The ethics of courage
If a culture was trying to impose a change to your values or social structure you probably would be stubborn to conform. Would you fight your hardest to keep your culture? Well, that’s what Taiaiake Alfred is trying to do. Alfred wrote an essay, called “The Ethics of Courage,” to explain possible choices to take in fighting against oppression. “Not all of us have been conquered,’’ as Alfred bluntly puts it. Alfred’s solution to oppression is Courage and lots of it.
Alfred is a teacher at the University of Victoria. He is deeply in protection of rights and freedoms. Alfred is also a first nation of the Onkwehon tribe.
I defiantly had to put emotions in my white pocket for this read. Alfred’s audience for this essay is not meant to be Caucasians because he seems to put the blame on ALL Caucasian people. Alfred says “Yet it is the bold and unchallenged white arrogance and racial prejudice against indigenous people that is the first and most important target of action.” This quote makes me grumpy because this is not true especially in current times. Of course there are always a few racists in society, but every culture has them. What we did 40 years ago such as boarding schools or assimilation happened 40 plus years ago. People are not against first nations anymore. The Canadian government funds many programs for first nations and provides them with special treatments. There are many grants and scholarships for first nation students available from the Canadian government. Most programs at colleges hold seats for first nation students. These are just some examples relevant to my audience although there’s many more. It seems that Alfred sees Caucasians as enemies by the tone and diction used to talk about the “settler society.’’
The essay is quite wordy which looks to be scholarly piece. However the way Alfred gets his point across is anything but scholarly. The point in the essay is “the struggle for Onkwehonwe strength and freedom.” He explains his point by what the modern day Onkwehonwe worrier should be like and what kind of courage they should have. It doesn’t make sense because how is he supposed to get his point across? The audience is not first nations in general because most of them don’t have a post secondary education so they couldn’t understand the sophisticated diction. It is not Caucasians. Could it be first nations in humanity sciences or politics?
Courage is the strength to challenge state power with out using violent force according to Alfred. He believes that violence toward state does not get anywhere it’s the weakest from of fighting. Alfred said the soldiers in battle fight physically but 98% of them break down mentally. Using the brain to fight is the best weapon. The Onkwehonwe tribe must be strong mentally and hold emotions back. This is how a true warrior should handle things. Alfred used reference to the Oka stand off the Gustafson stand off and even the Vietnam War to show how these people used courage. Alfred is using the violent examples to show how hard real courage is to achieve. In order for the Onkwehonwe tribe to truly live “the ethic of courage as warriors” they have to fight for their right culturally and politically because if you remove “cou” it’s just rage.
The worst quote out of the essay would have to be:
“the racism that is still rampant in Settler society. Violent, degrading, and belittering white attitudes and behaviour are systematically woven into the fabric of Settler culture”
Is this courage? Being racist towards white people doesn’t get Alfred sympathy. Alfred said that first nations “have a responsibility to act against racism.” How does Alfred get to say this when he has been racist towards Caucasians through out the essay? Alfred is being a hypocrite? He has lost his credibility.
Question for class: Do you really thing we are as bad as Alfred says we are towards first nations? What did you think of this essay?