Book

Law and conflict management among the Hopi

University Microfilms • Ann Arbor • Published In 1973 • Pages:

By: Cox, Bruce Alden.

Abstract

This source is a study of conflict and conflict management as it concerns disputes involving land ownership, farming and grazing rights, and physical and verbal aggression among the Hopi on the Hopi Indian Reservation northeastern Arizona. The title is somewhat misleading, however, since the focus is more on conflict than on conflict management. The author finds that disputes involving rights to agricultural land are rare, but that conflicts over building sites are becoming more commonplace with business development on the reservation. Since land is held by clans, conflicts over land rights often extend beyond individuals and may involve entire villages. Traditionally, disputes over damage by grazing animals to farm crops were settled by village chiefs, but that is no longer the case. According to the author, this change has come about because the increasing heterogeneity of economic life on the reservation has undermined the chiefs' ability to gauge public opinion. In the past public opinion sided with the farmer rather than the stockman, but at present, with the decline of crop-raising in the reservation economy, this consensus has broken down. Some disputes over farming and grazing rights involve Hopis with their Navajo neighbors. According to the author, in cases involving physical aggression Hopis lack structured mechanisms for resolving disputes and rehabilitating offenders, thus such disputes tend to persist for extended periods of time. Gossip is an important form of aggressive behavior among the Hopi and often takes the form of witchcraft accusations. As a form of aggression, gossip is prominent in the factionalism dividing traditional Hopis and the more acculturated Hopis who support the reservation's Tribal Council.

HRAF PubDate

2000

Region

North America

Sub Region

Southwest and Basin

Document Type

Book

Evaluation

Creator Type

Ethnologist

Document Rating

5: Excellent Primary Data

Analyst

Gerald Reid ; 1988

Field Date

1965-1966

Coverage Date

1965-1966

Coverage Place

Hopi Reservation, northeastern Arizona, United States

Notes

Bruce Alden Cox

Information on Hopi-Navajo disputes disputes over farming and grazing rights are indexed for Acculturation and Culture Change (177) and International Relations (648).

UM 69-14,865

Includes bibliographical references (p.173-181)

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of California, Berkeley, 1968

LCSH

Hopi Indians