I reviewed three of the
books within the Series We are the
People; The Arapaho, The Wampanoag, and The Ojibwe . A very impressive colorful layout is used through out the
series. The books start off
with a seemingly shocking true tale of 1) the death of Metacom, of the
Wampanoag 2) The Death March of the Ojibwe and 3) the Sand Creek Massacre
of the Arapaho people. Almost
every page has colorful drawings or photographs to help illustrate the
people and the culture. One
of the wonderful things the author has done is to give recognition to the
tribal groups still in existence, and numbers of their current membership
and their locations. The books cover description of the name used to describe the
people, for example Wampanoag are
a native people of the Northeast coast and their name “Wampanoag –
refers to People of the Dawn or
people of the East.” Chapters
cover: Food and shelter;
Family life and culture; a Glossary; a Did you Know; a Time line;
Important People; Want to know More section; and an Index.
The books could be a good series if teachers/readers know that they
should discuss some of the bias that is embedded in the language of the
book.
In the Wampanoag book:
1)
“Someone who had a lot of wampum was rich.”
This is a very Euro-centric idea.
American Indian Tribes were very communalistic and worked for the
betterment of the whole group not individuals, so if you were “rich”
you also supported or helped to feed the others in your village. The idea
of wealth came with Europeans. You were also considered “rich” if you were well
respected, fair and generous.
2) p.26
& 27 talks of thanksgivings and Pilgrims and reinforces the
“Thanksgiving” myth please see the National Geographic Society 1621: A New look at Thanksgiving for information on talking about thanks
givings which in Native cultures is a daily occurrence not something that
is saved up to do once a year.
3) page
29. “English conolnists tricked other Wampanoag sachems into signing
more treaties.” Please see American
Indian Treaties by Francis Prucha
4) page
31. The story by Mary Rowlandson, was this a fictional tale written to
sell to European readers? Could
it have been written to reflect the attitudes of the time?
Marlette
Grant-Jackson – ITEPP-CRC
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