Indigeneity and global citizenship

Abstract

This chapter examines the extent to which indigenous identity can be considered a form of global citizenship. We begin with an overview of the contemporary international indigenous movement, arguing that modern indigenous identity is characterized not only by experiences of “homeland,” but of “diaspora” as well. Drawing on fieldwork in Africa and the Middle East, we then expand these two experiences to distinguish between two themes in contemporary indigenous discourse: that of “globalizing indigenous peoples,” as illustrated by the Hadza in Tanzania; and that of “indigenizing global peoples,” as represented by the Jews in Israel. Having established that indigeneity and globality are not necessarily antithetical, we then explore how these concepts intersect with notions of citizenship. Using the four discourses of citizenship proposed by Linda Bosniak (Indiana J Global Law Stud 7:447-508, 2000)-citizenship-as-political activity, as-collective identity and sentiment, as-legal status, and as-rights we argue that indigenous identity is a legitimate form of global citizenship with regard to the first two of these discourses, yet is less so with regard to the last two. Ultimately, the validity of the notion of indigeneity-as-global citizenship is heteroglossic: it varies significantly according to which “dialect” of the language of citizenship is spoken.