This bibliography contains a number of the significant recent books and articles of the 1980s and 1990s on the struggle for Miskito Autonomy in Nicaragua.  This list includes both leftist and right-wing interpretations along with a number of pieces from the popular press.

Bell, Daniel.  "Minority rights: on the Importance of Local Knowledge."  Dissent. V.43 (Summer 1996)  p36-49.

He proposes four arguments in favor of culturally sensitive approach to minority rights. He used many world examples to prove his point about minority rights.

Dennis, Philip A.  "The Miskito-Sandinista Conflict in Nicaragua in the 1980s."  Latin American Research Review 28 (3): 214-234.

A brief summary of the content of a number of significant works on the Miskito-Sandinista struggle in Nicaragua.  The article evalutes seven books anaylzing the content and each author's authority and validity.  Each of these researchers draws on different perspective with respect to class solidarity versus cultural identity, ethnic chauvinism versus cultural identity, ethnic chauvinism versus aborginal rights and national sovereignty versus local self-determination.  The author critiques the Miskito culure by reviewing the work of six authors who had first hand experience with the conflict.

Dibblin, Jane.  “Fight For Lost Ground.”  New Statesman.  23 May 1986, p. 19.

This journalist outlines the last part of the Sandanista-Contra war as Miskitu People start making the Autonomy Plan with the Sandanistas.  This article describes the U.S. involvement in this process as they recognize that the Miskito people’s concerns are wedged between those of the Sandanistas’ and Contras’.

Hale, Charles R.  Resistance and Contradiction:  Miskitu Indians and the Nicaraguan State, 1897-1987.  Palo Alto:  Stanford Univ. Press, 1994.

This is a great resource for a long-term history of Miskitu relations with the changing Nicaraguan state.  Hale argues for a grass-roots basis for the Miskitu movement and that the peoples possess a distinct ethnic identity different from the majority of Nicaraguans.

Hawley, Susan.  “Protestantism and indigenous mobilization:  the Moravian Church among the Miskitu  Indians of Nicaragua.” Journal of Latin American Studies 29 (1997), p.111-29.

This article focuses on the role of the Moravian Church in defining their ethnic identity and mobilizing them against the Sandanistas.  Furthermore, this article reveals how indigenous identity can be expressed through religious practices.

Helms, Mary W.  Middle America:  A Culture History of Hearland and Frontiers.  Englewood Cliff, NJ:   Prentice-Hall, 1975.

This book outlines historical events occurring in selected Latin American countries in light of their revolutions and conflicts concerning sovereignty.  The book’s chapters also discuss political, economic, and social issues of the different class status and race problems in an informative manner.  Each topic area gives brief examples of its application in different countries.

Helms, Mary W.  “Miskito Slaving and Culture Contact:  Ethnicity and Opportunity in an Expanding  Population.”  Journal of Anthropological Research 39 (2), p.179-197.

This article describes the slave commerce of the colonial era in the Miskito Coast.  Due to a demand from English colonists in Central America and Jamaica, Helms describes the slave raiding patterns of the Miskitos and how slave trade helped their demographic growth and ecological readaptation.  Helms ends the article by making cross-cultural comparisons of comparable situations from Orinoco region of South America and southeastern United States.

Helms, Mary W.  “Mosquito Indians.”  Encyclopedia of Latin America History and Culture.  Ed. Barabara  Tanebaum.  3 (1996). p.71-2.

This brief excerpt explains the people’s ethnic heritage and the history of origination and formation of a kingship.  It also makes some comparisons between indigenous men and womens’ roles.  The article ends with two reasons why this nation survived the Conquest.

Helms, Mary W.  “Of Kings and Contexts:  Ethnohistorical interpretation of Miskito political structure and  function.” American Ethnologist. Ed. Shirley Lindenbaum.  13, p.506-23.

Helms debates Dennis and Olien further claims of the influence over the kingship of the Misquito.  She claims that both assertions by these authors are either incorrect or insufficient.  These authors claimed that the kings were not ineffective to represent indigenous interests.  However, Helms argues that their interpretations are deceived by preconceived expectations and that they did not fully evaluate their findings.

Kymlicka, Will.  "The Good, the Bad, and the Intolerable."  Dissent. V.42 (Summer 1996) p22-30.

Analyzes internal restriction and external protection in light of liberal views.  He asserts that group rights from indigenous people are legitimate and assessing their practices in a liberal manner must be evaluated critically.  He mainly focuses on North American indian tribes.
 

Lernoux, Penny.  "The Indians and the Commandantes." The Nation.  28 September 1985, p. 275-278.

In this piece from the popular press, the author derides Washington's support of the contras and the Miskito.  The author's primary concern is Washington's apparent failure to comprehend that the indigenous Miskito are not left, center or right.  The author claims that Washington, operating from a Cold War ideological mindset is blind to the Miskito's perception of the importance of ethnicity.

"Misurasata/Sandinista Negotiations." Cultural Survival Quarterly:  Parks and People.  9:1 p.59-60

This article describes the peace negotiations between the Mosquito People and the Nicaraguan government in relation to the Misurasata organization.  The meetings are summarized by Bernard Nitschmann, an advisor for Misurasata and then an unofficial translation is given.

Nietschmann, Bernard.  "The Third World War."  Cultural Survival Quaterly: Militarization and Indigenous Peoples, Part I American and Pacific.  V. 11 n. 3 1987 p.1-16.

This article identifies the Third World War and who where, why and what aspects of conflicts exist in this Third World War of state control over autonomous people.  Its application applies to any conflict in the world and gives many international examples.

Nietschmann, Bernard.  The Unknown War:  The Miskito Nation, Nicaragua, and the United States.  New York:  Freedom House, 1989.

This is a partisan work that claims that the Miskito people who inhabit lands in the states of Nicaragua and Honduras constitute an independent nation.  The claim is that these people have a distinct culture that has continually been threatened by outsiders from the time of the Spanish conquest.  Nietschmann argues for continued military pressure to be placed on the Sandinista government to increase leverage for negotiations between the Miskito alliance and the Nicaraguan state.
Perhaps rightly, critics have charged that Nietschmann overplays the geopolitical importance of the Miskito struggle, particularly in the context of post-Cold War world.  He also seems to paint a picture of the Miskito that is too flattering with respect to their trading with the British and their interactions with other indigenous people.  Nevertheless, this book does present a compelling argument for one side of the question of Miskito Autonomy.

Olien, Michael.  “Miskito kings and line of succession.” Journal of Anthropological Research 39, p.198- 241.

Olien writes this article to show how the Miskito kingdom is derived from a single family group and not merely puppet kings of England.  He describes in great detail the succession of kingship from a historical perspective.  He describes the military, political events that occurred in certain reigns and how these events affected the indigenous people.

"Preserving the past, providing a future: land claims and self-rule." UN Chronicle, v. 30 (June 1993),  p48-49.

This article shows the relationship indigenous people have with their land and how these people have struggled to keep their land rights by giving various examples from Indian tribes that live in the Americas, Asia, Europe and Australia.  It also discusses the importance of autonomy based on the United Nations' views.

Roberts, Orlando W.  Narrative of Voyages and Excursions on the East Coast and the Interior of Nicaragua.  Gainesville:  University of Florida Press, (1827) repr. 1965.

This narrative is a personal account of detailed setting of the coast and its peoples.  Roberts records his observations of the people’s interactions and makes recommendations/expectations of indigenous relationships with outsiders or other tribes.

United States, Dept. of State, and Office of Public Affairs. Nicaraguan Biographies: A Resource Book. Rev. ed. Special Report: Special Report (United States. Dept. of State. Bureau of Public Affairs), no. 174. Washington, D.C: U.S. Dept. of State, Bureau of Public Affairs, 1988.

This text contains concise articles on all aspects of the conflict in Nicaragua following the Sandinista revolution and biographical sketches of Miskitu and Sandinista leaders.