STANDING BEAR –
“THE PERSON”
(a fictional dialogue based on a true story[i])
by Laura Lai/Uncategorized
(In the spring of 1877 the 750 Ponca Indian Americans, led by
the Standing Bear (1829 – 1908), were forced by the US Army to relocate from
their homeland in Nebraska to the southern Indian Territories (in Oklahoma).
Due to the southern weather conditions, of high humidity, and heat, and without
having received their rations, one-third of the Ponca Indians died in the first
year, including Standing Bear’s daughter, granddaughter, and son. The son’s last
wish was to be buried where all their ancestors are, back in Nebraska.
On January 2nd, 1879 the Standing Bear wrapped the
body of his son and with 30 Ponca Indians started the journey back to Nebraska.
They were followed by the army, accused by Gen. Crook of having left the Indian
Territories and put to jail, where the Standing Bear stood trial in a barrack
in Fort Omaha. He could not stand for himself, because under ‘the white man
law’ he was not considered a man. However, at the end of the trial, Judge Elmer
Dundy allowed Standing Bear to deliver a speech in his defense. He did it
remarkably. And following the trail ‘The Standing Bear vs Crook’, the Indian
Americans are considered ‘persons’, and therefore 100,000 of them become US
citizens. At the trial took part also Mr. Tibbies, a newspaper editorialist,
who described the courtroom.)
The scene is in a courtroom. In
the public, there are fashionably dressed women, clergy, businessmen, lawyers, and Gen. Crook and his staff wearing uniforms. The Standing Bear wears traditional
colorful clothes.
ACCUSATION LAWYER (AL). The
Accusation calls the Standing Bear. (He
walks and sits calmly in the witness box.) Standing Bear, right? (to the public) What kind of name is
that for a man?
PUBLIC (long laughter).
JUDGE. Silence! Silence! (to the AL) Please proceed!
AL (makes a step further from his desk). Mr. Bear (he makes a break to smile), do you know that under the ‘white man
law’ you are not a man? How often do you have sex?
PUBLIC (laughs euphorically).
JUDGE. Silence! Silence in the
courtroom!
DEFENSE LAWYER (DL). Objection,
your Honor! Irrelevant!
JUDGE. Sustained! (to the AL) Please rephrase your
question!
AL. Yes, your Honor! (to the Standing Bear) How do you relax,
Mr. Bear?
PUBLIC (some of them laugh and talk to each other).
DL. Objection!
JUDGE. Overruled! (to the Standing Bear) Please answer the
question!
THE STANDING BEAR (to the Judge). I play the flute, Sir.
AL (makes a few steps even closer to the witness box). This is your
idea of perfect happiness?
PUBLIC (laughs euphorically).
THE STANDING BEAR. My idea of
perfect happiness, Sir, is to be allowed to bury my son, who’s in the wagen
outside …
AL (looks at the public). Mr. Bear, you carry a dead body with you?
PUBLIC (gestures of disgust).
THE STANDING BEAR (to the Judge). … where our ancestors
are buried. And for my people to return to our Homeland.
AL (arrogant). I suppose you know what a ‘building’ is. Does your
beloved ‘Homeland’ have buildings? Any favorite one you have, Bear?
PUBLIC (laughs euphorically).
JUDGE (to the public). Silence!
Silence! (to the AL) I want the
detained to be referred as ‘Mr. Standing Bear’. (to the Standing Bear) Please answer your question!
THE STANDING BEAR (looks towards the window). The Homeland
of my people is nature, Sir. For generations, we have tried to live in harmony
with nature. And nature has been good to us. Our Fatherland is back in
Nebraska, Sir because there are all our ancestors buried. (to the AL) Yes, Sir, there are buildings in my Homeland. And of
all the tents we have, my favorite is the one in which I live in harmony with
my family.
PUBLIC (smiles arrogantly).
AL (returning to its desk): Mr. Bear…
THE STANDING BEAR (to the Judge). If I am allowed. I
haven’t finished my sentence.
JUDGE. Go ahead, Mr. Standing
Bear.
THE STANDING BEAR (to the AL). We also have vehicles in my
Homeland. I personally have a BlackBerry vehicle.
PUBLIC (intrigued). What? What kind of vehicle is that? A ‘Black Berry’?
Never heard of it!
JUDGE: Silence!
AL (from his desk). One last question, your Honor! (to the Standing Bear) What is your most
unappealing habit?
THE STANDING BEAR (to the AL). That I do not mock people,
Sir!
PUBLIC (many of them looked down).
AL (arrogant, to the DL). The accused is yours!
DL (goes fast near the Standing Bear). What is your greatest fear now?
THE STANDING BEAR. I fear that I
will not be able to fulfill the last wish of my son, to bury him with all our
ancestors.
DL. Would you call this journey
back to your homeland for this purpose and leave the Indian territories the greatest extravagance you have ever allowed yourself?
DL. Yes, Sir, I do. But I must
fulfill my son’s wish.
PUBLIC (an impressed woman starts crying).
DL (to the Public). My client was doing the journey back, because of
honor. Honor is its favorite word, a motto of his life…
AL. Objection! Speculation!
JUDGE. Sustained! (to the DL) Please formulate questions!
DL. Yes, your Honor! (to the Standing Bear) Mr. Standing
Bear, what words or phrases do you most overuse?
THE STANDING BEAR. Honor, Sir! We
honor the present by living in harmony with nature and we honor the past by
being with our ancestors whose spirits guide us towards the future.
PUBLIC (speechless).
DL. What is your favorite
journey? Where would you like to live?
THE STANDING BEAR. We want to go
back to our Homeland where our ancestors lived, to our Fatherland. We have been
forced to relocate in a new territory where we feel like strangers. The
greatest regret of my life is that I had to break this convention and leave
this new and strange territory to go back to what our home was for hundreds of
years (He makes a pause) …in order to
bury my son. All my other relatives are buried in the new land, but my son
asked to be with all our ancestors. But for this cause, I am prepared to die! (Pause)
The greatest love of my life is
my tribe, my family, and my Homeland. I stand here, in front of you, in order to
allow us to return to our Homeland. And never to be forced to leave it,
depending on the decisions that may come with the wind. (He stands)
I have never asked to be the
leader of my people, but this is what my appearance in these clothes shows. But
the most important lesson life has taught me since I wear these clothes is that,
although the skin of my hand may be a little bit darker than yours, if I cut
myself, it hurts and there is blood. And if you cut, it hurts you, too and
there is blood, too. We are all people made by the same God! (Pause)
And I would like to be remembered
by my people, as the Standing Bear who stood for their rights and had a fair
trial! Thank you!
DL (while going back to its desk). No further questions, your Honor!
PUBLIC (standing, cheering, and clapping hands).
JUDGE. Court dismissed! (He leaves)
[i] This was an exercise
I made within the framework of a writing course, in which the participants were
asked to choose one picture from different eight pictures, and combine them
with 20 questions. The questions were: 1. What is your favorite building? 2. What is your favorite journey? 3. What
is your favorite word? 4. What vehicles do you own? 5. Where would you like to
live? 6. What is your idea of perfect happiness? 7. What is your greatest
extravagance? 8. What is your greatest fear? 9. What do you most dislike about
your appearance? 10. What is your most unappealing habit? 11. What words of
phrases do you most overuse? 12. Which living person do you most admire? 13.
What or who is the greatest love of your life? 14. What is your greatest
regret? 15. For what cause would you die? 16. How do you relax? 17. How often do you have sex? 18. What is the most important lesson life has taught you?
19. What would your motto be? 20. How would you like to be remembered? I
chose the picture of a Ponca Man and I imagined that it was the Standing Bear.
I knew the story, but I revised it, in particular the amazing speech he hold.
In order to do this (homework) exercise I imagined that he was cross-examined,
and tried to use as much as possible from these questions, making out of it a
coherent, plausible scene corresponding to the atmosphere of those times. I
had no intention to offend anybody or the memory of a person, but if I did it,
I would like to apologize in advance.
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