In our class we talk about the displacement and genocide of the American Indians in the U.S. I just found an article that confirms that mistreatment of the native people of the world is still occurring: link.
That link will take you to an article regarding the Belo Monte hydroelectric plant that the President of Brazil has just okayed which will displace thousands of the Kayapo Indian Tribe that lives on the Xingu river. Not only will the construction of this project uproot these people, but it will destroy 500 sq km of land due to flooding. With all of that aside, it will also affect the rainforest's ecosystem. Overall, probably the worst idea I've encountered today--and I had a dream that involved Ahi Tuna steaks with icing and blue sprinkles.
This coincides with the age old reason behind uprooting any civilization--lust. Lust for land, for more resources, for control. A need to wholly control an area and not caring one bit who it affects.
Monday, February 13, 2012
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Indian Education
One of the most eye opening stories in Sherman Alexei's The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven is Indian Education, starting on page 171. One of the questions my group was asked to discuss was why Junior described the students on the Reservation the way he does, "...a few can't read, one or two are just given attendance diplomas, most look forward to the parties. The bright students are shaken, frightened, because they don't know what comes next."
Our group discussed a few points but primarily came back to the same thought that Reservations are inherently poor. Students on the Reservation do not have the same opportunities as those who go to school elsewhere. Their best shot is probably learning a trade and getting a job on the Res. themselves or getting a part time job at a store. The kids who are bright and are graduating from the Reservation are probably terrified because the outlook is grim at best.
I found an article about the Indian boarding schools funded by the government on NPR--how these places are salvation for students. Here's a link. The girl they interview says that she had to get out of her Apache Reservation because most people commit suicide or are alcoholics.
One thing Junior discusses in the Indian Education story is how he was outcasted by his peers because he went off the Res. to get an education. I think that while being ostracized is awful, it is better to have more of a chance at succeeding in your life instead of accepting a bleak fate.
Our group discussed a few points but primarily came back to the same thought that Reservations are inherently poor. Students on the Reservation do not have the same opportunities as those who go to school elsewhere. Their best shot is probably learning a trade and getting a job on the Res. themselves or getting a part time job at a store. The kids who are bright and are graduating from the Reservation are probably terrified because the outlook is grim at best.
I found an article about the Indian boarding schools funded by the government on NPR--how these places are salvation for students. Here's a link. The girl they interview says that she had to get out of her Apache Reservation because most people commit suicide or are alcoholics.
One thing Junior discusses in the Indian Education story is how he was outcasted by his peers because he went off the Res. to get an education. I think that while being ostracized is awful, it is better to have more of a chance at succeeding in your life instead of accepting a bleak fate.
Guilt
Today in class we talked about guilt.
We talked about how we should feel in the face of atrocity. We talked about how we should feel about the past and the present.
I'm not very good with expressing myself in a classroom discussion setting, but this is my view:
For the past, I can't take any responsibility. For things that happen that are completely outside of your control, I don't think I can take responsibility. But what I will take responsibility for is educating myself and educating others. I've blogged previously about the role of documentaries in my understanding of controversial topics, of historical topics, of everything. Whenever I watch something, or read something, or learn something new that moves me and makes me want to do something--I share it. I share it on Facebook, on Tumblr, on Reddit, on Twitter, on whatever I can. I share it by word of mouth. I share it in perhaps other discussions where it is relevant.
As a human being, I want to help others understand what has happened in our history. I want them to understand what happened in this country not just the the blacks or to the Japanese, but also to the American Indians, to the Irish, to the Italians. I want people to know that due to human expansion across the entire planet, there are species of animals that are being completely wiped out. That due to human greed, there are so many wrong things happening on this planet. And to share this information, I feel responsible.
I feel responsible because ignorance is plaguing humanity and allowing for bad decisions to be made, for detrimental things to happen to our environment, to our governments, to our people. This class just has furthered my frustration that I am so ignorant, that I didn't know what was going on with the indigenous people of this country. That the Reservations are some of the poorest communities in this country, that American Indians are not given the same opportunities as white people--all of it was at least semi-new information to me. And with every new discussion I seek out new information. Right now I have about five tabs on my browser open all about the history of American Indians. Right now, specifically, I'm reading about the American Indian Movement beginning in 1968. How in the 1960's John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson both made efforts to help the state of American Indian affairs. Johnson passed Executive Order 11399 which established the National Council on Indian Opportunity (NCIO) which attempted to focus on the plight of American Indians, trying to connect the issue with the trusts of the tribes and nations to civil rights as Johnson was unfamiliar with actual Indian issues. It initially began as a civil rights and antiwar movement taken directly to the American public by means of the press. They developed a 20 point list of their goals, twelve of which specified that treaty obligations were not being met by the American government. All of this can be found on the wikipedia article and others online link.
Here's a photo of the AIM flag
and here's a video of their anthem:
We talked about how we should feel in the face of atrocity. We talked about how we should feel about the past and the present.
I'm not very good with expressing myself in a classroom discussion setting, but this is my view:
For the past, I can't take any responsibility. For things that happen that are completely outside of your control, I don't think I can take responsibility. But what I will take responsibility for is educating myself and educating others. I've blogged previously about the role of documentaries in my understanding of controversial topics, of historical topics, of everything. Whenever I watch something, or read something, or learn something new that moves me and makes me want to do something--I share it. I share it on Facebook, on Tumblr, on Reddit, on Twitter, on whatever I can. I share it by word of mouth. I share it in perhaps other discussions where it is relevant.
As a human being, I want to help others understand what has happened in our history. I want them to understand what happened in this country not just the the blacks or to the Japanese, but also to the American Indians, to the Irish, to the Italians. I want people to know that due to human expansion across the entire planet, there are species of animals that are being completely wiped out. That due to human greed, there are so many wrong things happening on this planet. And to share this information, I feel responsible.
I feel responsible because ignorance is plaguing humanity and allowing for bad decisions to be made, for detrimental things to happen to our environment, to our governments, to our people. This class just has furthered my frustration that I am so ignorant, that I didn't know what was going on with the indigenous people of this country. That the Reservations are some of the poorest communities in this country, that American Indians are not given the same opportunities as white people--all of it was at least semi-new information to me. And with every new discussion I seek out new information. Right now I have about five tabs on my browser open all about the history of American Indians. Right now, specifically, I'm reading about the American Indian Movement beginning in 1968. How in the 1960's John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson both made efforts to help the state of American Indian affairs. Johnson passed Executive Order 11399 which established the National Council on Indian Opportunity (NCIO) which attempted to focus on the plight of American Indians, trying to connect the issue with the trusts of the tribes and nations to civil rights as Johnson was unfamiliar with actual Indian issues. It initially began as a civil rights and antiwar movement taken directly to the American public by means of the press. They developed a 20 point list of their goals, twelve of which specified that treaty obligations were not being met by the American government. All of this can be found on the wikipedia article and others online link.
and here's a video of their anthem:
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Hurricane
Lone Ranger and Tonto begins with Victor being woken up by a "hurricane".
The first couple of pages the only hurricane I see are the family dynamics. His uncles are having an incredibly loud fistfight outside. One of my favorite quotes from this section at the bottom of page 2 is "He could see his uncles slugging each other with such force that they had to be in love." This quote makes me think of how much abuse Victor's family has seen. Is it a common excuse when people get into a fight? They just fight because they love each other so much? Or is it that only people who love each other can fight like that? That they are so passionate about each other that they just unleash their emotions like a tropical storm? Just some thoughts while first starting the book.
While reading this book, I feel like this entire thing is a hurricane. Just a swirling storm of emotion and life and loss. I just go back to the movie "Smoke Signals" where there is just so much. So much of the past to come to terms with, so much of the future to look forward to.
The first couple of pages the only hurricane I see are the family dynamics. His uncles are having an incredibly loud fistfight outside. One of my favorite quotes from this section at the bottom of page 2 is "He could see his uncles slugging each other with such force that they had to be in love." This quote makes me think of how much abuse Victor's family has seen. Is it a common excuse when people get into a fight? They just fight because they love each other so much? Or is it that only people who love each other can fight like that? That they are so passionate about each other that they just unleash their emotions like a tropical storm? Just some thoughts while first starting the book.
While reading this book, I feel like this entire thing is a hurricane. Just a swirling storm of emotion and life and loss. I just go back to the movie "Smoke Signals" where there is just so much. So much of the past to come to terms with, so much of the future to look forward to.
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