Every class session in TLAM consists of exploring the diversity of our world, its inhabitants, and designing ways in which libraries, archives, and museums can work collaboratively with Native communities. Issues discussed have included the existence of multiple perspectives and ways of knowing, themes of sovereignty and oral history, and effects of racism and colonialism that are still with us today. More specifically, included in each discussion has been an emphasis on the diversity of American Indian peoples, tribes, and nations, whether in the American Southwest, Pacific Northwest, or the eleven recognized Indian nations right here in Wisconsin.
However, focus on all of these groups has remained bounded by the geographic borders of North America, or more accurately to those tribes that live both inside, and to a considerable degree outside, of the territory of the United States. This week’s latest discussion has instead encouraged our class to broaden its notion of what constitutes “indigenous.”
Our class, looking beyond the narrative of the American Indian, found parallels with other indigenous groups through the world: the Sami in Northern Scandinavia, the First Nations peoples of Canada, the Aboriginal tribes of Australia, and the Maori of New Zealand. Similarities discussed included the brutal colonial methods utilized by Europeans in their desire for more land and precious commodities visited upon all of these peoples. In addition, each indigenous group has suffered various levels of poverty and poor health, and has been denied access to education. Many of these problems still persist, alongside rampant racism that is a vestige of centuries’ old colonialism.
All is not as dire as it seems, though. Some similarities are cause for hope for indigenous peoples. For instance, paralleling the rise of cultural revivalism in the US, throughout the 1960s and 1970s an era of language revitalization emerged among native groups worldwide. The Maori in New Zealand, as well as Australian aboriginals, have been successful in implementing library programs that stress cultural sensitivity and knowledge of native culture. This is not limited strictly to the library realm either, as many indigenous peoples have been successful in reclaiming cultural heritage objects previously held in archives and museums.
This discussion of international indigenous lifeways, culture, and their association with the work of native and non-native professionals in libraries, archives, and museums does much to encourage collaborative work. It would result in work that embraces the multiplicity of languages and perspectives within our world. The groups designated as indigenous, native, aboriginal, or first peoples are not homogenous. They are separated from each other and from us in geographic, linguistic, and ethnic terms. They are not the vanishing races they were perceived to be in past centuries. They may be labeled as minorities, but that does not imply that they will quietly fade into the background. What we have learned in this class is that it is our responsibility to work collaboratively with native peoples to better their knowledge of and access to library and archival materials. Further, it is our duty as librarians and archivists to educate ourselves and other non-Native peoples about the rich cultures and histories of indigenous communities.
-Nathan Sowry