The Sacred Hoop by: Paula Gunn Allen provides a deep and insightful look into the reality of the world that is American Indian. The feminine traditions discussed within this book show the fall of traditional sacred feminine beliefs into the modern patriarchal dominance which prevails today. This collection of essays also shows the traditional value of homosexuals within native communities before contact.
The book is divided into three parts. The first part, The Ways of Our Grandmothers discusses many traditional native beliefs. It seeks to show many parallels between various native practices as well as acknowledge that matriarchal society was primarily dominant before European contact. The primary belief seems to be that in the beginning there was thought, and from her came humans and the spirituality that is healing. Following this collection of narratives is the section titled The Word Warriors. This part uses examples from various other authors to show ways in which women are empowered today through their writing. It also seeks to show differences between Indian ceremonial practice and assumptions made by people foreign to the cultures about Indian culture, based on the beliefs that these people (primarily white) have because of the culture they were raised with. The final section, Pushing Up The Sky deals with issues facing women and homosexuals today. It examines gender based roles as well as violence and rape by Indian men as a result of the destruction of the traditional, peaceful, gynocentric (societies where women hold political and religious power) way of life that was before European contact. The fact that American Indians constitute less than one half of one percent of the American population screams the truth about American genocidal intent through relocation and assimilation. The Sacred Hoop is a collective piece which is necessary to anyone interested in feminine or American Indian culture.
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