This was an awfully good article on a pre-columbus day thing we did
here. All other reviews expressed in the Dartmouth were positive as
well.
Just thought I'd share it with you all.
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NAD Celebration Embraces All
by Ethan Ostrow '96
(retyped without permission from the Comment page of The Dartmouth.)
In a time when cultural rifts plunge more people daily into abysmal
depths of ignorance and hate, the College should be exceedingly
grateful for the Native Americans at Dartmouth. This student group
recently staged an exceptionally insightful and appropriate celebration
of Native culture in the context of Columbus Day observance.
An event conceived in benevolence and executed in style, the NAD
celebration is a regrettably rare example of cultural pride. The
organization managed to successfully conduct a function to foster
ethnic respect and solidarity without advancing the divisiveness that
usually accompanies such things. The NAD president, Lloyd Lee '94,
described the essence of Native life as "inclusive" and "an acceptance
of all people."
His sentiment as well as NAD's recent example effectively demonstrated
that the group fully understands culuture to the point where they can
revel in it without turning miserably to self-righteousness and
segregation.
Where animosity, bitterness and regret colored last year's
quincentennial event, this year's positive observance imparted to the
Native American community an undeniable credibility for its ill
feelings expressed last year. NAD's welcome request that the Dartmouth
community be tolerant of diversity validates the group's sense of
injustice with the assurance that, in addition to being conscious of
their own culture, they are aware and supportive of others unique from
them.
NAD's expressed commitment to amicable cohesion at Dartmouth relates a
cultural identity not separate but in fact indivisible from other proud
cultures. The Native Americans at Dartmouth cannot be commended enough
for this unconditional contribution to the community.
I attended last year's function - both Professor Michael Dorris'
fictional reading and the following candlelight vigil. The reading,
written by Dorris, was a powerful conjecture on the thoughts of a young
Native American girl as she watched an pproaching foreign armada. It
was a calculated and effective attempt to make the audience "rethink
Columbus," and the vigil afterwards was charged with sorrow and
frustration. The Native American community indeed made an angry
statement, but in the same stroke it thoughtfully presented its
perspective.
Culture is too often interpreted to the ends of segregation and defense
against some external threat. If division is the most apparent aspect
of our diversity, then we are detracting from the benefits diversity is
supposed to provide.
NAD concentrated its celebration on its unique music, food and history,
letting positive introspection work on its own to win attention and
respect.
NAD has given Dartmouth a supberb example on how to positively
promulgate cultural pride. Dartmouth thrives in an environment of
intellectual debate and consequently we have more than our share of
student groups, as well as student publications featuring every flavor
of conservatism.
Unfortunately, our alliances also have a tendency to trip over
themselves trying to be either the most extreme, the most distinct or
the most noticeable. Partisanship may be valuable in its own right,
but is fruitless when it misses the point of productive coexistence.
This past weekend NAD hit the target, and we should all be encouraged
by its success.
You can send replies to Christopher.Newell@dartmouth.edu
"When sun warms your body thru in in the heart of the land
And smiles play on our children's faces
You can see the work of Koluskap's hand."
Red Hawk
Penobscot
from the poem _Penobscot Home Nation_