Diné (Navajo) poetry is Identity

In celebration of National Native American Heritage Month, the Northwest New Mexico Arts Council is sponsoring this Farmington/ Four Corners community literary event. Invited poets include Tina Deschenie (Navajo/Hopi) and Manny Loley (Navajoj). During this event both poets will do an oratory reading of their orginal poetry works. For the Diné (Navajo), poetry is closely paralled to the concepts of tradition cultural prayers and songs. For the Diné (Navajo) poetry is narrative of identity, and therefore is rooted in the oral tradition of the People. Traditionally the act of 'telling' or 'talking' story is referred to as hané. Hané for the Diné is a way of orally enacting and or continuing Diné creation stories. The language of the Diné is a verb-oriented language and so therefore when speaking in the 'mother tongue' the Diné person is perpeuating their existence in their current creation story. Tina Deschenie is a good person and a treasured friend of mine and I am happy to be the emcee for this event, as I will be doing the introductions of both poets. The poetry that Tina creates reminds me of "home," or the places in my memory of childhood when I was in the company of my elder family members. When I read Tina's poetry it feels as though I am transcending to the safe and compassion-driven spaces of my memory, her poetry is like a beloved grandmother's hug. Manny Loley is an upcoming poet whose work is diverse and truly a breath of fresh high-desert air! In the modern Diné society there are only a handful of male poets who are actively creating and sharing their poetry as a form of art. But, traditionally the tribe has many 'poets' or people who perpeuate the concepts of the oral story tradition, they are our Diné male healers and singers. I think the perspective that Manny brings to the table is a new adventure, he takes me, as a reader to new place not yet explored on Navajoland. It will nothing but a blessing to attend this poetry event on Wednesday, November 30, 2022 at Encore Coffee Shop in Farmington, NM. Be there and be part of the hózhó. Blessings All Around! VJY

Adorned in the Southwest

Trekking the lands of the Dine' and the Hopi people in northwest Arizona is a blessing.

Aak'ee...... Dine' Navajo season of gratitude

Aak'ee. Autumn season has arrived (a bit late) but, it is here and WE in the high-desert southwest states are grateful. This season is vital to my people, it is a time of renewal and reflection, and in many instances it is referred to as our "new year." During this quiet time of season, the Dine' practice cultural activities such as storytelling, oral history references and string games. One of the mainstays in contemporary Dine' (Navajo) culture is our cultural adornment. This tactile act of 'adorning' is one that both the male and female genders of Dine' perpetuate. In particular the act of wearing our cultural foot gear via moccasins is commmon. For the celebration of aak'ee I wore my female clothing attire. Pictured is a selfie of my feet and my Dine' women's velvet skirt as I trek among the autumn leaf fall. Blessings VJY

Matriarchland - A concept orginated by Venaya Yazzie of Yazzgrl Art

Matriachland is 'rooted' in the high desert southwest lands of the tribal matriarchy of the Navajo and Pueblo people. Venaya Yazzie is also 'rooted' in these two tribal identities: Navajo and Hopi. + Matriarchland concerns the identity of the people of the lands in the southwest. It is about the culture of the matiarchy where the lineage and leadership is in the sole hands of the women, the female line. + Matriarchland is a concept that Venaya originated after living a life without her maternal grandmother. In 2000, Venaya's grandmother, Jane Werito Yazzie passed from this world and Venaya found herself living in the legacy of her 'Masani.' + Venaya has come to understand how this expression, Matriarchland has arrived to help her heal and to continue to live on in a life full of goodways and in happiness. + Matriarchland is how we live our lives in the southwest. + The outlook for Matriarchland concerns merch and artwork inspired by the philosophy. + Blessings all around. VJY 2022 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Southwest Adornment & Trade History of the Four Corners by Yazzgrl Art

I am grateful for the opportunity to share my Dine' people's cultural landscape narrative with the community of the Four Corners. The land is a very dominant concept in the identity of the Dine' people of Arizona, Utah and New Mexico, USA. In this presentation I will talk on this subject and also on the historical pre-Columbian trade that was perpeuated within the Indigenous tribal groups of the region, which also included trade from Mexico, the Pacific Gulf and South America. The event is sponsored by San Juan College Cultural Immersion Group and Native American Center - and will be a Zoom presentaion. It is open and free to the public. Information is available on the official flyer announcement. Link to the San Juan College site and to join Zoom: Blessings, VJ

Stealing Indigenous Cultural Identity is NOT okay!

 

Homeland in Eastern Dinetah, NM
Photo: Venaya J. Yazzie ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

If you were not born into a culture that is Indigenous to this land, or to parents that are Native/Indigenous with tribal affiliation, you are NOT, and you cannot make the claim that you are Native/Indigenous.  Just like I mentioned before in a previous post, taking on aspects of Native/Indigenous culture and identity to solely benefit your personal gain is stealing, it is cultural appropriation, it is a passive act of racism.

It sure seems that someone turned on the green light for those people who Native/Indigenous people refer to as "wannabes" (non-Native people wanting to have an identity of an Indigenous person, a tribal affiliation) - for they are on their game in 2022.  This is so evident on many social media platforms, none more than on Instagram.  It is there that the wannabes are like free-roaming zombies looking for an Native/Indigenous identity to ingest.  For I have seen how these wannabes create fake accounts, 'adorn' themselves in tribal jewelry and garments, create a tribal name, and therefore claim their new tribal identity.

As a practicing visual artist I have seen a plethora of these wannabes wandering to and fro in the southwest land of the Navajo, Hopi, Pueblo, Apache and Ute people.  Some are outright obvious in their tangible presentation - literal 'adornment' of themselves with the Hollywood version of the "American Indian" i.e. feathers, fringe and beadwork. While other wannabes walk and talk with the language and jargon-version of "Native" i.e. claiming tribal affiliation, a great-grandmother who was Cherokee or Navajo,  and presenting stolen Indigenous knowledge they learned in books written by Anglo people.

Recently I learned about a women on Instagram who is of non-Native/ Indigenous decent  who claimed an Indigenous name, wore her newly acquired Native/Indigenous jewelry and garments, looking the part to a T!  It is there on Instagram that she is established as a Native/Indigenous "Influencer" that carries 41K followers - who used and continues to use this fake identity to make money via Cashapp, Venmo and Pay Pal among others.  This is NOT legit, it is not okay, she is FAKE. I know of another non-Native/Indigenous woman also who is living a fake life as a half-Navajo decent woman.  This woman lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico who tells people she is a half-breed writer, poet, advocate and educator or the Native/Indigenous people.  She has no affiliation with tribal people's heritage!  These two types of people are deranged in my opinion.  They want to look the part but they are not rooted in the trauma, poverty, murder and colonized communities plight.

Cultural appropriation has become a disease in North American, perhaps it was born out a virus that infects the brain function, whatever it is doing or not doing - it is a terrible act.  Cultural appropriation of Native/Indigenous culture and the people is a monster and we that are truly Native/Indigenous need to seek it out and destroy it! We are the new generation of Natives, we are the legacy that our ancestors prayed for and blessed. We can no longer be passive or docile, we have the responsibility to SPEAK OUT and STOP cultural appropriation.

Blessings,

Venaya J. Yazzie, 2022

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Racism and cultural appropriation in Native American Art

 

"Dine' Matriarch"
Venaya J. Yazzie 2022

In the ancient Indigenous southwest histories- "monsters" roamed the land and created chaos within the cultural communities of many tribal people.  For my people, the Dine' (Navajo) such monsters were both literal and intangible in form.  Concepts of illness, poverty, violence, hunger and dis-harmony were referenced as monsters roaming the lands of the Dine'.  But then too also existing were the physical entities, real monsters and real giants at hunted the humans and enacted physical violence against them and subsequently killed them.

That is our Dine' history - it is a history that is real and not "myth, as dominant society refers to most Indigenous people's histories.  My great grandparents were born in the years 1903 and 1907 during a time in A m e r i c a n culture that stated they were not citizens of the nation.  My grandparents were the most amazing people in which I will forever hold in great esteem, for they endured overt racism by Anglo people in the area who entered the Indigenous lands and thus called the towns: Farmington, Bloomfield, Aztec, Kirtland, in northwest New Mexico.  Dwelling in a racist environment did not hinder them though, for they thrived and were prosperous in their endeavors.  It is through their work ethic and personal philosophies as Indigenous southwestern people that I was taught resilience and traditional philosophies on good ways to live and exist in mainstream culture.

My maternal great grandmother was an avid weaver, she was a master artist who thrived in her community of Huerfano on the eastern region of what is called the Navajo Nation.  Her art process was her medicine, and as a Navajo woman artist she was revered and respected.  Weaving as a Dine' woman and creating art was part of her identity.  Though she may not have been conscience of this, I understand and see it as that in the year 2022.

In those days, she participated in the Anglo, male-dominated trading post system. She created her rug design, gathered and produced her materials, processed wool, and wove her rugs. Then as she completed her rug she finished it and took it to the local trading post and sold it.  She provided a second income to support her children and extended family by selling her art, art that was made by her, a Dine' woman.  The Anglo trader purchased her rug because of the fact, that it was a genuine "Native American"  or "Indian" made Dine' (Navajo) art product.  This concept of acquisition of distinct art of the southwest was and has continued to be huge revenue for the state of NM and for the still existing trading posts and businesses in the Four Corners.

Facts: Truth is that the Anglo trader at that era mostly like would not buy a rug made by a non-Dine' (Navajo) weaver who was weaving the same type of rug, both in materials and in design.  Why? Because the "system" was set already, that Dine' women wove Dine' rugs and that was and continues to be the norm and money maker.  Dine' women weavers produced/and continue to produce products at are held in high regard in a capitalist society that has created and established a monopoly on Dine' (Navajo) woven rugs.

So much more could be said about this, but the point I want to make is that - Indigenous/Native American/ Indian artists are vital in Am e r i c a n art culture. Our art makes white society and dominant culture lots of money. Furthermore, the non-Native people with a foot in this industry of art consumerism in Native American art circles are out there roaming like the "monsters" of our old stories, lurking and waiting for the opportunity to steal and appropriate our traditional Arts.

This fact is that these individuals are out there now in 2022 looking to opportunities to make money off of the Native American people and whole cultures any way thy can.  This what we know today a cultural appropriation. And it is the roaming monster that we modern tribal people, artists, have to deal with in our world today.  

What is cultural appropriation? According to the dictionary it is defined as:

1. the unacknowledged or inappropriate adoption of the customs, practices, ideas, etc. of one people or society by members of another and typically more dominant people or society.

The fact is that cultural appropriation is rooted in racism and the systems of colonialism in A m e r i c a.  As I have come to understand, cultural appropriation therefore concerns the four main types of racism: Internalized racism, Interpersonal racism, Systematic racism, Structural racism. (source: Diversity and Racism . org)

Cultural appropriation is based in my opinion, as an Indigenous southwestern tribal artist, as sustaining concepts known in society as white privilege, white ideology, systems of hatred and related themes of stereotypes of Native/Indigenous/Indian people.

I recently participated unknowingly in an advertised "Indian Market" located in a predominately Anglo community that falsely advertised the venue as "Indian."  When I arrived to check in the art market I found that it was not 100% a Native American art market at all! In fact there were present non-Native artists and art dealers selling either fake cultural art pieces, or items copied by non-Native makers.  Such items included, a plethora of Plains style cultural items i.e. bows and arrows, buckskin/beaded garments, dreamcatchers, and silver/turquoise jewelry.

In my ignorance I wholly thought this market was only including Native American artisans and makers selling their authentic art.  When I questioned the non-Native people if they were affiliated with a tribe, they all stated that were not, but that they were creating "southwestern themed" art - which they felt they were okayed to do.  I frowned at most of these replies and quickly realized that this market was not a legit "Indian Market."  The non-Native artists/dealers were in fact "wannabes." Wannabes are those non-tribal affiliated people who are infatuated with American Indian cultural and do all they can to be tangibly in perpetuation of the stereotypes of American Indian culture and ways, which include the tribal arts.

In conclusion my experience at this market as a real Native artist who is an enrolled tribal member of the Dine' nation, was that white privilege and white power was still in full effect as it is they, the Anglo promoters who were selling this market as an "Indian market" when in fact it was not 100% a market of Native artists.  I feel I was tricked to thinking it was a good market from the use of the term " Indian" as the selling point and to promote the visitation by the general public.

Today is Monday, it is a day to recognize the contribution of the effects of the late, great social justice leader Dr. Martin Luther King.  So, I wanted to share this dialogue as a means of helping to correct this injustice of cultural appropriation in the world of Native American art culture that is being exploited by the colonizing dominant Anglo society of people who are perpetuating American Indian stereotypes of the people and their arts.

This following quotes from Dr. King is fitting:

"America is still a racist country. We will never solve the problem of racism until there is a recognition of the fact that racism still stands at the center of so much of our nation."

It is my hope that my fellow Native artists will also stop their participation in such events and that they would speak out against such racist tactics and overt oppression against their tribal identity's and cultural Arts.

May we all recognize racism and racist systems that continue to oppress minority groups and may we all be inclined to make our voices heard against injustice, inequity and lateral violence so that they are stamped out all together.

In a good way,

Venaya J. Yazzie

2022 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED