Mr. Warrior goes to Washington (Part 1)
Sunday, instead of sitting in the smoke infested house, I decided it was time to take a trip to Washington. I really haven't been there in a couple years, so there were a couple things I wanted to see. Plus, after watching Mr. Smith goes to Washington the night before, I was feeling a bit patriotic and cynical.
Off to DC I go. Knowing better than to park in the city itself, I stopped in Springfield and rode the metro. Washington DC metro is known for the cleanliness and efficiency of the metro system. Unfortunately for me, the rail car I was in, had the essence of dried vomit wafting throughout. Turning green from the scent, I tried to hold my breath and breath through my mouth. At every stop on the blue line, I would stick my head out the window and pant taking large gulps of cool air.
After arriving at the mall (the very large area between the Capitol and Lincoln Memorial, the White house and the Jefferson Memorial) I headed toward the Capitol building. For those who remember watching Mr. Smith goes to Washington, the Capitol building was the building that put him in awe. It is a magnificent building, but the one that impressed me most was the newest museum...the National Museum of the American Indian. The design of the building is meant to look like a Pueblo dwelling which is a stark difference from the marble and granite covering a good portion of the buildings around it.
There are a few areas that were of interest to me. First was the Lakota universe. Being half Lakota, the sharing of Lakota knowledge by the Lakota curators was enlightening and heart-warming.
The Our Lives exhibit explains modern day native life. It dispells the stereotypes of Native life and educates on the embracing and transformation of our heritage.
Lastly, There is a section stuffed in the corner dedicated to city Natives (such as me). Theses are Natives who were incented to move to the city or ended up going on their own needs. City Natives range from the adopted-by-white Natives (again like me) to the career driven Natives (also like me). There is a video that explains how neither the rez culture nor the government really attributes them as real Natives. Yet, the city Natives do their best to stay with other city Natives.
Also mentioned at this exhibit is the Native quantum. This is the blood percentage of a certain tribe. The issue city Natives have is that even if they marry another Native, if that Native is from a different Nation, you are thinning the bloodline. Additionally, if you marry other than Native and have children, you again thin the bloodline, even though the child may still follow the teachings and beliefs of the tribe. The tribe nor the government has to provide your tribal affiliation card unless you have a "true" quantum.
This brings me to my point (as I almost always have one). The blood quantum should not be the most important part of being a tribal member. If we look at our own and other cultures past, we see that those people who have committed themselves to the tribal beliefs are the most active and honored.
For example, if someone who is not Jewish or Christian, works hard to become Jewish or Christian, they are the people who strengthen the religion. They are often the activist in the mission. The are teaching the young. They are helping the elders. They are defending the lifestyle.
By shutting out the lower than quantum Natives, our people lose our tribal Warriors for our way of being. These people are trying to embrace and share the tribal ways, not thin them out.
There is one more thing in the museum that touched me at the entrance to the Our Lives exhibit which also fits the Native peoples as a whole.
Our Lives is about who we are today.
Native peoples are everywhere in the Americas. We number in the tens of millions. We speak hundreds of languages. We live in the hemisphere's remotest places and it's biggest cities.
We are still here.
We are not just survivors; we are architects of our survivance. We carry our ancient philosophies into an ever-changing modern world.
We work hard to remain Native in circumstances that sometimes challenge or threaten our survival. Our lives is about our stories of survivance, but it belongs to anyone who fought extermination, discrimination, or stereotypes.
Did you know...
According to DNA evidence, the first Natives may have colonized the hemisphere in 28,000 BC...from Europe.
Off to DC I go. Knowing better than to park in the city itself, I stopped in Springfield and rode the metro. Washington DC metro is known for the cleanliness and efficiency of the metro system. Unfortunately for me, the rail car I was in, had the essence of dried vomit wafting throughout. Turning green from the scent, I tried to hold my breath and breath through my mouth. At every stop on the blue line, I would stick my head out the window and pant taking large gulps of cool air.
After arriving at the mall (the very large area between the Capitol and Lincoln Memorial, the White house and the Jefferson Memorial) I headed toward the Capitol building. For those who remember watching Mr. Smith goes to Washington, the Capitol building was the building that put him in awe. It is a magnificent building, but the one that impressed me most was the newest museum...the National Museum of the American Indian. The design of the building is meant to look like a Pueblo dwelling which is a stark difference from the marble and granite covering a good portion of the buildings around it.There are a few areas that were of interest to me. First was the Lakota universe. Being half Lakota, the sharing of Lakota knowledge by the Lakota curators was enlightening and heart-warming.
The Our Lives exhibit explains modern day native life. It dispells the stereotypes of Native life and educates on the embracing and transformation of our heritage.
Lastly, There is a section stuffed in the corner dedicated to city Natives (such as me). Theses are Natives who were incented to move to the city or ended up going on their own needs. City Natives range from the adopted-by-white Natives (again like me) to the career driven Natives (also like me). There is a video that explains how neither the rez culture nor the government really attributes them as real Natives. Yet, the city Natives do their best to stay with other city Natives.
Also mentioned at this exhibit is the Native quantum. This is the blood percentage of a certain tribe. The issue city Natives have is that even if they marry another Native, if that Native is from a different Nation, you are thinning the bloodline. Additionally, if you marry other than Native and have children, you again thin the bloodline, even though the child may still follow the teachings and beliefs of the tribe. The tribe nor the government has to provide your tribal affiliation card unless you have a "true" quantum.
This brings me to my point (as I almost always have one). The blood quantum should not be the most important part of being a tribal member. If we look at our own and other cultures past, we see that those people who have committed themselves to the tribal beliefs are the most active and honored.
For example, if someone who is not Jewish or Christian, works hard to become Jewish or Christian, they are the people who strengthen the religion. They are often the activist in the mission. The are teaching the young. They are helping the elders. They are defending the lifestyle.
By shutting out the lower than quantum Natives, our people lose our tribal Warriors for our way of being. These people are trying to embrace and share the tribal ways, not thin them out.
There is one more thing in the museum that touched me at the entrance to the Our Lives exhibit which also fits the Native peoples as a whole.
Our Lives is about who we are today.
Native peoples are everywhere in the Americas. We number in the tens of millions. We speak hundreds of languages. We live in the hemisphere's remotest places and it's biggest cities.
We are still here.
We are not just survivors; we are architects of our survivance. We carry our ancient philosophies into an ever-changing modern world.
We work hard to remain Native in circumstances that sometimes challenge or threaten our survival. Our lives is about our stories of survivance, but it belongs to anyone who fought extermination, discrimination, or stereotypes.
Did you know...
According to DNA evidence, the first Natives may have colonized the hemisphere in 28,000 BC...from Europe.
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