Labriola Center announces 2024 National Book Award recipients

The Labriola National American Indian Data Center at the ASU Library recently announced the recipients of the 2024 National Book Award. “Settler Cannabis: From Gold Rush to Green Rush in Indigenous Northern California” by Kaitlin P. Reed was named the winner. The annual award recognizes scholarship in American Indian and Indigenous studies.

Published in 2023 by the University of Washington Press, “Settler Cannabis” explores connections between California cannabis production and the violence and dispossession of Indigenous land and people. Reed illustrates how the "green rush" of cannabis production is part of a broader legacy of settler colonialism, following patterns of resource extraction that began with gold and timber and continue today.

“The committee is honored to select Kaitlin Reed’s “Settler Cannabis” as the Labriola Book Award winner,” said Jerome Clark (Diné), assistant professor of American Indian Studies in The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and chair of this year’s award committee. “Professor Reed’s book stood apart because she compellingly writes about California’s violent history while prioritizing Indigenous voices and perspectives. This is only possible because of her fantastic prose and storytelling. Scholars and students interested in how extractive violence shapes Indigenous bodies and lands should read ‘Settler Cannabis.’”

In addition to Clark, the committee included Michelle Hale (Diné), teaching professor in American Indian Studies and Alex Young, associate teaching professor and honors faculty fellow at Barrett, The Honors College.

Kaitlin Reed (Yurok/Hupa/Oneida) is an assistant professor of Native American studies at Humboldt State University. Combining archival research with interviews from tribal members and other stakeholders, Reed advocates for a future where Indigenous stewardship of land is restored and the commodification of nature is rejected. “Settler Cannabis” presents a compelling analysis of the environmental and cultural impacts of cannabis cultivation, foregrounding Indigenous voices and histories in the discussion.

In addition, the committee awarded the honorable mention to “American Indians and the American Dream: Policies, Place, and Property in Minnesota” by Kasey R. Keeler (Tuolumne Me-Wuk and Citizen Potawatomi). In her 2023 book published by the University of Minnesota Press, Keeler examines the processes and policies of urbanization and suburbanization in American Indian communities, focusing on Indian communities in Minnesota. Keeler is an assistant professor in the Department of Civil Society and Community Studies and American Indian Studies at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Founded in 2008, The Labriola Center American Indian National Book Award is a national competition with book submissions from numerous academic presses.

“The Labriola Book Award is a unique award in recognizing Indigenous authors' masterful academic or community work in addressing the challenges and issues many Indigenous communities endure,” said Vina Begay, assistant librarian and archivist with the Labriola Center. “All books are evaluated by a group of revered Indigenous faculty and allies in examining the author's transformative Indigenous approaches within their respective field of study. It can also go beyond scholarly work by evaluating the Indigenous author’s community work for cultural sustainability and revitalization of the communities’ lifeways. The winning outcome for the award depends on the books submitted and the impactful work in benefiting Tribal communities, Indigenous students, and their professional peers.”

During the fall semester, Reed will join the Labriola Center at the ASU Tempe campus for celebrations happening on October 28 and 29. Events will include classroom visits and a public talk about her book at the Labriola Center in Hayden Library. Contact Eric Hardy, program coordinator with the Labriola Center for details. Stay tuned to ASU Library news for event updates.