As a kid, people call me brown sugar, or caramel, and think of me as a kid who crossed the border with her family illegally, because of my skin color. My family was always poor and had jobs that didn’t always keep roofs over our heads. We always ran or hid from the police and […]
Charles Tanner, Midland, TX. I am an American,there is not a pre or post to that I was not brought here I was born here. Yes my distant family came from somewhere else. But as with anyone who truly wants to be an American they assimilated. Just as if I wanted to make any other […]
Ty NolN, Tempe, AZ. I’m from a traditional family and have braids. I dance at Powwows, and participate in our Longhouse Ceremonies. The photograph is from when I used to do modeling and is from a calendar photo shoot, on Motorcycles. I’m on a 1935 Indian motorcycle, because one of the “gimmicks” of the calendar […]
Maranda Compton Denver, CO For most of society, the American Indian is conceived of as strictly an historical figure. People maintain images of Tonto or the Crying Indian walking alongside the highway in buckskin and feathers. And if they do allow the Indian to exist in modernity, he or she is relegated to an impoverished, […]
Leonard Rios, Imperial Beach, CA. I am an American Indian on tribal roles and racism has followed my people childhood to present. I am a traditionalist and live an old school life style founded on respect and the spirit of taking only what we need and giving when all possible. I moved to Imperial Beach […]
Marilou Ingles, Romulus, MI. I am American Indian, I grew up in poverty, and I am from the South. I often joke that I received a scholarship to U of M because of my heritage. I do not believe that I would have been admitted based on academia, talent, experience, or personality; I am here […]
Elaine, Rochester, MN. These were the words that come to mind when I met my first non-white person — an American Indian girl. We were in first grade at a small school in SD. Her family moved to another community later in the year. I wonder why.
Shelly Watson, Bethel Acres, OK. When I was a teenager, other American Indians used to call me Apple.
Amanda Fisher Riverside, CA My dad was 100 percent Italian. My mom is white with a little dash of American Indian. People never ask me about my heritage or my racial background. If I ever add my history to a conversation by saying, “I am Italian” people look at me and always respond with, “But […]
Thomas LaVergne Kenton, OH People sometimes do not believe I am who I am due to stereotypes from Hollywood films. Not all Indians have dark skin, brown eyes, black hair, and live on reservations. Racism can exist by people denying you your identity.
