I Get Why I Don’t Get It
May 18, 2008
Covering the Washoe people poses an interesting difficulty for the community-based reporting encouraged by this master’s program.
Some of my work for this program has been to investigate the different forms of spirituality at Tahoe using video and audio to create multimedia presentations. Since the Washoe are the original inhabitants of this area, I was hoping to use multimedia to capture the essence of their spiritual connection to the land.
After a bit of work, I set up a meeting with a group of Washoe willing to talk to me about their spirituality. However, I was under the mistaken impression that I’d be able to videotape our conversation.
As the meeting started, members of the group expressed their misgivings about being videotaped. Sensing that only a written piece would be possible, I decided that the story would be to understand why I Washoe wouldn’t want multimedia coverage of their particular spiritual connection to the land.
Here’s the thrust behind the Washoe’s objection. To be videotaped and put online as a bit of information to be consumed by a non-tribe members is alien to what is needed to understand the significance of the land for a Washoe. For the Washoe, their land is everything and its significance can’t be summed up in a sound bite.
According to Washoe Tribe member Steven James, their language, and their culture are intimately connected with the land. This connection carries with it a way of viewing the world only attained by having grown up practicing the customs that define the Washoe way of life.
Here’s an example. Washoe Tribe member Lynda Shoshone told me of a public meeting in which the Forest Service, rock climbers, and members of the Washoe tribe gathered to discuss the prohibition of climbing Cave Rock. One climber stated how for 15 years she’d been climbing Cave Rock and that this was her spiritual connection to Tahoe. Shoshone said she replied, “Try 15,000 years. That’s how long we’ve been here and connected to the land.”
Another obstacle in understanding the Washoe’s connection to the land is because non-natives do not understand themselves to be a part of the land. Non-natives think the land is something that we can own, control, and sell.
One the other hand, in a way that at best we can only dimly grasp, the Washoe have a reciprocal and respectful relation with the land. The land–including the lake, the animals and plants, and the streams–is the source of all that is needed to live. The land provides the Washoe with food and clothing. In this sense, the land makes life possible for the Washoe. The Washoe, in turn, believe that they should take care of the land.
A third obstacle in understanding the Washoe’s connection to the land is that place makes all the difference for being an authentic person. It is the long history that the Washoe have with land in Tahoe that defines who they are as a tribe and as individuals.
For example, I can move from Reno to another place and remain the individual I am. My job may change. My friends may change. My house may change. However, I’m still thinking of myself as the same person.
For the Washoe, this is impossible. One’s identity is entirely rooted in the land around Tahoe. To leave the area is to deny the experiences and traditions that define one’s selfhood.
One last obstacle that we might make is to think of the Washoe tribe as an item of the past. Shoshone pointed to an information-laden poster on her wall that read, “Who were the Washoe?” She then said, “That’s wrong. It should read, ‘Who are the Washoe?’”
We, the community-based reporters in this area, need to remember that the habits and traditions of past Washoe still hold significance for the Washoe people in the present. The continuation of these habits and traditions up until today also help make sense of the resolution behind Shoshone’s statement: “We aren’t going anywhere.”
However, practically speaking, neither will any of the other communities living around Tahoe.
So, if the Washoe aren’t going anywhere, and the Tahoe public isn’t going anywhere, how can we cover the Washoe community? How can we hope to make journalism a positive force in this community, just as we’ve been hoping to help others who live around Tahoe?
The important point for the kind of community-based reporting endorsed by this program is that we can’t hope to represent the Washoe in a single series, with a single piece. Moreover, the complexity, tradition, and sacred nature of Washoe spiritual practice can’t be captured and put online for immediate comprehension and understanding by the larger Tahoe public. It’s not information or news to be consumed. Rather, it’s a way of life only experienced if one has been brought up in it.
When leaving the meeting, Washoe Tribe member Beverley Caldera said, “Respect us and our ways. Don’t lead, but walk alongside us.”
I take this to be a great metaphor that bears similarity with an idea important for this program: journalism is a conversation. In conversation, neither party speaking has priority of importance. Moreover, conversations take place over time and often involve miscommunication.
In short, would you say of someone whose motivations, about which you were unsure, could sum up your life and the significance of your home in a minute long multimedia presentation?
Using my own intuitive response to this question, I get why the Washoe objected to the approach behind my story. In other words, I get why I don’t get the Washoe way of life.
However, I do understand that this is also an offer to get to know the Washoe–an opportunity that I hope next year’s cohort will explore.
Tags: WashoeRelated posts: [ St. John’s in the Wilderness ] [ Tales from Tahoe ] [ First meeting of BMPTalks highlights policy challenges ] [ What happened? ] [ Public may soon own “Duke of Nevada’s” summer retreat ]
St. John’s in the Wilderness
May 16, 2008
St. John’s in the Wilderness Episcopal Church is located on the scenic shores of Glenbrook in South Lake Tahoe.
Click on the photo to hear church members Barbara Olsen, Dennis Cocking, Carolyn Goodenough, and Bonnie Woizeski speak about the spiritual significance of the church’s location.
Related posts: [ “Love thy neighbor” takes on a new meaning for local church ] [ Together in prayer, Junto en la oración ] [ I Get Why I Don’t Get It ] [ Getting to know you ] [ Hispanics attend landscaping class ]
Cinco de Mayo Celebration in South Lake Tahoe
April 29, 2008
Here’s a link to my blog with information about this week’s Cinco de Mayo celebration at Heavenly. I hope to see you there.
Related posts: [ What would you do if you were TRPA? ] [ Is there missing information? ] [ Most connected groups ] [ Community meeting to discuss solutions for BMPs - Live streaming video available ] [ Fire fund extends deadlines for Angora victims ]
Has agency conflict made the fire threat worse?
March 25, 2008
A number of local papers ran a story by the Associated Press Monday that argues bureaucratic infighting among land management agencies has seriously damaged efforts to prevent catastrophic fire in the Lake Tahoe basin (See: Records show infighting hurt Tahoe fire prevention in the Tahoe Bonanza).
Based on your own experiences and observations, do you think this is the case? Do you see evidence that the infighting is still going on, or do you think recent steps by the TRPA and others are improving the situation? What suggestions do you have for reducing the threat of major fire in the basin? Read more
Related posts: [ Hello Friends. ] [ Together in prayer, Junto en la oración ] [ Community newspaper struggles to reach Hispanics ] [ Hispanics attend landscaping class ] [ The life of a fire ]
Keeping Tahoe Green
March 16, 2008
Ten years in prison and a fine of up to $750,000—would you pay that price for a better view of Lake Tahoe from your house? Perhaps not, but many seriously consider it, and some actually do pay such a price. Patricia Vincent, a 58-year-old resident of Incline Village, is facing these steep fines after recently cutting down three trees on federal property—trees that were obstructing her view of the lake from her house.
But why are the consequences so drastic? Why would anyone choose to accept them? The answers to these questions might be as numerous as the trees around Lake Tahoe. Read more
Related posts: [ South Lake neighborhood lives on, even without houses ] [ Defensible space advocate helps her community ] [ Incline Lake: Public may soon own “Duke of Nevada’s” summer retreat ] [ BMP compliance is low in Tahoe Basin ] [ Are slash mats worth the cost? ]
Preparing for the extreme
March 11, 2008
Just when Mike Weber, South Lake Tahoe’s, becomes convinced that global warming is going to forever change the mountain town he’s called home for 32 years, he reads something contradictory.
“What if it’s just a normal cycle the Earth is going through?” he wonders.
A recent Associated Press article painted this grim picture of California’s future:
“Abandoned ski lifts from Lake Tahoe to the fire-ravaged mountains of Southern California dangle above lonely trails that are now more suitable for mountain biking during much of the winter. The Joshua trees that once extended their tangled arms into the desert sky by the thousands have all but disappeared.”
Weber is not singular in his dilemma.
Jeff Mount, a scientist at the University of California, Davis who spoke recently at Sierra Nevada College, said communities are often reluctant to deal with the possibility of disaster.
Known as “Dr. Doom,” Mount addressed potential water crises in the Sierra, and urged community members to prepare.
He said communities often forget about previous problems once they’ve been resolved. Instead, he said, they live from “tipping point to tipping point,” managing a crisis as it occurs.
Preparing Tahoe
Although Weber is reluctant to subscribe to one particular scenario, he agrees the Lake Tahoe residents must prepare for unpredictable winters because unpredictable winters can mean an unpredictable economy.
With the state experiencing a budget shortfall, Weber said the city is taking a harder look at its own budget.
And much of it depends on snow: When there’s enough of it, tourists come to Tahoe.
When tourists come, they spend money on hotels, entertainment, food and recreation — all of which are taxed and those taxes feed the city and school budgets.
In years like last year when there’s not much snow, there aren’t many tourists, and the economy suffers.
Although this year is looking more promising, Mount says, this kind of snowfall will probably become more rare in the future.
He said last year’s winter will become more of the norm: more rain than snow and a shorter season.
But, it’s not necessarily doomsday, he concludes, contradicting his moniker.
“It’s not clear to me it’s going to be a disaster for these mountain towns,” he said. “It will mean winter recreation will decrease, but that just means there needs to be more long-term planning.”
And Weber is no novice when it comes to planning and adaptation.
A longtime businessman and former owner of the Camp Richardson resort and restaurants the Beacon and Fresh Catch, he banked his livelihood on it.
He built his business around cross-country skiing and snowshoeing recreation, but remembers one President’s Day weekend renting out bikes rather than skis.
Following the lead of “Old Mr. Ross” who ran the stables at Camp Richardson, Weber began keeping a weather diary.
He found that, on average, Tahoe would experience three winters with above-average snowfall, three below the four normal winters. He said he saw little variation in 30 years.
So even without the threat of global climate change, he said, it is still important for business owners to prepare for erratic winters.
He credits Heavenly Mountain Resort for capitalizing on snow-making technology, but says the community should do more.
A tourist destination
Snow is an obvious attraction for Lake Tahoe. The trick, Weber said, is to keep tourists coming even when there isn’t any.
“You always have to be ready to re-invent yourself,” he said.
Kirkwood has found ways to utilize the ski resort in summer months.
The resort has added a variety of summer activities, including climbing walls, Frisbee golf, swimming and hiking. The most popular may be mountain biking, where riders take the ski lift to the top of the mountain then ride down.
Weber said that kind of innovation needs to be part of the year-round mentality.
He said businesses should market to tourists from father away, like foreign countries. Ones who most likely won’t cancel a trip, even if there’s no snow.
“They will honor their vacation, honor themselves and their families,” Weber said.
If they can’t recreate in the way they had planned, Weber said, other options should be available. “It’s still an amazing site for people to behold,” he said. “They can still go on nature walks, parties, poetry and other events. There’s a combination of things.”
Weber says the community should host more special events, pointing to the Renaissance Faire that was initially met with skepticism, but ended up drawing upwards of 40,000 people over two weekends.
And there are less traditional ways of drawing people to the Tahoe Basin.
Weber is hopeful the new conference center being built will keep a steady flow of tourism dollars. It will keep people coming, regardless of weather conditions, he said.
“Eighty percent of something is better than 100 percent of nothing,” he said.
Daniel Pistoresi, the Kirkwood’s marketing communications manager, said they are finding a way to bridge the gap between summer and winter offerings.
“Where we’re finding our revenue source is in our online offerings,” he said. “It’s definitely helped bolster our revenue during slow periods.”
The company offers a full-service retail shop online, including skis and snowboard bindings, winter wear and season passes.
A second economy
Kirkwood’s move to online commerce is a good one, Weber said. He’s also started an Internet business.
It’s a good way to keep funds in the economy, while minimizing the carbon footprint.
It could also encourage second-home owners to make Tahoe their primary residence, and run their business online, Weber said, giving a boost to the sagging real estate market.
To make the permanent move, he said, residents will have to see that Tahoe has a good school system and other amenities.
But for any of it to happen, Mount said, it will take the leadership of residents.
“We shouldn’t ignore the inevitable,” he said.
Related posts: [ Snow woes: Businesses cope with late snowfall ] [ Explore snow history at Tahoe ] [ Tough winters, tough people ] [ Getting to know you ] [ Hello and Welcome ]
Explore snow history at Tahoe
March 9, 2008
Here at OurTahoe we have been experimenting with new ways to tell stories. This collage uses VUVOX to show how snow variability affects the residents and economy of Tahoe. Use your mouse to navigate left and right and roll over the hot spots for more information. Don’t forget to leave a comment, telling us how snow variability affects you and what you think the community might do to address these issues. Click here to read how community leaders are addressing snow issues. Read more
Related posts: [ It’s all about you ] [ BMP community conversation to begin soon ] [ What would you do if you were TRPA? ] [ Organization cares for community’s needy ] [ Community meeting to discuss solutions for BMPs - Live streaming video available ]
Snow woes: Businesses cope with late snowfall
December 17, 2007
At Lake Tahoe, the glistening white snow has always meant green for local businesses, casinos and ski resorts. So late winters, like this year, mean fewer tourists and fewer dollars in the economy.
Related posts: [ Preparing for the extreme ] [ Tough winters, tough people ] [ Explore snow history at Tahoe ] [ Fire fund extends deadlines for Angora victims ] [ Announcing Green Rewards ]
First snow falls on Tahoe, not all celebrate
December 15, 2007
Table of contents for Angora Fire
- First snow falls on Tahoe, not all celebrate
- New traditions for Christmas
|
