Indigenous Christian Feminism and Religious Freedom in the American South: Navigating Faith, Identity, and Recognition

Native American communities in the American South face administrative and public invisibility. For the Edisto Natchez-Kusso Tribe of South Carolina, cultural revitalization is tied to struggles for recognition, land protection, and religious freedom. Native Christianity serves as both political protection and a complicating factor in recognition efforts. This paper explores how Edisto women leverage an Indigenous Christian feminism to navigate political and spiritual identity. By appealing to Pentecostal Christianity, they assert sovereignty on their own terms. Through long-term community-based research, this study examines how gender, religion, and political recognition intersect in the Edisto’s fight for self-determination.