Academic Indian Job Description Poem

have to know
western knowledge and education
plus the critique of
western knowledge and education

have to know
indigenous ‘culture’ and education
plus the critique and the critique of the critique of
indigenous ‘culture’ and education

have to know
how to embody expected authenticity
and how to embody expected critique
of expected authenticity

have to know
when and where to use indigenous literature
and when and where to use the Western canon
to build legitimacy and credibility for indigenous thought and experience

have to know
when to vilify, to romanticize, to essentialize
when to apologize, to complexify, to compromise
when and who to be accountable to and why

have to know
when, where and how to perform
competence, confidence, boldness, heroic rebelliousness
and humility, compliance and gratitude for the opportunity

have to know
how to be an intellectual, an activist, a therapist, and an entrepreneur
how to improve retention, attrition and social mobility
and how to stop exploitation and ecological disaster

have to know
how to educate ‘my people’, liberal allies, immigrants, red necks, colleagues
how to relate to gang members, business sponsors, elders, politicians
how to speak with the crows, the trees, the sea, and the media

have to know
how to solve, how to fix, how to spell and to pronounce
colonialism, capitalism, racism, slavery, patriarchy
hetero-normativity, ableism, elitism, and anthropocentrism

have to know
how to Indigenize and decolonize
disciplines, protocols, ethics and methodologies
to make non-indigenous people feel good about their work

have to know
how to live with the guilt of having credentials, a secure job
and the awareness of compliance with a rigged system
built on the broken back and wounded soul of your family members

Apply online now