Idenitity of Sovereignty
by: Pamela Waterbird Davison
Copyright 2008
It’s 2008 and I hear a lot of talk about sovereignty. I can understand what all the fuss is about. We live in a complicated world, a world of our own making, and history is demanding we study past mistakes or we’re doomed to repeat them.
Sovereignty is quite astonishing. It means we have dominion or power over our own destiny. We own our independence and demand it be respected, just as people before us have. Yet, sovereignty denied leaves a people without control of their very existence and threatens to extinguish us. If you don’t believe autonomy is powerful enough to dictate historical events just take a closer look at the Trail of Tears or The Long Walk. If you have an open mind, I think you’ll find there’s much more to be learned from history than “just the facts”.
Let me see if I can lay it down straight.
When my ancestors first came into contact with Europeans, they were curious, but polite. Just like many of us today, they welcomed immigrants, showed the strangers what they knew, accepted their unusual ways, and learned. It didn’t take long, though, before they realized the danger posed to their way of life as they knew it. They found themselves bound by force to fight for home and family, and when they refused to give up their language, religion, and family, they knew they were on the verge of nothing left to sovereignty.
When I look back upon the stories my family has passed down regarding those times when all we had was tradition and the only thing offered to us was worthless pieces of paper and eradication of everything we held dear, I recognize the truth in today’s society. The only difference is what is considered to be sacred.
So we can either choose to abide the sovereignty of all Nations, including our own, or we will repeat the same wars of our ancestors. If we choose to be conquered and relinquish those things which define us as a culture, we have no one to blame but ourselves. If we become so assimilated that we no longer remember where we came from we are sure to find our borders beyond reach.
To me sovereignty is not just a word. It’s an ongoing battle that has lasted for more than five hundred years. For those who’ve never measured the worth of self-government outside of political issues I implore you to take notice.
There is nothing as sad as a people who don’t know their identity.
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1 comment:
In these days of the Seventh generation, it is important for the descendants to remember their roots, and to share with their people any gained material wealth. For example,when Tribal casinos make profits, it should be shared with their community. It is only by this sharing that autonomy be regained by the Native community. It certainly won't be offered by the US Gov't -we saw Charlie Crist move quickly to get "his" share of revenue from the Seminoles, thus, keeping this very same autonomy away from those who lost it 7 generations ago. Spirit Eagle (aka) Dave Pike
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