“Did y’all see that big ol’ boy driving that big ol’ truck taking a sip outta that big ol’ pop?” said Steven Pratt yesterday in the Union to a crowd of 55 listeners, trying to show the differences between dialects of the Midwest, and the lingo of northwest Ohio.
Pratt, a professor of interpersonal communication at the University of Central Oklahoma, spoke on “Osage Language and Culture,” addressing the cultural insensitivity he’s experienced as both a professor in the academic world, and as an Osage Road Man – a position he describes as “an ordained minister who conducts traditional rituals of the Osage Christian way of worship.”
Audience members listened as Pratt – wearing a leather belt with “Steven” etched into it and a flannel shirt – presented a slideshow titled “Confessions of a Road Man: Being an Indian in Academe.”
The slideshow brought to light the conflict that comes with being both “academically trained as a professor” and being “traditionally trained” as a cultural spiritual leader.
“Universities are supposed to be teaching diversity and sensitivity to other cultures, but they’re not,” he said.
Pratt pointed out various stereotypes that he’d encountered while teaching at the University of Central Oklahoma, which included expectations that he’d be a competent Indian movie critic, know how to read smoke signals, and have the power to make it rain.
“If I had the ability to make it rain I wouldn’t be teaching,” he said. “I’d be on Oprah, making a lot of money.”
By addressing these stereotypes – many of which were held by his colleagues at UCO – Pratt gave a detailed description of his heritage, ranging from the origins of the Osage Christian faith, the tribe’s mandate to always accept another’s invitation, or their tradition of not applauding after a public speech.
Being an interpersonal communications professor, Pratt also stressed the function of communication in cultural affairs, claiming that we view ourselves by how we talk about ourselves.
“Communication habits help form who we are,” he said.
Pratt humorously explored social faux-pas and miscommunications between cultures, citing lingual differences like “big ‘ol VS. large,” along with the nearly polar opposite view of collectivist Osage society, compared to western civilization’s individualistic culture.
“The primary way to learn about who you are is to learn about others,” he said, addressing the importance of diversity as it pertains to education.
But Pratt has found it difficult to satisfy his role as a Road Man because of the restrictions and expectations placed upon him by the institution he teaches for.
“Being a university professor is my career,” he said, “and being Osage is how I live.”
After the lecture, Pratt spoke individually with several audience members, including freshman Richard Kelley, who is researching the issue of Native Americans being used as mascots for his American Culture Studies course.
“I didn’t know any of that about the Osage culture,” Kelley said. “It’s very interesting how different someone’s culture can be when they’re living right next to you.”
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