A Line in the Sand
http://www.hanksville.org/sand/
Another site on the cultural appropriation issue, this one much more thorough and in-depth than most others, with information on suppression of Native languages and culture, the involvement of academia in appropriation of Native identity, and other issues beyond just the usual "plastic medicine man" concerns. I do think in some cases they're a bit harsh - I mean, they list AvatarSearch under "New Age Ripoff Sites", apparently because it indexes some pseudo-native sites! Since when are search engines personally responsible for every site they index? However, as anyone who's read many of these reviews knows by now, I don't have to agree with everything on a site to recommend it, and this one is the best resource I've yet come across for those wishing to educate themselves on the issues around appropriation of identity.
American Indian Ritual Object Repatriation Foundation
http://www.repatriationfoundation.org/
Web site of a non-profit organization devoted to restoring sacred objects that are being wrongfully bought and sold in the art market, after having been either stolen from graves or seized during war. This group raises money to send these things back to the nations they belong to.
Declaration of War Against Exploiters of Lakota Spirituality
http://puffin.creighton.edu/lakota/war.html
A strongly worded response by a group of Lakota elders and activists to the proliferation of "plastic medicine men" selling their spiritual traditions. The collection of responses to the declaration is as fascinating as the document itself.
First Nations/First Peoples Issues
http://www.dickshovel.com/firstnations.html
A huge site on Native issues and activism, maintained by Jordan S. Dill. You could spend weeks poring through the material here and still not have covered all of it. Includes an intro to the American Indian Movement (AIM), various e-mail action campaigns, histories of over 40 First Nations, and much more.
Honor the Earth
http://honorearth.com/
A foundation using music and art to raise money for Native environmental initiatives.
Indigenous Environmental Network
http://www.ienearth.org/
A grassroots organization devoted to sharing information among indigenous communities about the environmental issues affecting them, and their relationship with issues of sovereignty and treaty rights. The web site is a bit of a design hodgepodge, with each page looking wildly different from the next, but contains a lot of good information - action alerts, articles, and history.
Innu Nation/Mamit Innuat
http://www.innu.ca/
A trilingual web site (English, French, Innu) dealing with issues facing the Innu community of Nitassinan (eastern Quebec and Labrador). Information on low-level flying, the Voisey's bay development, women's issues, and more, plus the Innu-L mailing list.
John Trudell
http://www.johntrudell.com/
Website of the renowned activist, poet and singer, and former AIM leader. The site is quite polished and professional, and primarily focussed on his career as a recording artist, though it doesn't shy away from dealing with his activist history.
NativeWeb
http://www.nativeweb.org/
A wide-ranging Native portal site with discussion forums, a web directory, book and music listings, and more.
Rick's Indian 101
http://members.tripod.com/TopCat4/
This site kicks off with a biting parody of new age "plastic shamanism", which is unfortunately just a little too close to some of what's really out there! It's kind of scary when reality makes satire irrelevant. The pages that follow express the author's thoughts on what Native identity is - and isn't - in a way that's both down to earth, and often really funny as well (for example, he gives his name in one page footer as "Rick Red Vulture White Chihuahua Two Fish Panda Bear Fragrant Lichen Little e. coli Mars Rover Kerchee Powelson"!). Note that if you surf with Java turned off, as I do, you won't be able to see the applet that you're supposed to click on to get you past the scary splash page and into the site - so the direct URL to get in is http://members.tripod.com/TopCat4/frame.htm.
