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Paige SanteeDr. Suhr-SystmaEnglish 181-00129 November 2016Breaking ThroughThe differences that exist between the many diverse ethnicities in the world can often cause tension between different cultures and races. Unfortunately, we still see these tensions in society today, and some seem to be dismissed as if they are all a joke. Tension between Indigenous peoples and whites has been an overlooked issue in humanity for far too long, all starting with Europeans overtaking Indigenous land in North America hundreds of years ago. Recently, Indigenous peoples of North America have begun to speak up through their respective outlets in order to voice how these various racial disputes affect their daily lives. Among other Indigenous artists, Inez Jasper, a part of the Skowkale First Nation, speaks out for her community through her music to unite those directly affected and those who can help dissolve the tensions that prevail in our society. In this essay, I use evidence from the history of current events of Indigenous oppression as well as from the MTV video interview and Inez Jasper’s song, “Dancin’ on the Run,” in order to analyze the contexts of her work as well as its purpose and the audience it appeals to. When analyzing the music video for “Dancin’ on the Run,” there is a lot that initially comes to the viewer’s mind. One of the most prominent features of the video is the popups throughout it that give historical context of the banning of potlatch ceremonies. For example, one of the early pop-ups states: “1884-1981 Indian agents enforced the anti-potlatch law” (MTV). Throughout the video, the pop ups as well as the plot of the video highlight Indigenous-white tensions and the struggle for forgiveness. The plot is set so that an Indian agent, dressed as the epitome of a colonial man, stops Inez and her community, dressed as Indigenous peoples with a modern twist, from dancing and partying on their reservation. As the agent is crashing the party, Inez and her friends dancing and the song lyrics read “No matter what they say / We gonna dance together. / No matter what they do / We gonna dance together. / No matter what they want, / We gonna dance together. / Me, you, dancin’ on the run” (InezMusic). This plot decision is a metaphor for the anti-potlatch law and its enforcement, which is then reinforced by the pop ups. With the context of the potlatch ban in mind, Inez is drawing attention upon the legal tensions between Indigenous peoples and whites and its unjustified nature. Upon making these connections, I was intrigued to learn more about the Indigenous-white legal tensions that are still prevalent in society today.Although Joseph D’Apice wrote his review of a scholarly article on the Sioux tribe’s tensions with whites, “A Testament to Justice” highlights the underlying legal issues that can be applied to other Indigenous cultures. When the Sioux tribe was offered a price to compensate for losing their land to the government, “the Sioux declined, symbolizing their demand for sovereignty and refusal to be wards of the United States” (D’Apice). This bold decision that the Sioux made shows the importance of their land and culture. Unwilling to settle for over a billion dollars, the Sioux displayed their unwavering decision with pride. Much like the Sioux, Inez shows that the Skowkale First Nation natives are ready to fight the prejudice they face with more power than ever: “Today, today/ Things are gonna change. / So we’re gonna fly / Higher to the sky, / Wa-ah-ah-oh, / Wa-ah-ah-oh” (InezMusic). As she she sings these lyrics, Inez changes the pace of the song and the excitement in her tone as a method of suspense for the upcoming chorus. She uses the metaphor of flying directly after stating that “things are gonna change” in order to emphasize that she wants to make changes that seem impossible – like flying – happen. (InezMusic) During these lyrics in the video, the scene flashes back and forth between Inez in a room singing powerfully and a young boy in a headdress jumping through the sky. The juxtaposition of these lyrics with this scene is also an attempt to engage Indigenous adolescents into the fight for a change. Amanda Henry stresses the revolutionary capabilities of Indigenous youth in her “Project 2 Part 1-Chapter12.5.” Zits, who is time traveling and stuck in the body of Alfred, a young Indigenous boy, is watching from afar as a potlatch ceremony is interrupted by Indian Agents. Although he doesn’t know the family he is there with, he does not hesitate as he is the only one to defend those being handcuffed by the Indian Agents as he “runs out into the middle of the circle and heads straight for the back of the Indian agent,” where he then proceeds to jump onto the Indian agent’s back and wrap his arms around his neck in an effort to not only protect his family but his culture (Henry, 5). The spark of youth in Alfred’s character is the type of rebellious action that Inez is calling upon: those who are not afraid to put themselves out there and fight to make a change, even if it means being on the weaker side of the fight. Later in Henry’s essay, she addresses the issue of whites suppressing Indigenous culture with legal actions. Although the Indigenous peoples were offered a shorter imprisonment sentence if they were to comply and give up their cultural masks and gifts to the Indian Agents at the potlatch, they declined the offer and took the full sentence. While most cultures across the world value respect, there are drastic differences as to how to achieve a high level of respect in each community. For white settlers, this meant – and often still does mean – success in the workplace, money, and power. In most Indigenous cultures that practice potlatch ceremonies, respect is earned by those who share, give gifts, and pass on traditions to future generations. This difference seems to be the root of tension concerning the banning of potlatch ceremonies. Inez takes a stance on this difference in culture when everyone in the video runs form the Indian agent as he chases them away, only for them to keep celebrating somewhere else. From analyzing Inez’s song within the context of the music video and its historical significance and using Amanda and Joe’s essays to support me, I argue that Inez Jasper is calling on her community and her supporters to put an end to the unjustified cultural tensions that still exist today. Although she modernizes the issue in her video by representing a potlatch ceremony with a house party that is busted by an old colonial-looking man, she is clearly highlighting the historical context of this issue we still see today. More recently in history, these tensions have specified to target Indigenous women. Within the MTV music video interviews from Rebel Music Native America: 7th Generation Rises, Inez highlights the importance of the missing and murdered Indigenous women in Canada: “I do think that a lot of the stereotypes that exist about our people have perpetuated the problem of missing and murdered Indigenous women” (MTV). As a part of the group “Drag the Red,” an organization formed “in response to the lack of action from authorities,” Inez proclaims the importance of her role also as an activist for awareness of this issue: “If the authorities aren’t going to do it, then we should do it” (MTV). When Inez sings “No matter what they say,” and “they say, they say, you can’t you can’t, sing it, sing it with me” she establishes the idea of “us versus them” which is obviously represented with the pronouns “we” and “they” (InezMusic). The use of the pronoun “they” allows Inez to establish a target and create a goal for her audience. From my interpretation in the context of the MTV interviews, I believe that Inez is calling out the Canadian government authorities, demanding that attention is drawn to the issue of murdered and missing Indigenous women. She uses “we” to be intentionally vague, inviting all who will join to support her and this cause to come fight with her. The importance of women in Indigenous cultures goes beyond goes beyond stopping this current issue, to fully recognizing the respect that these women deserve. In Flora Allum’s essay, “The Significance of Native American Women in Sherman Alexie’s Works,” she analyzes Angelica Lawson’s writing about Alexie’s portrayal of women in the movie Smoke Signals. Throughout her essay, Allum argues that Lawson is making the claim of women having “roles that are important and valid” throughout the movie. Inez’s song and the work she does for her community resonates with this underlying message in Alexie’s work as she is promoting the strength of Indigenous peoples, especially women. Throughout “Dancin’ on the Run,” Inez’s goal is clearly to unite a population and inspire them to make a difference for the future. To accomplish this, she uses several literary devices such as word choice for the lyrics. The first verse begins with “I know, I know, they say, they say, you can’t, you can’t sing it, sing it with me” (InezMusic). She begins with a negative statement of “you can’t” she then switches the tone positively by inviting the audience and those around her to sing together. By doing this, Inez shows that she needs support. Although she is recognizing there will be impediments along the way, she encourages the audience to join in and sing with pride regardless of who “they” might be. Even when she sings “you can’t” she is very upbeat and positive, with a clear message to unite the audience. This tone is reinforced throughout the rest of the song through word choice. In the next stanza, Inez uses a positive metaphor to enforce confidence and unity: “So we’re gonna fly, / higher to the sky” (InezMusic). Again using “we” she is aiming to create a community with a common goal. The reference to flying and the sky is most likely used to symbolize the freedom and independence that Inez wishes to accomplish for the future generations. From this we can infer that Inez is still using her music to break through the past historical and current social standards and rise above them.Following this metaphor, Inez uses the chorus to continue the positive tone and reinforce that “they” can be stopped while introducing dancing for the first time in the song: “No matter what they say, / We gonna dance together. / No matter what they do, / We gonna dance together. / No matter what they want, / We gonna dance forever. / Me You, Dancin’, / On the Run” (InezMusic). The repetition in this chorus and throughout the song is extremely important for the purpose of reiterating the common goal of the audience. Now that Inez has drawn them into the idea of togetherness, she explains that “they” can be taken down by dancing together. As she is targeting a young audience, her repetition and catchiness of the tune puts a strong emphasis on her message and makes it difficult to forget. After analyzing Inez’s song in specific contexts as well as its rhetorical devices, her purpose comes together to invite those who are willing to help to join the fight. Indigenous oppression is a very real issue still prevalent in today’s society, and unfortunately, very few people are educated about the issue’s specifics. With artists like Inez who speak to more than just the Indigenous population, music can work piece by piece to make a change in the unjustified and ignorant oppression.Works CitedD’Apice, Joe. “A Testament to Justice.” 03 Oct. 2016.Henry, Amanda. “Project 2 Part 1 – Chapter 12.5.” 03 Oct. 2016. InezMusic. "Inez Jasper - "Dancin' on the Run" [Official Music Video]."?YouTube. YouTube, 17 May 2013. Web. 06 Sept. 2016.Kennedy, Merrit. "Canada To Launch Nationwide Investigation Into Murdered, Missing Aboriginal Women."?NPR. NPR, 24 Apr. 2007. Web. 06 Sept. 2016.MTV. "th (Full Episode) | MTV."?YouTube. YouTube, 07 May 2015. Web. 06 Sept. 2016.Santee, Paige. “Power in Numbers.” 07 Sept. 2016.Allum, Flora. “The Significance of Native American Women in Sherman Alexie’s Works.” 08 Nov. 2016. ................
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