Daily Pioneer News

PLATTEVILLE - "Their descendants live here still, speaking to all who choose to listen," Kathleen Tigerman, University of Wisconsin-Platteville associate professor of English, writes in her book, "Wisconsin Indian Literature: Anthology of Native Voices." Tigerman assembled stories, some of which have been passed down, generation to generation, and presented the writings of native Wisconsin people in their own words. The text also includes many contemporary short stories, poems and novel excerpts.

Selections from her book range from a poem entitled "Did You Hear the Wind Sing Your Name?" which celebrates the change of seasons, to a rousing declaration that trumpets the steadfast resolve of the Oneida tribe after being forced from their lands. The text has many selections from each of the seven independent native nations of Wisconsin: Menominee, Ho-Chunk, Ojibwe, Potomatomi, Oneida, Brothertown and Stockbridge-Munsee band of Mohican.

"There are two sides to every story and we're not going to solve any problems by only hearing one side," Tigerman said.

Tigerman says she can't remember a time when she wasn't interested in the history of the native people of Wisconsin. From exploring the Effigy Mounds of Crawford County to admiring the Gottschall Rock Shelter, Tigerman says she enjoys the peace and serenity and the primeval feel of the backwaters of the Mississippi River. It's around those waters that ancestors of the Ho-Chunk still call home today.

In the mid 1970s, Tigerman was working on her dissertation and living in a cabin on the Wisconsin River and she attended an event that was the spark that eventually led to the writing of her book.

The event was a meeting of the Black Hills Alliance. According to Tigerman, land that was promised to the Dakota tribe was going to be taken away and used for uranium mining.

"This was land that was supposed to be theirs as long as the grass grows and the water flows," said Tigerman. "It was a cultural eye-opener. There were very powerful native speakers and I was shocked out of my mind from the experience." Tigerman added that as a student of English literature, she felt that she was wrongly taught.

"The control of discourse is propaganda and has changed little in centuries," said Tigerman. "My goal for this book is to create awareness of misinformation and correct stereotypes of the imperialistic practice that has been going on. The history and literature of native peoples should be required course work like Beowulf."

In her book, Tigerman writes that "the majority of students taking my course on Wisconsin Indian Literature at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville have not been exposed to basic information about the Indian Nations and bands of the state, nor are they aware of the rich body of traditional stories and contemporary writings by the members of the Indian Nations of Wisconsin."

Currently, "Wisconsin Indian Literature: Anthology of Native Voices" is being used as an American literature textbook at the University of Iowa, a social sciences textbook at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and is part of the American Indian Studies Library in Madison.

Tigerman's effort to provide an accurate portrayal of native peoples has not stopped with her writing. She has established a fund in memory of Ingrid Washinawatok who was a delegate to the United Nations and working with a Colombian Indian tribe in an attempt to block oil drilling on sacred land and to develop a school system. Washinawatok was kidnapped and killed by armed forces in opposition to her efforts.

"In memory of her spirit," Tigerman writes, "I have established the Ingrid Washinawatok Speakers Fund to support educators and elders whose voices need to be heard in the classroom. A majority of the royalties from this book is dedicated to the fund."

For more information on the book, "Wisconsin Indian Literature: Anthology of Native Voices," contact Tigerman at (608) 342-1866 or e-mail her at tigerman@uwplatt.edu.

Contact: Kathleen Tigerman, associate professor of English, (608) 342-1866, tigerman@uwplatt.edu Written by: Jason McGraw, UWP Public Relations, (608) 342-1194, mcgrawj@uwplatt.edu