Historic gathering ushers in new era for Alaska Native languages

Lt. Governor Treadwell opens roundtable discussion

Today Alaska Lt. Governor Mead Treadwell convened a Roundtable on Alaska Native Languages to discuss recently-passed legislation which would form an Alaska Native Language Preservation and Advisory Council. Although the governor has yet to sign the legislation, it has already garnered broad support. More than 50 participants turned out at the Anchorage Legislative Information Office to share ideas about what ANL-PAC could and should accomplish. Participants were not afraid to dream big, to think creatively about revitalizing Alaska's Native languages.

As I continue to reflect on the day, two things strike me as particularly encouraging. First, no one at the meeting seemed to be looking for a silver bullet, a magic method which will effortlessly bring back the languages. This was a sober group, which clearly recognized that language revitalization is and will be hard work. I continually heard people asking for tools and training which would enable them to work more effectively at the task of teaching language. UAF Gwich'in instructor Kathy Sikorski emphasized that developing curriculum for Native languages is hard work which requires supportive communities, speakers, and politicians. (Sikorski's testimony is highlighted in this Associated Press story). But this is a group which is ready to do the hard work. What ANL-PAC can do is help to make sure language teachers, activists, and programs have access to the best tools, training, and information available.

Another thing that encouraged me about today's conversation was the overwhelmingly positive focus. Alaska Native languages have been deliberately beaten down through decades of official anti-Native policies. Way back in 1887, in a letter to newly-hired teachers Alaska's first commissioner of education, Sheldon Jackson, wrote:

“It is the purpose of the government in establishing schools in Alaska to train up English speaking American citizens. You will therefore teach in English and give special prominence to instruction in the English language"

Memories of abuse and punishment for speaking Native languages are all too clear for many speakers. The Bilingual Education Act of 1972 changed official state policy toward Native languages -- at least for a while. Then in 1998 Alaska passed an English-only law, and though parts of that law were struck down as unconstitutional, crucial pieces still remain. An English-only law may be largely symbolic, but the symbolism reflects an underlying fear and resistance toward Native language. Given this clear policy of extermination, it is easy to get discouraged, to focus on the negative. Indeed, I have been at other language meetings which devoted so much time to discussing past abuses that they left little time for discussing strategies for moving forward.

That was clearly not the case at today's roundtable. To be sure there was no white-washing of the past. As Lance Twitchell pointed out, there's a lot of suffering that the middle generations carry around, and we need to deal with that pain. But we also need to find a way forward, listen to the children, put the language on the street, in the home. Today's brain-storming sessions came up with a long list of ideas for the proposed Council. These will need to be sorted and sifted. The Council will certainly have a full agenda. But one clear immediate goal emerged: namely, the need for better sharing of information, a clearinghouse for information about teacher training, teaching methods, language technology etc. That seems a natural place to start.

Presuming Governor Parnell signs the legislation, Alaska will become perhaps the first state to implement a Native language advisory council at such a high level of state government. Having felt the energy and dedication of the participants at today's meeting, I am encouraged. This may truly be a new era for Alaska Native languages.