The Clash of Economic Decisions in Alaska

In 1971, the American State of Alaska introduced a
new body of land rights in a way it has not been done
before. For the first time in history, indigenous
people were organized in industrial stakeholder
corporations with the aim of generating profits off
their traditional lands, redistributing them through
shares.
The Natives call for a final land rights solution was
joined by the industry and answered by the State
Government after the discovery of commerciable
amounts of oil in the 1960s on the North Slope of
Alaska. Most of the native groups, by then partly
integrated into mainstream American society, entered
into a fundamentally new kind of land rights.
This book outlines the development of land rights,
characterized by depletion and assimilation of the
native people throughout the course of history. The
objective of this work is to study the extend to
which Alaska Natives are economically and socially
integrated into the capitalistic society of the
U.S.A. and to explore the impact of the new category
of land rights on the indigenous economic sphere. Has
the experimental land rights legislation a positive
outcome for all people?

Autorentext

Rebecca Hofmann, M.A.: Studium der Ethnologie, Geographie und derRomanischen Philologie (Spanisch) an derAlbert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg mit Schwerpunkt IndigeneRechte und Entwicklungsländerforschung.

Klappentext

In 1971, the American State of Alaska introduced anew body of land rights in a way it has not been donebefore. For the first time in history, indigenouspeople were organized in industrial stakeholdercorporations with the aim of generating profits offtheir traditional lands, redistributing them throughshares. The Natives´call for a final land rights solution wasjoined by the industry and answered by the StateGovernment after the discovery of commerciableamounts of oil in the 1960s on the North Slope ofAlaska. Most of the native groups, by then partlyintegrated into mainstream American society, enteredinto a fundamentally new kind of land rights.This book outlines the development of land rights,characterized by depletion and assimilation of thenative people throughout the course of history. Theobjective of this work is to study the extend towhich Alaska Natives are economically and sociallyintegrated into the capitalistic society of theU.S.A. and to explore the impact of the new categoryof land rights on the indigenous economic sphere. Hasthe experimental land rights legislation a positiveoutcome for all people?