A classification system is the way in which a collection is organized. There are several classification systems that exist, including the Library of Congress Classification (LCC) and the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC). Both of these classification systems have been criticized in librarianship because they are extremely biased systems.
Why do we continue to use LCC and DDC? These systems are deeply ingrained in almost every library in the US. There are cooperative cataloging software that makes librarians' jobs easier that use these classification systems. Both of these systems, while flawed, are also very complex. It would be difficult to create a brand new system that is comprehensive enough to organize every single book that is published in the US. These reasons aren't meant to be excuses for a biased organization system. They are just the obstacles that must be tackled if we are to ever move away from these systems.
Currently, per LCC guidelines, books about American Indians should be placed in the early Es. This is the class for History of the Americas. The specific call range is under "Indians of North America," which is right between "Pre-Columbian America" and "Discovery of America."
There are several issues not just in how LCC organizes sections like this, but also in what books are classed in this section. There is a US-bias to the use of America and the framing of pre- and post- "discovery" of the continent. We can see Western bias in how this history is described and organized.
However, the Indians of North America call range (E 75-99) does not only contain books on history. Ideally with a classification system like LCC, books written by experts, who write using the methods of that discipline, will be placed together. That is, history books, written largely by history scholars, will be placed in the Es.
The books in E 75-99 include books on politics, art, science, spirituality, environmentalism, education, dance, research methods, gender identity, Native American studies, and much more. In fact, LCC has notes throughout their guidelines (also called schedules) that tell catalogers to class books about American Indians in this specific call range.
