Since there was no Hillel (father is Jewish, mother is a converted Jew and a Tuscarora), the Navajo were some of the sweetest people on the planet. Always smiled, always helpful, kindhearted. . .just amazing people. In contrast, the Hopi I met were just rude and constantly told me that I wasn't native American (because I took after the German side of the family, my younger brother looks like my mother) and told me that Iroquois were "fake Indians."
I remember an instance when my friends and I were going to take a road trip and we went to the Little America before we left. As we went to the fuel/truck stop to pay, these two Navajo girls I knew (undergrads) walked in to buy a few things and get something to eat before they headed back up to Tuba City. They were speaking Navajo to each other.
This big, fat, hairy, disgusting Grizzly Adams wanna-be with a "the south shall rise again" confederate flag shirt (with the sleeves cut off) waddled his fat ass up to these girls who were doing nothing and barked "speak English or go back to where you come from." Not missing a beat, I popped up (since I knew these two ladies personally) and said "their families were here while yours were pulling bones out of their noses in Europe!" He muttered something about Mexico and I lost it. I flipped my shit, screaming ”they are fucking Navajo, shitkicker. And if you are good Christian, do what Jesus did. Be Jewish like me!"
After the horse's ass left to go back to his big rig, I turned to the ladies and apologized for getting into their business. She just shook their heads and one told me she was used to it because the schools forced them to speak only English and they would be punished for speaking Navajo. This was in 1999. 17 years later, it's still the same. . .with Heir Trumpengroper!
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