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Bei den Indianern
Mar. 1st, 2007 09:30 amQuick, name one national obsession of Germans. Give up? I'll give you a clue: Native Americans.
About a hundred years ago a schoolteacher-turned-convict (he had problems with stealing and lying) named Karl May wrote a romantic children's series about "the Indians." He only visited America once, and never made it past New York state. Yet he spawned a national fixation on "the Indians." And his books are STILL in print.
So the other night I went to a parent meeting at the kindergarten. Among other things, they talked about what they're working on right now, which is a huge unit on the "Indianer." It sounds fun, actually--they dyed and decorated shirts to look like leather, they are weaving Indian rugs, learning Indian games and songs, and soon will be making jewelry out of fired clay (as in, they make the beads that later get fired) and Indian foods. The idea is that eventually they remove everything from the classroom that the Indians wouldn't have used, and "live like the Indians" for two weeks. They did this for rain forest cultures last year and the teachers said it was a very interesting social experiment, since the leaders among the kids all changed, as well as who played what and with whom.
Being the only American in the group, I listened to all this with interest. Living like an Indian, eh? Which kind of Indian? If the family stories are true, my daughter is part Mohawk way back. I assure you that she uses tables, chairs, TV, legos, and fast food. So exactly which "Indians" do they mean?
The thing is, they asked beforehand for anyone to come forward and contribute if they had any special knowledge. And I didn't have anything to contribute. I know the Wampanoag were the ones who helped the Pilgrims. And the Cherokee originated in South Carolina, walked a trail of tears across Arkansas, and now live in Oklahoma. And South Dakota is largely Sioux. But what do I really *know*? Not much. I'm glad we're moving away from stereotypes, and that people want to change and remove offensive words and images. But I'm afraid that, in the fear of being politically incorrect, the easier solution is to replace something offensive with mere silence. If we hadn't moved to the other side of the planet, would my kids even have Native Americans in their consciousness? And this makes me ask more questions, too--how do you both integrate, and keep a culture? Or is it even possible? I want my kids to grow up in an integrated, unified nation--and yet I want them to rejoice in the contributions and culture of all of the subgroups that make us Americans. Am I being unrealistic?
Maybe the answer isn't with the schools and politicians and police of Political Correctness. Maybe we just need more (accurate and respectful) children's books on the topic.
About a hundred years ago a schoolteacher-turned-convict (he had problems with stealing and lying) named Karl May wrote a romantic children's series about "the Indians." He only visited America once, and never made it past New York state. Yet he spawned a national fixation on "the Indians." And his books are STILL in print.
So the other night I went to a parent meeting at the kindergarten. Among other things, they talked about what they're working on right now, which is a huge unit on the "Indianer." It sounds fun, actually--they dyed and decorated shirts to look like leather, they are weaving Indian rugs, learning Indian games and songs, and soon will be making jewelry out of fired clay (as in, they make the beads that later get fired) and Indian foods. The idea is that eventually they remove everything from the classroom that the Indians wouldn't have used, and "live like the Indians" for two weeks. They did this for rain forest cultures last year and the teachers said it was a very interesting social experiment, since the leaders among the kids all changed, as well as who played what and with whom.
Being the only American in the group, I listened to all this with interest. Living like an Indian, eh? Which kind of Indian? If the family stories are true, my daughter is part Mohawk way back. I assure you that she uses tables, chairs, TV, legos, and fast food. So exactly which "Indians" do they mean?
The thing is, they asked beforehand for anyone to come forward and contribute if they had any special knowledge. And I didn't have anything to contribute. I know the Wampanoag were the ones who helped the Pilgrims. And the Cherokee originated in South Carolina, walked a trail of tears across Arkansas, and now live in Oklahoma. And South Dakota is largely Sioux. But what do I really *know*? Not much. I'm glad we're moving away from stereotypes, and that people want to change and remove offensive words and images. But I'm afraid that, in the fear of being politically incorrect, the easier solution is to replace something offensive with mere silence. If we hadn't moved to the other side of the planet, would my kids even have Native Americans in their consciousness? And this makes me ask more questions, too--how do you both integrate, and keep a culture? Or is it even possible? I want my kids to grow up in an integrated, unified nation--and yet I want them to rejoice in the contributions and culture of all of the subgroups that make us Americans. Am I being unrealistic?
Maybe the answer isn't with the schools and politicians and police of Political Correctness. Maybe we just need more (accurate and respectful) children's books on the topic.
