Honestly, I hate the excuse people make that they don't know anything about their Nation because they're urban and/or disconnected.
I lived on the rez my whole life. But surprise surprise, I learned much of what I know from books (*gasp)
I lived on the rez my whole life. But surprise surprise, I learned much of what I know from books (*gasp)
Barring some severe learning disability, I think learning about your culture from books is accessible for nearly everyone. I will explain why...
A good source of cultural information comes from stories of your Nation or nations your natuon shared a culture with traditionally.
From these stories you can glean, not just the story itself & intended lessons, but information about how the people lived and thought
From these stories you can glean, not just the story itself & intended lessons, but information about how the people lived and thought
Look for information about what they ate, where they lived, who they lived with, what they were told to fear/what they feared, how they spoke to each other, how they traveled, ect, ect ...
Even the simplest of stories are a wealth of information.
I know some people hate that our stories were recorded by mostly white anthropologists. However, realistically, many of the stories have died with the storytellers
I know some people hate that our stories were recorded by mostly white anthropologists. However, realistically, many of the stories have died with the storytellers
Then, consider writings from writers from your own culture. They have often done a lot of research and/or simply relay and important cultural viewpoint.
It's important to not judge any of these stories or writings with a western European perspective.
It's important to not judge any of these stories or writings with a western European perspective.
Lastly, a good source of information is first person accounts of settlers who interacted with peoples from your culture.
This information needs to be taken with a grain of salt.
This information needs to be taken with a grain of salt.
You should always think:
Who is the author?
Who are they friends with?
Who do they serve?
Who is the intended reader?
What is the purpose of their writing?
Even a very biased settler could have some important observations
Who is the author?
Who are they friends with?
Who do they serve?
Who is the intended reader?
What is the purpose of their writing?
Even a very biased settler could have some important observations
Or in the very least alert you to the propaganda against your people at the time. Some writings were for the purpose of drumming up support for missionary work or war against our people
I think it is always important to keep an open mind and not shut down anything because it simply does not comport with your own viewpoint or feelings.
Allow your people to be portrayed as a full society of people in your mind--not just the good guys
Allow your people to be portrayed as a full society of people in your mind--not just the good guys
Even finding out: where your people are from; how they came to be where they are now or why they reserved specific lands; how they used to live and how that changed with colonization; history behind any treaties; your families personal history in settling in certain areas
Will help you reconstruct a fuller picture of your peoples and lead to a deeper understanding.
My journey in learning about my people is life long and neverending. And books and historical writings are an important part of it
My journey in learning about my people is life long and neverending. And books and historical writings are an important part of it
