Joy Harjo's Web Log

("This Letter was published in the ADN today. I found it to be a refreshingly progressive statement amidst the sometimes backward opinions I've seen in the letters to the Editor of ADN." from my friend up north Candyce Childers.)

White Alaskans should work toward being gracious guests

As a lifelong white Alaska woman, I have been thinking hard about all of the confusions that enabled my two white brothers to speak so hurtfully about Alaska Native women during a KBFX 100.5-FM radio show.
I believe in the intrinsic value of all humans, including these men. I urge all white people to resist the impulse to separate ourselves from the men, and to think that there are 'good' and 'bad' white people. All white people are good, but we have also become terribly confused about what it means to be human. We are good, but we have participated, whether consciously or not, in the racism that has perpetrated the genocide of Native Americans. This ongoing legacy set the foundation for these remarks.
The suspended hosts will be required to take 'sensitivity training.' I think all white Alaskans need this training. What can white people do? We can remember that we are all living on Native land. We can work on remembering our own stories and traditions. We can reclaim our own heritages. We can reach for each other and help each other heal. We can commit ourselves to eliminating racism and genocide once and for all, so that we can be the gracious guests we truly want to be in this magnificent land.
-- Christine Marie, Juneau