|
Books > Social sciences > Sociology, social studies > Social groups & communities > Associations, clubs, societies
Freemasonry has played a significant role in the history of Native
Americans since the colonial era-a role whose extent and meaning
are fully explored for the first time in this book. The overarching
concern of Native American Freemasonry is with how Masonry met
specific social and personal needs of Native Americans, a theme
developed across three periods: the revolutionary era, the last
third of the nineteenth century, and the years following the First
World War. Joy Porter positions Freemasonry within its historical
context, examining its social and political impact as a
transatlantic phenomenon at the heart of the colonizing process.
She then explores its meaning for many key Native leaders, for
ethnic groups that sought to make connections through it, and for
the bulk of its American membership-the white Anglo-Saxon
Protestant middle class. Through research gleaned from archives in
New York, Philadelphia, Oklahoma, California, and London, Porter
shows how Freemasonry's performance of ritual provided an
accessible point of entry to Native Americans and how over time,
Freemasonry became a significant avenue for the exchange and
co-creation of cultural forms by Indians and non-Indians.
|
|