In this 52-minute podcast, author Deborah Miranda discusses the plight of Native Americans in California, who underwent near genocide over the course of two centuries with the Spanish, the Mexicans and then the Americans all but ensuring their extinction.
Deborah begins with the historical context and the role of the church, the defamation of Native Americans during the Gold Rush (so-called “diggers” and bounties, min. 8), the continuing stereotypes through the Mission Project (min. 13) and developing family trees through cassette tapes (min. 21).
She continues in discussing language challenges (min. 28), writing and a certain footlocker (min. 31), the hopeful future for Native Americans (min. 36) and closes out with hearing her poem at a graduation and an exhaustive list of established and up-and-coming Native American authors.
Bonus - Deborah reads two poems at the end! Content meets delivery, making it a great listen.
Feed your Soul. Keep listening.
