Vizenor Concordance: On ACTIVISM

“DELORIA:  I don't know how successful it's been, Gerald. But one of the things that I see is we really need the younger generation to come in and take over the whole structure of Indian Affairs.  Work in the organizations, do a lot of the hard field work.  And it seems there is so much emphasis today on demonstration and spectacular activism.  I'm sympathetic to the new left ideas, but a lot of the techniques they use, to give an example, were at the convention of the National Congress of American Indians.” (3.1)

“Native American literature, historically and today, is closely tied to Native activism. One thing that surprised me when first reading your work, The Heirship Chronicles, was the satirical characterization of AIM as word-warriors, activists who focused too much on publicity and playing Indian. What do you see as the legacy of AIM, and how may Native activists today act similarly or differently to address the serious problems facing our people?” (3.4)