Tenure Discrimination: A Personal Narrative

Paper Summary:

In this paper the author describes the reasons why she had to resign from her university post. She considers herself a Native American, despite her being Jewish. The author goes on to tell her story, why she was made to resign from her post in the Native American studies department. She also recommends, for all academics who are trying to get tenure, to ask a few pertinent questions of their departments before even applying. For example, she suggests that a prospect should inquire among his prospective faculty colleagues if they think that the decolonization of Native peoples is a significant issue today. The author carries on discussing her bitter experiences, emphasizing that because she is not the classic Native American, she was discriminated against. She concludes that it is better to work with your colleagues and find a common understanding, than to try and fight them.

From the Paper:

"Cornel Pewewardy calls for all of us to have a firm grounding in the discourse of the deconstruction of racial categories. He states that guilt and fear prevent too many from fully addressing the discourse and its ramifications "most of us are in denial about 'race' and 'hegemony' and do little committed thinking about race matters." Genocide and colonization are of course at the root of the guilt and fear; these historical processes will continue to erode every aspect of Native life until they are addressed both by dominant society and Native societies. Along with other Native academics and grassroots people, Pewewardy points to the need to "reach deep into the spiritual wells of our different religious traditions in order to draw strength and grace with which to address the challenges of healing and nation building." Implying that some of the current leadership may not be inclined or in position to do what he and others have called for, he also states that "Along with fresh leaders, a new leadership ethos grounded in tradition must be put in place, one that promotes accountability to the peoples through the revival of traditional decision-making procedures." My tenure experience, in addition to my experience of several reservations convinces me that too few of the people with power to influence the course of Native communities act from a Native ethos that is deeply concerned with reproducing Native values into the future."

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