Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Shiprock, NM./ Navajo Nation

10/3/09


Today we leave Echo Basin Ranch in Mancos, CO. The last few nights it has gotten down below freezing and Joe had to unhook the waterlines to prevent problems. The day warmed up to high 40's to low 50's and with the last day in the 60's. But it was sunny everyday and really didn't feel bad. The rest of the week it is going to warm up again, but we have plans down the road. We do like this park and the area, and I told Joe I wouldn't mind being a camp host here sometime, if we ever get to the point that we just want to stay in one place for awhile. This place has 3 small lakes, tennis courts, (as if I would play), horse ranch, restaurant, and close to lots of things to do.
It has about 23 nice cabins Joe looking back at the cabin area. Place to keep your horse's or you can ride their horse's. This was our view looking out at the pasture and horse's and cloud's. But it's time to go. Headed south on Hwy. 160/491 to Shiprock, NM See that big rock out in the distance. That is Shiprock. You can see Shiprock at the highest point in Mesa Verde National Park. Another picture of Shiprock. While we were in Monument Valley in AZ., we had an American Indian, at one of the vendor places, tell us that Shiprock was going to have a big fair this week. He said all the Zuni and Navajo tribes come together for this event and there would be many vendors from all around this area. Joe found a place to stay with passport at $10 a day, so we decided to go. We entered into the Navajo Nation reservation once again. The landscapes looks like not much and arid once again. There is the sign into our campground. Doesn't look good.! Oh dear what are we getting our selves into. It keeps getting worse! This is the office. As Joe goes in, I see some Am. Indian children playing on an old broken down merry go round. Joe's still inside. Another shot of the place. As we drive in it looks like mostly permanent RVs. We find a spot in the back next to the only big RV that looks temporary, and Joe asked if I want to park next to them. Yes I said loudly. Above is the view out our new side yard window. There do have a place to keep horse's. I am not feeling real comfortable, but Joe tells me the guy at the office told him an easy way to walk to the fair. We are here I think, so just go with it. After lunch Joe and I head toward the back of the park and slide through the fence to reach our destination. Joe can barely get through the hole in the fence. We walk through this area to the bridge that passes over the San Juan River. Looking back to where we came from. See the campground in the distance. We walk across the bridge. We would have driven, but when we entered the town of 8000, the cars were backed up for miles and it took us about 30 minutes to move a mile. We were told it was faster to walk. Everything says Navajo Nation. I feel like I am not in the nation of America. We cross the San Juan River on the bridge. The trash is unbelievable. My mom would just have a cow. She thinks Cedar Rapids is bad. We walk past as miles of cars inch along. We are keeping up with the cars. I feel like I have a neon sign on us, as I do not see any tourists at all. Everyone looks at us, ( at least in my mind). We definitely are outsiders. No blonde's around here. We see many Navajo police car's and hear many sirens. We finally get to the fair gate and find out it costs $ 8 a person to get in. I am still feeling very uncomfortable and Joe and look at each other and turn around. We decide to forget it and head back to camp. On our way back I saw One vendor selling food with some other wares. Asked where all the jewelery vendors were and he said on the other side of the fair. Picture from campground to the bridge we walked to and back. The walk to the bridge wasn't to bad except I worried about snakes in the brush, but I did find a few stones on the way. I am collecting stones where ever I go. When we got to the bridge, the underneath had all kinds of graffiti, garbage, broken glass and beer cans. I wouldn't want to come through here at night.

I checked the stats on the internet when we got home and there are 2% whites in this town, and I didn't see a one on our walk. It really is intimidating to be different. I also found out that this lasts for 9 days with an ongoing ceremony. The ceremonies are for healing of those who need it. Thursday through Sunday are the big days. The guy at the Camp office happens to be one of those 2%. We have to stay because, our mail is being sent here general delivery to the Post Office and today is Saturday. We lock up our nest and Joe says before I go to bed, " I hope we don't get scalped tonight" What an encouraging husband he is tonight. That was not funny. The guy at the office told us we would hear drums beating all night because of their ceremonial rituals. I woke up several times in the night and heard the drums.

The next morning we decide to drive uptown as this being the last day, the roads were not backed up this cars. We had noticed about 4 RVs left this morning with Am. Indians. The funny thing about it was the campground had many open spots. There had to be at least 100,000 people here and this town is known to have no motels. Where was everyone sleeping? We came to the conclusion, they sleep in their car's as when we walked up town the first day we saw people sleeping in their cars.

We drove uptown and happened to see a place where the vendors were, outside the fairgrounds. I looked in and all I could see was AM. Indians. It was a windy day and the dust was blowing. Joe said, "this is your last chance, do you want to go or not?" At first I said no, but then I saw one white couple walking to the vendors, so I changed my mind.
We found a spot to park and walked up and down the vendor rows. I started to relax and enjoy myself. There was a tent with some Indian dancing going on, so Joe and I wandered over to watch. As we stood there an older American Indian lady pulled her coat off the bales of hay and asked if we wanted to sit there. I started to feel welcome. The announcer told the crowd to take their trash with them as this doesn't represent them well. We were getting hungry, so I bought a tamale steamed in a corn husk. It was yummy. Joe bought some banana bread. As we walked around the place, many women had scarves over their mouths because the blowing dust was so bad. The vendors had their feather dusters out, trying to dust their wares, but the wares would get dusty again in a few minutes. Picture of the dust as we headed to our car. Picture looking back at the vendors and the dust. We were both cover with dust by the time we got home This is the land we gave the American Indians. It tried to rain a couple of times today, but just a few sprinkles for a minute. I have very mixed emotions about this situation. I understand the feeling to be somewhere that you are not different. But I also see Americans that are not progressing and intergrating as the African Americans have. I see how this has held them back and kept them back from growing. When you drive around the Navajo reservation, you feel you are driving in slum areas. When you see the way they treat their land with such trash, you see non educated people. But you also see a resentful people, who were pushed out of their land and broken trust by the white man's word. I think the American Indians just need to realize they are Americans, and can have the American dream we all want. Yes, there is prejudice out there. But the majority of American embrace the individuals we all are. All Americans, at one time, came to America. Even the American Indians came from the middle east hundreds of years ago, if you believe in God's word and his creation. I think the American Indians need to let go of the hurt and resent that the white men did to them and realize if it had not been the white man, it would probably be someone else who was stronger than them. After all, hasn't it been the strong and powerful who are the rulers from the beginning of time. You see it in the animal kingdom also. They did not have the power to rule. So the white man came and ruled them. But they are Americans now, so they have all the right as we do. I feel they have hurt themselves by hanging on to resentment and not intergrated into their real nation America.

11 comments:

  1. Great blog post..and I love your observations..I am sure much of what you say is true!

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  2. I don't want to hurt your feelings, but you don't know what you're talking about. Next time, try doing more research before you lump all Native Americans into one category and label them "resentful." You were among the Navajo, a unique group of people, who have survived a long history of abuse most people are unwilling to recognize because let's face it, how could such a slum-like place exist in America, home of the "American dream?" What you saw was real. However, unlike your depiction of a resentful and backward people, the Navajo remain a resilient thriving people who have learned to adapt and who possess a unique culture, language, and future. Not all "Indians" are alike. There's a long history of social and environmental injustices that have shaped the people and place you saw, most of which is not representative of the entire Navajo Nation anyway. This is something most people, non-Natives, fail to recognize and understand. That's the sad part about your story; that you saw trash and came to the conclusion that these people "need to integrate and progress as the African Americans have." It's also sad that your conclusion is probably representative of most white people's understanding of Native Americans in general, and that's why things will probably never change. As much as I disagree with the things you said about the Navajo (not "Indians") your story is one of the few I've come across. It was definitely clear how you felt and what you thought. I just wish you weren't so quick to judge and throw all Native Americans, First Americans, into the same pot.

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  3. Dear Anonymous, I am so sorry if I offended you and the Navajo people. That is truely not my intent. I felt while in your presents, true kindness and love. I just was saying I wish that the Navajo people who maintain their unique culture and language,should intergrate into all of our country instead of keeping to them selves. I think we as well as the Navajo's lives would be more enriched with learning to live together. If I have misspoken and don't have my facts straight, please accept my appologies. This is just what I preceived, without doing research.

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  4. This has to be one of the dumiest observation of Native Original Tribe since Columbus, Cortez, and Custer. NO ONE, gave us this land, since the arrival of non natives, they have TAKEN the whole USA from Native People, it's a long history, and you know nothing about us. In the area you visited, there is a vast amount of different culture, from ALL race of life, you were to busy looking for people like yourself, "ignorant" race, sorry to tell you but they don't exist here, you may find theose kind of people in 'HELL', Hitler, Hussein, Bin Laden, Columbus,let's not forget, George Armstrong Custer, ALL of the "Ignorance Race". As for the trash, it got cleaned up, the wind died down, you may not have "offended" us but you sure made yourself standout as one stupid ignorant person, I thank god you left our unique area, your blog was good for a laugh tho...thats funny

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  5. Dear Anonymous, When I said we gave you your land, I meant the white men gave the American Indian the reservation land. Yes I know the white men gave you the worse and barren land available. If I was an American Indian, I would have been very upset too. Just like if another came along and conquered America and then we were under their rule. And that could happen someday. We have traveled into many reservations, during all our travels, and I see the same thing over and over. A very poor, and depressed nation of American Indians, who ever the tribes may be. I am just saying, I think American Indians should embrace their national rights as American. I know their are many who have, but i just don't think reservations should exist. I think American Indian should move into the more prosperous lands of America. They below to you as well as the rest of us. I am sorry you do not understand that I am giving my perception from an outsider looking in. I am sorry if you do not understand my intent.

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  6. AAHH!, we remember that dust storm, that wind made sure we all got our behinds out of Shiprock
    it ease up that evening as I recall. Anyway we can't applogize for Mother Nature it has a mind to do what it wants. every year the fair has different weather it throws at it. I have to agree with 'some' of things you wrote and I can understand where these comments are coming from. They are right, the land you visited always did belong to The Dine (Navajo) people, it was "almost" taken from us by The US Govmt back a in the 1800's. The places you also visited, the southwest portion of Colorado was taken from The Dine(Navajo) with the expansion of white settlers into the west, There are four mountains that surround our reservation, Mt. Blanca near Alamosa, Co., and Hesperus Mtn., near Durango, Co., Mt. Taylor, near Grants, NM and San Francisco Peak near Flagstaff, Az. marked our "boundaries" as our home and other tribes knew this and respected that, and we knew where there boundaries were, including the Utes, whom were forcibly moved to reservations in near our home lands. Other tribes included the Pueblos, to the south, along with our distance relatives The Apaches, and we co-existed with these tribes for centuries. Every now and then we came across other tribes, to the east, kiowas, Commanches, Pawnees, and we had our share of problems with the expansion of Spainards from Mexico. Shiprock, is a "slow, laid back" town, we sort'a live in our own time space. We "try" to pretend to be up to what "civilization" intended for us to be, you probably saw that in the graffitis you saw, but yeah we are unique in our own ways. There are alot of different race of people that live in Shiprock, they come out once in a while, they mostly work at local medical facilities, stores, and or maybe married into the tribe, my advise: read up about native people, that way you have a little more understanding of who we are, go back and re-visit, this time stop and get to know the people, and yes we have ignorant people within our tribes too, but I believe we have more good people willing to help you understand who we are. So, we invite you back to our area again, and there are better places you can stay, and there are alot of other places to see...I GOTTA say this though, if I knew what you and your husband were going through the time you came to Shiprock, I would have loved to had, painted my face, get my nephews and rode our horses down and yelp like crazy people on horseback around the RV park, that would have been GREAT!, but really, come back and re-visit Navajo Land and The Four Corners. Good Luck!

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  7. If you guy's would have done that, I would have freaked out! But I would have loved the frybread!

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  8. Diane, LOL!, Joe Billi here again,have no idea who my neighbor is, but who ever he/she is, I'm assuming it's a "he", he probably want to feed you all them frybread, to fatten you up and make you look like our "Hom Girz" short and round..greasy face..LOL! Thats a 1st for me, someone callin me "crazy, with the mind of a whiteman, and smellin like his sis", this blog is gettin real entertainin' tho, I think my neighbor's "Loco" probably from Terjuna or Monterey, probably, wants to join my gang and start talkin "da talk", ..">>hheeyy es say, ..peachy gah roan..". Navajo Humor back @ my neighbor, whoever it is,. sorry diane, bye!

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  9. It's easy to stereotype people we don't understand. I'm a gringo and I live in New Mexico. There are many educated and highly intelligent Native Americans here, many whom are much smarter than myself. We all fall into one stereotype or another, you sort of stereotyped the typical white man in your post, as judgmental and holier than thou, but I know you did not mean to. Your post was just an honest assessment about an experience you had in a "foreign" place and I enjoyed it.
    I am a photographer and one year I was alone, way out on some reservation back roads, behind Shiprock Pinnacle, looking for a different perspective and found myself a little lost. While I was standing outside my 4x4, a beatup old pickup truck, that seemed held together with bailing wire, came rolling down the dusty dirt road. Not knowing who it might be I was a little nervous, He stopped, asked if I was OK and if I needed help, I was OK and just needed to find my way back to a main road. He was very polite and helpful.
    A good resource you might find interesting and will give you a detailed perspective about the Navajo People is www.lapahie.com. I did enjoy reading your blog and I understand why you came to the conclusions you did.

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    1. Yes it was us just feeling out of our natural setting. The Shiprock people were very kind and friendly!

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  10. My blog is just how I felt as a minority. After being in Shiprock, I found the people were very friendly and kind!

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