Explore how the misleading dichotomy of "Old World" and "New World" has impacted perceptions of Native Americans for decades. Delve into the "Columbian Exchange," which is the crux behind the creation of "new worlds for all" and learn about the enduring ramifications these processes had in shaping everything from the fauna and flora to the cuisines of the world.

The French and Indian War is often portrayed in history as a crucial turning point for Native nations in the East. For some, it served as a victory, for others, a defeat. And for a greater number still it had no immediate impact on their lives. This episode will change the storyline you've heard by exploring the perspectives of Native people who experienced the era quite differently.

Examine the cultures that existed prior to the Spanish Invasion, the struggle for power through Hernando de Soto's entrada through the Southeast, and the Pueblo War for Independence in the Southwest. Dr. Cobb introduces the Native American worlds that were born in the aftermath of these transformative events.

Through an exploration of the Iroquois Confederacy and the Lenape (or Delaware) people in the Northeast, the Great Lakes region, and the Southeast, learn how Native Americans kept or lost their lands through treaties, war, and negotiations. In many cases, the repercussions of these conflicts sometimes went beyond relocation, resulting in enslavement or near annihilation.

The Civil War is a turning point in American history, upholding the Constitutional promises of freedom for...some. Examine one of the pivotal components of the decades leading up to the Civil War: expansion into the West under the doctrine of Manifest Destiny, which drew non-Indians into the West and sparked innumerable conflicts with Native nations.

From John Wayne to Dances with Wolves, we are presented a very distinct view of Native Americans in the West. Professor Cobb presents a profoundly different perspective. Learn about Lewis and Clark's "discovery" of a West that was an established home for thousands people and the three factors that drove more change than anything else: guns, horses, and disease.

Discover how Native Americans adjusted to or refused to give in to the extraordinary challenges and changes they faced during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, specifically the federal government's deliberate and multifaceted effort to dismantle tribal lands and obliterate tribal cultures through allotment and assimilation.

Professor Cobb reveals how tribal nations haven't settled for survival alone. We're still in the midst of an era of recovery and revitalization, one that has tested the limits of individual rights and tribal sovereignty. He'll follow a few of the critical sites of contemporary struggle.

Uncover some of the hidden histories of the period between the late 1920s and early 1940s as you learn how Native Americans set about making a New Deal for themselves and their communities during an era of uncertainty and convulsive change for the nation at large. You'll also get an introduction to the Indian New Deal.

Discover how Native Americans confounded the late 19th- and early 20th-century predictions about their inevitable disappearance by getting involved in very public arenas, becoming political actors and writers, artists, and athletes. Professor Cobb examines their actions through four concepts: expectation, anomaly, the unexpected, and authenticity.