Letter to A Stranger

Reflecting on Toni Morrison's idea of the 'other' as somebody who we consciously separate ourselves from , I crafted this letter to the Amerindian people of my country in response to the following prompt:

Prepare a letter addressed to a stranger, identifying in what ways that person is a stranger, how language, image and experience have created this individual as a stranger to you , and identify which one of these three manners you would like to adjust, i.e, would you like to learn more about this person via language, images of them or experience?

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Dear Stranger,

You are a member of the indigenous people of my country, and an important part of our history; yet, I have always felt a certain detachment from you. You reside with your tribes in the forested interior regions, away from ‘civilization’, which is all I have really known. My interactions with you have been limited to classroom lessons and media portrayals, both of which emphasize your traditional practices above everything else. More often than not, I can only envision you in your traditional Amerindian wear: headdress and tibisiri skirt, ceremonial tattoos, barefooted; not a t-shirt and jeans, or a dress, or a suit. I can only envision you spending the days hunting animals, building the benabs you live in, and participating in ceremonial rites of passage; not in an office, running a business or working with technology. This is strange, because I have observed you outside of your own environment, navigating the streets of busy Georgetown just as well as any other townsperson. If I had not mentally set you aside because of our many differences, I might have considered you part of the crowd like anyone else. You have stepped out of your own domain into mine, but I have not crossed into yours – this is what I would like to change. I want to visit your communities, talk to your tribal elders, hear your stories, and for the first time, learn from you and not just about you.

Greer Jackson.