by Tekinah
Upon contact with white Americans the Native American tribes have been confronted with many dynamisms that have threatened not only their culture but also their existence. The history of Native Americans on this land, dates back further than any other group of Americans. Unfortunately this history may cease to be cultivated and shared. Our text, “Indigenous American Women,” points to some very specific challenges that threaten this possibility. The two obstacles that I’ll be recognizing are, culturalism and assimilation.
The cannon of Literature is a vey rigidly controlled accreditation system that determines and validates what history is considered Literature. The works of Native Americans entering this vault would further the spread and understanding of Native American history, by allowing their acceptance and usage as literature into grade schools and colleges across this nation, however; Culturalism impedes this attempt by causing factions and quarrels over who is qualified as authentic Native Americans and who’s accurately informed when volunteering the information needed in telling the history of Native Americans. Cultralism, as defined by the author is, “forms of oppression that dovetails with racism” () This oppression occurs within tribes and is imposed by Native Americans onto other Native Americans. It’s founded upon the grounds of “blood quantum and power. Culturalism either encourages assimilation and acceptance of western values as superior or it can instigate intertribal racism. When Natives marry whites, they have the power and prestige to share whatever Native American history they wish, but they may lack the right traditional view to share it. On the other hand, when some of the Native Americans possess the knowledge of traditional Native American culture; if they are “mixed blood,” they are disqualified spokespersons because of their ratio of native to non-native blood. With discouragement like that yielded by culturalism; this culture experiences a pronounced sifting process that leaves very few qualified Natives to help to broaden societal understanding.
Assimilation in and of its on accord is also a very threatening factor. Many of the tribes discontinue the use of their native languages and the practice of cultural rituals and religion all in attempt to assimilate to Western culture. Recorded in our text, “the Native languages are dying – of 175 languages, 50 are spoken by two or more generation, 70 are spoken only by elders, and 5 are spoken by less than ten persons” (.) Without one of the most crucial elements of understanding the culture and diversity of Native Americans, language; it is impossible to broaden or even preserve the culture. Although there are many Natives Americans that have completely abandoned the traditions of their culture, some of the older generations remain in touch with tradition and they remain loyal to it. With mild exception of their old age, which may not allow them to actively display their tribal dances any longer or articulate the history of their Native American culture, they are very well qualified to do so as traditionalist. However, even knowledge of the culture can not be relied upon heavily for increased awareness and understanding of the culture by the older generations of Natives, as many of them have witnessed and experienced the retributions of those that failed to adapt western culture thus, encouraging their own assimilation. The author recalls an interview with an elder of Native American culture saying; “Ten years ago I conducted an interview with a ninety –eight year old Cherokee woman. When I asked if she spoke Cherokee and attended stomp dances — a logical question considering that she was a full blood and descended from a prominent Cherokee leader she answered, Hell no, I’m no heathen”(.)
These two, culturalism and assimilation, both hinder understanding of Native American history. They lead to sub challenges including dispositions of inferiority of the culture in both society and academe; inferiority imposed by those that are natives and non-natives. As long as culturalism and assimilation are factors there will always be few Native Americans qualified to pen and advance this culture; leaving non natives to interpret and write about native history.
I think it is interesting that “we” see all Native Americans in the same light and therefore expect a certain level of uniformity between the groups; when in fact they are all as different as any population. We wouldn’t teach European history in the same way we teach Native American history,lumping Germans and Italians and the Spanish into one group and speak of them as a culture. It’s a shame that colonialism has had such a disastrous effect on the Native Americans internally as well as the the rest of the world’s understanding externally. I believe that words are the key to undoing the biases of the past and if educators stopped calling these unique persons “Indians” we could start talking about them as Navajo and Nez Perce etc. Language, language, language.
Referring to Native Americans as Indians and attempting to make them invalid is a strategy we see used all throughout history when one race of people desires to lord over another. Dehumanizing Native Americans is a psychological method that makes one view himself as inferior and others do the same. What a great point you make about not referring to such a diverse group of people as one shallowly defined ideal that this country deems suitable. I would love the day when Native American would be embraced for the diverse and beauty if their culture and not illegitimized because of it.
After reading the post of my classmates, their comments definitely confirmed the two factors that I mentioned in my original post. Some of us referred to the causes by different terminology such as colonialism and culturalism, but they were both defined by the same concepts such as blood quantum and mixed blood ideals. I thought that out of these two factors assimilation and culturalism, sprung the rest of the issues such as academia and and over generalized, monolithic ideas of Native American culture by the western culture. Given the chance to change my argument, I wouldn’t change it per se. However, I might venture to explain in more detail other contributing factors to the lack of understanding and broadening of Native Americans and their culture, instead of pulling them all under the umbrella of assimilation and culturalism.
Tekinah, I think your point about authenticity is a good one, and it cuts across both of the themes you discuss here–culturalism and assimiliation. On the one hand, Native peoples are dealing with external forces, such as the New Age “medicine women” Mihesuah references, that claim some degree of Native authenticity. On the other hand, Native cultural groups may critique one another for not being “authentic enough.” The concept of assimilation itself can complicate these issues, as it’s not all or nothing; cultures do evolve and adapt to new circumstances, be they environmental or cultural. Another important question here is how, to what extent, and why Native cultures have adapted, as well as how their cultural waters have been muddied by outsiders claiming Native people’s indigenous knowledge as their own. Mihesuah’s book gives plenty of examples of these phenomena, but of course there is no one simple answer to these quandaries at the intersection of culturalism and assimilation.