living news paper proposal

For our living newspaper final project, we talked about doing the woman's rights movement and their struggle towards equality. I think we should do this for our final project. Not only would it be interesting to research but, it would really capture our audiences attention. I feel that this is a topic most of us are interested in and it also affects most of us. Our group could teach the class something that don't know about this topic and possibly even open their eyes to the topic even more. We could do this through song, poems, and narratives.

continuing the living newspaper discussion

Previously we had talked about women's right and movements towards equality. I think this could be an interesting topic for our final project. We could look at issues of today and what seems to be an up and coming equal world and what differences and difficulties women still face as part of equality. An interesting media addition to our Living News Paper would be to add a song by a strong woman of our time, I believe someone else in our group had suggested that but I can't remember who. Those are just a few ideas!

Spiritually Connected

When listening to the pod cast, "Little War on the Prairie", it was very shocking to me how little information people know about the Dakota people in Mankato. It almost seems like the past is kept very secretive and hardly ever talked about. It also seems like the younger generations of tribes really do not know the past and significance of the town. I really enjoyed and appreciated hearing Gwen speak during the podcast. She is a part of the Dakota tribe and hearing what she had to say about Mankato and her connection to the town you get a better understanding of what her people and her ancestors went through. One part of the of the podcast that really stood out to me is when she took the job at MSU and her father and uncle said "We will see how long you last there" without elaborating on there response. She then figures out her connection to the town when her friend, Kimberly, asked her to go to a ceremony in the Mankato town square with her. They knew nothing of what the ceremony was about and got there late but when the ceremony was over Gwen says that she broke down, not knowing what  was wrong. She then goes on to say the she later called her uncle and his words were "Well my girl, you are connected to that place. You are physically and spiritually connected to that place." This was a very surprising and unsettling comment for me just because of the awful hanging that took place of her people in that town square. It is a sad realization to think that the town has such an awful past and history that is buried and not really spoken about.

While I was listening to the podcast I was struck by the obliviousness of the people who lived there towards their past.  At the very beginning of the podcast they said something about "nothing ever happening there" and goes on to reveal what has actually happened there, and how nobody knows about it.  John says he can walk down the street to the mall and ride past the Pizza Hut where these important historical places were and didn't know a thing about them.  Nobody talked about it, nobody taught it in schools, and it was the most significant event in the state's history.  It's bizarre that these people will not recognize history, just because they were the oppressors.  The numbers of Native casualties suffered during the founding of the New World is often glossed over in history, rarely is history with Native Americans involved rarely just ignored as is the case here.  They talk about the monument that was created for five white settlers that were killed by Native Americans that begun the whole war.  There was a monument to the white settlers that were killed, but the narrator seems to question the legitimacy of this story.  Target shooting between friends turns to gunning down men in cold blood?  I found it odd how there was a monument for the five dead white men, yet the biggest battle in the history of the state, even bigger than the Little Big Horn, they said, was an unknown to half of the city in which it happened.  It shows you how history is written by the winners, and the New World being founded is a prime example of that.  According to history, we were fulfilling our destined-by-God manifest destiny and creating the greatest nation on Earth. That might not be too accurate, again glossing over the gore and the horror that we also created.

Little War on the Prairie

While listening to this pod cast, “Little War on the Prairie” I was shocked that such a big part of the town’s history was kept from the people who live there. It is crazy to me to think that John Biewen could be riding downtown where someone was hung, and have no idea about it happening. I admire his quest to find out. I enjoyed act one when he met up with Gwen Westermen. You can tell by her raw emotion what kind of impact that this hidden past had on the people of the town. I was surprised that you had to drive into someone’s driveway to find the historic site.  John states that it its hard for him to picture the story that the plaque tells about how the war started and, it makes me wonder how I would feel if something like this was kept from me in my town. It is unbelievable when he is describing the museum that just sits on the side of the highway. How can something so important in history be treated like this? I was relieved to find out that they now put it apart of the curriculum in schools. Something so big should be taught in schools everywhere, especially in the area it took place in. 

little war on the prairie

I find it interesting the the history of the state is told in a light way, when the history is not light at all. The fact that Indians were there first comes as an after thought isn't so much a shock as it is painful to hear that people leave pieces of history out to sugar coat it almost. As a society the history of Native Americans is glossed over and untouched when they were and are such a huge part of this country. People don't even know the history of their own town because it is left untouched. The monuments and tributes to the Native Americans are hidden as though they are ashamed of the history of their state. Even this plaques and signs leave out the whole story leaving the Native Americans to look like the bad guy.

"Little War on the Prairie" Response

            I feel that what happened to the Native Americans at Mankato was very unfair and unjust. By staying almost completely silent about the history of the town, people only added insult to injury concerning this great injustice. After studying Pine Ridge, I know that the way in which white Americans, as well as the American government, have turned a blind eye to what happened is not a solitary occurrence. It seems to happen quite often that the true history of the Native Americans is simply ignored and falls away from mainstream history education. The events at Mankato and those that are taking place are Pine Ridge are just a couple of entries on the long list of injustices enacted upon the Native Americans by the US government.

            Some things that I enjoy about the manner in which the story is told about Mankato are the usage of background music at key points throughout the stories and also the way in which scene and summary are both used throughout the story. By using summary, the storyteller is able to convey a lot of information in a relatively short amount of time and by using various scenes, he is able to capture the emotions and various viewpoints and opinions surrounding the events at Mankato. Unfortunately, I found the primary storyteller’s voice to be somewhat dry and monotone. Because of this, the story becomes sort of dull and seems to drone on.

            I believe that when creating the “Living Newspaper” it would be wonderful to emulate the storyteller’s use of scene and summary. Cleverly placed background music could also be used in the “Living Newspaper” to emphasize certain points and add emotion. I also think it would be a good idea to speak with more emotion and excitement in the “Living Newspaper” so that people find it to be more evocative.