By Eric Hartman 

As the United States approaches a holiday that hides a brutal history and ignores contemporary injustices, below are five resources to move more deeply into understanding indigenous past and present. For broader insights on power, privilege, and positionality, see our related peer-reviewed resources and teaching tools.

1. Elissa Washuta, a lecturer and academic counselor in the Department of American Indian Studies at the University of Washington recently published “The Wrongheaded Obsession with ‘Vanishing’ Indigenous Peoples” in Salon. Washuta criticizes the claims of photographer Jimmy Nelson, who suggests his website viewers will “Meet the Last Tribes on Earth, Before they Pass Away.” When the photographer offers his concern about some contemporary practices in indigenous communities, Washuta writes,

“To critique the “authenticity” of another culture from the outside is a dangerous practice, and Nelson’s evaluation of communities during his lifetime fails to account for the flux experienced over thousands of years. Too often, onlookers expect indigenous peoples to remain static for the entirety of their existence, failing to consider their long histories of change before contact with outsiders.”

This essay may be particularly powerful when discussing the ethics of photography, representation, and claiming to speak on behalf of others. Washuta also clearly asserts the contemporary presence and continuous reinvention of indigenous communities, making her essay an interesting complement to Kwame Anthony Appiah’s Case for Contamination.

2. While Washuta’s essay moves us to understand that indigenous communities continue to evolve, it has neither the space nor the time to delve into the ways in which hidden histories structure current inequities. To delve into the history that America doesn’t often discuss, listen to Little War on the Prarie. The fifty-five minute This American Life episode features an individual from Mankato, Minnesota discovering that his community was the site of the largest max execution in United States History. Thirty-eight Dakota Indians were hanged there in 1862.

3. The effect of those executions, as well as other Dakota and Lakota betryals by the United States Government, is felt in National Geographic Photographer Aaron Huey’s Ted Talk, “America’s Native Prisoners of War.” The 15-minute presentation is informative, moving, and troubling.

4. Huey’s presentation and photography is compelling. But one of the most impressive things about his interaction with the Lakota Sioux is the development of a project through which members of the Lakota Nation were asked to upload their own stories. The whole story collection tells the contemporary story of Pine Ridge through the people of Pine Ridge, in their own unedited words. Take three and a half minutes to listen to one example, “Faces I do not Worship,” below:

5. Elissa Washuta, in the essay mentioned above, drew attention to Project 562, a photo project dedicated to photographing Native America. (There are 562 federally-recognized tribes in the US). For a quick introduction to the initiative, which is visually stunning, educational, and engaging, watch project leader Matika Wilbur:

Bonus, #6. Though it was not written with indigenous communities in mind,  I find this piece on ways to be an ally on feminism.com to be especially instructive. There are ten tips there, and among them are #1, Being an ally is about listening and #5, Allies educate themselves constantly. Indeed, attempting to understand our positionality in the face of dominant narratives requires vigilance.

And with that, a reminder for which I’m thankful, “We Who Believe in Freedom Cannot Rest.” Enjoy this beautiful rendition of Ella’s Song:

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Eric Hartman is Co-founder and Editor of criticalservicelearning.org. He recently received the Early Career Research Award from the International Association for Service-Learning and Community Engagement. He was also awarded the 4 under 40 Impact Prize from the University of Pittsburgh’s Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, recognizing his work developing evidence-based curricula to advance global citizenship and for his leadership as Executive Director of Amizade Global Service-Learning from 2007-10. He is a Visiting Professor of Global Studies at Providence College.