What I had learned from the passage “Native American Identity” Us as Native Americans are kind of growing apart from our culture, our culture is what makes us who we are but these days Native American kids are choosing to go the white route instead of learning the language and the ways of their own people. In the passage it says “Someday we’re all going to be like white people.” I truly believe that this is true because everyday it seems like we are drifting further and further away from our culture and tradition. Many kids don’t even know how to speak their language, they speak more english than their native tongue. This is due to the fact that popular american culture has become more dominant in our lifetime. “White privilege” is a big term that is used in the passage which typically means being white is sufficient in a world mostly run by white people. This also leads to all the other races besides white being underprivileged and treated like garbage. This is pretty messed up because not everybody has the same chance or opportunity that other people have and when someone is not white has a chance or a little opportunity to make it out everybody all of a sudden wants to hate on them. One of the last things I got out of this is cultural change. Being Native American 100 years ago is not the same as being Native American in today’s society.

Jeannette Armstrong, “Sharing One Skin”, Paradigm Wars, Sierra Club Books, printed, 85 Second Street, San Francisco, CA.

The story “Sharing One Skin” has taught me many different things. The story is about being yourself, learning about your culture and religion, and learning about your true identity and finding out where you come from. One quote from the passage that stood out to me is the saying ”We identify the whole person as having four main capacities that operate together: The physical self. The emotional self. The thinking-intellectual self. And the spiritual self. The four selves have equal importance in the way we function with and experience all things.” This quote from the passage shows how we have to find it within ourselves to be strong and keep being ourselves. The key to keeping our future generations interactive within our culture is the elders. The elders play a big role in telling us stories, teaching us the language, and passing the culture down to the grandchildren and not letting the culture and traditions die. We need to find it within ourselves to keep everyone involved and active to preserve our culture, even in the times we live in now many Native American kids are whitewashed and don’t want anything to do with their identity. The one question we should ask ourselves is: How do I remember who I am ? we have to find it within ourselves and come up with the answer.

Perry G. Horse, “Native American Identity”, New Directions For Student Services. No 109, Wiley Periodicals. Inc. Spring 2005.

Basketball is a sport that is played worldwide. You can go out in the rain, sunshine and snow. Basketball is a form of therapy, it eases the mind and reduces stress from our everyday lives. Basketball has taught many lessons, while playing basketball you learn leadership, trust, teamwork, and how to be ready physically but how you have to be ready mentally. Many people think basketball is all about the physical aspect, not many people consider the mental aspect. You have to be ready mentally just as you are physically. The mental part of the game is 50% of what you are doing on the court, you gotta be ready to make split second decisions.

Jacob Barry. “Learning to stay in the Game with challenging clients”. What basketball taught me about therapy. Psychotherapy Networker. 2010. Website. accessed on Nov. 4, 2021.

In the video Kobe Bryant is talking about following your passion and asking yourself: what am I truly passionate about? If you can't ask that question while you are doing something you love, it isn't meant for you. You can’t be the star of the basketball team and go out partying every weekend, you can’t do that. You gotta stay focused on what's important and if that is basketball you gotta be committed 110%. You gotta have the Mamba Mentality and focus on what you are doing right. Don't focus on the bad, but on the good and set a good example for your peers.

“Mamba Mentality - Kobe Bryant (Motivational Video)”. Youtube. Uploaded by Chispa Motivation. 1 Aug, 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gi9y3sTrXE.

In the article I found, a local street paper from Portland Oregon has an article written about the youth and their gang life. The article was explaining how in Portland they are entering a second consecutive summer filled with record-breaking levels of gang shootings, homicides, and violence. The gunmen are getting younger and younger, they are being forced to be in the gang because one of the parents and many uncles are already in, so they don’t really have a choice. “We’re seeing a lot of 13-, 14-year-olds doing a lot of the shootings. They’re really active, really trying to make a name for themselves,” (Green). Most of the kids on the streets are either in the Oregon Youth Authority correctional facilities, for crimes from murder to armed robbery. All the youth in the facilities are either gang members or deeply gang-involved.

Green, Emily. “Youths and the Gang Life: Their Stories, in Their Words.” Street Roots, Street Roots, 12 May 2016,

In an article written by the University of Florida Health it explains the many reasons why teens use drugs and alcohol at such a young age. Some of the reasons many teens / young adults use drugs is to fit in, to be social, to deal with life changes, and to ease the pain and anxiety. These are just some examples on why teens use drugs, the effects are worse. The signs that your teen may experience while using drugs is slow or slurred speech, loss of appetite, and unsteady gait. You may also notice changes in your teens energy levels such as, sluggishness, constant sleeping, and the least common one hyperactivity. The change in behavior is also noticeable, notice different things like dropping grades or poor grades, not taking part in usual activities, and secretive activities. These are some of the reasons teens use drugs and the side effects of the substances.

“Teenagers and Drugs.” UF Health, University of Florida Health, 28 July 2021