Green, Donald H.

English

University of Oklahoma College of Law

American Indian Law ReviewVolume 4 | Number 11-1-1976Book Review: And The Land Shall Provide: AlaskaNatives in a Year of TransitionDonald H. GreenFollow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.law.ou.edu/ailrPart of the Indian and Aboriginal Law CommonsThis Book Review is brought to you for free and open access by University of Oklahoma College of Law Digital Commons. It has been accepted forinclusion in American Indian Law Review by an authorized editor of University of Oklahoma College of Law Digital Commons. For more information,please contact darinfox@ou.edu.Recommended CitationDonald H. Green, Book Review: And The Land Shall Provide: Alaska Natives in a Year of Transition, 4 Am. Indian L. Rev. 193 (1976),https://digitalcommons.law.ou.edu/ailr/vol4/iss1/15BOOK REVIEWAnd The Land Shall Provide: Alaska Natives in a Year of Transition,by Lael Morgan. Doubleday. 1974. $1o.oo.And The Land Shall Provide by Lael Morgan contributes to anunusual perception of the natives of Alaska, themselves an unusualand perceptive people who occupied this land before domination byWestern civilization. The book was prompted by a major change inthe power structure and economy of Alaska and seeks to capturesome measure of the natives as they moved into a year of major transi-tion. The book is thus subtitled "Alaskan Natives in a Year ofTransition."In December of 1971, the Congress passed the Alaska NativesClaims Settlement Act, granting to the Alaska natives $465 millionin federal funds, $500 million in state mineral rights, and 4o millionacres of land. Lael Morgan, a longtime resident of Alaska and a re-porter for the Tundra Times, the leading native newspaper, took onthe assignment of living with the native people, eating as they ate,and living as they lived, all toward the idea of achieving a perceptiveapproach to what the natives of Alaska were in 1972, and would beafter the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act began to have animpact.This book describes the series of stays that she made with variousnative groups, together with a summarization of the history of theAlaska Native Claims Settlement Act and of the Alaska nativepeople. Lael Morgan is a good reporter, a perceptive writer, and anengaging individual. Willing to take chances, involving danger as wellas personal "put downs," she appears to have succeeded time aftertime to work her way into the hearts of the native people with whomshe was staying. Her sympathetic and gently humorous views helpexplain why the villagers finally did accept her. In addition, her cheer-ful participation in the life of the natives, including the dangers ofthe harsh environment, the strikingly peculiar diets, and the livingconditions of the villagers, took her far beyond normal reportingrequirements and brought her into the hearts of the people she wasreporting about.Ms. Morgan notes that the anthropomorphism typical of anyculture closely tied to its environment is present in the remote settle-ments about which she reports. For example, the playful sea otterswere once humans, according to Aleut legend. Aleut trappers eventoday are impressed with the otters' humanistic conduct, particularlyPublished by University of Oklahoma College of Law Digital Commons, 1976in lovemaking-and the Aleut legend of their ancestors quietlycontinues.Some wise if irreverent soul once noted that there has never beena statue erected in honor of someone who left well-enough alone. Buteven if there had been, it is unlikely such a totem would ever mark apoint of contact between whites and natives in Alaska. Some ofthe results of not leaving well-enough alone are chronicled by Ms.Morgan.In many ways, the most pressing problems faced by the natives ofAlaska derive from the welfare aspect of today's society. Pressed bythe white man's material goods, social pressures and, ultimately, laws,many natives have moved out of their traditional intimate relation-ship with their environment. The change has, however, not beensuccessful for all. Too many natives have fallen afoul of the welfarestate mentality in switching from dependence on the "old ways" ofhunting, trapping, and fishing to new ways of living on the dole (achange made all too easy for some by alcohol).Ms. Morgan writes in a unpretentious, easy style and does notpurport to offer novel sociological, economic, or cultural insights.Indeed, it is the easy charm of her story that gives the reader a freshappreciation of the natives of Alaska. In avoiding the obvious, sheimplies the subtle: ancient customs adapting to new cultures andnew mass-produced products being adapted to ancient cultures.From Ms. Morgan's writings, one does not derive a definitivehistory, a complete anthropological report, nor a cultural or legalanalysis of the current state of the natives. Rather, and perhaps moreimportant than any of these for her purposes, one is given a personal,subjective amalgam of experiences which justify the numerous im-plicit conclusions she reaches concerning the Alaskan native life andculture.For lawyers, particularly those representing natives of Alaska-orindeed any Indian client-the principal value of this book may wellconsist of the insights it gives into the problems and psychology ofclients who still live close to a land that is intolerant of mistakes butwhich can provide adequately to those hardy and knowledgeableenough to function on its terms. Certainly the book cannot beproffered as a legal reference in any normal sense. That is not, how-ever, to denigrate its value to lawyers. Indeed, this very Law Reviewprovides a unique service in combining such knowledge with themore traditional legal analyses found within its covers. For those whohave the gratifications of representing Indian groups, the imperativeof such representation is careful understanding of our clients' uniquehistory, motivations, and objectives. In the case of Alaskan natives,https://digitalcommons.law.ou.edu/ailr/vol4/iss1/15some of whom I have the pleasure of representing, motivations andobjectives are complex, often unarticulated, and of overriding im-portance in guiding the lawyer seeking to serve his client's interest.Donald H. GreenAttorneyWald, Harkrader & RossWashington, D.C.Published by University of Oklahoma College of Law Digital Commons, 1976

Book Review: And The Land Shall Provide: Alaska Natives in a Year of Transition

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Book Review: And The Land Shall Provide: Alaska Natives in a Year of Transition

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