"This is a compelling and compassionate revelation of the eternal violence against Native women. It is a call to action for all of us."—The Honorable Ada E. Deer, former Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs and enrolled Menominee
"Sarah Deer breaks down how the United States’ addiction to violence and capitalism only sustains the subjugation and exploitation of Indigenous women. As a survivor, I am thankful for Deer’s insight and theories on creating Indigenous frameworks of justice for victims, their families, and their communities."—Radmilla Cody, singer and advocate for anti-violence
"The Beginning and End of Rape documents the brutal history and contemporary reality of how rape has been used and continues to be used against Native women by the federal government to create a cultural implosion of destruction for generations. Rape, burn, and pillage continues when Native American women do not have equal protection of the law extended to us."—Charon Asetoyer, Executive Director, Native American Women’s Health Education Resource Center
"An incisive and imperative academic study."—Kirkus Reviews
"Deer is extremely thorough in her discussions of the history of rape law and its failings. She explores the meaning of rape in American society from a woman’s point of view. And she presents some possible strategies to begin to create equity, justice, and healing for victims of rape."—Indian Country Today
"The Beginning and End of Rape will change the way we as Native people approach sexual violence in our communities and the way tribal courts protect and advocate for victims. I have no doubt the book will become the new standard in social justice circles and will be required reading everywhere from online spaces to classrooms and courtrooms."—Native Peoples
"There is much for everyone to learn in this incisive, compelling, and thought-provoking volume."—Women’s Review of Books
"An outstanding work that not only explains why rape in Indian country has reached epidemic levels but also provides readers with practical solutions. Highly recommended."—CHOICE "The Beginning and End of Rape marks an important contribution to growing scholarship around issues of gendered violence. Sarah Deer’s contribution is unique and pathbreaking." —Against the Current
2015-08-16
A blunt, trenchant exposé on the history and impact of sexual violence on indigenous tribal nations. For more than two decades, MacArthur Fellow Deer (Law/William Mitchell Coll. of Law; co-editor: Sharing Our Stories of Survival: Native Women Surviving Violence, 2007) has been an activist for sexual and domestic violence survivors in Native American communities. The vast knowledge and shrewd assessment skills she brings to this book give the issue the acknowledgment it desperately deserves. Though averse to calling the rape of American Indian women an "epidemic," a moniker she feels depoliticizes it, the author views the harrowing matter as a direct result of colonialism. Though only one issue of many daunting tribal governments today, she writes, the sexual assault of native women is an atrocity historically plaguing Indian tribes, and it should rightly be deemed a "crime against humanity." As a member of the Muscogee nation, Deer imparts passion and resolve into chapters condemning rampant criminal impunity via federal laws that disregard the framework of tribal sovereignty, discussing the conundrum of sex trafficking, and how and why contemporary feminist theory fails to wholly address the situation at large. She then looks beyond the statistical data delivered in early chapters to propose diverse reform efforts that address victims' needs and legal rights. A particularly humbling section focusing on the journey of an imprisoned rape survivor puts a human face on the crisis and personalizes it beyond hard facts and disquieting details. While Deer maintains that these dire acts of violence form complex legal and humanitarian complications with no elementary resolutions, she offers a variety of viable, proactive, and creative solutions and reformative proposals in an effort to rectify what she believes has become a "seemingly hopeless reality." An incisive and imperative academic study.
