An Introductory Letter from Robert A. Williams, Jr. Director, the University of Arizona Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program

Dear Colleagues:

I am delighted to welcome you to the inaugural issue of the Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Newsletter, produced and distributed by the University of Arizona Rogers College of Law Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy (IPLP) Program. The purpose of the Newsletter is to provide our friends, colleagues, current students, alumni, and those with general interests in our program and indigenous peoples law and policy with timely information and news about IPLP sponsored events, conferences and lectures here at the Rogers College of Law, the human rights work and advocacy projects of IPLP, updates on faculty, student and alumni activities, and general news that we hope is of relevance to you and your work in the field.

If you do not wish to be included on our mailing list for future distribution, simply use the unsubscribe page to let us know.

We hope you have time to look at and enjoy the information contained in the Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Newsletter.

Rob Williams
Director and E. Thomas Sullivan Professor of Law and American Indian Studies

UN Expert Seminar

On October 12, the Indigenous Peoples Law & Policy Program hosted the United Nations Expert Seminar Concerning Indigenous Peoples' Rights at the Rogers College of Law. Featuring Mr. Rodolfo Stevanhagen, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Situtaion of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of Indigenous Peoples, the ceremony was transmitted in real-time via the internet, and an archive can be accessed online.

Please look for pictures and more information on the seminar in next month's newsletter.

New Book Announcement

The Indigenous Peoples Law & Policy Program proudly announces a new book by Professor Robert A. Williams, Jr., Like a Loaded Weapon: The Rehnquist Court, Indian Rights, and the Legal History of Racism in America (University of Minnesota Press, October 2005). Beginning with Chief Justice John Marshall’s foundational opinions in the early nineteenth century and con-tinuing today in the judgments of the Rehnquist Court, Professor Williams shows how undeniably racist language and precedent are still used in Indian law to justify the denial of important rights of property, self-government, and cultural survival to Indians. Building on the insights of Malcolm X, Thurgood Marshall, and Frantz Fanon, Williams argues that racist language has been employed by the courts to legalize a uniquely American form of racial dictatorship over Indian tribes by the U.S. government. Read more...

Professor Williams Speaking at Fall Events

Professor Williams will be speaking this fall at two events in Tucson, Arizona. He will be the plenary speaker at the Western Humanities Alliance Conference on October 22, 2005 at the University of Arizona and the keynote speaker at the National Association of Student Personnel Administrations Western Regional Conference on November 10, 2005, in Tucson, Arizona. Read more...

Fall 2005 Colloquium Speakers Announced

The Indigenous Peoples Law & Policy Program is proud to welcome the following speakers to the College of Law during the Fall semester:

• Dr. Stephanie A. Fryberg, Assistant Professor of Social Psychology, University of Arizona;

• Herb George, Chair, First Nations Governance Centre; and

• José Aylwin, Indigenous Rights Program Coordinator, Universidad de la Frontera, Temuco, Chile.

Biographical information on these speakers and more information about the Colloquium Series available through IPLP's website.

The Indigenous Peoples Law & Policy Program Participates in Hearing before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights

The IPLP Program and the Indian Law Resource Center (ILRC) participated in a thematic hearing at the 122nd session of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, which took place in Washington, D.C., in February 2005. The objective of the hearing was to raise the Commission’s understanding of the challenges posed by the implementation of decisions and recommendations by the inter-American human rights bodies in cases related to indigenous peoples’ rights. During their presentation, IPLP and ILRC staff attorneys advocated for the need for an immediate special intervention by the Commission in order to fully enforce its recommendations, and discussed different proposals with the Commissioners. State compliance with the inter-American bodies’ decisions and recommendations involving indigenous peoples is a crucial issue that touches directly upon the authority and reliability of these bodies, as they are increasingly starting to play a leading role in the international protection of the rights of these peoples.

New S.J.D. Program Announced

The Rogers College of Law at the University of Arizona is pleased to announce a new doctoral degree in law, the Scientiea Juridicae Doctor (S.J.D.).  As the highest degree offered in the field of law, the S.J.D. offers candidates an intellectually challenging opportunity for academic specialization. Augmenting the already esteemed graduate legal studies offered through its Master of Law Programs in international trade and indigenous peoples law and policy, the College of Law expects that the S.J.D. Program will offer the most specialized training in these areas in the world. Candidates for the S.J.D. will conduct advanced research and produce original scholarship under the guidance of select, internationally renowned faculty members from the Rogers College of Law, such as Robert A. Williams, Jr., author of Federal Indian Law: Cases and Materials (5th ed.), and S. James Anaya, author of Indigenous Peoples in International Law (2nd ed.). Clinical components of the program foster the connection between practical experience and scholarly development, resulting in direct public service that is attentive to local, state, national, and international needs. The faculty and staff of the University of Arizona graduate legal studies programs are inspired to meet these needs by its diverse student population and close relationships with international organizations and local and international indigenous communities. Students of the Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program have been admitted from numerous native nations of the Americas as well as Australia, Africa and East Asia. It is the expectation that the Rogers College of Law will continue to attract the most skilled, ambitious students and scholars from around the country, as well as from other countries, to build on the success of graduate legal studies at the University of Arizona. If you would like to learn more about the S.J.D. Program, contact glsadmissions@law.arizona.edu.