Displacement & Diaspora: Indigeneity in Northwest Arkansas

Northwest Arkansas has a complex relationship with Indigeneity due to the erasure experience by the original inhabitants of the lands, and the presences of newly immigrated Indigenous groups such as the Marshallese people from the Republic of the Marshall Islands. Today, the Indigenous identity that is most commonly present within the Northwest Arkansas community are the Marshallese people. The reason as to why the original inhabitants of modern-day Northwest Arkansas are not the most prominently represented Indigenous group, is because of severe erasure, genocide, and systematic racism experienced by these people. This thesis will be investigating the Indigenous identities of Northwest Arkansas, which will include information on the first peoples and the modern-day presence of the Marshallese people. This thesis will particularly be focusing on the ways in which the legacy of colonialism and climate change have linked these groups in their displacement. Despite the differing time periods, the interconnectedness between these Indigenous populations’ experiences with colonialism and colonialist systems further demonstrates the threat that Indigenous populations still face today of erasure and continual oppression. Through both populations’ mutual experience with displacement and diaspora, this thesis will investigate how food can act as an essential connector between Indigenous individuals and their culture, as well as how food can be a form of reparations, healing, and future progress.