Joy Harjo on the opening of the Museum of the American Indian
The Smithsonian launched it’s prize jewel, the National Museum of the American Indian last month in Washington. Joy Harjo was there:
Sitting outside the National Museum of the American Indian after a reception and viewing of the museum, the day before the opening, I run into Carlos Nakai, one of Indian country�s finest musicians. We admire the lily-filled pond, the grounds rich with native plants. It�s idyllic. We both agree that what�s missing are the junked cars, chickens, skinny rez dogs, kids running around, dried meat racks�.and so on.
Yeah!
But I will say one thing for that museum. They have their language right. It’s no mere anthropological curiosity. It treats living indigenous cultures as living cultures.
