Lines of Tribe

Abstract

It is important to begin by explaining why I take title of my essay from statement in President Barack Obama's 2009 Inaugural Address: the lines of tribe shall soon During address, his words affected me and they remained with me long afterward. President Obama may very well have meant what he said in a metaphoric or figurative sense; I have certainly been provided with many interpretations and assurances by most that a literal meaning was not his intent and that he instead spoke in a good way of beneficial melting of divisions between us.It serves my purposes, however, to complicate statement's usage and to choose not to lose opportunity to consider it in a literal sense given history of our country, and not only our country, but whole of American continent. That is to say that there is a belief that dissolution of lines of tribe, in fact, can result in good and in peace. It is chilling language and metaphor of colonists. I am familiar with history of good that white reformers thought would come from detribalization of Indigenous Peoples in United States. Detribalization efforts severely weakened lucky, but destroyed and disappeared others, and, in doing so, opened vast tracts of lands for, yes, peaceful settlement by others. We have seen lines of tribe dissolve, and not in a poetic sense, but violently. President Obama's reference to tribes brought to mind modem tribal peoples United States is engaged with in Iraq, Afghanistan, and within its own boundaries. There can be hope for a peace that does not require that lines of tribe dissolve. Additionally, President Obama's words evoke a picture that connects to present work on Indigenous identity. The words evoke an image that modem day tribes, in their utilization of blood quantum, may be hastening along. To a tribal person, the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve means end of a tribe's existence. There is no Indigenous identity without existence of tribe, or the People. Such words convey failure to recognize significance of tribalism, of United States' history with tribes, and of sense of how near we came in this country to its literal meaning. The statement, spoken as metaphoric prophecy, focused my attention on lynchpin of tribe (that is continuation oftribe, or the People) to Indigenous identity and link between blood quanta, line of tribe, and dissolution.