March 31 panel discussion to examine Christianity in indigenous territories

March 31 panel discussion to examine Christianity in indigenous territoriesMarch 17, 2008Sara Millersemortim@syr.edu

On Monday, March 31, Syracuse University will host a panel discussion on the historical and current issues of Christianity in indigenous territories. The event, “The Doctrine of Discovery and Indigenous Survival,” will begin at 4 p.m. in the Hergenhan Auditorium of Newhouse 3 and will feature a public conversation, reception and book signing. A special focus of discussion among the panelists will be upcoming events at the United Nations, including the Indigenous Women’s Conference; the meeting of the U.N. Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues; and Pope Benedict XVI’s visit in April. The featured panelists are:

• Oren Lyons, Onondaga Nation Turtle Clan faithkeeper, professor emeritus of American Studies at the University at Buffalo, and co-author of “Exiled in the Land of the Free: Democracy, Indian Nations and the U.S. Constitution” (Clear Light Pub, 1998).

• Tonya Gonnella-Frichner of the Onondaga Nation Snipe Clan; president and founder of the American Indian Law Alliance, a non-governmental organization in consultative status with the U.N. Economic and Social Council; and North American regional representative to the U.N. Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.

• Steve Newcomb (Shawnee/Lenape), indigenous law research coordinator at the Sycuan Education Department, Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation; co-founder and co-director of the Indigenous Law Institute; columnist for Indian Country Today; and author of “Pagans in the Promised Land: Decoding the Doctrine of Christian Discovery” (Fulcrum, 2008).

• Andrea Smith (Cherokee), faculty member in the Program of American Culture and Women’s Studies at the University Michigan; co-founder of INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence, a national grassroots organization that utilizes direct action and critical dialogue; and author of “Conquest: Sexual Violence and Native American Genocide and Native Americans” (South End Press, 2005) and the forthcoming “Native Americans and the Christian Right: The Gendered Politics of Unlikely Alliances” (Duke University Press, 2008).

The panel discussion is sponsored by SU’s Department of Religion, Religion and Society Program, Native American Studies Program, Women’s and Gender Studies Program; Imagining America; and the Department of Religion at Le Moyne College.

The event is free, and parking is available in SU pay lots. For more information, contact Phil Arnold, SU associate professor of indigenous religions, at 443-3861, pparnold@syr.edu.