What I've Learned So Far

            My perception of what a Native American is has changed. Before this course I was a bit naïve and thought they lived freely and happily among our society or on a reservation. After watching several of these films and reading books such as Tonto and Lone Ranger Fistfight in Heaven, I have realized that they are not only fighting an ongoing battle with the Western world, but they are also fighting a battle among themselves—one that involves identity. For so many years their ancestors farmed and studied the land they inhabited, evolving into one form of identity. The intrusion of white settlers among their soil pushed them away forcing them to leave the one thing they identified the most with, and developing into a greater loss of self.

            Just as I mentioned in class on p. 123 of Yellow Woman and a Beauty of the Spirit, the Indian problem will not just simply go away. In fact, my expanding knowledge of Native Americans has grown drastically thanks to this course, including the realization that there is such a problem that still persists today. Who are we to put limits or borders on people? We are all equally as human and therefore deserve equal treatment and use of land. Until we recognize that our issues will continue to persist and problems among “races” will not seize.

            So far in this semester I have grown an appreciation for the strength and bond that native people have among one another. Regardless of all the issues they’ve endured, they have stuck together through it all and continue to recognize and show their pride in their ancestry and heritage. Their culture continues to be preserved through traditions, both oral and physical, ensuring future generations retain the knowledge and familiarity of their ancestors and where they came from.