An Interview with Dr. Darryl Tonemah

TC:  Do you think there is a different kind of strategy that you use in talking about behavior change with people from American Indian culture that maybe wouldn't work in other cultures, that is specific to the American Indian culture, or do you think if we all would just sit down and listen to each other, maybe we'd all be a little better off?

DT:  I talk a lot about the medicine wheel. I find that people from Native communities appreciate the understanding of wholeness, even if the medicine wheel isn't inherent to that particular community or a strong belief in that community. The key is the understanding that we need to nurture ourselves and our community to become more powerful. And each person wants their community to be more powerful, wants their families or kids to be more powerful. So understanding that concept of the medicine wheel is a good tool for listening to people's story. What part of their circle has scars on it and how is that affecting their behavior? I find that is particularly useful in Indian communities as well as humor. There's specific humor in Indian communities that if they understand that you understand then the walls go down faster. And I saw that with the kids here.

TC:  You talked yesterday about your definition of power, can you say that again?

DT:  I think power for Indian communities is different than power defined by the American culture. I think power in the American culture it is how much can you have, how much can you get, and if you can dominate, that's power. I think a traditional belief in Native culture is pretty much opposite of that. I think power is how much can we lift ourselves, lift our community, lift those around us rather than dominate those around us. I think somebody who can do that has more power than the person who dominates the person sitting next to them. That's my understanding of power. And I see these Indian students here today and I think there's so much potential for that in this room. It is just awesome! They were listening! They're just soaking it up. Five years from now, what are they going to be like? That's an exciting thought!

Siobhan Champ-Blackwell is Community Outreach Liaison for the National Network of Libraries of Medicine – MidContinental Region – based at Creighton University Health Sciences Library in Omaha, Nebraska. She oversees the development of outreach programs to libraries and community based organizations and develops partnerships and programs to assist in the reduction of health disparities in underserved populations.