The Arrowhead
by: Mary Oliver
The arrowhead,
which I found beside the river,
was glittering and pointed.
I picked it up, and said,
"Now, it's mine."
I thought of showing it to friends.
I thought of putting it--such an imposing trinket--
in a little box, on my desk.
Halfway home, past the cut fields,
the old ghost
stood under the hickories.
"I would rather drink the wind," he said,
"I would rather eat mud and die
than steal as you still steal,
than lie as you still lie."
It's a terrifying poem. Oliver is confronted by the ghost of white America's history with Indigenous peoples, and that history, as we all know, is not pleasant. It's rife with land theft and genocides. I can almost taste the smoky indignation of the ghost as he chastises Oliver for her appropriation of the arrowhead. Make no mistake, the arrowhead is not Oliver's. She has no connection to it--its origins or history or usage. For her, it's just a "trinket," an artifact to keep on her writing desk. She must lie to herself in order to claim ownership
Appropriation is something that humans are really good at. We appropriate all kinds of things. Land. Seas. Water. Outer space. Moons and stars. People. We accomplish all of this by means of war and colonialism and murder and larceny. We see something we want, and we take it.
Mind you, this isn't anything to be proud of. At the end of the poem, Oliver isn't feeling quite so excited about her acquisition. In fact, there is more than a little shame involved in those last lines. Oliver respects nature and the environment. Yet, this respect arises from white privilege. This pond is beautiful, so I think I'll build a house near it. This land is rich and fertile, so I think I'll plant a garden on it. This arrowhead is glittering and pointed, so I think I'll take it home and turn it into a conversation piece.
We are all guilty of this appropriation, to a greater or lesser extent. Living in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, I am reminded daily that these are stolen lands. By the names of places and rivers and lakes, for instance. One of the greatest ongoing debates right now in my neck of the U. P. woods is a local school district's nickname and mascot. The mascot is the image of a Native American chief in full headdress. The nickname is "Redmen." For 70 years, this name and mascot have been in place.
Rabid traditionalists claim that the school district is "honoring" Indigenous heritage. It's an issue that has fractured the community in many ways, resulting in screaming matches at school board meetings. There are Native American students at the school. Local tribal members have requested a rebranding of the name and mascot.
You'll forgive my language, but the argument that the school is "honoring" Native Americans is a load of complete cow shit. It's a red herring, introduced without any kind of supporting evidence, except anecdotal. ("My grandpa was Native American, and he didn't mind the name or mascot.") Going into a public space and calling someone who is Native American a "red man" would undoubtedly be considered hate speech. So, why is it appropriate for a school to endorse inflammatory racial language and cultural stereotypes?
Even if only a three students at the school in question feel uncomfortable about the mascot and nickname, that's three students too many. Students shouldn't be ashamed about anything when they enter a school building. And if the administration is responsible for perpetuating that shame, that's tantamount to school-sanctioned bullying.
Let's consider a "what if." What if son was being called a "fag" or "fat" when he went to school every day? You can bet your ass I'd be in the principal's and superintendent's offices every day until it stopped. Any parent would do the same. Even if my son was the only gay or overweight teen in the school, that behavior just wouldn't be tolerated.
The use of this nickname and logo is no different.
If you don't like what I've just said, I think you should do a little self examination. Think about the color of your skin. Your ethnicity. Your cultural heritage. Your gender. If you've never been denigrated for any of these things, count yourself lucky. And if you refuse to do that self examination, then I think you should just keep your fucking mouth closed.
Because Saint Marty doesn't endorse hate speech.
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