Reader: Andrew Carmouche
Respondent: Yvonne Hopkins
Recorder: Jonathan McClure
2-1-01

Chrystos, "I Have Not Signed a Treaty with the United States Government"

Biographical information: She is a political activist, speaker, artist and writer. She is concerned with issues of genocide, colonialism and racism, and how they affect women.

Literary:

1 To comprehend the story of immigration as a fundamental narrative of American Literature and culture.

2d (To examine how lyric poems represent different stages of the immigrant narrative.)

Cultural: 1a (To compare and contrast the immigrant narrative with the minority narrative.)

2 To observe and analyze the effects of immigration and assimilation on American cultural units or identities.

A Little History: In 1851 U.S. officials invited Indian tribes to a conference near Ft.Laramie,Wy. Ten thousand Indians- men, women and children attended the treaty council. After three weeks of talks, and bestowing upon the chiefs mountains of gifts, federal negotiators and tribal leaders agreed to what became known as the Ft.Laramie Treaty. The government promised to provide annual cash payments to the Indians as compensation for the damage caused by wagon trains traversing their hunting grounds. In exchange the Indians agreed to stop harassing white caravans, to allow federal forts to be built, and to confine themselves to a specified area "of limited extent and well defined boundaries." This agreement foreshadowed the reservation concept of Indian management. Several tribes refused to accept the Treaty provisions.

My interpretation: This is a reactionary poem against what the U.S. government did to the Native Americans. Chrystos says that neither she nor her ancestors signed a treaty with the United States, and she criticizes the United States by calling into the question its customs and values. She says,"This US is theory illusion

terrible ceremony The United States can’t dance can’t cook

has no children No elders No relatives"

The U.S. is disconnected from its family, from its nature, and from its people. She says that the "United States builds funny houses that no one lives in but papers," and this is what we have houses for to store our junk; our homes have no traditional meaning or symbology to our lives. She says, "You’ve had your fun now go home we’re tired" This land does not belong to the U.S. government, never did, now go back to Europe and wherever else you come from. "We revoke your immigration papers your assimilation soap suds."

How can the U.S. issue immigration papers, or have authority to decide who can live here and who can’t? On what grounds does the U.S. base this authority? From cheating the Indians out of their Homeland?! Pushing them into small territories, and isolating them from mainstream society is the authority of the United States government. She refers to the U.S. as being a ghost; ghosts are troubled spirits with no place to rest, no home. "We who are alive now have signed no treaties." It’s as if the ghosts of the European colonizers are present, and haunting the Indians.

The last lines are" Go so far away we won’t remember you ever came here Take these words back with you."

Discussion: Sylvia spoke about the use of the word "US" meaning not the United States only, but also "US"; we have not assimilated-our relationship is terminated. Dr. White mentioned that "soap suds" imagery is seen frequently throughout works we have read. Rachel talked about the "soap suds": issue of cleanliness; colonists have the notion of cleansing(assimilating) native peoples. Yolanda asked what did the line, "US can’t dance can’t cook," mean. Sylvia said that the U.S. culture is not traditional, extended family, etc. Lisa talked about the "soap suds" U.S. wants to wash away the "sin" or culture of Native Americans. Rachel said that McDonald’s is the same in India as in America; commercialism, sameness, lack of creativity. Cleo said that Americans who travel to other countries are surprised to learn how different other cultures are. Dr. White concluded that the dominant culture = car culture-1 person in the car is the dominant culture. Many people in car = minority.