Eddie Carpenter

Emphasis
Teaching Sociology

Education/Career Goals
To become a lecturer for the Department of Critical Race Gender, & Sexuality Studies.

Background
I come from The Hoopa Valley Indian Reservation in Humboldt County. As an enrolled member of the Hoopa Valley Tribe, I grew up in the tutelage of my ceremonial family and tribal community on the Hoopa Valley Indian Reservation. We were put at an economic disadvantage in terms of opportunities for advancement. Some of this can be attributed to the long-lasting effects of settler-colonialism and various forms of genocide. One of the lasting effects plaguing our Indigenous communities across Indian Country today is lateral oppression. It is because of fields closely related to sociology, I ventured to demystify the interlocking dominating power structures to demonstrate that “conforming” behaviors associated with lateral oppression in Indigenous communities didn’t seemingly manifest from nowhere.

Apart from being a student, I also have been working for the past 3 years as an academic advisor for the Educational Opportunity Program/Student Support Services at Cal Poly Humboldt. In this role, I do holistic advising in which I see students as multifaceted individuals with things like emotional wellbeing, financial wellbeing, intellectual wellbeing, and e.t.c.  

Why Humboldt Public Sociology
Public Sociology is able to encapsulate the informed feelings and emotions I have always had about the social world around me. It is only now that I am finding my voice and the words for these strong associations. It also helps me share common ground with my peers about these experiences and as a Native person shows me how I can navigate and move through two different worlds. 

As an alumnus of the Indian Tribal & Educational Personnel Program (ITEPP) and a member of a multigenerational family rooted in education, I would like to carry forth the flame of using education and pedagogy as a direct tool for Indigenous self-determination, community accountability, and tribal sovereignty.