A Constitutional Confession: The Permanent if Malleable Status of Indigenous Nations

Abstract

I appreciate the opportunity to address such an august group of students and faculty. When Amy invited me to join you, and she certainly is a very persuasive person, I debated long and hard on what kind of talk to give since I study politics comparatively. Although much of my work is infused with law and history, and a smidgen of culture, economics, and geography, I work largely at the intersection of politics, history and law, and have coined the awkward though accurate term, "Polegalorian," to describe what I do. My research is concerned broadly with how indigenous peoples generate, participate, and are subject to these and other important forces. My research also deals with how and why the American constituent states, international bodies, and the federal government act in the manner they do towards aboriginal peoples.