From Behold The Black Caaiman Analysis

In reading “From Behold the Black Caiman”, I grew fascinated with the hostile relationship between the ranchers and the Ayoreo and the way in which this account of indigenous encroachment by Europeans held many parallels with the Native American narrative. As we discussed in class, the violation of physical boundaries (which, in the case of the Ayoreo, involves the bulldozing of their forest) is a recurring theme when it comes to contact between caucasian settlers and uncontacted tribal groups. After reading this piece and watching the corresponding video, I was able to better understand this connection as well as the questions being asked of me as a reader. Our imagination’s image of primitive, isolated, “Stone Age” indigenous people heavily
Not only is this mindset dangerous to indigenous people as it creates a wall of racism and xenophobia that they are forced to encounter when faced with our presence, but it also inhibits our ability to learn more about their way of life and focus on the ways in which we are actually quite similar to one another. Bessire wrote of the fascinating habits of the Ayoreo people, emphasizing the fact that they are far more familiar with nature than we are. These people are so intricately connected with the resources for food, water, and shelter that we seldom (or never) encounter due to our first-world experience. Bessire wrote, for example, that the people of the Ayoreo tribe “collect the aromatic wild honey”, and as we watched in the video, know exactly what trees they will find it in. He also described the way in which they make their clothing and bags, “from the leaf fibers of the dajudie plant”, and the ways in which they heal sickness. While their methods may seem foreign, these simple activities provide insight into a life that has a number of connections to Western life. The materials and resources which we have access to may greatly differ from those that they do, but learning their
One of the parallels that stood out to me most was the theme of displacement that both groups faced. With the Ayoreo, this displacement was caused by bulldozers driven by ranchers who aimed to tame the land and construct cattle ranches. And, as we know, Native Americans were forcefully pushed off their land by Europeans who aimed to colonize North America. Both groups faced violence and were unfairly stereotyped as savages by those pushing them off their land. These struggles continue today. They are so real and undeniable, and yet, so often ignored by the mainstream due to the fact that justice for indigenous people has not truly occurred yet. Sometimes, these injustices will be brought to light. For example, in 2016, the protests surrounding the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline on the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota were brought to the forefront of our attention by the media and passionate individuals and groups who rallied against the construction of the pipeline. If construction occurred, they warned, the primary water source for the reservation would be jeopardized, and the sacred sights would be damaged, violating treaty rights. Unfortunately, the decision to cease construction of the pipe was overturned by President Trump. The average American probably spends very little time