Reflection. Why is AIS for everyone? Life Sciences Essay

Reflection
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Reflection
Why is AIS for everyone?
The introduction of a program in a school means that the people behind the introduction, have seen a need and they intend to satisfy that particular need in question. So, the American Indian Studies is indeed meant and should be for everyone. By everyone, I mean both Indians and non-Indians. As Champagne (1996) writes, there have been issues as to who should focus on the study of Indians with the Indians insisting that they are better suited for the job. However, as Champagne notes, “one does not have to be a member of a culture to understand what culture means or to interpret a culture in a meaningful way.” Everyone has the ability to understand the attributes of another culture and interpret in a way that makes sense for them. This means that a community cannot claim anonymity and that AIS is for everyone.
Champagne introduces another issue with regards to AIS. Apparently, Indian scholars have been concerned with the idea of non-Indian scholars studying Indian culture and interpreting it for their audiences. Well, they are partly true because as Champagne notes, “many non-Indian scholars prefer to interpret Indian life from within broad theoretical frameworks, or United States or Western historical terms, and generally place a strong emphasis on expanding European economic or political activities.” This bias has led to a lack of cultural-based interpretations on one hand but an influx of economic and political interpretations on the other. However, this does not mean that non-Indian scholars cannot be involved in cultural interpretations of the American Indians. Just like the Indian scholars, they are in need of “rigorous study, fieldwork, and sensitive orientation” which will help them amass an understanding of Indian groups.
How does this field benefit more than Indigenous peoples?
First of all, it is crucial that a clear definition of the term indigenous people is provided. David and Stark (2010) offer other teams which are used to refer to indigenous...