American Indians and the Trouble with Sovereignty: A Turn Toward Structural Self-Determination

153 Pages·2017·1.454 MB·English

by  Kouslaa T. Kessler-Mata

American Indians and the Trouble with Sovereignty
With tribes and individual Indians increasingly participating in
American electoral politics, this study examines the ways in which
tribes work together with state and local governments to overcome sig-
nificant governance challenges. Much scholarship on tribal governance
continues to rely on a concept of tribal sovereignty that does not allow
for or help structure this type of governance activity. The resulting ten-
sion that emerges in both theory and practice from American Indian
intergovernmental affairs is illuminated here and the limits of existing
theory are confronted. Kessler-Mata presents an argument for tribal
sovereignty to be normatively understood and pragmatically pursued
through efforts aimed at interdependence, not autonomy. By turning
toward theories of federalism and freedom in the republican tradition,
the author provides an alternative framework for thinking about the
goals and aspirations of tribal self-determination.
Kouslaa T. Kessler-Mata is Associate Professor at the University of San
Francisco. Prior to this position, Kouslaa served as a legislative fellow
with the National Congress of American Indians in Washington DC
and sat on the Board of Trustees for California Indian Legal Services.
She is yak tityu tityu Chumash and Yokut, two tribes from Central
California, and Irish American.

American Indians and the Trouble
with Sovereignty
Structuring Self-Determination
through Federalism
KOUSLAA T. KESSLER-MATA
University of San Francisco
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www.cambridge.org
Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9781108415866
DOI: 10.1017/9781108235334
© Kouslaa T. Kessler-Mata 2017
This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant
collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written
permission of Cambridge University Press.
First published 2017
Printed in the United States of America by Sheridan Books, Inc.
A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Kessler-Mata, Kouslaa T., author.
Title: American Indians and the trouble with sovereignty : structuring self-determination
through federalism / Kouslaa T. Kessler-Mata.
Description: Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 2017. | Includes
bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2017035746 | ISBN 9781108415866 (hardback : alk. paper)
Subjects: LCSH: Indians of North America—Legal status, laws, etc. | Indians of North
America—Government relations. | Indians of North America—Politics and government. |
Self-determination, National—United States. | Tribal government—Law and legislation—
United States. | Sovereignty. 
Classification: LCC KF8205 .K47 2017 | DDC 342.7308/72—dc23 LC record available at
https://lccn.loc.gov/2017035746
ISBN 978-1-108-41586-6 Hardback
Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for
external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication and does not guarantee
that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.
For
Chaan-hee, Pismono, and Doowan,
In memory of Tamra

Contents
Preface page ix
Acknowledgments xiii
1 The Conceptual Limits of Tribal Sovereignty 1
2 Building the Constitutive Theory of Tribal Sovereignty 28
3 Regional Dilemmas: The Politics of Tribal–State Relations 48
4 Disabling Arbitrary Interference 66
5 Political Participation: A Hallmark of Incorporation 81
6 The Constitutive Theory as a Theory of Freedom 105
Bibliography 125
Index 133
vii