See the necklace above? This necklace is a representation of compromise that should never have had to happen. Oh sure, you look at it and see the absolute beauty that it is. You know that the person that made this is a talented and skilled individual. You know that it represents a culture that is proud and strong in their beliefs and ways. But never should it occur to you that it represents compromise.
One of my beautiful neices (I’m blessed with plenty of beautiful neices) graduated from high school this year and as you might guess she is Native American. To graduate is the first major accomplishment in our lives and one that should be celebrated and represented as we see fit. My neice wanted nothing more than to represent her culture while celebrating this major milestone in her life. So she asked for permission to wear an Eagle feather on her tassle. This is in my opinion is the first of many travesty’s in this story that I will tell you. Why should anyone have to ask permission to wear an Eagle feather?
In the Native American culture, an Eagle feather can symbolize many different things. Wisdom, power, freedom, strength just to name a few. Back “in the old days”, an Eagle feather was earned for couragous acts such as fighting a bear or an enemy. To receive an Eagle feather was and still is a high honor. A Native American wears their feather only when they are retelling their story of victory.
So when you think about this piece of information, it would seem very appropriate for my neice to want to wear hers at her graduation, correct? It also makes you wonder why she should have to ask permission to wear it as well? She wasn’t asking to pack a gun on her person during her graduation. No, she was asking persmission to wear an item in which she earned and one that represents her victory which was graduating from high school.
The answer was no. She wasn’t alone in this request either to wear a feather on her tassle at her graduation. My sister’s family lives in Helena, MT and it’s pretty safe to assume that there are a handful of Native Americans that can be found in Montana. So it’s not as if she lives in an area where Native Americans are rare and their ways are unknown. So it was expected that she wouldn’t be the only individual with this desire.
Nonetheless the answer was still no. Her and her friends had to work hard to get the school to compromise and it was decided amongst them that if the school didn’t see fit to meet in the middle some way, they wouldn’t walk at their own graduation. So finally the school relented and allowed them to wear the feather and show it outside their cap and gown but as a peice of jewelry. So my sister made the beautiful necklace seen above for her to wear and she wore it with pride.
This is a beautiful ending to this story correct? No it’s not at all. When graduation day came imagine their surprise when they saw a student allowed to wear his turbin rather than his graduation cap and tassle. The reason he was allowed to wear the turbin rather than the cap and tassle was because it represented his culture and his beliefs. My neice and her friends weren’t allowed to wear a feather on their tassle because school policy states that culture representation is not allowed. I’m now seeing that the school didn’t compromise with them, in fact my neice and her friends had to compromise with the school. They had to compromise their culture, their beliefs, and their heritage. They had to compromise their pride in who they are and where they’re from. They had to ask permissoin to be Native American on their graduation day. To which the reply was, “Yes you can be Native American on this day but we will only allow you to do so in a small way.”
This angers me immensely and I cannot believe that in the year 2014 we are still having these types of issues. There was another article where this was an issue at another school in California but in that story, the high school granted full permission for the student(s) to be Native American. I’ve never been an individual that holds the past mistakes of the American history against today’s people. I’ve always believed that yes, we as a people, were severely wronged but there is no sense in dwelling on the past because the best path is the one that moves forward. Yet here we stand asking for the permission to be proud and share who we are.
I recently chaparoned a field trip for my youngest’s class and we went to the IMAX theater to watch the story of Lewis and Clark. Part of the trip it showed how Lewis and Clark would meet with Chief’s from tribes met along the way and present them with a medal and notify them that their land now belonged to the American Government. I remember shaking my head and laughing because of the absurdity of it all. I will not lie, I did feel some anger but I chose to focus on the absurdity of it. Think of it this way, you’re sitting on your couch in your home reading a book wearing pj’s when you hear a knock at the door. You get up to answer the door and the person walks right in and sits on your couch and informs you that your home now belongs to them and in return here is a $10 gift card as a thank you. You will be allowed to still live in your home but it will be necessary for you to ask for permission before you do certain things in your home such as wear your pj’s. Additionally, there may come a time where you will be told to leave your home but you will be given another place to live. It won’t be as comfortable and as nice as where you currently live and you will only be allowed to take what you can carry but nonetheless be grateful that you will be given a place elsewhere to live.
Absurd right? Infuriating, correct? Feeling indignant and ready to fight this individual and tell them to get out of your house and you most certainly will not be told to leave and live elsewhere yet? Welcome to the history of Native Americans. But I’m not writing this to rehash the past and throw our fists in the air and cry revolution. No I’m writing this to show that while we have come far, we’re still so very far from being of equal minds.
In no way am I saying that kid wearing the turbin should not have been allowed to wear it but let’s be realistic here. His culture didn’t originate in this country but my neices did. She should never have had to ask permission to be Native American that day and she should never have had to compromise her beliefs. My sister and her family are going to work on making sure this doesn’t ever happen again at this school and I’m right behind her in assisting with that as well.
You see, the school’s biggest mistake was thinking it was superior in it’s beliefs and rules. The school was wrong in believing that they had any authority in matters such as these. The school is definitely wrong in thinking that they will be allowed to get away with this. The school is wrong if they believe that they are dealing with a family that will just roll over and be done with it all. For the graduates of the Class of 2015, asking for permission to be proud of who you are and celebrate it will be a thing of the past.
NellaMae B.
My Journey.. 