Comments | bobby1933: Learning From First Peoples Or Being A Pretendian?

bobby1933

Learning From First Peoples Or Being A Pretendian?

Jun 04, 2016 21:14

( I am reading a book called Quest, whose author a) gives workshops on how to do a vision quest (from which she seems to make a pretty good living) and (b) claims American Indian heritage. It is starting out to be a pretty good book which i may eventually journal about... Read more... )

vision. pi, sacred space, spiritual practice, vision?

Comments 7

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bobby1933 June 6 2016, 01:04:57 UTC

Good to hear from you, man!

Thank you for your comment.
I will look up Grey Owl

reginaterrae June 10 2016, 19:25:34 UTC

This ... it's we euro-Americans (and, I think, Canadians) who redefined tribes as strictly racial, or ancestry-based. Even we ourselves still like to call ourselves "Irish-American" or "Italian-American", e.g., but the leap to "English-Temagami" seems to be one too far -- maybe it's because we don't want to acknowledge the "nationhood" of aboriginal groups within what we like to claim as our exclusive borders.

belenen June 7 2016, 11:17:52 UTC

I think you explained this quite well.

bobby1933 June 10 2016, 20:33:40 UTC

Thank you!

reginaterrae June 10 2016, 19:19:40 UTC

Finally there are those unenrolled persons raised without traditions who, as adults, feel called to rediscover or reinvest in some version of their ancestral traditions. To me, these people lost everything, even their connection to a tribal society and they should not be criticised for trying to recapture it.This is my Aunt - formerly known as Babette, has taken the name Tekakwitha. Her grandmother was Cherokee, and I guess she had a good relationship with her, whereas she has not been on speaking terms with her parents for many, many years. She and my uncle have reinvented themselves as Cherokee in a big way, in some ways: learning the language, writing songs in it and recording them -- have been nominated for Nammy awards a couple of times --, doing the Powwow circuit with heavy investment of time and effort in making their own regalia, etc. But they are not bound to genuine Cherokee culture and tradition, either -- they mix it up with Reiki and whatever New Age hogwash they like, and you know, it works for them. And it works for ( ... )

bobby1933 June 10 2016, 20:42:36 UTC

This is not a slam at your aunt, who has every right to her chosen identity, but i find it interesting that such a large portion of non-enrolled persons who claim Native American ancestry say that ancestry was "Cherokee" You would think that half the pre-contact population of North America were Cherokee or that they were by far the most fecund people ever.

reginaterrae June 10 2016, 20:53:05 UTC

True! And odd. They must have better marketing than any of the other 100s of native nations in the US. In my aunt's case, although she does make stuff up (e.g., she one told me "Tekakwitha" was her middle name, but Mom said it was actually Elaine), I believe her grandmother actually was Cherokee.