Introduction
Historical and continued systemic oppression of Native Americans simultaneously works to isolate them from “mainstream” society, leaving them racially and socioeconomically oppressed and deprived of resources, while forcing them to assimilate into this same “mainstream”, which erases their culture. Novels such as There, There, as well as various forms of autoethnographic art and storytelling, allow Native Americans to become powerful in a society which has rendered them powerless. Autoethnography provides the individual with the independence of sharing one’s own story and culture, as well as with the opportunity to interact with and respond to ethnographic portrayals of Native Americans, an action which has been largely prevented by white society.
Autoethnography explores Native people's dialect around, reaction to, and rejection of ethnographic portrayals forced upon them by society. The medium of the novel, as we see in Tommy Orange's There, There, is becoming increasingly important as we see a dwindling of “culturally appropriate spaces” in which to explore autoethnography in-person with one another (Whitinui).
This exhibit explores various forms of autoethnography, from the contemporary novel (There, There) to film, to contemporary abstract art. Autoethnography can take many different forms, and it is critical in the survivance of Native Americans, preserving their voices and rendering them powerful in a conversation which has victimized them for centuries. In autoethnography, Native Americans are not victims; they are controllers of their own destiny, confronting and educating white society about their existence, their essence and their truth.