[We have the following announcement from the Bonnie and Richard Reiss Graduate Institute for Constitutional History at the New York Historical, which is not to be confused with the Institute for Constitutional Studies at the George Washington University Law School. DRE.]
The Bonnie and Richard Reiss Graduate Institute for Constitutional History is pleased to announce its fall 2025 seminar for advanced graduate students and junior faculty, Native Peoples, American Colonialism, and the US Constitution.
Description. As the United States marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, this seminar invites a critical examination of a central paradox in American constitutional history: how can a nation celebrate a founding document and constitutional tradition built, in part, on the dispossession of Indigenous homelands?
From the Founders’ long-standing relationships with Native nations to the grievances lodged regarding ‘merciless Indian savages’ into the Declaration, Indian affairs and westward expansion were foundational to the creation and evolution of the US Constitution. The Northwest Ordinance laid the “blueprint for empire” for federal imperial expansion from thirteen states clinging to the Eastern seaboard to a nation that stretched “from sea to shining sea,” while the United States Constitution excluded “Indians not taxed” from American polity—in so doing, also codifying the specific subordination of a people by name within constitutional text.
Despite this deep entanglement, Native history remains marginalized within the fields of constitutional history and mainstream constitutional scholarship. This seminar explores emerging historical and legal literature that re-centers Native peoples and American colonialism in the narrative of US constitutional development. Topics include the role of Native peoples and “Indian affairs” in the Constitution’s initial drafting and ratification and the legal architecture of colonial expansion. The seminar will also explore how centering Native peoples allows for a rethinking of United States constitutional history and American public law more broadly.
Logistics. The seminar meets at the New York Historical, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024, and via Zoom,* on the following dates:
Friday, November 7, 2025 | 11 am–2 pm ET
Friday, November 21, 2025 | 11 am–2 pm ET
Friday, December 5, 2025 | 11 am–2 pm ET
Friday, December 12, 2025 | 11 am–2 pm ET
*Although we encourage students to attend the class in person,
livestream participation will be offered to admitted students who do not
live in the New York Metropolitan Area or who are unable to attend a
class in person. If you are interested in attending some or all of the
class sessions virtually, please indicate this in your application
statement.
Accepted students will receive further instructions and the classroom location within The New York Historical. There is no tuition or other charge for this seminar, though participants will be expected to acquire the assigned books on their own.
Instructors. Maggie Blackhawk (Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Ojibwe) is a professor of law at NYU whose work explores the relationship between law and power, with a focus on how subordinated peoples leverage legal tools—often beyond rights and courts—to shift power to their communities. Her scholarship appears in leading journals, including Harvard Law Review, Yale Law Journal, Supreme Court Review, American Historical Review, Journal of Politics, among others. Her recent projects, including the Foreword The Constitution of American Colonialism, investigate how the American colonial project, including the resistance and advocacy of Native and other colonized peoples, shaped U.S. constitutional law and history. She is currently at work on two book projects that examine American colonialism, the field of “colonial administration,” and its boomerang effects.
Ned Blackhawk (Te-Moak Band of Western Shoshone) is the Howard R. Lamar Professor of History at Yale University. He is a historian of Native America and federal Indian law, as well as a scholar of violence and state formation, particularly in the American West. He is the author of several books and/or co-edited works, including the recent Rediscovery of America: Native Peoples and the Unmaking of U.S. History, which took home the National Book Award, among numerous other prizes. His recent writings can be found in The Boston Globe and The Atlantic (forthcoming), and draw upon his current research on the American Revolution and the many challenges that it brought to Native American communities in the 18th-century world.
Application Process. The seminar is designed for graduate students and junior faculty in history, political science, law, and related disciplines. All participants will be expected to complete the assigned readings and participate in seminar discussions. Although the Institute cannot offer academic credit directly for the seminar, students may be able to earn graduate credit through their home departments by completing an independent research project in conjunction with the seminar. Please consult with your advisor and/or director of graduate studies about these possibilities.
Space is limited. To apply, please submit the following material to ich@nyhistory.org by October 10, 2025: (1) Your C.V.; and (2) a short statement on how this seminar will be useful to you in your research, teaching, or professional development.
Successful applicants will be notified soon thereafter. For further information, please email Andrew Fletcher at ich@nyhistory.org.
