“David Kamper has provided a provocative and insightful reimagining of the role and function of sport in contemporary Native life. His sensitive portrayal of basketball and skateboarding invites the reader into a vibrant world of youth cultures, community engagement, Indigenous survivance, and reinvention of what it means to be Indigenous in the twenty-first century.”-Jeffrey P. Shepherd, author of <i>We Are an Indian Nation: A History of the Hualapai People</i> “<i>Rezballers and Skate Elders</i> is a contribution to its field, offering an upbeat portrayal of American Indian youth culture that goes beyond yet another story about historical traumas and tragedies. This is a fascinating and thought-provoking work.”-Ashkan Soltani Stone, coauthor of <i>Rez Metal: Inside the Navajo Nation Heavy Metal Scene</i>
Through a broad picture of North America, Kamper demonstrates how Native peoples have long indigenized cultural practices and material culture to assert Native sovereignty, creating joy and hope in the process. In Rezballers and Skate Elders Kamper considers how Native expressions of basketball and skateboarding show continuities with the historical transformation of practices that originated outside Indian Country to make them meaningful in Native life.