Native lit class threatens Arizona

Native American students learn 'their' literatureDavid, a student at Westwood High School in Mesa, was ready to drop out of school at the end of his junior year. He didn’t need those boring senior classes.

But then David, a Pima/Ute, heard that teacher Andi Box planned to offer a class in Native American literature in the spring, and he quickly changed his mind.

“He was the first one to sign up. “Midway through the semester he told me, ‘I come to school for this class. I deal with the other ones,’” Box said.

Box’s class, a pilot project created with the help of ASU English faculty members James Blasingame and Simon Ortiz, is the first literature class in the Mesa Public Schools (MPS) to focus entirely on Native American authors and texts.And:The pilot class focused on regional Native American literature of the Southwest, and included material from books such as “Rising Voices,” by Beverly Singer, a collection of poems and essays by young Native Americans about their identity, rituals and the harsh realities of their lives; “Code Talkers,” a novel for young adults by Joseph Bruchac (which the students didn’t want to put down, Box said), and Alexie’s novel, as well as films such as “Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee.”

Class units have included “Finding Our Warriors, Finding Our Beliefs”; “Finding Our Inner Poetry”; “Finding True Education”; “Finding Frustration: The Rise in Indian Activism”; and “Finding Our Future.”And:The students also made posters, brought in Native dishes to share, created pictures to symbolize themselves, and wrote stories or poems about themselves. Box said she focused on both the positive and negative sides of Native American history.

For some of the Native American students, it was the first time they had read or seen an outsider’s view of their history.Comment:  Good to see that Native students respond to a Native-themed class. Even though Charles Trimble warned us about focusing on the past, it seems to help these kids.

But...teaching brown-skinned students about their history is risky. We know this because Arizona's legislators have told us so. Once students get ideas in their heads, who knows what could emerge from their slums and barrios and reservations?

This is the kind of divisive class Arizona meant to ban with its new ethnic studies law. If we don't stop this "teaching" in its tracks, we'll face another round of '60s-style counterculture chaos. We'll see radicals marching in the streets and criticizing their government.

Why Native class must go

Here's why the new law should prohibit this class:

Designed primarily for students of a particular race? Check. Note the references to Indian identity, the pictures and poems created to "symbolize themselves," and the frequent use of "our." This class is for Indians only. It promotes ethnic "pride" and "solidarity."

Promotes resentment toward a certain ethnic group? Check. Note the references to "the harsh realities of their lives," "frustration," and "activism." This class fosters resentment against whites. Students in the class may learn to hate Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, and other great men.

Promotes the overthrow of the U.S. government? Check. Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee talks about the Ghost Dance movement, which intended to cleanse the land of Euro-Americans. Books about warriors and soldiers encourage armed resistance. Books about recent history probably talk about AIM and its anti-government rhetoric. No doubt these books will inspire some students to become teabaggers militia men domestic terrorists.

Someone alert Arizona's superintendent of public instruction. This is just what he fears hates wants to ban. We must destroy these dangerous ideas before they destroy us.

For more on the subject, see Arizona to Ban White Studies? and Arizona to Ban Native Studies?

Below:  A manifesto for rebellion against the US government?