With a Natural American Spirit cigarette in one hand and a cup of hot black coffee in front of him, legendary Native American poet and activist John Trudell sits across from me at an outside table at Rose’s Café in Venice Beach, CA. I have been looking forward to this interview since I saw Heather Rae’s documentary Trudell last January at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival.
John Estherent: What did you think about the idea of having a film made about you?
John Trudell: I was curious. Heather was from the next generation and I wanted to see what she knew and what she would do with the material… I think they did a great job.
Do you find it ironic the film is illustrating a well-known figure such as yourself when much of your philosophy and rhetoric emphasizes mass populace conscious and mobilization?
I think they focused on the movement. I was not a spokesperson for all Natives; I was a spokesperson for Natives who agreed with me
In what way is your work inspired by oral tradition?
Musically, I wanted to take the spoken word with traditional and contemporary music and build the whole sound around the spoken work. No matter what we do in this life, the spoken word is at the core of it. That’s our primary source of communication as humans.
How do oral tradition and spoken word fit into our contemporary world?
JT: Most dialogue doesn’t really make a lot of sense because what’s going on in our contemporary world doesn’t make a lot of sense. We got here by believing what we’re told. Any spoken word is crucial to any society. Obviously, we don’t understand the power and value of the spoken word. We’re using words that create more confusion.
According to some of the things you say, Americans simultaneously suspect their government, yet think it is doing good deeds around the world with its promotion of democracy. What do you think of this dichotomy?
Out of the large mass of American people–it doesn’t matter if it’s the right or the left or the in-between–none of them really trust the government [He laughs]. But they believe in it. That says something coherent is not happening here. The other part of the problem is that the American people are trapped in their beliefs. But in reality, “believe” means, “I don’t know.” “I believe” sedates the intelligence. If you believe, you don’t think. But since birth–through religion, politics, and education–we were taught to believe. We were never taught to seek knowledge and understanding. We were taught to absorb the data and believe it.
Do you think words can ever replace violence as the dominant discourse in our world?
I think [they] can play a role in it. But only clear and coherent use of our intelligence can replace violence. If we understand the words we are using, then we can replace violence. It’s our thinking process. Whatever our words we engage in, they’re a result of our thinking process. We live under this banner of “freedom of speech.” It’s not really about “freedom of speech.” It’s about freethinking and responsibility of speech. If we think clearly and coherently then we will fulfill the responsibility of spoken word. People say a lot of words but they don’t appear to be well thought out. It’s just a lot of emotional, reactionary-ism taking place in society right now.
The documentary discusses how much of your work as an artist and poet came from the horrible violence that took your family. In your own words, how did your work enable you to cope with that tragedy?
I don’t really know how to explain that. Once I started writing and I developed the ability to communicate in that kind of way, it helped me get through it. It [wasn’t] a conscious decision. I had to go with what was happening in my life. The words and lines appeared. I made the decision to go in that direction. I had no other plan. I wanted to use the power of the spoken word, the power of singing, and the chant, the power of the drum, and combine these powers together and see if we could create another power.
What would you like to see the U.S. Government do with regard to the indigenous people of this land?
Same thing we started out with: the law. Treaties are laws. America has a legal responsibility to fulfill, honor and obey those laws. If America became a law-abiding nation, not only would it benefit the Native people, it would benefit the citizens of America.
What must the indigenous people do to help themselves?
The same thing the non-indigenous people have to do and that’s to use our intelligence clearly and coherently and respect our intelligence.
Is there more urgency for the oppressed to use their intelligence?
There is urgency for it because that’s the only way out. The only way out for any of us is to use our individual–which leads to collective–intelligence clearly and coherently and try that as a source of power. Rather than economic, political and religious mechanisms, let’s try understanding the power of our intelligence. We have a whole society of people running around feeling powerless while they destroy themselves because they have been programmed to use their intelligence against themselves. We have to take the responsibility. Life isn’t about freedom, life’s about responsibility. When we understand that, we will be free. ~