General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Women only: Regarding the use of the term 'girls' to describe women. [View all]Mc Mike
(9,114 posts)My wife and I recently turned out to Lewisburg to support Peltier, before the BOP transferred him. And also supported Mean's Wind Cave Sun Dance vs. Interior Dept. skulduggery. You're right, the rezzes have the highest poverty and crime rate in the country, more than even the worst inner-city settings. The housing projects east of Rapid are pretty bad, too.
But half of the people on the reservations are women, and subject to the same attacks on women that the repugs are currently engaging in nationwide. Maybe ask the Means women what they think about gender politics while you're there. The scandal of involuntary sterilization of native women by the IHS (during the Reagan admin) probably didn't escape your notice, and it was mirrored by similar scandals at the same time in inner-city clinics in the US and Puerto Rico. And by the Apartheid gov in S. Africa.
"Girl" vs. "Woman" isn't the heart of the problem, but t.v. ultrasounds are, attacks on abortion and contraception are, and rapes are. Nobody wants to win the first place prize for victimhood, here. "Girl" is just like the repug ad in the last South Dakota election cycle that called Natives 'Dogs', and compared them to prairie dogs. I've heard the phrase 'prairie n ers' used by hostile whites in the region. The ones who were using it were getting free grazing rights from the gov, on land that is still 'owned' by the natives through Red Cloud's treaty. The point is that there are many opportunities to do something to help people who are under attack by nazi 1% interests. We can all be allies fighting on different fronts. I wish you would take Dutch with you to the rez. Maybe it would keep him occupied enough so he'd stop posting on this thread.
Racism and disinfranchisement against Native Americans is a real problem. I imagine that the repugs anti-women moves are just doubling the burden on Native Women, but I'm just a white boy in PA. I hope you have much success helping the people on Pine Ridge. And thank you for your good work and efforts.