And what does Indians' success tell us about the potential for the powerless to wrest a measure of power for themselves in such an unequal country? In Power from Powerlessness, Laura Evans looks at the successful policy interventions by a range of Indian tribes to explain the how disadvantaged groups can build capacity andexploit niches in the institutional framework of American federalism to obtain unlikely victories. While some of the victories are admittedly small, Evans shows that they are quite impressive when viewed cumulatively. Not simply a book about American Indian politics, Power from Powerlessness forces scholars ofinstitutions and inequality to reconsider the commonly held view that the less powerful are in fact powerless. INDICE: Chapter 1: American Indian Tribal Governments' Fight for Change inside Institutions; Chapter 2: The Historical Evolution of American Indian Political Strategies and Background; Chapter 3: Quiet, Yet Ever-Constant Advocacy:How American Indian Tribal Governments Have Confronted and Changed Federal Indian Policy; Chapter 4: Expertise-Centered Behaviors: How Knowledge Changes Organizations and How to Know When it's There; Chapter 5: Expertise and 'Soft' Disempowerment: Race, Land and Local Power in American Indian Politics; Chapter6: Channels of Access, Frames for Persuasion: Influence of Tribal Governmentsin State Politics; Chapter 7: Forging the Future; References

• ISBN: 978-0-19-974274-5
• Editorial: Oxford University
• Encuadernacion: Cartoné
• Páginas: 272
• Fecha Publicación: 01/05/2011
• Nº Volúmenes: 1
• Idioma: Inglés