Though
indirectly, this chapter’s discussion of Fool’s Crow has brought up an issue
that I have been struggling with since becoming a teacher in Dulce over four
years ago.
Fool’s Crow
is a piece of literature that is historical fiction. Though the characters and plot are made up,
it is based on actual events. One of
these events is the Baker Massacre that occurred on January 23, 1870. I have linked the Wikipedia page above
because I feel it isn't appropriate at this time to review the events of that
horrific day.
The story,
like many other pieces of Native American literature deal with issues of subjugation,
assimilation, and many other atrocities committed by the culture of power since
first contact in 1492. These are topics
that should never be ignored, nor glossed over, by teachers of students of any
culture. Here in lies my issue as a
teacher of Native students. Who am I?
As many of
you know, I am Anglo. Born in Aspinwall and
raised in the Borough of Etna along the Allegheny River in Pittsburgh, PA. I come from a tight knit blue collar, Irish
family. My family came to this country
at the start of the 1900's, well after the Jicarilla Reservation was established
in 1887. However, I am still perceived
as a member of the culture that committed the acts briefly mentioned
above. That is not my issue. This is something that I have accepted as an
inevitability, and moved on from the perceptions of my background. My issue is who am I?
Though I do
not associate with the culture of power, I am perceived to be, so who am I to
teach literature that discusses these topics?
I have only been living on the reservation for four years so I only have
a snapshot of the lives of my students, so who am I to lead a discussion about
the hardships of reservation life? I
have had no family members that have struggled with addiction, so who am I to
present poetry and literature that addresses these problems?
These are
highly sensitive topics that need to be addressed. I would be doing my students a disservice if
I ignored them. But who am I to do so? What right do I have? Through the years I have made friends with
and discussed my concerns with tribal members who understand my issue. The most common answer I receive is that
these things should be discussed at home, but not ignored in school. There is no clear cut answer to this
issue. I will just continue to do the
best that I can for my students and hopefully come to an understanding on my
role as an educator.
I truly believe that these and many more topics can be discussed without having lived through them, without experiencing similar treatment, or even being of the opposition, as long as it is all done with an open mind. For example, I am able to discuss the rape scene in Naguib Mahfouz' Palace Walk even though I have never been in a similar situation. I also would expect that a male teacher who has also never been in a similar situation can review this same scene. I am able to teach Diary of a Part Time Indian, even though I'm not familiar with Native struggles, am not familiar with alcoholism, or familiar with living in two worlds. Or Of Mice and Men, I've never been a situation where I had to shoot my mentally handicapped best friend. These examples are a bit extreme, but the point is that as teachers, we are expected to step outside our normal roles to teach facts without bias. It makes total sense that you might experience some discomfort or question how to properly teach a topic where your cultural ancestors may have been in the wrong, but I think the ability to do this makes a great teacher. I also think it is completely possible to talk about oppression, even if your ancestors were the ones that were in the wrong, in fact, it almost makes you more credible as a teacher. I would expect German teachers to be able to teach the truth behind Hitler and his uprising. As long as you are honest and accurately represent the events, you'll be fine. It is good to talk about these things so history does not repeat itself. Good luck.
ReplyDeleteI like how you question who you are and what grounds you have if you lack the experience that the tribe has been through to get to the position. In a culture that refuses to talk about past events that have happened, its hard to have the community talk about their struggles and beliefs. I think that although you are being discouraged to share those things in school, i think that many of the native children lack that exposure at home. They deserve to know what happened and the history behind their roots and culture. You are empowering and planting the seed in maybe not all, but some of those students so they will grow from it. thankyou for your work on the reservations, our native children are still making sense of the past and trying to make a future. interesting book. id like to order it soon.
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