Standoff

"Eye–opening and compelling…required reading for those who would call this land home."
—KIRKUS REVIEWS

"Keeler makes a compelling case…her elucidation of how the domination of the written word over oral storytelling contributes to the unequal application of justice adds fascinating context."
—MINNESOTA STAR TRIBUNE

"Rigorous analysis and personal storytelling invigorate Jacqueline Keeler's examination of Indigenous vs. colonial land tenure. Standoff recounts the historic legacy of treaty rights and sacred space underpinning Standing Rock's case against the Dakota Access Pipeline, and contrasts this legacy with the white entitlement as well as cultural land desecrations of the Bundy movement. Standoff is a powerful, illuminating book."
—LOUISE ERDRICH, author of The Night Watchman

"Jacqueline Keeler weaves personal experience, cultural awareness, and journalistic acumen to tell a compelling story that compares and contrasts two modern and historic Western encounters between federal land policy and the people who inhabit these lands. 'Whose land is it anyway?' Keeler ultimately asks, and finding the answer is a task that requires deep reflection from all of us who share these magnificent vistas."
—CHRIS LA TRAY, author of Becoming Little Shell

"Environmental activists, Indigenous rights activists, and allies should take note of the challenging, unjust, and at times beautiful accounts shared here, which illuminate the complexity of what it means to stand in solidarity in a colonial state."
—MARISA ELENA DUARTE, Assistant Professor, Arizona State University School of Social Transformation

"Jacqueline Keeler, a master storyteller and reporter, crafts a knotty skein, twining together family traditions, Native and colonial histories, personal experiences, and crackerjack journalism. Standoff explores inequity and entitlement, seeking answers to what American land means to cultures with divergent values and uneven advantages."
—BETSY GAINES QUAMMEN, author of American Zion and True West

"Standoff has the potential to launch a trend of orderly and pertinent analysis of the societal, cultural and structural issues that provide the context within which today’s Indian Movement(s) operate and presents a challenge to Indian people whether we continue to play the game of accepting our 'place' in America or define who we are and what we want to be."
—SAM DELORIA, law professor emeritus, University of New Mexico

"This is the kind of book we owe to young Indigenous kids. They deserve the truth, even if it hurts, and this brave, well–sourced journalism deserves to be named for what it will go down in history as: perhaps the most in–depth look at the #NoDAPL movement, coming from where it should: your nation and from within Indian country."
—DESIREE KANE, journalist