UCLA

With this master's thesis, I attempt to understand a poorly written and ineffective law (Public Law 280) and examine the effects that this law has on Native communities in Southern California. My thesis will focus on the effects that Public Law 280 has on domestic violence. My own experience with domestic violence makes this project intimate and cherished. However, my experiences as a mixed, un-enrolled, Native woman and mother have directed my interest in the research that I undertake with this thesis. Living on an Indian Reservation in Southern California has allowed me to have an experience that many people will never have; however, it has, also, increased my awareness of the injustices that occur on Southern California Indian reservations today.