Round Up: Letters About the "Indigenous Experience" Panel at USBBY's October 2017 Conference

For the convenience of activists, scholars, parents, teachers, caregivers, and others who study issues specific to Native peoples in children's literature, AICL offers this timeline about USBBY's October 2017 "Indigenous Experience in Children's Books" panel. For each item, an excerpt is provided. Click on the link to see the full post/conversation. Additional items will be added when they are available. 

Monday, July 24, 2017

Debbie Reese's post to USBBY's Facebook page
"I looked at the schedule for the conference in Seattle, and saw that there will be an Indigenous Experience in Children's Books panel. In the midst of such a visible effort to promote Native and Writers of Color, I am stunned that not all people on the panel are Native. Can anyone here share some background on the rationale for the panel's composition?(One of the White women is married to a Native man and is a co-author with his mother who was in boarding school, which makes her presence understandable.)"


Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Naomi Bishop's Open Letter

"One of the general sessions (that everyone attends) is titled: The Indigenous Experience in Children’s Books. The presenters on this panel include four Canadians (Lisa Charleyboy, Christy Jordan-Fenton, Margaret Pokiak-Fenton, Sarah Ellis -moderator) and one American, Nancy Bo Flood. In an email to me, the USBBY President stated that Nancy Bo Flood is not Native. 

“Nancy Bo Flood is the fourth speaker. She has written a number of children’s books several of which have Native American themes.  She is not Native American.”  

The problem with Nancy Bo Flood is not just that she is non-native, but that she appropriates Navajo culture. She states that she lived on the Navajo reservation, taught college students there, and writes books about Navajo’s, but she is not Navajo. It is disappointing to see Nancy on this panel because there are so many wonderful Native American authors and illustrators publishing awesome books here in the US. I am pleased to see First Nations writers on the panel, but wonder why the organizers did not select any writers from U.S. Tribal Nations?"

Debbie Reese's Open Letter
"I was--quite frankly--furious to see Nancy Bo Flood's name on the "Indigenous Experience in Children's Literature" panel. As regular readers of AICL know, I've been studying the ways Native peoples are depicted in children's literature for decades. In that time, I've come to know the work of many people who--like Flood--are not Native, but write books about Native peoples. Amongst that body of White writers, there are many instances in which the writer has done particularly egregious things."


Wednesday, July 27, 2017

Christy Jordan-Fenton's Response to Conversations
"It is not my mother-in-law’s job to defend her people’s right to control how their stories are told. Her voice is for sharing her experiences. It was under an invitation for her to do so that we agreed to participate. If the panel is now openly forcing her into a position of defence, we will have to decline the invitation. However, if we can all work together to realize our learning opportunity from this, and use it as a catalyst to find a better way together, we would be honoured to participate."


Thursday, July 27, 2017 

USBBY President Therese Bigelow's Announcement 
"We are changing the program on Indigenous Voices in Children’s Literature. Nancy Bo Flood will no longer participate. Panel presenters are all from Canada which reflects the international scope of the conference theme. The panel had already begun working on their program together and the Fenton's, through Christy Jordan-Fenton, have requested that Sarah Ellis continue In her role as moderator. This change will be reflected on the program schedule as soon as I return to my home computer next week."

Naomi Caldwell's Letter to Therese Bigelow 
"Notwithstanding, I am compelled to share my thoughts and a suggestion as past president of the American Indian Library Association, founding chair of the American Indian Youth Literature Award, and advocate for the accurate portrayal of Indigenous books for youth. One would think that in 2017 that organizations such as USBBY would be practiced and astute about planning programs to highlight diversity. After all, the membership is comprised of diverse, devoted well-educated and well-read children’s literature professionals who genuinely care about the quality of literature for youth from a national and international perspective."

Christy Jordan-Fenton's Response to Therese Bigelow
"I understand that to many in the non-indigenous literary world, the issue of appropriation feels like navigating a mine field. However, the ultimate goal is not conflict, but rather finding a better way together. When Indigenous perspectives are considered and dialogue is opened, everyone benefits. As I said previously, the act of appropriation or taking up Indigenous spaces is ingrained in our society, and in the mythologies that society is raised on and maintained by. Issues such as the one with the “Indigenous Experiences” panel will come up. And when that happens, they need to be validated and addressed so that we can all work toward a better way. The change in the make up of the panel shows that we can find that better way together. I hope that in the future other organizations will be open to such dialogues and to listening and acting on ways to facilitate and maintain Indigenous space."

Christy Jordan-Fenton's Response to Therese Bigelow's Announcement Regarding Change to "Indigenous Experience in Children's Books" Panelists at USBBY's October 2017 Conference

27 July 2017

Often when issues are raised in the literary world, over appropriation, representation, and making space for Indigenous voices, they are met with justifications, or are ignored all together. The very nature of the mythology upon which the colonial societies of this continent rest, are at the core, stories of taking up Indigenous spaces…quite literally. It is such a rooted part of our collective consciousness that Indigenous voices remain marginalized, even when it comes to talking about Indigenous traditional cultures and contemporary perspectives. And while the appropriation debate has only recently been engaged in by the gate keepers of mainstream institutions, actual understanding and protocols have yet to become a mainstream part of the literary world. Indigenous voices often remain unvalidated and unanswered, while non-indigenous voices are brought in to fill the void created by the marginalization of Indigenous perspectives.

I was very concerned that this would be happening at the 2017 IBBY Conference in Seattle, on the “Indigenous Experiences in Children’s Literature” panel, where space was given to a non-indigenous author, who is largely considered by the Indigenous community to have violated numerous general protocols on appropriation. A large part of my concern with this panel was that the addition of this author would co-opt the topic of Indigenous experiences, making it about appropriation, thus centring around non-indigenous authors, instead of being focussed on Indigenous voices. If you would like to read more about my concerns, you can find them here:  https://americanindiansinchildrensliterature.blogspot.ca/2017/07/christy-jordan-fentons-response-to.html?m=1

I brought my concerns to the attention of Ed Sullivan and the IBBY committee. And as any of you out there who have been fighting to maintain space for authentic Indigeneity know, it can be a very cynical process where all too often, nothing is done. However, in this case, I am very pleased to say that the outcome of this week’s dialogue is IBBY’s announcement that the panel’s original arrangement has been restored. It is back to being a space intended for Indigenous voices. We greatly appreciate the consideration of the IBBY Committee over the concerns raised, and appreciate that the space will be held in a good way, allowing for Margaret/Olemaun Pokiak-Fenton and Lisa Charleyboy their space to have the floor, with Nancy Bo Flood stepping aside.

I understand that to many in the non-indigenous literary world, the issue of appropriation feels like navigating a mine field. However, the ultimate goal is not conflict, but rather finding a better way together. When Indigenous perspectives are considered and dialogue is opened, everyone benefits. As I said previously, the act of appropriation or taking up Indigenous spaces is ingrained in our society, and in the mythologies that society is raised on and maintained by. Issues such as the one with the “Indigenous Experiences” panel will come up. And when that happens, they need to be validated and addressed so that we can all work toward a better way. The change in the make up of the panel shows that we can find that better way together. I hope that in the future other organizations will be open to such dialogues and to listening and acting on ways to facilitate and maintain Indigenous space.

I further hope that when respected Indigenous scholars and artist raise these issues, their wisdom and experience will be heeded, even when they are outside of the organization involved, as they often will be, so that uncomfortable situations between panelists and artists involved are not necessary.

We look forward to participating in this panel. I am encouraged by the IBBY’s actions, and that the matter was used as an opportunity for learning how to better allow such platforms to be about the amplification of Indigenous experiences. The willingness of the IBBY Committee to address the issue shows that we can navigate a better way together. By keeping the matter transparent, and committing to a continued dialogue in the future, everyone who must navigate such situations can advance toward evolving past the ways things have been done in the past.

While I would still like to have seen Indigenous voices from within the colonial borders of the US represented on the panel, space has been made for the current participants, which was the biggest concern. Though I will add, with having a keynote speaker who makes repeated claims to be the only strong Indigenous literary voice out there, I am concerned that a lack of American Indian writers on the panel confirms what that keynote speaker says. There many strong Indigenous voices that could have been included.

For those who will be attending the panel, I don’t want anyone to be scared that the topic of appropriation is entirely taboo. It isn’t, but I ask respect be given to the participants to share their truths and experiences on their terms, and that you reflect on how it is for Indigenous artists to constantly have to contend with the “white permission” question at the expense of being able to speak about their own art.

That said, I would encourage everyone to further engage in conversations concerning appropriation, and to seek opportunities to listen to what Indigenous artists themselves have to say. It is unfortunate that within the scope of the conference as it stands, space could not be found to have this conversation as a separate topic, but that should not dissuade anyone from continuing to learn more. It cannot be assumed that Indigenous artists have the responsibility to educate anyone, but I can guarantee there are many out there who do want to be heard.

To address the question of a non-indigenous moderator conducting the panel, I have no issue with Sarah Ellis as moderator, now that the panel has been restored to its original composition. There are a few issues that can happen with a non-indigenous moderator. One is that when there are diverse voices on the panel, and the moderator belongs to the non-marginalized group, those voices can be drowned out. Even when moderators have the best intentions, ultimately their perspectives and experiences will, in most cases, resonate closer with the panelists who share similar perspectives and experiences. This becomes problematic where the panelists view the issues from very different perspectives. That will no longer be a concern for this panel. Also, there can be times when audience members ask disrespectful questions or ask questions in inappropriate ways, and in my experience, non-indigenous moderators do not always catch what is actually being said, or they do not intervene where they should and give too much space to those voices. However, in the communications we have had with Sarah, she has demonstrated that she is sensitive to the fact these things do happen, especially on indigenous panels, and she has actively sought input from the panelists. I have been very pleased with her approach. This has not been a race issue, but rather one of shifting the balance to maintain the voices of the Indigenous panelists, and I feel confident in Sarah’s desire to give those voices their due platform.

Thank you to the IBBY committee for hearing us. This is a meaningful step in the right direction, and we hope that others take this as an example of how we can all work together toward restoring Indigenous space. I look forward to seeing how the committee carries this experience into the future planning of its events, and how this dialogue can move from being a discussion into meaningful practice for the entire literary community.

Christy Jordan-Fenton

Coauthor of Fatty Legs, A Stranger at Home, When I Was Eight, and Not My Girl

Christy Jordan-Fenton's Response to Conversations About USBBY's Oct 2017 "Indigenous Experience" Panel

Eds. note: At 9:00 CST, on July 27th, Therese Bigelow, USBBY's Board President, announced that Nancy Bo Flood would not be on the panel. Bigelow said

We are changing the program on Indigenous Voices in Children’s Literature. Nancy Bo Flood will no longer participate. Panel presenters are all from Canada which reflects the international scope of the conference theme. The panel had already begun working on their program together and the Fenton's, through Christy Jordan-Fenton, have requested that Sarah Ellis continue In her role as moderator. This change will be reflected on the program schedule as soon as I return to my home computer next week.

_____________________ 

25 July 2017

About a year ago, myself, and my mother-in-law, Margaret/Olemaun Pokiak-Fenton (Inuvialuk), were invited to attend the 2017 IBBY Regional Conference in Seattle, to sit on a panel about “The Indigenous Experience in Children’s Literature”. At the time, the only other participant we knew of was Lisa Charleyboy (Tsilhqot'in), and we assumed there would also be Indigenous authors from the US included. We were thrilled to accept the invitation, especially Margaret/Olemaun, who as an 81 year old great-grandmother, still finds herself overwhelmed by gaining a measure of fame and attention so late on, and to her shock, for sharing stories she had been ashamed of her entire life.

To explain a bit about who we are, Margaret/Olemaun is a Inuvialuk Indian Residential School (Indian Boarding School) survivor, best known as the indomitable character in Fatty Legs (Annick Press 2010), along with three other books. Having been raised by a residential school survivor myself, it was important to me to have my children see their grandmother as the strong resilient hero she is, and not through a lens of colonial suffering that has become so much a part of Indigenous identity (one dictated by a colonial narrative, and not an authentic Indigenous one). And so in 2008 we began the slow, extremely painful process of sharing her story. It was a two year ceremony of transmutation we held each other through. I don’t think I could possibly convey how much this journey has asked of Margaret/Olemaun, and how much she has put into it for the future generations, and for herself, or given to me toward my own intergenerational healing, and how far she has come on that journey. What she has given with that journey…what any elder who shares such a journey gives, is sacred, and needs to be held as such.

My job when we speak, which we do about 100 times a year, is to help her in sharing her voice, sometimes to encourage her to share that story she didn’t think was a big deal but was phenomenal and I know the audience will love (she tells great stories), and also sometimes to buffer questions and comments that dig very deep into the trauma she carries from her years at residential school, and a life of experiencing subtle, overt, and systemic racism (think: What are some examples of how they physically hurt you at the school? Or on the other end of the spectrum: Weren’t there any good things about the schools?) A major part of my job is maintaining a good space for her to share her truth and shine as the beautiful elder she is.

It is from this place of needing to hold a good space for her, that I am now addressing the situation that has arisen in an unexpected change of dynamics on the “Indigenous Experience in Children’s Literature” panel. First, I admit it was very naïve of me not to look further into who we would be sharing that space with. I took for granted that the other authors would all be Indigenous. I took for granted that the focus would be about “Indigenous Experiences”. As of a few days ago, it was communicated to me that the dreaded “permission” question of appropriation was one that we should all strategize about ahead of time, for the sake of not letting it hijack the forum (at this point I didn’t realize why that was going to be such a major issue).

However, I have found out today, in a public comment from Ed Sullivan of IBBY, that Nancy Bo Flood was invited to be a part of the panel precisely so that this question could be debated. Normally I would be discreet in handling these matters, but as I myself only found out about this other agenda today, and publicly… and really, I think too many of us spend too much time trying to negotiate and navigate these situations in private, or remain silent, when transparency is needed, here I am responding publicly.

What was originally a panel about “Indigenous Experiences” where we believed Indigenous experiences would be the focus, is now being shifted to a situation that calls the attention to being a discussion on “White Authors’ Experiences”. The panel is now made up of a non-Indigenous moderator, an author called out numerous times for appropriation, and well…if I look in the mirror, I present pretty white too. My role in the panel is not supposed to be to explain why I felt I could represent my mother-in-law’s voice, or about who claims me, what traditions I practice, and the lineage of my teachings. It’s to support Margaret/Olemaun. (And I am completely open to sharing those things. Find me on Facebook if you feel compelled to discuss it and we’ll start a dialogue). But I see no good way to do that when it takes away from the voice of Margaret/Olemaun, and from Lisa Charleyboy. I see no respectful place to discuss that in the setting of this panel.

But more importantly, why has the responsibility of defending their culture and their right to control how their stories are told, been assumed? Why does the IBBY committee feel that it is acceptable to place this, without even asking, on the shoulders of an 81 year old elder who is still working through her healing from trauma, who is still navigating her relationship with decolonization (a journey her great-grandchildren’s grandchildren will be working through generations from now), who was expecting to go and share her childhood experiences in a children’s literature context, in a safe way…why is it deemed acceptable to assume it is her place to educate others against appropriation and defend her indigeneity against it? Again, she wasn’t even asked. Why is it deemed acceptable to assume Lisa Charleyboy, who has so much to offer when it comes to discussing carving out space for modern Indigenous identity…why is it assumed she wants to attend to instead discuss why non-indigenous authors shouldn’t appropriate, thus giving the floor over from what Indigenous artists themselves are doing, so white permission can be the focus?

I am left feeling that if I sit visibly white on this panel, as it is currently composed, next to an author very arguably guilty of appropriation, at a conference where last I knew of the keynote speaker was slated to be an Indigenous author who repeatedly claims to be the only one out there with books people read (despite knowing better), I will be contributing to that message—the message that there are no Indigenous authors out there, and so we need to have white people discuss Indigenous experiences. I know different. I know this isn’t true. My shelves are filled with works by Indigenous authors. And so to stand in my truth, and above all ensure safe space for Margaret/Olemaun, and to honour what my elders and mentors have taught me about my responsibility as someone entrusted to amplify (not appropriate) a small portion of the Indigenous experience, my integrity asks that we, Margaret/Olemaun and myself, do not participate in this panel, as it currently is, with Nancy Bo Flood participating.

What I would suggest, is that if the conference committee deems the topic of appropriation one worthy of exploring, and I think it is, this conversation take place within the context of a separate panel, and I would also like to suggest that such a panel include Indigenous voices like Lisa Charleyboy’s (provided she was asked respectfully and wanted to participate), and that such a panel be moderated by an Indigenous voice who knows Indigenous literature, such as Debbie Reese (Pueblo), or Louise Erdrich (Anishinabe).

And, I suggest that the “Indigenous Experience in Children’s Literature” panel be left as a space to discuss “Indigenous Experience”.

As my elders have taught me, mistakes are really just opportunities to learn, in disguise. I invite the committee of the IBBY to please examine their decision to include Nancy Bo Flood, knowing it would co-opt the conversation from Indigenous voices to a discussion on appropriation. Please make space for Margaret/Olemaun and Lisa Charleyboy to share what they are doing and what they have experienced, and also consider adding an Indigenous voice or two to represent peoples from territories within the colonial boundaries of the US.

Indigenous peoples and all peoples of colour are constantly expected to defend their cultures against appropriation at the cost of opportunities to discuss their own art. Please, make space for the art. And as this incident demonstrates, there is a need for the appropriation conversation also. We should have it. I would like to have it. I think the attendees would like to have it. But that needs its own forum, and to be guided by Indigenous experience and knowledge.

It is not my mother-in-law’s job to defend her people’s right to control how their stories are told. Her voice is for sharing her experiences. It was under an invitation for her to do so that we agreed to participate. If the panel is now openly forcing her into a position of defence, we will have to decline the invitation. However, if we can all work together to realize our learning opportunity from this, and use it as a catalyst to find a better way together, we would be honoured to participate.

Christy Jordan-Fenton

coauthor of Fatty Legs, A Stranger at Home, When I Was Eight, and Not My Girl

______________

See also:

Naomi Bishop's Open Letter Regarding USBBY's 2017 "Indigenous Experience" Panel in Seattle

Debbie Reese's Open Letter Regarding USBBY's 2017 "Indigenous Experience" Panel in Seattle

Christy Jordan-Fenton & Margaret Pokiak-Fenton's WHEN I WAS EIGHT

The most powerful stories are those that pull you in such that you feel the emotions of the character(s) in the story and when you come to the end, you let loose a big sigh. When I Was Eight did that to me when I read it a few days ago.

Published in 2013 by Annick Press, the authors of When I Was Eight are Christy Jordan-Fenton and Margaret Pokiak-Fenton. The story told in When I Was Eight is one from Margaret's childhood. Margaret is Inuit. Christy is her daughter-in-law.

Here's the first line from the book:

I knew many things when I was eight. I knew how to keep the sled dogs quiet while Father snuck up on caribous, and to bring the team to him after a kill. I knew the sun slept in the winter and woke in the summer. And I knew that when the sun-warmed Arctic Ocean shrugged off its slumbering ice, we would cross it to trade furs with the outsiders.

Those words are quite evocative. Ocean shrugging of ice! Wow! I like thinking about that image.

And, did you notice the word "outsiders" in the last sentence? Margaret's family traded with the outsiders, and as we turn the page, we learn more about the outsiders. We see two Inuit girls. One is reading to the other. The older one is Rosie, and the younger one is Olemaun (Margaret's Inuit name). Olemaun wants to read, too, like her sister does. But, that means going to the outsiders' school...

Olemaun's dad finally agrees to let her go. Once she gets there, though, we see and read about what happens to her.

Cutting their hair and taking their traditional clothing from them was the first step in stripping Native children of their identity once they got to boarding schools. Some schools, like the one in When I Was Eight, were mission schools.

The words and the art in When I Was Eight convey a frightful but honest story about perseverance.  Olemaun learned to read, in spite of the obstacles she encountered at school.

Some of us might like children's books to be light and pretty, but for many of us, life isn't always that way. Denying that reality and that history is a disservice to everyone. According to Amazon, it'll be available on February 26th. Look for it. Order it. Share it.