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Book Review: The Red Deal: Indigenous Action to Save Our 
Earth by The Red Nation 

Marie Rivera and Christopher Snyder 
Department of Sociology 

California State University, Los Angeles 
 
In the wake of a growing consensus about global warming 

and the imminent climate crisis, the “Green New Deal” (GND) is 
a catchphrase that has increasingly gained political traction in 
recent years. Defined broadly, GND proposals call for policies 
which address climate change while also targeting social and 
economic efforts like job creation, sustainable agriculture, and 
renewable energy. Some critics of GND proposals claim these 
efforts do not go far enough. The Red Nation – a coalition of 
Indigenous and non-Indigenous activists, students, academicians, 
and organizers – is one such group with an alternative and more 
radical vision for climate change and social justice. In their book 
The Red Deal, they set forth a liberatory political vision that calls 
for an end to capitalism, settler colonialism, and global 
imperialism. Across three major sections, the book argues for the 
abolition of these systems and the institutions which support them 
in favor of a vision of society that affirms common life – 
Indigenous and non-Indigenous alike – and revitalizes 
relationships with land and the environment. 

In the first major section, Red Nation’s objective is to 
demonstrate the necessity of eliminating the carceral regimes that 
support settler colonialism, global imperialism, and global 
capitalism through divestment and abolition. The interrelated 
institutions of the carceral system are the military, police, and 
prisons – or, as they call it, the military-prison industrial complex 
(MPIC). According to the Red Nation, the MPIC is in place, 
serving to protect the settler ruling class by maintaining control 
over stolen lands. Extensions of this carceral system consist of 
Child Protective Services, Customs and Border Protection, and 
Customs Enforcement. The Red Nation proposes that these 
systems of oppression are known for reflecting white supremacy 
and settler dominance. It is worth noting that the MPIC expands 
to the detention and deportation of immigrant people. The Red 
Nation calls for divestment as a strategy to dismantle these 



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CALIFORNIA SOCIOLOGY FORUM VOL. 6 

systems of state violence that seek to steal people from their lands, 
place them in cages behind bars, and remove Indigenous children 
from their families and tribes. Further, the Red Nation implies that 
these racialized systems of incarceration are functioning as 
intended and cannot be reformed – and, thus, must be abolished. 
The abolishment of these carceral systems is a key aspect of the 
Red Deal.  

Mindful of the broad implications of settler colonialism 
and capitalism, the Red Nation aptly identifies other sites of 
struggle which must be divested from as well. For example, they 
call for an end to violence in bordertowns. As The Red Nation 
posits, “Bordertowns emerged from the dispossession, relocation, 
and ethnic cleansing of Indigenous people” (2021:51). These 
towns – highly populated by Indigenous people, yet surveilled and 
policed as settler-controlled spaces – function as sites of capitalist 
exploitation of Indigenous bodies, land, and labor. These 
extractive spaces have also been significant sites of violence for 
Indigenous women, trans, and non-binary individuals. The Red 
Nation elaborates, “A common form of violence inflicted upon 
Indigenous people is ‘Indian rolling’ or the targeted assault, 
torture, and murder of Native People” (2021:53). As such, the Red 
Nation asserts a need for the extension and enforcement of treaty 
rights in these off-reservation sites. Furthermore, the Red Nation 
calls for an end to US occupation of Indigenous lands globally. 
Just as Indigenous colonization and genocide of the past (and 
present) has served as a measure of ensuring US economic and 
political dominance, contemporary US foreign interventions, 
wars, and occupations across the globe serve to assure continued 
capitalist dominance. Thus, they assert that movements and 
campaigns must embrace anti-imperialism as a necessary tenet of 
change.  

Equally important is their call to abolish nation-state 
borders. Much like global imperialist occupation, they point out 
that borders serve to segregate, surveil, exploit, criminalize, and 
overall aid in enforcing the agendas of nation-states – particularly 
in the Global North. In an especially effective example, the Red 
Nation refers to the Kumeyaay and Tohono O’odham Nations, 
whose lands are divided by the US/Mexico border, demonstrating 
how state borders are in direct opposition to Indigenous 



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CALIFORNIA SOCIOLOGY FORUM VOL. 6 

sovereignty and self-determination. They end this chapter of the 
book by stating, “No one is illegal on stolen ground,” which is 
perhaps one of the best summations of this contradiction. 

 Divestment and abolition of these carceral institutions 
and arms of the state is only one part of what the authors of the 
Red Nation call for. As they argue in the second major section, 
divested money and resources from these institutions can and 
should be reinvested into collectively healing our bodies. As the 
authors (2021:7) tactfully point out, capitalism, imperialism, and 
settler colonialism have incapacitated Indigenous peoples (along 
with many others outside of the ruling class) ability to develop and 
thrive according to their own “needs, principles, and values.” 
Furthermore, they point out the United States’ enforcement of 
global austerity programs, economic sanctions, free trade 
agreements which favor large corporations in the Global North, 
and the burning of fossil fuel as contributors to the international 
displacement and forced migration of Indigenous peoples. 

In light of these disparities, they point out a number of 
possible paths forward. For example, they propose extending 
citizenship rights to all migrants – especially climate migrants – 
affected by the fallout of US global imperialism. They also 
suggest universalizing access to a wide range of resources that 
fulfill basic human rights. These include free, sustainable, and 
accessible housing, education, healthcare, and 
transportation/infrastructure. They also stress the need for access 
to healthy and sustainable food. Under a capitalist system, food is 
a commodity, which further drives class inequalities. For 
Indigenous peoples, this has - in part - translated to an inability to 
grow their own food and left them with dependence on processed 
junk foods. Here, they suggest building food sovereignty 
movements which reestablish relationships with the land, 
collective efforts such as cooperative gardens and seed banks, and 
community organizations to feed people. These recommendations 
call for and encourage self-determination, collectivity over 
commodification, and access to resources that benefit all.  

In the final section, the Red Nation makes the case for 
reinvesting in our common future to heal the planet. The Red 
Nation argues that healing the planet is not possible without 
Indigenous liberation and decolonization of our atmosphere. The 



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CALIFORNIA SOCIOLOGY FORUM VOL. 6 

future of our ecosystem is dependent on the transition from 
exploitative extraction or, in better words, extractive capitalism to 
renewable extraction led by Indigenous people creating clean, 
sustainable energy. The extraction of minerals for Lithium-ion 
batteries, which power solar panel systems and sustain renewable 
energy, may be viewed as a form of renewable extraction. The Red 
Nation emphasizes this transition cannot be led by anyone other 
than Indigenous peoples because they are not profit-driven and are 
not motivated by green capitalism; they are simply attempting to 
rekindle their relationship with the land, which they consider a 
relative. Therefore, Indigenous people demand mass land return 
so they can begin the cleansing of the Earth. This follows with a 
call to decriminalize all water protectors and land defenders. As 
part of the process of transitioning to renewable extraction, the 
Red Nation acknowledges the need to pay reparations to those the 
US has exploited in the past. We must consider that the US has 
created the most carbon gas emissions in the world and thus owes 
what the Red Nation refers to as a “climate debt.” Land, water, 
and air restoration – polluted and poisoned by capitalist endeavors 
– will take years to restore. With Indigenous peoples leading this 
restoration through mass land return, the Red Nation proposes 
reliance on hydroponics and aquaponics for subsistence. This 
ultimately means that food will be grown indoors, without 
groundwater, and not in soil - while the lands are being restored. 
Biodiversity thrives in areas where Indigenous people are free to 
caretake land. Humans are not separate from the Earth; the Red 
Nation believes we are all interdependent and related. Who better 
to restore our ecosystem than its relatives who view the Earth as 
sacred?  

The Red Nation’s call to action is a call to all of humanity 
– not just Indigenous peoples. According to their ideology, every 
human on this Earth is a relative and should act accordingly. This 
call depends on an anti-capitalistic, anti-imperialistic, and 
decolonial transition that would ultimately benefit our ecosystem. 
References to this transition include abolishing borders, carceral 
systems, and their extensions, providing universalized access to 
resources, paying reparations and climate debts to those countries 
of the global north exploits, and mass land return so that 
Indigenous people can begin the restoration of the Earth. As a call 



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CALIFORNIA SOCIOLOGY FORUM VOL. 6 

to action, the Red Deal is incredibly comprehensive and covers 
numerous dimensions and sites of struggle. Whether a scholar, 
activist, policy maker, or simply interested in changing the world 
for the better, we highly recommend this book. Although the 
incredible breadth of the book can occasionally make 
disseminating information difficult, it is incredibly inclusive as it 
calls for action from all of those who inhabit the Earth. Despite its 
shortcomings, this book serves as a vital warning and reminder 
that “it’s decolonization or extinction” (The Red Nation 2021:7). 

 
REFERENCES 

The Red Nation. 2021. The Red Nation. Brooklyn, New York. Common Notions Press. 
 
 
Marie Rivera (She/Her/Ella) is a graduate student pursuing her M.A. in 
Sociology. Her research interests consist of intersectionality, gender and 
sexuality studies, race and ethnicity, abolition, and climate justice. Marie 
currently holds the position of Vice President of the SOC Club. She is also a 
Research Assistant to several faculty members in the Department of 
Sociology. She is passionate about organizing with her Abolition Study 
Action People’s (ASAP) Collective and educating students on abolition as a 
teaching assistant. She has a strong enthusiasm for the written word and its 
capacity to convey the distinctive thoughts of others. She is grateful for the 
opportunity to work on such an amazing, dedicated editorial team and 
admires the journal’s ability to display the work of students. Marie acted as 
Graduate Managing Editor for CSF in the Spring of 2023 and Publication 
Co-Managing Editor in the Fall of 2023 and Spring of 2024.  
 
 
Christopher Snyder (He/Him) is a CSULA alumni who graduated with a 
Master’s in Sociology in May of 2023. His research interests include race 
and ethnicity, inequality, climate justice, surveillance capitalism, and 
abolition of the carceral state. At CSULA, Christopher served as the 2019-
2020 Vice President for the Sociology Club. Currently, he is a member and 
organizer in the Abolition Study Action People’s (ASAP) Collective. 
Christopher thanks and is grateful to CSF for this publishing opportunity. 
 

 


	Book Review: The Red Deal: Indigenous Action to Save Our Earth by The Red Nation - Marie Rivera and Christopher Snyder



