> If we are not even willing to take the time to understand
> another culture, but just give some knee jerk reaction to every issue
> that challenges our personal beliefs, then I see no hope for native
> cultures. Here of all places I would hope that native peoples could
> find a sanctuary for expressing their beliefs and be taken seriously.
> And that means giving some benefit of the doubt.
> I would be willing to bet that Peshe has a much better understanding of
> western culture than any of us "whites" have of native cultures.
I've "listened" with interest over the past few months to list discussions
that raise issues I'd not considered. Surely you're right that Peshe knows
more about western culture than I of native. I've got much to learn, and I
look forward to the process. As I've listened in, Peshe is at his best when
he explains. What is least valuable is the dismissal of other's statements
because they are white or male or female or whatever. I admit that meeting
other points of view based on their merits is work. It may even be repetitive
and boring to some, but there are obviously many list participants who hope
for this kind of response. I would suggest that what you hear in many posts
is that other writers also do not feel taken seriously.
Maybe the problem here is knowing what for you constitutes being taken
seriously. I don't think anything in my post discussed the merits of society
vs individualism. Rather, I thought I had started down the road of "trying to
find out" by asking for more help in understanding the native perspective. I
also attempted to put some comments of others within context. I'm willing to
accept your characterization of the grave differences between native and
western culture. I suspect that the differences have significant implications
for communication. I'm also not sure it's enough to plaintively ask over and
over for people to simply leave the mindset of their culture. So many of the
the posts are from people sincerely making an effort to do that and achieving
various levels of success. It's usually a long process. Perhaps you're
farther along.
> Just for once, give the benefit of the doubt, that Peshe's question is
> real. Further, assume that the answer could be yes. Are you willing
> to explore the implications?
> Wouldn't it be nice to try and find out? It doesn't seem productive
> to argue the merits of society vs individualism while deeply embedded
> in cultural prejudice.
Before implications can ever really be explored, you have to try to get beyond
the doubt. That usually means trying to understand words and phrases and
personal and social history. Perhaps neophytes in cross-cultural communciation
are not wanted on the list. I say again that the concept of a true group
identity/consciousness is novel to me. I need more information how this
happens and how it is manifest. Understanding different ways of knowing is
critical to human interaction. When I understand this way better, then let's
explore implications, and -sure- even judgment. But it seems to too many
people are in fact more interested in the judgment than the communication and
understanding.
> We owe it to natives on this net to meet them at least halfway (I would say
> more so since this net is devoted to native issues).
This may be true, but as I've listened over the months, the thrust of discus-
sions (as opposed to informational items) has not been so much a native issue
where all assume the same things, as an attempt to bridge the gap between
natives and non-natives on native issues. In any list that I have seen,
examining basic assumptions of all parties is often a prelude to gap bridg-
ing. Never before have I seen someone interpret this as lack of being
taken seriously or as failure to give the benefit of the doubt. It seems a
common sense place to start. However, that would only be true if bridging
cultures is a goal. If there is another agenda here, I apologize for my
misunderstanding, and will continue to watch with interest as you pursue it.
Bill Badgley
W_BADGLEY@UNHH.UNH.EDU