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| photo courtesy Lakota Children's Enrichment |
Your trip to Pine Ridge as
an adolescent deeply affected you. Could you describe some of what you
saw?
My first trip to Pine Ridge
was in 2007. I had studied American history in high school but had not learned
anything about our government’s actions or obligations to the Lakota Nation or
anything about Native American affairs today.
I saw:
- dilapidated and mold-filled housing that was provided to families by our government;
- residents melting snow because water delivery trucks had broken down;
- clusters of families sharing outhouses;
- children without jackets and wearing flip-flops in snow; and
- schools with almost no books.
After my trip I took steps
to become informed. When I learned about our nation’s treaty and trust
obligations to the Lakota Nation that have never been fully honored, I was
struck by the injustice and felt compelled to take action.
How would you describe the situation currently?
Although today more people are aware that America has some significant injustices at home that need to be addressed, at LCE we perpetually deal with the effects of mainstream reporting, which almost exclusively focuses on alcoholism in the community. Every time a reporter spends three days on the Reservation and blames alcoholism for the community’s problems, it is a significant set-back for those of us working on the grassroots level.
Although today more people are aware that America has some significant injustices at home that need to be addressed, at LCE we perpetually deal with the effects of mainstream reporting, which almost exclusively focuses on alcoholism in the community. Every time a reporter spends three days on the Reservation and blames alcoholism for the community’s problems, it is a significant set-back for those of us working on the grassroots level.
No community is hopeless.
Pine Ridge is full of hope, progress, and talented youth who are
committed to change and doing amazing things in their community. I am
very excited about the future of the kids we are working with. Their work with
our Youth Board, at Game Changers
Youth Summits, their service to the community and their written work is making a huge impact and inspiring others to
make positive changes or think in a different way. Everything is possible.
Many kids (and adults) are
disturbed by the poverty and injustice they see around them, but they feel
powerless to change anything. What advice would you give them?
Sometimes the world’s
problems might seem overwhelming, but don’t let the fear of failure stop you
from taking action. Just because these problems or conflicts might have existed
for decades, it doesn’t mean they can’t be fixed, it just means no one has
created the right solution.
View challenges as
opportunities for people to come together and make this world a better place.
Find other people who share your passion or concern and work together. If you
try to solve large community challenges by yourself, it can lead to burnout and
let-down. Anyone can volunteer time, raise money for NGOs like mine that
implement programs, or, if you want to devote yourself full time to an effort,
of course consider working for an NGO or in the field of public service.
Sometimes, you won’t be
able to find an existing group, and that is when you can make the choice to forge ahead and
trailblaze a path so that others can join you.
In 2007 there was almost no
awareness about the injustices facing American Indians, so I organized efforts
to address community needs in South Dakota, while also educating everyone I
could reach in the NY Tri-State area. When I took my efforts to the Internet at
the end of 2009, my work started gaining momentum.
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| photo courtesy Lakota Children's Enrichment |
What resources would you
recommend to teachers or parents who want their kids to learn more about the
Lakota?
I am so glad you asked this
question! At a recent presentation to 3rd -5th grade students I asked if
anyone could define an Indian Reservation, and the response was ”What daddy and
mommy do when they reserve a table at an Indian restaurant - they get a
reservation.”
We learn that there are 50
states in elementary school, but we never hear about the 566 indigenous tribes
that still exist, or the 200 more seeking federal and state recognition – even
though they are our own nation’s first inhabitants.
Awareness and education are
a huge part of what we do at LCE because there are not many resources out there
and many history books used in schools today are outdated and inaccurate. There
is a great reluctance in education to teach young children the hard facts of
American history, and as a result, storybook myths have been perpetuated for over
a century.
At a minimum, I recommend
that all educators take a very hard look at how they teach the following
lessons:
- Columbus Day (Columbus did not “discover America”–the continent of North America was the inhabited territory of Turtle Island, and in any event, Columbus landed in the Caribbean);
- Thanksgiving Stories (the true story is not a mutually happy celebration);
- Abraham Lincoln (he ordered the largest mass lynching of American Indians in history in Manakato, MN); and
- Wounded Knee (a massacre of hundreds of unarmed Indians still taught in many schools as a “Battle”).
Journalist Vincent Shilling
recently wrote an article addressing the top eight inaccuracies that continue to be perpetuated in some
American school systems.
One children’s book that
accurately depicts Lakota history is Black Elk’s Vision by S.D. Nelson.
- watching our 2-minute Call To Action;
- looking at our Medium Collection, where we describe ongoing projects;
- reading our blog; and
- following news outlets such as Indian Country Today, the Lakota Country Times, and the Native Sun News.
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| photo courtesy Lakota Children's Enrichment |
How does
the idea of mindful awareness fit in with traditional Lakota teachings?
The Lakota prayer, Mitakuye
Oyasin (All My Relations or We Are All Related) is a reflection of a traditional
holistic approach to life. From your neighbor to Unki Maka (Grandmother
Earth), we are all related and we all have an obligation to help each other and
treat each other with respect.
What does “mindful
teaching” mean to you?
To me, the concept of
Mindful Teaching infers an inclusive approach – one that explores all avenues
of expression and interpretation and, in the context of history, considers
education with an open mind.
If our nation is ever going
to face its history and engage in meaningful reconciliation, then it will be,
in part, because of a mindful teaching of Native American history.
Disposing of feel-good
myths and educating the rising generations of children about issues of social
responsibility is something that should be a goal of most educators. The lesson
plans teachers make and conversations that they have with students can
have a profound impact on them throughout their lives.
Be mindful of the
inaccuracies in textbooks, allow for various perspectives to be heard in your
discussions, and be innovative in the ways that you teach.
Do you have a personal
mindfulness practice, and if so, how does it help you with your work?
I am mindful of the impact
that my words and actions have on the people around me. I approach every day
with the goal of taking some small action that contributes to making the world
a better place for someone. It could be helping an elderly person, making my
family laugh, or bringing a new program to the youth of Pine Ridge--
possibilities are endless. I just try to do my part to be a positive
contributor to society and keep an open mind.
I also run, figure skate, go to the gym and dabble in photography. I find that despite my busy schedule, it is so important to find time for myself to clear my mind and re-charge. You can’t take care of others if you don’t take care of yourself!
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| lakotachildren.org |
[Update 9/15/15: Another great resource for teaching about indigenous peoples is Project 562, which "creatively addresses and remedies historical inaccuracies, stereotypical representations, and the absence of Native American images and voices in mass media and the national consciousness."]
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