A Conversation with Vine Deloria Jr.
I
watched with fascination the “Interview with Vine Deloria Jr.” I have read some of Mr. Deloria’s writing in
the past, but have never seen or heard him.
Being from the old white male population, I have my opinions of Native
American relations with the United States that may not coincide with those of
Native Americans. I have long believed
that many Native nations and their people were treated poorly at best by our
nation over the last few centuries, but I also believe that there has been
ample time and ability to make needed changes on both sides. Although I don’t agree with Mr. Deloria on
every point that he makes in this video, he did make me more aware of the inability
of Native Americans to be heard and tell their story.
The
first thing that caught my attention was the points that he made about the lack
of publishing of Indian writers. He
makes a valid point about publishing companies looking more for writing that
will sell to New York City and the East Coast readers because that is where
best sellers will be made, and from that the profits that those companies
seek. I did not realize that it was so
difficult for Native American voices to be heard and that as Mr. Deloria states
that “Indian writers get published in about two of every twenty years”. If this is truly is the case then I have
learned that my opinions of equal opportunity are somewhat misguided. He also says that even when an Indian writer
is published that the writing is often heavily edited in order to boost sales
to the general public.
The
final points in the video about developing and training young Native American
writers to tell the cultural traditions from the Indian point of view make me
agree with his assertion that we need to develop new interpretations of human
and world history.
You chose a really interesting topic to discuss. However, I know of several Native American authors who wrote from a first person perspective. One example is an author named Sherman Alexie. He has written several novels including some that are told from the first point of view. While some of his stories don't end so pretty, they are the harsh reality of a life that Native Americans tend to live. There are also other authors who have had poetry published, that are Native Americans. Now that may be the few that have been able to get their stories out, and if that is the case, it is a shame that they are continuously silenced.
ReplyDeleteI know that video is from years ago, so I'd be interested in seeing if this continues to be true. I wonder if it also applies to other art forms, such as film, painting, etc. I agree that by now we should have made some changes and are there impasses between the government and the tribal councils to improve reservation life. If there is an impasse how can we move past this and create better opportunities.
ReplyDeleteI chose to highlight Vine Deloria, Jr as well. I never heard of him prior to this course.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that I did. He was a voice of reason. I am not Native American, but I'm proud of the work he did for the people. I read up about him and his work and I can see why some labeled him as a radical. People fear outspoken speakers. They feel if they remain neutral on the subject, they can keep the peace and everyone will be happy. So they try to stifle those involved.
Yes, there were times he showed aggression in his fight, but it was necessary. He was fighting for rights that needed to heard. He was a voice of a generation. I would like to see other speakers like him. I'm following a few others now.