By Robert DesJarlait Note: Reprint of article from August 30, 2000 This is where it starts, this is where it begins," Clara Jackson says softly. "This is where we make our stand." Jackson, an Ojibwe language teacher from Inger, Minn., watches as language camp participants gather for the evening meal. The camp, composed of five wigwam frames and a lodge frame, is speckled with sunlight that glimmers through a foliage of forest. The Misizahga'igani Anishinahbay Izhitwahwin Immersion Grounds at Rutledge, Minn., represents the growing response to 508 years of an enforced doctrine seeded in the court of Queen Isabella of Spain in 1492. Upon receiving a copy of the Grammatical, the first grammar text of any modern European language, the Queen asked what it was for. To which Antonio de Nebrija, its author, replied, "Language is the perfect instrument of empire." For the Ojibwe, the perfect instrument of empire was initiated through the Treaty of 1826. In Article 6, $1000 was appropriated for a building to be used for the education of Ojibwe youth. This provision, found in other treaties made between tribal nations and the U.S. government, foreshadowed the boarding and mission era of the 1860s. It was the beginning of Euro-American efforts to educate Indian youth by eradicating tribal languages and replacing them with the dominant language of Europe. "Our parents and grandparents went to boarding school, and the language was beaten out of them," says Larry Smallwood, the Language and Cultural Immersion Administrator for the Mille Lacs Band. "Those that didn't lose it didn't teach it to their children because they didn't want their children to face the same thing they did." James Crawford, a linguist specialist, refers to the 1860s as a period of language genocide. He writes: "In 1868, a federal commission on making peace with the plains Indians concluded: `In the difference of language today lies two-thirds of our trouble...Schools should be established, which children should be required to attend; their barbarous dialects should be blotted out and the English language substituted.'" By the 1880s, reformers institutionalized the practice of linguistic genocide in the BIA boarding school system. A BIA teacher from that period writes that boarding schools "went on the assumption that any Indian custom was, per se, objectionable, whereas the customs of the whites were the ways of civilization...[Children] were taught to despise every custom of their forefathers, including religion, language, songs, dress, ideas, methods of living." Three hundred-plus Native languages were affected by the ensuing language policies initiated by government agents and missionaries in the U.S. and Canada. For the Ojibwe, the effects were devastating. The social system of the Ojibwe, the clan system, under which the Ojibwe had lived for hundreds of years, and through which community roles and duties were determined, was crippled. The religious ceremonies of the Midewiwin, the Great Mystery Lodge, were banned and driven underground by government agents. The BIA policy was to kill the Indian to save the man. And by killing the language, Indian people could no longer conceptualize nor perform the ceremonies that had connected them for thousands of years to Mother Earth. The punishment was severe for those who continued to use the language. Clyde Bellecourt, a local Native activist, says: "Whenever they caught my mother speaking Ojibwe, they took steel pellets, put them against her knees, wrapped cloth to hold them in place, and made her get down and scrub floors. When she got older, she could hardly walk and was often in pain as a result of the punishment inflicted upon her." Nearly one-third of tribal languages became extinct. By the 1990s, 210 languages were left. Today, 175 of those languages are spoken in the United States. Out of those 175 languages, only about 20, or 11 percent, are still being learned in the traditional way through parents and/or elders. Seventeen percent, or approximately 30 tribal languages, are spoken by the parental generation, but they are not, in general, passed on. About 40 percent, or 70 tribal languages, are spoken only by the middle-age or grandparental generation. The remaining one-third, tribal languages are spoken only by the oldest of people. Thus, 40 tribal languages are near extinction or are in the process of becoming extinct. One hundred tribal languages are endangered. The remaining 20 tribal languages are considered borderline endangered languages. According to 1990 figures given in Ethnologue: USA, there were 43,000 Ojibwe speakers out of a total Ojibwe population of 148,826 in the U.S. and Canada. The Endangered Language Fund lists the Ojibwe language as a borderline endangered language. Under the endangered language categories developed by Michael Krauss, moribund are languages that are no longer being learned as mother-tongue by children, and endangered are languages which, though now still being learned by children, will--if present conditions continue--cease to be learned by children during the coming century. The Ojibwe language lies somewhere between Krauss's two categories. Jon Reyhner, a linguist specialist, says: "When a language is lost, much of the knowledge that language represents is also lost. Our words, our way of saying things are different ways of thinking, seeing and acting." In the same vein, a dominant language imposes a different way of thinking, seeing and acting. This was expressed by Lewis Taylor, an fluent Ojibwe speaker from Cass Lake. "White words have taken away much of the Anishinaabe way," Lewis says. "I have a brother who brings his children's children to visit me. They call me their great-uncle. In the white man's way, I am their great-uncle. But in the Anishinaabe way, I am their grandfather. In the white man's language, the meaning of who I am is taken away. "This is why we need to learn our language," Lewis continues. "So that we can rebuild our families and learn who we are in relation to each other. It's the same way with cousins. In the Anishinaabe way, cousins are brothers and sisters. It doesn't matter if they are third or fourth cousins. They are still your brothers and sisters. But the white man's language takes away the true meaning of our families." Larry Smallwood has been active in the Ojibwe language revival movement since the 1970s. His powerful, bass voice makes him a natural leader in language revival. He was born at Mille Lacs and his first language is Ojibwe. "I was raised by my aunt and uncle, and they spoke only Ojibwe," Smallwood says. "Back then, it was customary to learn language from the grandparents and elders in the family. I didn't learn English until I was in first grade." In 1988-90, he worked in the Minneapolis school system. "None of it worked," he says. "It was too inconsistent because I couldn't teach the language with only 15-20 minutes of language instruction a week. Colors, numbers, and animals only gave the kids a limited vocabulary. They were only learning to say the word." "When you teach the language, you have to teach more than just the word," Smallwood continues. "You have to know how to use the word in a phrase. For example, you can learn the word `hungry.' But you need to learn how to use the word in a sequence. You just can't go around saying the word `hungry.' You have to be able to say, `Yes, I am hungry' or `No, I am not hungry now, but I will eat later.' That's the difference between vocabulary and immersion. "I believe in total immersion. My experiences showed me this was the only way it could be," he explains. "A limited vocabulary is not effective. Knowing colors, numbers, and animals doesn't provide you with a knowledge of the language. There are different ways to teach, but you need a scope in sequence and a scope in word usage. Get them to learn a simple phrase. Teach them useful things that they can use and speak." Smallwood does not consider the various Ojibwe dialects to be a hindrance to learning the language. He says the main differences are accents. Although the pronunciation might be somewhat different, Ojibwe is essentially the same language. "You can't afford to get hung up on dialects," he says. "When you have the opportunity to learn it, then learn it. To some people, if you are from Red Lake or Leech Lake, then you got to sound like a Red Laker or Leech Laker. It don't matter as long as you know the language." He comments on people who make the excuse that Ojibwe is too difficult to learn. "If you get an attitude, then you'll never learn the language," Smallwood says. "If you get an attitude that you can learn, then you can. I can give you the tools. It's up to you to use them. You take those tools, go out in the world, use them, and continue on." "The Creator gave me an assignment to teach the language," he continues. "People don't realize that our language has a spiritual purpose. We need that language for our ceremonies. When we go to the Spirit World, we need that language to be understood by the Creator. It doesn't matter what dialect you are speaking. What is important is that you speak the language so that the Creator can hear you talk." One of the obstacles to learning the language is from within. Dorothy Sam is a fluent speaker from Mille Lacs. "Some of our own people laugh at our language," she says quietly. "They laugh at our drums, at our pipes, at our dances. They laugh because they are afraid. Do not hold anything against them. Put tobacco out for them and pray for them." "Learn what you can," Sam continues. "Even if you can't learn the whole language, learn what you can. Learn the words that are important to you. But learn as many as you can. Don't be ashamed to learn your language. Don't let the laughter make you ashamed." Smallwood says, "Elders should not make fun of anyone who is trying to learn the language. It only discourages those who want to learn. I remember there were some elders who used to talk only in Ojibwe when they didn't want the kids to understand. We don't need that kind of attitude anymore. We need to bring our language back." "About 25 percent of the Mille Lacs population, out of 3300, has Ojibwe language skills." he says. "Overall, I think our language is fairly healthy. Each year, in March, we have a language conference with the various Ojibwe bands in Minnesota and Wisconsin. We discuss our ways and beliefs in language education. The speakers are out there. But the majority are 50 and over. We need to reach the younger people. Otherwise, 20 years down the line, we could lose our language." The Misizahga'igani Anishinahbay Izhitwahwin Immersion Grounds is not intended solely for Mille Lacs Band members. At the language workshop held July 27-28, several bands were represented by the participants, including Lac Courte Orielles, St. Croix, Fond du Lac, Leech Lake and Red Lake. "People will come out of this experience understanding the spirituality of the Ojibwe language and culture," Smallwood explains. "The goal is to help enable them to preserve the Anishinabe ways, and to improve and participate in their communities." "Right now, we have some fine young people, in their mid-20s and early 30s, who will be the language teachers of tomorrow," Smallwood says, "They have their hearts in learning the language. Kellar Papp from Red Cliff; Tony Treuer, Adrian Liberty and Henry Solcken from Leech Lake; Julie Corbine for Lac Courte Orielles. Some of the young men are active in Mide ceremonies and the Big Drum. They know that our language supports those drums and ceremonies." One of the young people that Smallwood mentions is Anton Treuer. Treuer is an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin--Milwaukee and the editor of Oshkaabewis Native Journal, published by Bemidji State University Indian Studies. Treuer says, "Without the language, the Ojibwe people cannot conduct their ceremonies--their drum ceremonies, medicine dances and the shaking tent. These ceremonies can only be done in Ojibwe. Without the Ojibwe language, the culture is lost and Ojibwe people become mere descendants of Indians, with little to differentiate themselves from non-Indians. Language and traditions combine to make culture. Indian people need both to survive." Endangered Native Languages Tribe Speakers Population - tribe, number of fluent speakers, tribal population: 1) Southern Arapaho: 5 / 7000 2) Gros Ventre: 10 / 1200 3) Hidatsa: 100 / 1200 4) Mandan: 6 / 400 5) Pawnee: 4 / 2000 6) Eyak: 1 / 20 7) Achumawi: 10 / 800 8) Apache, Kiowa: 18 / 1000 9) Cowlitz: 2 / 200 10) Makah: 10 / 900 11) Yurok: 10 / 4000 12) Wichita: 1 / 750 13) Spokane: 50 / 1000 14) Omaha-Ponca: 85 / 3000 15) Coeur D'Alene: 40 / 800 According to current projections, only 20 tribal languages out of the 170 that remain today will survive by 2050. (1990 Figures from Ethnologue and National Clearinghouse for Bilingual Education. Southern Arapaho figure from private research) © Robert DesJarlait, 2000 / 2021
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