Courtney Lewis – Sovereign Entrepreneurs: Cherokee Small Business Owners and the Making of Economic Sovereignty

Visiting scholar Courtney Lewis will give a free public talk, Sovereign Entrepreneurs: Cherokee Small Business Owners and the Making of Economic Sovereignity, at noon on Thursday, Oct. 10, in Karpen Hall, Laurel Forum.

Event description from the organizers:

Courtney Lewis is a tenure-track assistant professor in the Anthropology Department and the Institute for Southern Studies at the University of South Carolina. Her current work is in economic development for native nations in the U.S. and, consequently, issues of sovereignty related to and based upon the necessity of economic sustainability and stability. Specifically, her research is focused on small businesses located on the Qualla Boundary of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians of North Carolina. Her research highlights the historical presence of small businesses and entrepreneurs on reservations and answers the questions of how the boundaries that Native Nations work within, land, legal, representational, impact these small businesses; how these boundaries are then transformed by these businesses (e.g. impacts on issues of sovereignty); and how these transformations can truly alter the landscape of a Native Nation in both figuratively and literally.

Sponsored by UNC Asheville’s Departments of Management and Accountancy, American Indian and Indigenous Studies, and Anthropology and Sociology.

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Accessibility Contact: Carrie Plaxco (828.251.6227) or cplaxco@unca.edu