“We are the last remnants of the Sand Lizard clan…So many of us have died it’s no wonder clusters of rain clouds gather over the old gardens.”
Through Grandma Fleet’s recollections, Indigo learns about the elements of their clan that have been eliminated over time. Furthermore expounding on the connection the Native community has with the natural environment and ecological systems. Their identity is tied to the land, rainstorm, flora and fauna and the belief that the spirits of their ancestors persist through them. Grandma Fleet as one of the oldest members left brings forth the cultural memory to reconstruct what has been lost. The displacement from their ancestral land has separated them from the presence of their culture and descendants.
“The Indian child meant nothing but trouble to the school authorities; they didn’t care if she was lost or died”
Indigo and her family have known prejudice and subjugation from the people outside their clan communities. Indigo and her sister are at the center of these prejudices when they are taken from the confines of their clan to the mainstream American institutions. In boarding school, Indigo is not spared from racist comments and bullying that extends to the faculty too. When Hattie comes across her she is adamant that she should save her from this environment that does not favor her. She herself has experienced prejudice for her ideas and the love she has for the Native people even though she is white. Therefore she takes upon herself to take on the responsibility to care for Indigo’s welfare when no one could.
“They claimed to speak for Jesus Christ; they said Jesus didn’t want to see women’s bare breasts no matter how hot the summer day was; if the others wanted to pay such a high price to farm along the river that was their choice.”
The novel explores the elimination of indigenous cultures and identity through re-educating and assimilating the young ones. Through past accounts, the older clan members such as Grandma Fleet recount the various ways the Native communities have been threatened by American culture. For instance the introduction of Christianity to the communities and consequently eliminating the indigenous beliefs. The American culture is shown as a machine that hopes to assimilate the people into a common identity which is however a threat to the Native culture. Accordingly creating a rift that cannot be easily reconciled between the indigenous communities and Eurocentric societies.
