Kennekuk was a Kickapoo leader in the early nineteenth century whose band lived along the Vermilion River in present-day Illinois. Regarded as a prophet by his people, his religious teachings focused on reform through abstention from liquor and public whippings for backsliders. Kennekuk's following drew from several neighboring groups, especially the Potawatornis. As many Native Americans succumbed to pressure to move voluntarily to an Indian territory beginning in the 1820s, Kennekuk managed to stave off removal for a decade. His strategy was a form of passive resistance, presenting himself as in agreement with relocation but unable to comply because of various practical obstacles. This adroit management of disadvantageous circumstances was also expressed, in religious matters. Kennekuk evinced an interest in missionary overtures and asked Baptist Isaac McCoy to establish a school among his people. The Methodists eventually licensed the Kickapoo as a preacher. Finally...