A group of students, faculty, and staff gathered in the Tommaney Library on Thursday afternoon to attend an event celebrating Black History Month.
“A Conversation on Being Native American and Black” was sponsored by the Indian Leader and four students—Summer Powell, Autumn Powell, Lexci Kimball, and Dorian Daw—were asked if they would share some of their perspectives and experiences with the rest of the Haskell Indian Nations University community.
The panel’s participants tackled issues that they’ve witnessed here at HINU and in their home communities. Some panelists spoke to the discrimination, stereotypes, and colorism they encountered growing up in predominately Indigenous communities.
Closer to the end of the panel, the floor was opened to audience questions. When asked how they felt about some of their peers using the n-word, all four agreed that they found it offensive. Kimball said she found the term dehumanizing, while Summer Powell added that non-black people using the word is a form of cultural appropriation that Indigenous people should be able to relate to. Powell also suggested that in the future, she would like to see students at Haskell create a caucus for black students to discuss and address problems that they see on campus.
