There is much to be said about traditional native wisdom and its ability to animate many of our current challenges. This wisdom stands in contrast to the ways and sensibilities of a modern consumer society. The Standing Rock movement, for example, has breathed new life into questions of religious freedom, tribal sovereignty, peaceable protest, and environmental stewardship. Native approaches toward revering the land, honoring ancestors, and protecting water can sometimes mean resistance to the prevailing structure of society. Whether through politics, cultural influence, or old forms of spirituality, will society listen to the Native American moral voice?

Michalyn Steele is Associate Professor of Law at the J. Reuben Clark Law School of Brigham Young University and a member of the Seneca Nation. 

This event is organized by Books & Bridges — a community institute of ideas and conversation. Our mission is to facilitate discussion on the best of human thought. We explore the wisdoms of the world and apply them to modern life. We have no political, religious or ideological affiliation. In a society divided by uncivil discourse, the beauty of the humanities—novels, history, philosophy, poetry, ethics and epics—lifts us to our better angels. In our busy world we need space for friends and fellow learners to do a little more heart-to-heart and mind-to-mind.