Her poem “Some Like Indians Endure” is about the similarities between Indigenous and lesbian identities. We have both faced oppression and erasure at the hands of “whiteman” and yet we find each other, we overcome, and most importantly, we remember. Even though we have fewer and fewer places to call our own, we are still connected by our resilience and our ancestors. We find joy and community everywhere. This print highlights both Native culture and queer culture with ceremony, dance, and protest. The constellations are divine hands that form bridges between these floating rocks, proving that we will never be cut off from each other. And, of course, no lesbian piece is complete without a reference to the moon. As a Northern Cheyenne and Lebanese American lesbian poet myself, Paula Gunn Allen has been a significant queer ancestor to me. I love this poem for its reconciliation of Indigenous and lesbian identities. Paula Gunn Allen is the grandmother with warm hands who makes Indian tacos whenever you come over because she knows you love them. She doesn’t even notice the hot grease splatter- the freckled burns all over her forearms can attest to that. Somehow she always has another old photo album to show you, pointing out cousins you’ll never meet because she wants you to know you’re never alone. She seems old and fragile now, but sometimes she’ll talk about her life and you remember that it’s only the toughest Native women who can survive this long.
