Looks like I'm going to be interviewed for a television program in a few weeks. It's about the Ioway legend of the Shunka Warak'in, an animal that is kind of a cross between a wolf and a hyena. The name means "it-carries-off-dogs-in-its-mouth." After the Ioways discovered dogs were missing from camp, they tracked down this animal and killed it. It was tough to kill, so they made its skin into war bundle amulets, which would impart that ability to warriors who wore the amulets.
There's a long involvement I have had with this story, since the 1990s, and I have written about it and been interviewed about it before. I will post information about the program later, if and when it is broadcast. But you can see an interview I did on the same legend for a student project at a Montana university a few years ago here.
The lady who asked me to do the interview is located in one of those coastal areas I referred to in my art a few posts ago, Flyover Country. She told me that people have the same kind of ideas about how Indians live that many of the people do who only know Indians from books and movies. They wanted some shots around the area which showed an Indian flavor.
I couldn't offer much in the way of tipis, buffalo, or horses, or even people in braids and beads, but I had a few suggestions about landscapes, old buildings, artifacts, and eagles one might be able to see here. Given I don't "look Indian" to a lot of folks who are't used to the realities of a lot of tribes these days, I expect some confusion and having to explain yet again how things are these days when they arrive as well. Our little community doesn't seem to differ that much in manny ways from any of the other rural communities in these parts.
The situation reminds me of an "extra scene" on the Wampanoag documentary DVD about how they are trying to revive their language. There is a mixed race Wampanoag man, who looks black to about the same extent that I look white, that is, quite a bit. I like what he says.
He says that people look at him and say, "So you're Indian?"
He says, "Yes."
They say, "But you're black."
He says, "Yes."
They say, "But you're Indian?"
He says, "Yes."
They say, "But you're black?"
He says, "Yes."
Anyone who doesn't see the utter "Indianness" in this man's story, needs to rethink their ideas about what being an Indian is, because his response is totally Indian.
"So you're Indian?"
"Yes."
"But you're white."
"Yes."
"But you're Indian?"
"Yes."
"But you're white."
"Yes."
There's a long involvement I have had with this story, since the 1990s, and I have written about it and been interviewed about it before. I will post information about the program later, if and when it is broadcast. But you can see an interview I did on the same legend for a student project at a Montana university a few years ago here.
The lady who asked me to do the interview is located in one of those coastal areas I referred to in my art a few posts ago, Flyover Country. She told me that people have the same kind of ideas about how Indians live that many of the people do who only know Indians from books and movies. They wanted some shots around the area which showed an Indian flavor.
I couldn't offer much in the way of tipis, buffalo, or horses, or even people in braids and beads, but I had a few suggestions about landscapes, old buildings, artifacts, and eagles one might be able to see here. Given I don't "look Indian" to a lot of folks who are't used to the realities of a lot of tribes these days, I expect some confusion and having to explain yet again how things are these days when they arrive as well. Our little community doesn't seem to differ that much in manny ways from any of the other rural communities in these parts.
The situation reminds me of an "extra scene" on the Wampanoag documentary DVD about how they are trying to revive their language. There is a mixed race Wampanoag man, who looks black to about the same extent that I look white, that is, quite a bit. I like what he says.
He says that people look at him and say, "So you're Indian?"
He says, "Yes."
They say, "But you're black."
He says, "Yes."
They say, "But you're Indian?"
He says, "Yes."
They say, "But you're black?"
He says, "Yes."
Anyone who doesn't see the utter "Indianness" in this man's story, needs to rethink their ideas about what being an Indian is, because his response is totally Indian.
"So you're Indian?"
"Yes."
"But you're white."
"Yes."
"But you're Indian?"
"Yes."
"But you're white."
"Yes."
Looking forward to more on this!
ReplyDeleteI'll post how it goes
ReplyDelete