Haley Rains

Haley Rains is a President's and Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Film and Digital Media at the University of California, Santa Cruz, specializing in Native American visual sovereignty and deconstruction of frontier mythology.

Her educational background includes:

• B.A. in Indigenous and American Indian Studies from Haskell Indian Nations University
• M.A. in Native American Studies from University of California, Davis
• Ph.D. in Native American Studies from University of California, Davis

Rains' research critically examines how the American frontier myth perpetuates Native American marginalization, ecological destruction in Montana, and social disparities through visual media. Her work integrates Indigenous knowledge systems with documentary filmmaking to address environmental sustainability and the opioid epidemic in Indian Country, advocating for culturally grounded solutions that center tribal sovereignty and traditional ecological practices.

Haley Rains has received notable recognition including:

• President's and Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship
• Stanford's recognition as one of 40 global innovators in environmental sustainability (2025)

Her documentary project "WE ARE NOT YOUR SAVAGES" is funded by the UC President's Postdoctoral Fellowship Program, Mellon initiatives, Muscogee (Creek) Nation, and Western Heritage Center. Collaborating with historians like Lauren Hunley and scholars including Terry L. Anderson of Stanford's Hoover Institution, Rains develops media that challenges destructive frontier narratives while highlighting Indigenous perspectives on land stewardship and community resilience.