September 16, 2016
“Get over it”
Three little words that I have heard far too many times in
the last few weeks, both online and in person. We briefly talk about the issues
happening up North with my brother and sisters of the Standing Rock reservation
in some of my classes. Some students have already made up their mind about the
situation and correlate us with the Black Lives Matter group, and portray us as
violent protestors, which they (BLM) are also not. (I mean some things got out
of hand, but don’t punish the group as a whole.) I’m outraged by what is
continuing to be allowed in North Dakota, and there are no repercussions for
any authority figures involved.
By telling us to “get over it,” you are continuing to
oppress us. The picture I have attached is a Native American rapper, that instead of
rapping about sex, drugs, and money; raps about struggles within Native
American communities. He paints a white hand over his mouth because he talks about
how our government does little to help us, and a majority of our politicians
are white. He talks about corruption and how it affects us all. In most cases, he is meant with hated for speaking out. Why does the truth hurt so much for some people? People want to
cherry pick at our culture but refuse to acknowledge the genocide and
atrocities committed against us. Instead, of listening and understanding, we
listen to respond. I think this picture screams volumes if you really think
about the message behind it. How about we get over our differences and these invisible boundaries?
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