It's 2012 and We're Still Trying to Oppress Native Americans

I have currently read a few different articles involving one story. This story is about a twelve-year-old girl named Miranda Washinawatok. The first article that I read, "Student Suspended for Speaking Native American Language', (written by the ICTMN Staff) told the story about Miranda Washinawatok, a seventh-grader at Scared Heart Catholic Academy in Shawano, Wisconsin. According to the article, Miranda, which is Menominee, was teaching one of her follow classmates and friends how to say "hello" and "I love you" in her Native language when her teacher had suddenly snapped on her. According to the article. her teacher, Julie Gurta, reportedly yelled at her and said, "You are not to speak like that! How do I know you’re not saying something bad? How would you like it if I spoke in Polish and you didn’t understand?” Miranda, who is an active member on the basketball team, was benched during the game that night. When her mother asked why she wasn't able to play in the game, Miranda told her, for the first time that, "...she was only told by her assistant coach she was being benched because two teachers said she had a bad attitude. I wanted to know what she did to make them say she had a bad attitude.”

The article goes on to explain that,"There is dispute over who actually did the suspending, but the school has admitted it 'failed miserably in its handling of the matter.' Deacon Ray DuBois, the communication director for the Diocese of Green Bay, which operates the school..."  So, no one really knows who suspended Miranda.  There are so many different issues with what has happened here.  The first, and the most obvious, is why is this girl getting in trouble for being able to speak her native language, and for sharing and teaching it to other students?  If anything, Miranda is educating her fellow classmates.  Secondly, why was Miranda's mother not notified about what had happened in the classroom that day?  I know that (not from my personal experience, but because of others at my high school) whenever a student gets into any sort of trouble, they are sent to the Principle's office, and their parent's are called and notified.  So, why wasn't either of Miranda's parents notified about what happened?  Thirdly, why wasn't her teacher punished in some sort of way?  What her teacher did was wrong in so many different ways.  Why was she punishing a student for speaking her native language?  Why did she say such horrible things to her student?  

What this article is showing is that there is still so much racism out there.  It shows that Native Americans are still being oppressed.  It is showing that the "White Man" is still trying to change them and turn them more like us.  I was personally so appalled and offended that a teacher would do such a thing.