The multi-generational war of land and resources
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Indigenous people have struggled for centuries with the encroachment of foreign settlers from Europe and elsewhere. Native American people's lands have been taken from them and they have been sacrificed through the imperialist history of America for the betterment of a Western society that has been predicated on shifting away from indigenous ways of living. Indigenous cultures in America, in the last few hundred years, have been subject to brutalization and a forced shift away from traditional ways of life. These traditional ways of living, according to native cultures, involve a deep connection with the natural world.
The fight for native cultures against imperialist viewpoints in today's modern society is fought through the words of the stories that journalists publish and the narratives that newsrooms put out for public consumption. In today's newsrooms, according to Simon Moya-Smith, there seems to be a misrepresentation of native cultures and a marginalization of the stories that involve these culture(s).
"Trying to get people and editors to even see us...So you have these people filling these seats in major news rooms where they could make an impact with changing language, but no. They don't give a shit," explained Simon Moya-Smith.
Newsrooms in today's society are clearly profit-driven businesses that have an obligation to shareholders to provide dividends on a quarterly basis. Native communities have been marginalized in the media and as a result their stories are seldom shared in the national spotlight due to the money-hungry nature of journalistic businesses like Fox News, CNN, or NBC. These players are so large and influential they have the power to dictate which topics receive attention and which do not...In this case, native cultures receive very little attention.
On top of marginalization of native stories in the news and media, the native communities have been subject to the 'militarization' of the news corporations against them. "The local police, sheriffs, city cops all working hand-and-hand with security for these corporations," said Tara Widener, defender of native lands and cultures in the Minnesota-area. Large media corporations like Fox News, NBC, CNN, ABC, and others dictate the playing field for publishing stories about native cultures, which is small and insignificant due to the presence of the police and the militarization movements against native cultures in recent years. The media has allowed the battle to shift from a physical front to a political front where most of the progress that can be made is done at the hands of lawmakers and politicians. And historically, these politicians have sided with corporations and not native cultures with legal matters and matters involving the historical marginalization of native communities.
However, as a result of what happened at Standing Rock, the paradigm seems to be shifting around native cultures and their fight for adequate representation in the media.
"I have seen so many changes as a result of Standing Rock, and I hope that the legacy of indigenous resistance that our people have been engaged with for centuries that we can continue that fight no matter what happens. It is the act of doing what is right, of course we want to win, but we also want to stop these pipelines to save the planet and each other," explained Michelle Cook, who is the International Director/Indigenous Human Rights Defender and Corporate Accountability Program Director.
Indigenous cultures have been marginalized, controlled, and exploited by government systems in America for centuries. Now at the hands of the media, indigenous people fight against false narratives and inadequate representation to continue spreading the messages of their people. It is the responsibility of journalists and those who work in the media to fight for fair representation and writing of stories that involve issues regarding indigenous people and those cultures native to America long before settlers from Europe arrived.
Sources:
Simon Moya-Smith, Oglala Lakota Nation, contributing writer for NBC News, CNN and culture editor for Indian Country Today.
Michelle Cook Diné, International Director/Indigenous Human Rights Defender and Corporate Accountability Program Director, Water Protectors Legal Collective.
Tara Widener, Water Protector, educator and organizer.
