Choice Review

Wunder's work constitutes the first single-volume study of the history of the constitutional rights of Native Americans, from the ratification of the Bill of Rights in 1791 to the present. Wunder capably blends evidence from legal studies, history, and anthropology to demonstrate the complex manner in which the American constitutional system has denied the application of the Bill of Rights to Native Americans per se, both collectively and individually. Although the study begins with an assessment of the contrasting theories of rights between Europeans and indigenous peoples in 1492, the book's main focus is on the definitive court cases and governmental policies of the 20th century that posited Native Americans in their precarious and unique status within the American legal system. Wunder's analysis provides a sorely needed broad historical context to properly explore the political meanings of the ongoing Native American legal struggles for self-determination and individual liberty. Upper-division undergraduates and above. R. J. Lettieri; Mount Ida College