#native

There’s been a lot of words said about Line 3, at the United States government, specifically in Minnesota at the Minnesota Government, which is all valid but what I’m not hearing, in our communities, among the tribes, is our anger at our own government because I am livid at the tribal councils who willingly sold our land again. Line 3 already exists in our reservations. This is not the first time they have exchanged what is not theirs for something so fucking trivial as money. I am used to the greed of the white men who run the rest of the world. It is not new, and I don’t have any expectations for how low they are willing to go. The shame I feel for my own people, now, is new. We are taught to look ahead 7 generations in everything we do. We are taught to preserve the Earth, that we are Her guardians. We were created to protect her and we are failing. I thought we were better. I thought that we had learned.

People sit here and ask me why their spells are so weak when they’re using locally sourced ingredients and when I ask if they gave back as much as they took, the surprise on their face never ceases to surprise me.

Alice E. Brown was born in 1912 in Kenai, Alaska. Brown worked to defend the rights of Alaska Natives and other marginalized groups in Alaska. She is best remembered for her efforts to pass the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Actwhichat the time of its passage in 1971, was the largest land claims settlement in US history. Brown was also the only woman to serve on the original board of the Alaska Federation of Natives.

Alice E. Brown died in 1973 at the age of 60.

Lake Shawnee Amusement Park

Lake Shawnee Amusement Park - Morbid N’ Macabre™️

Mitchell Clay and his 13 children found some land and decided to build their home there. People familiar with this slice of history say that he truly may not have realized that his new land had been a Shawnee Native American trading post and burial ground; Mitchell may have honestly believed he was the first person there. Either way, this was a deadly mistake, the Shawnee were not happy that their sacred grounds were suddenly inhabited. They quickly decided to do something about it, and Mitchell’s children would pay the price…

When I was little we lived right next to train tracks with a railyard just down the road. I spent a lot of time over the years idly watching those trains, wondering about where they went and if I could go too. 

I vividly remember a particular freight that had a wall-to-wall cover that just said “smile” and it was so intricate and yet so silly that it always stuck out to me how someone could put so much effort into something with probably no intention other than to express happiness. Or maybe there is a gang called “smile” and my whole life is a lie. IDK. But either way, it really resonated with me.

Different people make graffiti for all sorts of different reasons. Personally, I don’t expect stuff to last very long nor do I have a desire for permanence. Mostly I like to think of it as sharing messages with friends or leaving a note for someone else to stumble across. Oftentimes, I did it with a underlying hope that someone will be happy to see it or perhaps it might help some one feel less alone.

I like that idea of making things that probably most might never notice or care, but maybe one person will and maybe it just might cheer them up. It’s like a larger version of hiding letters in library books. Sometimes it’s painting things,  like worn-out trash cans or coloring on utility boxes and yeah, I realize most people will never notice a banana sticker painted on a yellow traffic post or care about the gradient on a trashcan, but who knows?

Other times, perhaps primarily, I think I did it (early on especially) because it was a way of feeling part of something bigger. Living in semi-rural areas and remote reservations can sometimes feel stark in their loneliness, so when you stumble across someone else’s art in an otherwise abandoned building or similar area - it is like receiving a faint signal on the radio. By adding on a small piece, or touching up their fill, it was a way to feel part of it, like “Hey! I’m here too!”

-Robin

Originally published to https://www.quora.com/Why-do-people-draw-graffiti/answer/Robin-Maxkii

((these are all pictures of Chip Thomas a.k.a. Jetsonorama amazing work!))

I don’t know anyone in my family who works in technology, owns their own business (aside from the occasional banana bread stand at the swap meet), or works in anything other than blue collar labor, entry level positions, or even had a college degree up until a few years ago. But you know who I do know? A lot of military.

My Dad is really proud of his service, my siblings are really proud of their service. My uncles, my aunts. On our reservation, Veterans have their own monument. At powwows and round dance, Veterans are usually the first to lead. They are the elders in our community, the council people, the people in framed photos lining the community center. They come back from service and everyone is excited. They are out there doing something.

It is one of the few employment opportunities that is actively witnessed in the community. It wasn’t as if 60, 30, or even 20 years ago banks were handing out business loans to American Indians, or white-collar industries were actively recruiting Native Americans to work . We didn’t even get our first Tribal College until 1968, prior to that there was a heavy push to ‘educate the native out of the man’. But not the Military, not only did they allow natives to join - they were recruited, and in some cases celebrated. Look at the Navajo CodeTalkers! Ira Hayes! Choctaw CodeTalkers!

When you are a kid and they ask you what you want to be when you grow up, most kids are saying what they see in media or what they see in their community. So astronaut, lawyer, billionaire, mermaid, doctor - the options are endless for most people…except notsomuch in reservation communities, we don’t see too many of those in our own communities and we rarely see ourselves represented in the media as anything other than this historical, mythical figure. Think about it. What was the most mainstream story reported about Native Americans in the last year, #noDAPL aside? Was it the historic numbers of Native Americans running for political positions this year or the purposeful contamination of Swinomish salmon fisheries or the numerous ongoing land-grabs? No. It is tied between the tiresome debate about Elizabeth Warren’s heritage and the Codetalkers at the White House. What would a kid take away from seeing those? Do you think kids on reservations look at Elizabeth Warren and go “Wow! She made it so that means I can!” or do you think they are looking at the Codetalkers and thinking “Wow! They made it so that means I can!”. I am turning this into a rant about the importance of media representation so I will digress.

So it seems like pipedream to even strive for something when society doesn’t see us that way. Last year I had to give a tour to a group of Native 8th graders who were visiting my school and out of curiosity I asked what they wanted to be when they grew up. You know what the answers were? ‘Motivational Speaker’ ‘Rapper’ “a Marine”. Yeah there were other answers but those stuck out to me. Mostly because I find ‘motivational speaker’ to be a problematic, albeit humorous, trend among Native youth, but also which one of those careers (not for lack of trying or talent) but because of available opportunity and guidance, is most likely to happen?

The military is one of the few employment opportunities that is directly aimed at Natives, has a history with Natives, and has built an employment pipeline within the community.

Most industries completely ignore Native Americans, but not the Military. The Military will populate career fairs at Tribal Colleges, billboards, employment fairs. They advertise employment at local chapter houses. They offer the opportunity to travel, to have a job, to be part of something bigger…as well as a lot of other things come with being in the military, but when you are 18 or 19 and live in a rural area - man, do the perks of the military seem enticing.

The term derives from the extremely horrific and racist act of selling Native scalps, ‘skins’, to the United States government. Here is an actual advertisement from The Daily Republican newspaper in Sept. 24, 1863:

Look, non-Indigenous can run around claiming it is non-offensive and it is somewhat common to find Natives who aren’t particularly perturbed by this, mostly because in the hierarchy of needs, the NFL falls way under land rights, clean drinking water, food deserts, etc. I have family members who used to proudly wear ‘Red***n’ apparel, because they were excited it ‘had a Native’ on it. Any representation is better than none, to some people.

With that said, finding one Native who approves of something, who you can then trot out as a spokesperson, is a racist act in its own right. You are essentially telling us that our identity is singular and represented by your designated colonizer.

I don’t care if the term was supposedly created by a Native Person or deemed okay by an Indigenous person. That is like saying that Stella Kübler was the expert spokesperson for all things Jewish or that Ben Carson speaks for the entire Black American community. The term is extremely offensive. There should not even be an argument about this. Instead it should be an education. Indigenous people are not mascots or pets that people can selectively choose to highlight when it is beneficial or supports whatever myth they are trying to sell.

Please don’t ask someone ‘how much Native’ they are. I am not a dog. You are not entitled to check out my pedigree. If you must, ask the person what tribe they are. I say American Indian/Native American as a default, to avoid overwhelming people who are not familiar with Indigenous americans. If you seem interested I usually break it down further. If you are Native, I break it down to tribe/region. If you are from my tribe, I break it down to clan/fam.

Please stop using the word ‘pale face’ to describe yourself in jest. Just don’t. I don’t use it. I don’t know any Native that uses it. But I see a lot of people using it in jest online and have run into people who jokingly refer to themselves as it. I find it offensive because it is a stereotyped patois that is based on a stunted form of ‘tonto-speak’. This also includes words like “squaw” “fire water”.

Please stop asking me about sweatlodge. Chill out. Go to the sauna at 24 fitness if you want to feel dry heat. You don’t ‘need’ to experience an ‘authentic native ceremony’. I will invite you to something if I want to or am allowed to. I don’t have an obligation to expose every part of my life to you. I don’t constantly ask hipsters I have just met to take me to Urban Outfitters or brunch at a microbrewery.

Please don’t act like I am your personal historian/expert on ‘all things Native’. It isn’t my responsibility to educate you. Asking is different than expecting.

Please stop asking me what my thoughts are on the ‘reds**ns” or “#nodapl” when you first meet me. I understand you might be trying to demonstrate an awareness of Indian Country (thanks!), but you don’t have to feel like proving it to me. This makes me feel like you are being super conscious of my ethnicity and not of me as an individual.

Please don’t ask me if I know “John, he is like Cherokee or Chickasaw or something”. We don’t all know each other.

Never, under any circumstances, call me: Squaw, Thunderbird, Indian Princess, Warrior, Chief, or any other racial slur that you find cute. Don’t. 

Understand that if I don’t want to talk about something, it is my right. I really enjoy talking about my culture and sharing it with others. But sometimes I don’t want to discuss certain topics. Asking me about alcoholism on reservations while I am trying to chill out at the pool or prompting me to discuss land rights during intermission at the Symphony is weird.

Which reminds me, please don’t assume correlations based on stereotypes. If I tell you I don’t want a drink, do not automatically assume it is because ‘I am Native”. This seems so outlandish - yet if I had a quarter for every time someone has said this, I could probably afford to separate my laundry at the washateria.

Please don’t compliment me with a “for a Native”-qualifier. I love compliments! But when someone tells me “I speak really well for a Native” “Smart for a Native” that hurts on a lot of levels. You are basically saying you have lowered expectations of me and my community while having the gall to patronize me with your unwelcome approval.

Be aware of your own culture. When I am being nice enough to share stories of my culture with you and you automatically respond with “that’s so weird!” think about what you are saying. You are calling my culture weird because it is not your culture. It’s a default of a lot of people to assume that their culture is the ORIGINAL! AUTHENTIC! OG BEDROCK! culture and that everything else is backwards or a subgroup.

Also put some thought into your questions. When you say something like, “Why are reservations so poor?” “Why don’t Natives get jobs?”. You are basically assuming that these are issues we don’t discuss ad nauseum on the rez. You are also showing off your ignorance of basic American History and Policies, like the Indian Termination Policy and historical oppression.

Please don’t immediately ask me about casinos. Not all tribes have them. It is just a stereotype. Don’t ask me about ‘free money’. Not all tribes get per capita payments. It is just a stereotype.

Please don’t feel the need to ‘top my nativeness’. When i tell someone who asks what tribe I am, and they reply ‘Never heard of it’ and then proceed to continue with “…But I am a Cherokee Princess”. I don’t know what you want me to do, Congratulate you on something impossible? Genuflect?

And this is more personal and perhaps it is just indicative of the phase of life I am in right now, the annoying ‘opinionated-Tribal college-educated-politically active’-phase, but people using the word ‘savage’ bothers me so much. I get that it has become super mainstream slang and it is not uncommon to see sorority girls with “savage!!!! <3 <3” captioned all over their instagram. But I find this usage so offensive. If your people were never considered ‘savages’, if you have never been called ‘a savage’, if it is a slur that has never been applied to you, don’t suddenly reclaim it as a positive word.

I was raised to mind certain traditional beliefs (which is what I assume you mean by Native American religion) and our family also participated in Native American Church (NAC [not what I assume you mean by NA religion]) and we also have a lot of relatives, including my dad who were boarding schooled and indoctrinated with Christian religions.

Keeping in mind that Native American religion and traditions are not homogenized or monolithic, but as a general theme, Indigenous beliefs are usually meant to explain the world around us, teach us to respect our bodies, and teach us about our own respective histories. For example one of my tribes has a creation story that involves canoes; our land is surrounded by many lakes, so why and how this story was created is fairly obvious. Another creation story I was told a lot as a kid involved a turtle - turtles are one of our clan animals so this connection seemed obvious. I was taught our stories about why the sun is bright, why we bead, why we harvest rice, among other things. There is even a story about why we tell stories. Sometimes there are milestones and events within our life that call for ceremony, which is usually private and whose structure and tradition is passed down and overseen by our elders.

When I was a tiny tot, there were these really thick and really exciting (in the way anything unexplored is) woods near our house. We were told to stay out of the woods because of the little people and what these little people would do to us if they caught us. I was slightly skeptical until I went for a walk my aunt and we heard a blood-curdling shriek from the woods. ‘That’s the little people’ she told me. I never wanted to go near the woods after that (though I did spend a summer constructing elaborate traps with some friends). How cheated! I felt once I found out about possums and their unique shrieks and put two and two together - but I must say even knowing this and being much older and hopefully at least a bit more wise, I still pause before entering the woods and will often leave an offering especially if I am taking something out (like firewood) just because beliefs and traditions, like religions, can be hard to shake. Also, it’s not even an issue of ‘shaking’ one’s religion, sometimes it just makes sense to me. By pausing before I enter, by giving thanks and being grateful that I am able to take firewood, by doing these actions I am being mindful of my actions which is a helpful practice (at least for me).

Native American Church is a bit different. Our family refers to it as a ‘meeting’, some people call them peyote ceremonies, and they are usually what gets cheaply depicted in movies when they are stereotyping Indigenous cultures. We participated as a family when we were in off the reservation, and while the city we were is fairly large and diverse, finding other Natives can sometimes be difficult, let alone finding someone from your specific tribe. The closest reservation was a few hours away and whose traditions were quite different than ours. Contrary to popular myth, we don’t all know each other or get along. So we would end up at NAC as a way to convene with other Natives. I was pretty little and mostly remember the ceremony being very different than ones back on the rez. Not just the protocols and stories but the manner of how the ceremony is held is quite different. Even later as I have attended NAC on a few other reservations I find it different than my tribal practices, but there is a similarity regardless of reservation or tribe and that in of itself can be comforting. Even at Azee Bee Nahagh meetings some of the songs I’ve heard were christian hymns. I would say these meetings are closer to the Western concept of religion than our actual tribal traditions and beliefs, but even then I don’t think an outsider would have an easy time following along if they were even allowed inside since paperwork can be required to attend.

I think it is also important to be aware that we didn’t even get the right to practice our own religion until 1978 (American Indian Religious Freedom Act) and even though the act passed - considering the many laws and policies that still prevented us from gathering or access to ceremonial objects - this is like cutting off our legs and telling us to run. There is also an entire bloody history of invasion and conversion that I won’t detail here but whose history is widely available online or just by looking around. My father was forced into a christian boarding school as a kid, as were many other relatives - so this is also going to factor heavily into traditional outlook. In 1993 the Religious Freedom Restoration Act was passed which further helped us gain access to objects used in ceremony - but again, these are major roadblocks and obstacles spanning years and thus preventing practice during those times. Even now it can be difficult to practice a religion when the things we keep sacred and revere are being carved up. The idea of having to produce paperwork and performing the ridiculous acrobatic routine that is filling out federal paperwork just to attend a ceremony can be tiring, frustrating, and upsetting.