James Luna's work explores issues faced by many contemporary Native Americans. The focus of his work is on the image America has given Native Americans throughout history. Luna's work makes me think about how we are taught about Native Americans in primary and secondary schools. When we are taught about other cultures, we usually learn about them in past tense. We discuss the Chinese and the Great Wall, Egypt and the pyramids, Native Americans teaching pilgrims how to farm, or cowboys fighting savage Indian tribes, yet we rarely talk about contemporary natives.
James Luna says that Native Americans are prisoners to authenticity. I think he means that because of how westerner's have portrayed natives, they are doomed to the stereotype the white man has placed on them. Luna opens these issues up for discussion by mixing old Native traditions with contemporary white America. For example, In Luna's piece, "Take a Photograph with a Real Indian", he first comes out on stage wearing a traditional native costume and headdress and afterwards he comes back out wearing his regular jeans and a t-shirt. He has people line up to take a photo with him while wearing the traditional costume and then again in his regular work clothes. When looking at the first photo we see white people standing with the native stereotype and the second it looks like some people standing together. In the second image, Luna doesn't stand out but blends in with the others. It's interesting when you take away his traditional clothing he almost doesn't look "Indian" anymore. Luna talks about how when Native Americans make art if it doesn't look "Indian" than it won't sell. Where many American's want to be authentic to their heritage(Irish, Italian, French), but also be known as Americans, Indian's can't escape their heritage. Unfortunately, to be Indian, to an American, means that they live on a reservation, make crafts, and take part in pow wows.
When are we going to change our history books and start to talk about how Native American's are still living today and the regular lives they live, just as any other American citizen. Let's teach our children contemporary histories of cultures that we usually place in the past. Instead of teaching cultural stereotypes and showing cultures through western media, we should start to show examples of artist in these contemporary cultures, like James Luna, or Kent Monkman, who break the stereotype and open our minds to think differently than what we have been taught in our textbooks.
This way of teaching puts a lot of responsibility on the teacher. It's important for the teacher to give many different examples so children can create their own understandings.
John,
ReplyDeleteIt's been a while. I was in NY for a week and while I was there I thought, 'I wish I had John Gatti's phone number.' My fault for quitting FB I suppose. Hope you've been well.
Anyways, I remember as a kid going to Native American towns in New Mexico; how poverty stricken they were, isolated. New Mexico has a strange cultural landscape to begin with, but traveling from tourist areas (Santa Fe, Old Town Albuquerque) into those communities reminded me a lot of going across the Mississippi in St. Louis, where I grew up.
It's like the world collapses, and you slide into a different universe.
Then I would hear my grandfather mutter something about "those fucking Indians" taking his tax dollars, and how rich 'the tribe' was because of the casinos. I'd grab his arm and say, "But grandpa, these people don't look rich." and he'd mutter again.
A lot of what our text books is white imperialist history, or revisionist nonsense. I don't know if you've read Howard Zinn's 'A People's History of America' but I think that if we taught the youth of this country that history there would be a good basis to start having the conversations you discuss above.
~Will Fry