Being Lakota

by Petrillo, Larissa; Trejo, Melda (COL); Trejo, Lupe (COL)

• ISBN13: 9780803237506
• ISBN10: 0803237502
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2007-03-01
• Publisher: Univ of Nebraska Pr

Summary

Being Lakotaexplores contemporary Lakota identity and tradition through the life-story narratives of Melda and Lupe Trejo. Melda Trejo, nee Red Bear (1939), is an Oglala Lakota from Pine Ridge Reservation, while Lupe Trejo (193899) is Mexican and a long-time resident at Pine Ridge. In their forty years together, the Trejos raised eleven children, supported themselves as migrant workers, and celebrated their lives and cultural heritage. Conversations between this Lakota/Mexican couple and scholar Larissa Petrillo convey key aspects of the couple's everyday life: what it means to be an Indian and Lakota; how they negotiate their different ethnic identities; their feelings about recent concerns with appropriating Lakota religious practices and beliefs; and the tenets of Lakota spirituality that shape their perceptions and actions. These issues are highlighted as they talk about their experiences setting up a Sundance ceremony. In the late 1980s they began holding a Sundance on the Red Bear family's land near Allen, South Dakota, and the ceremony was dedicated to Lupe after his death. Being Lakotadeepens our understanding of modern Lakota life and affords a memorable glimpse of the choices and paths taken by individuals in a Native community. It also serves to explore new approaches to collaborative ethnography, with reflections on learning to work well in a Native community.

Author Biography

Larissa Petrillo is an instructor of interdisciplinary studies at the University of British Columbia.

Table of Contents

Introduction : Melda and Lupe Trejo on "being Indian"
Impressions	p. 3
Long time ago	p. 13
They come from the family	p. 23
Collaboration	p. 31
We started getting together	p. 38
Affiliation : lupe	p. 47
Sun dance got started down here	p. 57
Generation : Melda	p. 66
Two cultures we have to put together	p. 73
Identity	p. 82
I spend my life in church	p. 91
Tradition	p. 104
These old people pray real good	p. 113
Knowledge	p. 125
Conclusion : talking together	p. 135
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