NAPA 20th Anniversary Retrospective

American Anthropological Association Annual Meeting

Robert T. Trotter, IINorthern Arizona University

Various Actions

My First President’s Speech Started with the Phrase:

Actions Speak Louder Than Words• I want to thank Ed Liebow for the opportunity given to all

of us to reflect on NAPA’s past and progress, and to Elizabeth Briody for convieghing these somewhat ironic words from me to you. I apologize for not being at the meetings, but the apology is tempered by a late breaking opportunity to be involved in a project that has the potential to accomplish some important work.

• I had the privilege of being president of NAPA during one of its early transitional phase, and felt the what we did at that time was more important that what we said, so I started off my first Presidential address with these words.

Actions and Words

• During the time I was NAPA president, the organization was in one of its early growth transitions, with lots of talent, lots of energy, and considerable vision. The predominant theme was:– Applied Anthropology: The fifth subdiscipline

• All of the NAPA board worked very hard during this time to establish the credibility of NAPA through both word and deed.

External Actions

• NAPA has had two important roles and audiences since its inception; part of our job has been to convince “others” that anthropological theory and practice are valuable, and part has been to convince “ourselves.” of the same things.

• Part of the irony of my “actions speak louder than words” aphorism is that there has been a steady, sometimes even rapid growth in the credibility of applied anthropology outside of anthropology. People are convinced we can act effectively and are asking us for help. We have provided that help in virtually every important area of human need, from health to education to industry to economy to political action.

Internal Words• At the same time, our internal image and impact has often been more

difficult to establish.• During my Presidency, we had a designated position on the AAA Board of

directors. That forum provided a very important base for maintaining the credibility and actions of NAPA, for establishing ourselves and our actions, and sucessfully using that position for a number of years to establish programs, identify, and credibility.

• At the same time, we faced ignorance, distain, some hostility, a lot of skeptacism, some “theoretical prejudice”, and quite a bit of obliviousness from the bulk of the AAA membership. Since those are exactly the same conditions we encounter other places, we used applied anthropology and our knowledge of the needs and interests of our membership to create actions. These took the form of workshops, not just sessions, events, not just speaches, and support services, not just memberships.

• In my opinion, we have always been more intereseted in getting things done than we have in talking about the things that “others” have done. One of the consequences has been for NAPA and its membership to have more of an impact outside of the AAA, than inside. And, in my opinion, that may actually be the correct balance.

The Things we have done right• The internal external tensions of applied anthropology have actually

been very beneficial to NAPA. It has caused us to focus on getting things done, rather than just talking about what has gone wrong, and what needs to be changed.

• At the same time, the balance and need for action has changed and some of our old actions no longer apply, and we need some new ones.

• We need to look more to the present and future of our membership, than to the past. Ignoring the past is dangerous. Getting stuck in it is deadly.

• Consequently, I will keep this retrospective brief. The organization has always been responsive and current, and has dealt with the issues of the day in appropriate and effective ways. I don’t see any evidence that that will not continue into the forseeable future.

• Actions actually do speak louder than words.

Many Thanks—Fewer Words

• I want to thank NAPA and everyone I have been associated with for the opportunities to engage in actions on behalf of the organization, and to say a few words about it. I have unfortunately belonged to organizations that are all talk, no action. NAPA on the other hand has both a history and a future of getting on with the important things, putting peoples hands and hearts where they mouths are also engaged.

• I am sorry to not be present for the celebration, and especially will miss the opportunity to see my friends. Thanks for the opportunity to talk while also engaging in a few actions.

• Bob Trotter