Dominant Culture and Indian Agents Alive and Well in DMC: What century is this?

Met with the new point man for the History Center of Olmsted County.  An amiable fellow who has never aligned himself with any one tribe.  I can't say for certain, but he, like the Chair of the NAC of SE MN, are white. 

After our grant with Museology, Cara Clarey and GRADS, fell through because the HCOC wanted to go in a new direction, they formed a new advisory board.  The old advisory board was made up of Dakota Tribal Historians, Ho-Chunk anthropologist, and other Indian people with knowledge of their culture and ways.  The new board is made up of Jim Wilson (white), Chair of the NAC SE MN, Dawn Littleton, (white) from the Friends of Indian Heights, Mitch Moore, (white) from the Friends of Indian Heights, Tom Hozier, (white)from the Woodlake Battle Field Exhibit, and Bob Sanborn (white), retired teacher from RCTC who taught Native American studies.  Uh; where are the Indians?

Nakoma is now the point man and we showed him the RFP that the HCOC put out for their new exhibit, using the money that we the old advisory committee helped secure for them.  Sadly, poor old Nakoma never saw the RFP and took the HCOC at their word.  Namely that they would have an exhibit that depicted the Indians of Olmsted County, past and preset, but the RFP says that the HCOC is just going to rebrand their Indian artifacts and have a display about "pre-contact" generic Indians. Additionally, the new RFP says that the HCOC is going to work with 4 Indians from SE MN.  We asked him who those 4 Indians were and he didn't know.

So, right now, the HCOC is using monies from the Minnesota Historical Society and there is NOT ONE INDIAN among them on their planning committee.  Sad, so very sad.  Now they are using a good man with an Indian heart as their point man, but in actuality, they are using him as an Indian Agent.  How do I know this?

When I told him that I have been barred from the HCOC to use its library for HPC purposes by Jim Suk (white, HCOC Board Chair), Lisa Baldus (white, HCOC Executive Director) , and Jeff Alleman (white, and HPC Chair), and that the Post Bulletin wants to interview relative to the punitive action taken against me because I supported Cara Clarey whom they fired for Lord only knows why and called the HCOC on their non Dakota and Ho-Chunk holdings and asked that they repatriate them if they weren't going to use them in the exhibit; Nakoma said, "I would hold off on that for a while because any bad press about the HCOC will jeopardize the exhibit at the HCOC."  Nakoma was also promised that he could teach classes at the HCOC on Native Americans.

So, I have a hard decision to make, go ahead with the interview about the punitive action Jeff Alleman took against me in cahoots with Jim Suk and Lisa Baldus, and then threatened that I would not have any of my Native American interests realized at the HCOC and the HPC if I went public with the story and jeopardize the dominant white culture exhibit at the HCOC.  Hmmm...what to do?

When will I learn?

Today I received word that our complaint against Century High School and their biased treatment of number one son with ADD was investigated.  What did the MDE OCR find?  Nothing.  Century High School Coach Houghton treated my son fairly and just like every other player.  No discrimination occurred.  My son was not treated differently from any other player.

Despite the fact that we had proof that he lied, the MDE OCR found no violation of the law.  Coach Houghton said son didn't show for practice, wasn't placed on JV in the first place, never showed for practice, didn't intervene when son was being clobbered in the goalie box, and didn't yell at son.  All this we had evidence to the contrary and the MDE OCR (Lauren Skerrit) found that Coach Houghton did nothing wrong.  He treated every player the same.

This begs the question, should any parent let their son play soccer for Coach Houghton?  If Coach Houghton can run his little losing soccer team in this manner, should any parent let their child play soccer?  If Coach Houghton can lie, cheat, demean, belittle, retaliate, and ignore people with disabilities, should any parent let their child play soccer for Century?

As a person of color, when I come up against such blatant discrimination, I prefer to test the law.  After all, weren't the laws made to help people like me find justice?  According to Steven Newcomb the laws were not made to help people like me or my son.  The laws were made by people who exercise the belief in the doctrine of discovery.  The laws were created by those who believe in domination and that people of color are "subhuman".  The laws were made by people who believe in a "superior race" and the laws were designed to keep people of color in line.

Despite my proof, what I did not realize, what I did not remember was that the burden of proof is twice that of one Coach Houghton, a white male.  I am a woman of color.  My son is of color.  He is beautiful.  He was voted Utility Man by his soccer peers.  He is an awesome player and that his what his peers said.  Yet, when we cried foul about team placement, unfair treatment, utter disregard for his 504 plan, yelling fits by Coach Houghton, retaliation and so on,  the Century High School administration (all white) came to the aide of Coach Houghton (not my son who was a student there) and the MDE OCR (more white people) found no discrimination on the basis of disability or race. 

When will I ever learn that I as a person of color will never find justice when appealing to the dominant culture (soon to become a minority) armed with their doctrine of discovery world view and the laws they designed to keep people like me under oppression?