American Society for Ethnohistory Annual Meeting And Conference

The American Society for Ethnohistory Annual Meeting and Conference is an important gathering that will focus on the theme of Indigenous Mobility and Movement in 'Modern' Worlds. This event is a significant opportunity to explore the centennial of U.S. Route 66, which symbolizes mobility and migration across the American landscape. While Route 66 is a central topic, the conference will also delve into the deeper histories of Indigenous peoples who traversed these lands long before the establishment of numbered highways.

The gathering will take place at the Cox Business Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a region that has been significantly shaped by Indigenous movement and modernity. Attendees will reflect on the historical significance of figures like Will Rogers and infrastructures like Route 66, which overlay older Indigenous pathways, offering a rich context for discussions on movement, sovereignty, and Indigenous modernities.

The conference invites a diverse range of participants, including scholars, Indigenous knowledge-keepers, community historians, artists, and graduate students from various fields such as history, anthropology, Native American studies, and museum studies. Proposed topics for discussion include Indigenous trails and movements that challenge colonial infrastructures, the impacts of modern infrastructure on Indigenous sovereignty and land use, and the effects of forced migration and labor mobility.

Furthermore, there will be explorations of Indigenous entrepreneurship and cultural economies, as well as memory and heritage preservation efforts that contest mainstream narratives of progress. The conference will also feature community roundtables with tribal partners from Oklahoma's 39 nations, public history tours in Tulsa, and discussions on methodologies that center Indigenous perspectives.

Notable speakers include Joseph Genetin-Pilawa, Julie Reed, Robbie Ethridge, Kallie Kosc, James Buss, Cathleen Cahill, and Joan Bristol, all of whom bring valuable insights into the intersections of Indigenous history and modern infrastructures.