Why do we always forget about the Native people of this country? Maybe it is the fact that most Native people live on reservations and you do not see us. Reservation life is isolated away from cities and metropolitan areas so eyes do not see and hearts do not know the realities of reservation life. For much of my life I have been disgusted with the overall lack of coverage of Native issues in the mainstream news and media. It is rare to find a story or information about Native people in your local newspaper. You will find news if you live near a reservation or on one. But for the most part Native issues are not presented in mainstream society.
My heart grows heavy and is tired of all this marginalization. The sorrow many Natives feel is deep. Most of the time this sorrow is beyond words. It is apparent to me that the Native people of this country are the most marginalized in this nation in many ways. I am not going to one up or down play anyone's oppression. Oppression is oppression plain and simple. But this is the reality according to me and many others I know. It is oppression unaddressed and has remained unaddressed.
While I was talking with my Mother today about Inauguration Day she told me that the news mentioned that slaves largely built the White House and the US Capitol in Washington DC. This is sad, yes, but from her point of view today Blacks can look at the White House with much pride. It was built by their ancestors and they as a people survived. But, the White House would not be there without annihilation and the genocide of the First People. What about the land beneath their feet in Washington DC and all over Turtle Island that was forcefully taken from the First People? Why do we not talk about or think about them? When will we include our Native people in this country? If there truly is going to be race unity in this country we need to make sure we include everyone in the dialogue about race. I feel it is important to give everyone a voice in this healing process. Honor and validation of their story in the dialogue is key to making sure people really feel heard. Especially the of this land who have been forgotten, hurt and painfully ignored.
Native people are left out the dialogue. Obama has been making some steps that many other Presidents prior to him did not. In fact he was adopted into the Crow tribe in Montana. I was not too impressed by the Inauguration speech for numerous reasons. Mainly the speech was very colonialist and capitalistic. It is quite opposite of the majority of Native views on Turtle Island.
The changes that need to take place are not about a capitalism, monetary gain or jobs for that matter. It is a change in consciousness. This change in consciousness is honoring the land which is essentially our life. Akki or Earth is what sustains us. It is a view that we need to place in our consciousness in order to move forward. It is a view that is the basis of life to all Native people on Turtle Island and we need to honor and respect that.
Tonight my heart is heavy. I feel my heart and I do not stray from the darkness. I encourage you to all feel what it is your heart. Our old ways our breaking down and the world as we know it is changing very rapidly. We have a long way to go in this country in regards to fully addressing the wounds of the Native people. It is time that we allow and help to create a space for the Native people to have a voice and heal.
10 voices speak:
Ahhhh... I understand your feelings so much better now. You are absolutely, 100% right. I think sometimes racism in this county gets split into black and white. I was glad today Obama at least acknowledged there were Muslim Americans and atheists. But you are right; there is something absolutely fundamental to acknowledging the sufferings of Native Americans when we are talking about this country's origins. I can definitely understand why you would be so hurt when something like that is left out; we all should be.
I had heard about Obama's induction into the Crow people on the Colbert Report. As Winona La Duke said, that's no small thing. He has a responsibility to address Native issues now. From a presidential platform, he could make them of national, public concern and spread real awareness. I can understand why this is so important to you, Cecelia. I'm sorry if I was insensitive earlier. This is important.
Dolly - Okay, good I am putting it out there. I am glad you are able to understand how I am feeling. It does sometimes get split into Black and White. It is frustrating because every other POC gets left on the sidelines in the discussion around race.
It is a very important responsibility. When Natives do something like this we mean business, lol! I hope that he does address issues affecting Native people on a national level. It is beyond time.
No worries, I have a lot of unresolved anger. Rightfully so, because of my life experiences that have hardened my heart around being Native and my identity as a healer. I have to channel my anger in a constructive and positive way. I am learning, who knows maybe my anger will get transformed into starting an organization or a movement?!
When the man who did the Benediction said his last lines I realized that that was the first time race had been addressed directly, and the first time indigenous people were addressed at all. I was rather taken aback by that, as it has seemed that Obama was going to take the situations of the indigenous seriously. We'll see. There was a lot I liked in that speech, but, yah. I can see how your heart would be heavy.
Mine was only mildly irritated, I expect for my religion to be continually ignored as if I don't exist. I got the closest to recognition with the mentioning of Hindus and atheists. :P
But it's more important what he DOES. I hope he will do well. :\
You are right. As I listened to the speech and the prayers, I was probably most tuned into the thought of folks who were left out from a religious/spiritual aspect. But, thinking back, yes, race issue was spoken of narrowly - when in reality it is much more complex and encompassing. I was disappointed, as well, by the heavy focus on economy - but imagine that is what most people are expecting or wanting to hear.
Yes, racism is very, very black and white in this country. And now we have more Latinos (almost 15%) in this country than African-Americans (just over 13%)! I think that, alongside colonialist issues, numbers do play a role in the attention a group receives. Native peoples are less than 1% of the population in this country (of course, they don't even get 1% of the news stories, 1% of the acknowledgements...)
Yes, an inaugral speech that touches on this country's history and race/racism should most definitely address native people and their contributions!
As for the capitalist emphasis, I just don't see that changing anytime soon, nor do I see the irritating nationalism/patriotism going away either. It irritates me, but I try not to let it get to me too much. It's pretty much a prerequisite for presidents to speak that way. To have a president address such things won't happen until many more cultural changes happen first. And Obama's premise is to create a sense of unity while promoting some change (hence the strange Rick Warren thing). I did appreciate his talk of service, righting past wrongs, and some other angles he used.
Thank you for posting this. I felt so tense during Obama's speech. He focused so heavily on the myth of the founding of America, and I was so disappointed that he didn't even mention Native peoples once. I just hope his actions transcends his words, which have been far too quiet on so many issues.
Great post. I did think 'what about the Native Americans...' during a speech. I'm British, and American patriotism often sounds a little strange to European ears, especially talk about the US being built on liberty and justice when really it was built on destroying indigenous populations and cultures. As was much of the wealth and prosperity of my country, but I think people in the UK tend to be a little more embarrassed about our colonial history. Anyway, thanks for posting :-)
Thank you everyone for your replies!
whatsername - He did say "non-believers," which is nice. There are a lot of "non-believers" out there. I think it it is good that he covered so much in his speech but left out a lot. I am sure so many POC, WOC, GLBTQ and disabled people could sit down together and really critique this speech.
Shanna - Yes, the race issue was spoken narrowly. In this country we really need to change what we speak about when we are talking about race. I know most people do want to hear about the economy and that is fine. I have really suffered on a monetary level in this economy. But, I feel that the focus could be more about the Earth and what changes we need to make in this country.
Julie - It is really challenging Julie because I think I may have shared with you how my opinions and experiences about being Native get squashed and even in front of other POC. My article is fair in regards to bringing light to people who have been extremely marginalized in this land. I know that capitalism won't go away but what I know is that there are many of us out there that know this system has failed miserably. Nationalism/patriotism/capitalism all go hand in hand. I don't know if this country is ready to work together in a way that focuses on a simpler life and while focusing on/honoring the Earth.
Torgana - Yes the myth of this country is a daze and fantasy we all need to move away from. It is not acknowledging the pain of a people that is yet to be fully healed. We can hope that his actions do transcend what he says.
Anna - I have a few other friends in the UK a=nd they speak of the same thing you do in regards to American patriotism. You do find people who are embarrassed about the colonialist and genocidal history here but there is a ridiculous sense of patriotism here. I feel it is mostly about 'our way is the better way' kind of thing. When in fact we have a lot to learn in the USA.
Cecelia it's up to people like you and I to be the voice. As I mentioned in my Am I Bitter post Black people aren't the only ones often looked over and misrepresented. It's a shame but, I think the only time that I ever seen media coverage on Natives was in school at WSU. I actually had to cover the story. If it wasn't for Native American History month it most likely would not have been covered. That is truly sad. I think the true reason is we all know that Natives were here first and Columbus didn't discover shit. Every since then they've been trying to act as if Natives don't live her and or weren't ever here. This is still the reason why I'm not patriotic. What most Americans fail to realize is that the majority of the US is made up of people of color, yet we're considered minorities. America's views and ways don't reflect the true color of this country.
Glennisha - Yes it really is up to us to be the voice! I have seen media coverage in the various Native papers that I read such as my tribes and the Mazina'igan which is a publication of the Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission. Whatever I get via the net on Native news is great! But there are not going to be articles with what is going on with the Native people in the Detroit Free Press or any other mainstream news.
Exactly it is true that many forget that Natives were here. I always get annoyed when people say things were founded in 1842 or 1735 when it was never founded but stolen. Even through treaties written by colonizers they have been broken over and over again.
I can't stand the term minority because like you said POC are a large part of society in this country. I think POC of color make up the majority of the worlds population. I found this pie chart... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:World_population_pie_chart.PNG
I am looking for more resources on the POC world population... not having much luck!
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