In the chapter that she discusses fighting, she also points out that alcohol played a big part. She was drinking a lot and as a result fighting a lot. However, I think part of why the AIM movement resorted to violence was that they felt there was no other option. There was literally no justice for them. She tells of two or three different instances when she and her Native American friends were attacked by whites. When they fought back, the police arrested them and let the whites go free. The Indians had to spend time in jail, pay court fees, etc., while the whites had no consequences whatsoever. She also relates an old Indian joke " One Indian tells his white neighbor: "You've stolen my land, shot my father, raped my wife, got my daughter with child, turned my son on to whiskey. One day I'm gonna lose my patience. Better watch that shit!"
They tried to make themselves heard in peaceful ways, but often they were reacted to with violence. Whenever they danced, sang or let out loud "indian" yells, the white police or government officials would get scared and over-react. Another instance she tells about is a woman who goes to a court house to protest the murder of her son, and to make sure that the white man who killed him is prosecuted. A riot soon erupted as the Native Americans were not allowed inside the court house. The mother of the murdered man was arrested, but the white murdered went home, and didn't spend one single night in jail.
Mary just relates story upon story like this. It is really hard to believe that life was so violent and oppressed for them, but it was. Violence begets violence- isn't that the expression?
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branchandroot
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Date: 2005-05-05 04:30 pm (UTC)They tried to make themselves heard in peaceful ways, but often they were reacted to with violence. Whenever they danced, sang or let out loud "indian" yells, the white police or government officials would get scared and over-react. Another instance she tells about is a woman who goes to a court house to protest the murder of her son, and to make sure that the white man who killed him is prosecuted. A riot soon erupted as the Native Americans were not allowed inside the court house. The mother of the murdered man was arrested, but the white murdered went home, and didn't spend one single night in jail.
Mary just relates story upon story like this. It is really hard to believe that life was so violent and oppressed for them, but it was. Violence begets violence- isn't that the expression?