I was a part of the Native American/Non-Native American
group of Voices of Discovery. Last semester I took an honors course with Dr.
Elise Boxer where she covered a large portion of Native American history that
dealt with settler contact. In her course, I very much struggled to understand
Native American culture. One of the main sources of confusion was Native
American religious beliefs. According to Dr. Boxer many Native Americans
believe their creation stories to be religious fact but are also active Christians.
This just…blew my mind! I couldn’t wrap my head around it. So when I was placed
in this section of Voices of Discovery, I went in hoping to find out more about
that. Although we hit many topics during these past five weeks, religion wasn’t
one.
Even though religion wasn’t discussed, another topic arose
that also shocked me about Native American culture. There were many mixed
White/Native people in the group, and each had very specific attitudes toward
being labeled “white.” Multiple times these students would say how their Native
American friends would call them white as an insult. One of the facilitators
said her grandpa never called her by her name but instead referred to her as
“blue eyes.” Another girls stated that her sister, who went to public school on
a reservation, said she was “so white” because she (the group member) had
attended private school.
What does that mean?! I went to public school, and I am
white. Should my sister tell me I’m “so Native?!” I understand that being from
mixed decent could put someone in a difficult identity situation, but I just
don’t get why it’s so insulting. The mixed students in the group stated that
they like to be labeled as Native American, but it’s insulting to be labeled as
white, even if you are 50% or more white. I also understand that each
individual should be able to define who/what he or she is. On the other hand,
my boyfriend has naturally dark skin. Many people have assumed or asked him if
he is Native American. Never once has that insulted him! Using “white” as an
insult, is on par with using “gay” as an insult. Using any general grouping’s
name as an insult is not right, so I was a little offended even though I’m not
sure if I should’ve been.
Shelby, It sounds like you have a lot of unanswered questions, which is both frustrating and a positive thing. AS you point out, questions of identity can be particular fraught for people of mixed heritage. I heard a talk on Monday from Dr. Jason Murray (he is Director of the Indian University of North America at the Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation and a USD English Ph.D) in which he talked about a sense of schizophrenic identity of Native students who leave the reservation and pursue a college degree. What strikes me about the dialogue you describe is that it's a powerful reminder that language about race and identity is connected to long histories of power and privilege. So for a Native woman of mixed heritage, being called "white" becomes an insult because of the ways in which it implies an absence of or disavowal of Native identity. One larger historical context for this is the history of assimilation, in which U.S. efforts to "civilize" Native peoples were connected with a larger goal of divesting them of their land AND culture. There is so much more here that I can't get at in a single comment, but I hope you'll keep trying to understand more about Native culture and perspectives.
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