In her book, Smith draws attention to a multitude of
hegemonic practices that contribute to the destruction of Native communities.
She frames these practices from the perspective of rape culture, demonstrating
how colonialism, patriarchy, capitalism, and other oppressive structures
facilitate sexual violence against Native communities in general and Native
women in particular. Starting with the history of violence against Native
populations, Smith goes on to describe boarding school abuses, environmental
degradation, negligent healthcare practices, cultural appropriation, and other
devastating structural practices that have marginalized, minimized, and
maligned Native populations. For each case of misconduct, Smith provides specific,
often graphic, examples detailing the horrific practices. She also suggests
alternatives by profiling individuals, groups or communities that have discovered
entirely innovative approaches for addressing the intersectional impact of
sexual violence, or offering her own recommendations on how communities can
resist and restructure systems of oppression. Despite the grim reality she
reveals, she does so from the firm conviction that the situation can and will
change.
I say that Smith frames her writing from the perspective
of rape culture because certainly not every example she provides falls within
the definition of “sexual assault.” Rape of the land is not the same thing as
rape of another person, though both exist and reinforce the other in systems of
colonial, patriarchal oppression. Reading from this perspective also helped my
own understanding of the book because even though it was easy to follow her
arguments into minutia, stepping back and reframing it as part of rape culture
provided broader context for the details. Parts of her writing are hard to
stomach, and I sometimes found myself in disbelief at the accounts of violence
she shared. Despite the violence, and also because of it, Smith’s book is
shocking, revelatory, and all the more important to read because of the history
and interconnections she elucidates.
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