DukeEngage | Duke Center for Civic Engagement

Hi everyone, this is my first blog posting, so for this one I’ll try to give a little picture of what exactly we’re up to on the Navajo Reservation. I’ll also try to keep up with updates for the next 2 weeks or so as we (unfortunately) wrap up our time here.

We wake up everyday to our North-facing building at the Mariano Lake Community School with bright sun already baking the landscape. We have a great view of arid hills across the street with distant mesas in the background. (There is a dirt road that can take you North through a mountain pass to Crownpoint, but as it’s a little hardcore, our regular route is to go around all that to the East on our way to Diné College everyday) Because of this orientation, we get awesome sunrises and sunsets to our right and left every morning and evening - and as those who have been here before know, these times of day in the southwest are epic to say the least.

Since we’ve been here, we’ve had the opportunity to be taught general and specific elements of Navajo culture. Unlike typical Western society, where belief is restricted to an hour of practice every Sunday, Navajo spirituality is relevant to, and encompasses every-day life. In this regard, there is a story to be heard about every relationship in nature, between people, and between people and the world around them.

It is a huge gift that those we have met here are so open and willing to share their lives and culture with us. Typically, Navajo communities can be extremely reserved to “anglo” outsiders (a term used for any non-Native), and understandably so. There are a number of examples of subjugation by non-Natives on the Navajo people, and I’d like to mention two of them. In the mid 1860’s Kit Carson and the U.S. army executed a genocidal removal policy that forced the Navajo out of their homeland to a miserable area far away. In the 1930’s the government imposed a sheep reduction in an attempt to prevent overgrazing. The procedure was poorly executed, and did not effectively take into consideration the fact that killing livestock in that way conflicts with Navajo beliefs and would also severely hurt their economy. Many consider this 20th century policy as the 2nd Long Walk. Navajo livelihood is rooted in a connection to their land and to the livestock, which they consider family, so the removal of these things was a travesty. All of what I’ve brought up we’ve learned about since being here, and makes the warm reception we’ve received by many all the more impacting. To be offered hospitality, endless information, and friendship on lots of occasions is a serious privilege.

For more on the Long Walk, read Dee Brown’s chapter in the book Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee.

For more on the sheep reduction, read The Navajo Indians and Federal Indian Policy, 1900-1935 by LC Kelly.

Philip Gnaedig

photo by Eric Van Danen

 International student Bengisu Kuscu is among seven students volunteering through community partner Amizade in Crownpoint, N.M., to help prepare students of the Navajo Nation for college.  She explains what drew her to this college preparatory program and what she hopes to learn through her service.

1.  What drew you to this particular program or project?

As an international student, I remember being very confused during the college application process. When I read the program description for DukeEngage in Crownpoint, I thought I could use my experiences to help out others who might be going through similar things. I was especially excited about this particular community because I don't know a lot about its culture or history, and I thought this would be a great opportunity to learn about tribal  culture directly from members of the Navajo Nation.

2.  What excited you about working with your community partner?

The program description excited me because it  was something I could manage with my current skill sets as a college  student. As I learn more about the project, I feel that Amizade is  considerate of what we can do and what the community needs, and I'm looking forward to working with them.

3.  What benefit do you hope your service will have for your community partner and your host community?

My goal is to be able to have a lasting impact on the high school  students I will be working with by preparing them for college  applications and their life there, and hopefully creating a cycle where they will help each other and the younger students be successful  in the college process.

4.  How do you hope to put into action what you learned through your DukeEngage experience once back at Duke?

I'm hoping this project will teach me how to effectively address people's needs, as well as how to have a successful relationship with a new community--two skills I believe I will need as someone hoping to work with similar communities in the future.

DukeEngage is featuring 18 students over the course of the summer participating in both group programs and independent projects.  Check back weekly to view the latest student profile.