Our mission is to improve the livelihood, sovereignty, and cultural vibrancy of tribal citizens by empowering Lakota Native American youth with education. Each of our grant recipients pledge to keep home in mind and wield their education as a weapon for positive change. Over time, we will see a gradual, generational paradigm shift in how tribal citizens and the world view Native American reservations.
Our Story
Our story begins with an epiphany. When one says they teach in a Native American reservation many questions follow. What is it like? Who have you met? How different is it? This is natural, given the severe lack of fundamental understanding most Americans have of anything Native American. Many see reservation land as an almost mystical unknown or have thoroughly incorrect preconceived notions of it. It is as saddening as it is unsurprising, though, because movies, sports mascots, and other mass media successfully distribute an incorrect impression of reservation life. So what is the epiphany? To improve reservation conditions is not to alter a way of life, but to alter the impression we have of it.
Would you guess that chiefs are no longer as influential on reservations? The Kansas City Chiefs’ mascot may tell you otherwise. Or would you guess that headdresses are not an everyday fixture? The famous Disney movie Peter Pan may tell you otherwise. To the contrary, the majority of tribal citizens are blue-jean-wearing folk that enjoy much of the same activities as you do. The difference? They contain a spirited, venerable culture that tells of only the most virtuous aspects of human character: togetherness, dignity, and respect, among others. There is something special about a culture that has persisted through centuries of persecution, and we have much to learn from it.
Education is the solution to this issue of misperception. It opens the mind and lends perspective. It allows one to critically analyze one’s surroundings and position in society. If Native American youth are empowered with such skills and afforded a critical lens through which to view themselves and others, the possibilities are endless. Perhaps a student will begin to realize that reservations, as sovereign entities, should be wholly self-sufficient, and invent a solution for that. Perhaps a student will become a congressman or congresswoman that is willing to fight for their people. This work will take a village, a village of ambitious, educated youth privy to the world around them.