Writing as Cathartic Practice and with Intention toward the Audience: Autumn White Eyes on Poetry
Autumn White Eyes (enrolled member of the Oglala Lakota Nation, Turtle Mountain Anishinaabe, Northern Cheyenne, and Pawnee descent) talks about writing, revision, and the evolution of her work. She sees poetry and spoken word as forms of oral tradition and storytelling: "I was lucky to grow up with my great grandmothers," she says, "and I loved hearing them tell stories, which always sounded like poetry to me." Their stories are one source of her inspiration; others include the writing and performance styles of John Trudell, Mayda del Valle, Tanaya Winder, Supaman.
Marking the 400th Anniversary of Pocahontas's Death
The broad strokes of Pocahontas’s biography are well known—unusually so for a 17th-century Indigenous woman. Yet her life has long been shrouded by misunderstandings and misinformation, and by the seemingly inexhaustible output of kitsch representations of her supposed likeness. The conference "Pocahontas and After," organized by the University of London and the British Library, sought a deeper understanding of Pocahontas's life and the lasting impact of the clash of empires that took place in the heart of the Powhatan Confederacy during the 17th-century.