Friday, February 5, 2010
Assimulation or Inevitable
For this weeks blog, I want to share a few of my ideas about the "Wounded Knee" film. The perspectives of the native Indians was very appealing and I have much sympathy for the natives who directly or indirectly are involved or been involved in a tragic event. Whether it be racist murders, or native children taken from their families and culturally transformed at boarding schools, American growth into the nation it has become today has both it's benefits and its negatives. The filmed drew on a lot of the negatives, but I wanted to think about the opposite end of the spectrum. I'm not in agreement with things like seizing land or genocide (like back in the Wounded Knee Creek event in 1890), but after watching the film Ipondered about the possible ways of peaceful assimulation. I don't think that it was justified to kill or steal from the natives as it was done in the past, but eventually the cultures needed to merge quickly, and at that time there was no other alternative available. In a sense, if the natives were left alone they wouldnt have access to modern technology and medicine needed for everyday living and health changes. It's almost as if it were inevitable that the cultures needed to assimulate in order to live within the same regions. I do not agree with the violent acts, or the selfishness of people like Dick Wilson on the reservations, but the conflicts like the film portrayed ended with an agreement and understanding with too much in between. Was it worth the lives of both the natives and the US government officials to spend that many days in conflict? Since the matter was a large scale need for change, it may have been impossible to protest for change in a peaceful manner. I'm curious about this generation of native Indians and how much they are attached to their traditional ways and culture. It seems as though America is approaching assimulation in the present day with more attractive techniques. For example, the Indian gaming casinos throughout California.
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I really like how you contrasted the negatives and positives of the movie in your post. I agree with you that they kind of had to assimilate to keep up with modern technology and advance medicine. But in another sense, I mean, they have been living their ways for centuries and what not, and they were fine, do they really need assimilation to live a normal life? Some things to ponder about..
ReplyDeleteI agree that assimilation is necessary for the evolution of a culture. Environments change for better, or for worse and to survive one must make changes. Though there is no reason for someone to completely lose all connections to their cultural heritage, a mergence of cultures can usually increase the survival of certain traditions.
ReplyDeleteYou bring up an interesting argument. In regards to the process of attaing modern technology I dont exactly agree because I feel like they are loosing a part of their culture in the process of modernization.
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting that you say that the two cultures needed to assimilate in order to live in the same region but I think its important to recognize that the Whites did not have to assimilate. But rather they made the Natives assimilate to their ways. I definetly think the occupation was worth it. As Gina said in class on Thursday, the reason why we are able to sit and learn in an NAS class today is because individuals such as those at the occupation at Wounded Knee took a stand against injustice!
Uber, I agree with you in all respects of asimulation, I was just thinking about assimilation in another perspective, and now I'm pondering about the thoughts that whites didn't have to assimilate. Good looking out.
ReplyDeleteI don't feel that assimilation is a matter of the cultures merging but rather one group of people conforming to the culture of another. The occupation at Wounded Knee was necessary to preserve the integrity of the Native American people and culture, who were on the verge of being "stomped out." Peaceful assimilation as you called it would be to just let their customs die, which isn't something that anyone should have to do.
ReplyDeleteI think one thing that needs to be noted is that assimilation is not the same as technological innovation. That would be like saying we expect an all or nothing "authenticity" from American Indians -- something that we don't ask of practically any other group in the world. For example, can a Native person use the internet or is that "assimilation"? What about cars? What if an American Indian made a film about traditional practices and religious ceremonies? Is that assimilation or resistance to assimilation? In other words, we shouldn't tie cultural preservation and the right to practice religious ceremonies and speak one's language to some sort of mystical past. People can enjoy modern conveniences without losing their culture. Cars weren't a part of anyone's culture until rather recently.
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