I'm not sure if there is anything that I haven't shared with people.
But, one thing would be that when I was younger, I was ashamed to be Native American. I would over hear people talking about tribal people that were on drugs, drank all of the time, didn't take care of their children. Anything negative, I overheard it in public. It was never positive.
In my mind as a child, I thought that if people knew I was Native American, that they would think I would be just like those people that they described and gossiped about. And I believed that for a short while. Then God showed me that the reason that those people believed that was who we were as Native Americans, was because that was all they saw and heard. He showed me that I had to help be part of the change. I should be proud of who I was as a Native American and put myself out there and be a positive representation of my people. I had to change their minds.
That next year, I ran for princess for my Tribe and the rest is history. It taught me how to be a positive representative of my people and a role model. I strive to change the stereotype that people have in their mind of Native Americans. I am proud of my heritage! Never again, will I be ashamed.
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