Remember

Harjo is a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. Her ancestors lived on the lands of the Southwestern region as recently as 1850. Harjo’s family was forced from their ancestral lands during the Trail of Tears under President Andrew Jackson and were forced to settle in “Indian Territory” in Oklahoma. Although she was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Harjo returned to her ancestral lands to teach. She writes about this experience in her memoir Crazy Brave.

Harjo uses poetry to explore, analyze, and give voice to the concerns of Indigenous Americans of all tribes. Her work often references historical events directly or indirectly. She hints that the speaker is talking to other Indigenous Americans, though the speaker can also give messages that extend to all people, regardless of race. In “Remember,” the speaker does not specify who the addressee, the “you” of the poem is. However, the speaker does say, “Remember the earth whose skin you are” (Line 11). This is a metaphorical way of making a connection between the natural world, the earth, and the people who live on it, like the way that skin covers the surface of the body.

The speaker next elaborates on the skin