Destruction of an Ojibwa Community

We see the author's humane concern in her Introduction, in which she declares her subject: "This book is about the origins of suffering in the life of these Indian people" (2). In fact, it would be a tough-minded scientific observer indeed who would not feel deeply the tragedy these people have undergone in a just over a decade.

We read that in the early 1960s, the "Grassy Narrows people" were still living on land on which their ancestors had dwelled, along the English-Wabigoon River. These people

had preserved an ethos that encompassed . . . a deep attachment to the land and the rhythms of nature, respect for the dignity of the person, and the independence and self-sufficiency of clan-based family groups. They lived, as they had for generations, by hunting, trapping, fishing, and gathering. . . . The people managed to maintain con

. . .
this is not to say that her involvement weakens her research. Had she not acknowledged her personal as well as scientific points of view, however, there would have been serious problems. As it is, the reader is forewarned and the study, in fact, grows more powerful and effective as a result of her personal involvement. She is not trying to present a dry, statistical, scholarly study of these people and the destruction of their society from without and from within, although her study is supported at every turn by such hard evidence and research. She declares openly her aims with the study, and those aims obviously reach far beyond the merely statistical or scholarly: On the basis of data gleaned from public records and archives, additional interviews, . . . field notes, diaries and transcripts, I wrote a dissertation. . . . This book emerged from that document. It was inspired by the desire to make the story known to a wider public because, to date, the Grassy Narrows people have not been fully compensated for the personal and communal losses they have suffered (5). The author's point of view is shaped by this desire. She has come to care very much for the people and the culture she studied and which she watched as they and it
. . .

Some common words found in the essay are:
Grassy Narrows, Indian Affairs, Ojibwa Community, English-Wabigoon River, , grassy narrows, Anastasia Shkilnyk, social scientist, narrows people, grassy narrows people, personal involvement, University Press, Poison Stronger, poison stronger love, ojibwa community, destruction traditional, statistical scholarly, government industry, view shaped, Stronger Love, stronger love,
Approximate Word count = 1515
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page)

More Essays on Destruction of an Ojibwa Community