On Being Indigenous In the 21st Century
by Michael Doyle

In this world of the modern age
When most wish to appear a wise sage
It is pithy to posture and say
In that pseudo-intellectual way

That the indigenous follow Mother Nature's way
Though if you were to ask us, we'd likely say
That we were the originals marginalized in modern life
And that the more is better as we wish little of that strife

All finger pointing likes to place America to blame
Forgetting all the empires built in Europe's name
But even that is inaccurate as China is the same
So, perhaps to blame anything but power corrupted is lame

World War Two's end brought many a new nation
Sometimes with little to no valid explanation
As the indigenous sought out their sovereignty 
Sometimes willingly surrendering a bit of dignity

To hold their heads up a little higher
With less skill than burning desire
To make their own way into this world
With their largely symbolic flags unfurled

Many are the peoples distinguished in history
Who in this modern world live in poverty
There in confrontational extremes of vulnerability
Willingly endured in the namesake of diversity

Slash and burn borne of need for cultivation
Have brought havoc across Amazonia's nations
While tribes form nations as the legacy
Seeking mostly after their squalid continuity

Coffee stains the teeth and soul with grit
When even 40% of the native tongues are forfeit
Losing language that encodes cultural perceptions
Thinking and knowing become limited in their definition

It's truly a matter of saving one's community
To find one's identity in finding place of family
DNA alone cannot give any one needed inclusion
But it does set the boundaries of exclusion

(c) August 21, 2020  Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved