Conversation Among Indigenous People

05/02/2003

Conversation Among Indigenous People

"Nothing creates more self-respect among employees than being included in the process of making decisions."
–Judith M. Bardwick

CONVERSATION AMONG INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

According to Utne Magazine (July-August 2002), indigenous people are among the greatest conversationalists:

"In many indigenous cultures, conversation is made sacred and dignified by rituals -- including the passing of a talking stick, whose holder can't be interrupted. Benjamin Franklin compared the decorum of Iroquois councils with Parliament, 'where scarcely a day passes without some confusion that makes the speaker hoarse in calling it to order.' The native Hawaiian ho'oponopono is a powerful form of conversational conflict resolution in which a leader elicits from the adversarial parties not only the facts in the case, but also their emotions. When everything has been explored, the former foes ask forgiveness of one another, and a closing ritual puts the dispute permanently in the past. The ho'oponopono is widely used by businesses and other organizations in Hawaii and interest is spreading to the mainland and in Europe."

The Beginnings Workshop, "Talking," from the July/August 1996 issue of Child Care Information Exchange offers a series of articles on conversation in early childhood programs. Check it out a https://secure.ccie.com/catalog/cciecatalog.php?cPath=23.

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