Iyeska Quotes

“I am an iyeska, a half-breed, and there are some on the res who won’t let me forget it. The full-bloods, the ikche wichasha, the “wild, natural beings,” often look down upon the half-breeds as no longer living in the traditional Indian way, as being “apples,” red on the outside and white inside. The half-breeds, in turn, look upon the full-bloods as backward. All this doesn’t mean much. Ikche wichasha or iyeska, we are all no longer living like the old Indians—we all go to the same stores and supermarkets and have had to compromise, with one foot in the white and the other in the Indian world. Also, at Rosebud we are all related in some way, particularly as we recognize fourth, fifth, and sixth cousins as relatives. I am a half breed. So what?”
― Mary Brave Bird, Ohitika Woman