Pejuta Cangleska Win, Sacred Medicine Circle Woman, Tasha Fridia and her Grandmother, the late Frances Wise
February gives us an opportunity to celebrate and uplift Black History. During this designated month, the collective whole in this country is encouraged to learn about the experiences, traditions, and contributions of African American people. Just as in Indian Country the experience is not a monolith, there is no one Black experience that is all encompassing. Today, I share with you my experience that lies in a space where Indigeneity and Blackness intersect.
As I navigate the world, I am unsure of how people perceive me. Over the years I have been seen as African American, Puerto Rican, Dominican, Hawaiian, Mixed, and Indian just to name a few. One thing I AM sure of is how I see myself. I know who I am, I have always known who I am. I am Pejuta Cangleska Win, Sacred Medicine Circle Woman…I am an Indigenous woman who is also the descendant of enslaved Africans who hailed from powerful African Tribal nations. This dual existence has given me strength, fortitude, resilience, and yes, many challenges. In the 1980s when I was growing up, there were not many Indigenous folks that looked like me. Being reared by my Wichita grandmother was the greatest blessing and indicator of who I would become. She was both my teacher and protector. My idol and my best friend. She ensured that I was proud of all that Tunkasila (Creator) made me to be. Frances Wise grounded me in traditional culture and spirituality. She also made sure to teach me about Africa, slavery, Malcom X, and Martin Luther King Jr. She introduced me to and surrounded me with local African American civil rights activists like Clara Luper and Opio Toure. I was lucky in that way.
Today, there are many more Indigenous children that look like me, including my two teenage daughters. Although many years have passed since my childhood, I find myself having to be their protector. In many Indigenous circles they are greeted with skepticism and forced to prove themselves. The irony of it all is that those two young ladies have cultural knowledge that surpasses any amount of Indigenous blood. They are their ancestors’ wildest dreams. As we seek to address the beauty, needs, and strengths of Indigenous young people, we must be intentional about the experiences of our Indigenous-African American youth. Often times they are walking in three worlds rather than only the two that we walk as Indigenous people. I challenge us as communities to look at how we welcome and treat our relatives with dark skin and curly hair. We must look inward and question why we easily welcome our light skinned, light eyed relatives with open arms and keep our African American relatives at arm’s length. Are we taking on the viewpoints of our oppressor? Despite all of my grandmother’s love and protection, I will never forget being a 5th grader being called the n-word for the first time. I won’t forget the elderly lady at a powwow who made a snide remark about my skin color. Personally, I have felt no greater pain than the racism from my own people. This has come from a variety of directions including some of my own extended family. I challenge us as Indigenous people to shift our lens and be good relatives.
Being a good relative can look like many things. We must look inward as individuals and organizations to seek opportunities to do better and ask ourselves the hard questions. How are we addressing our biases? How are we supporting our youth and communities to be more inclusive? What are we doing to address institutional racism? In the context of tribal youth programs and juvenile healing to wellness courts, we can explore how we are acknowledging the unique experiences of these young relatives. We can move past acknowledgement and include strategies to support these unique experiences. We can be intentional in our efforts toward inclusion and understanding. We can promote strengths-based language and concepts in regard to African Americans. Finally, and most importantly, we can ask our Indigenous-African American young people what they need and how we can best support them.
To all the Indigenous people that look like us, as we celebrate Black History Month, we celebrate all that you are, and REMEMBER you are the descendants of warriors and kings.
