Red Bird Sings: The Story of Zitkala-Sa

RED BIRD SINGS:   The Story of Zitkala-Sa,   Native American Author, Musician, and Activist,    Adapted by Gina Capaldi & Q.L. Pearce, illustrations by Gina Capaldi

Imagine being eight years old and leaving home.  Not running away but leaving in order to learn to read and write.

 

Zitkala-Sa, little Red Bird, left the Yankton Sioux reservation in South Dakota, climbed aboard a roaring steam-engine train, to head East to the “Land of Red Apples,” Indiana.  She arrived at the boarding school for Native children where she was first handed a scrub brush.  Her long black hair was chopped off.  Her soft moccasins were exchanged for hard-soled shoes. This Red Bird did not quit, she learned to scour floors and then she entered a classroom for the first time .  Zitkala-Sa learned to read.

 

This picture-book biography is exceptional, as was Zitkala-Sa. Her singing spirit and courage is shown through her own words, songs and Capaldi’s engaging illustrations.  Sitkala-Sa’s story helps us all to imagine how difficult it is to be a stranger in a “white world” and to face intolerance.

 

Imagine performing a violin performance while some of the audience waves a giant white banner with the word: SQUAW.  Imagine giving speeches to thousands asking for the rights of your people. Imagine meeting with the president of the United States to discuss treaties.  Zitkala-Sa’s story helps us imagine the fear and the choice to continue with courage.

 

As an adult Zitkala-Sa worked as an activist for Native American rights.  She sang, spoke and wrote to build bridges of tolerance and understanding between cultures.

 

History books describe only a few of the many Native Americans who were true leaders.  It is time to introduce many more, including Zitkala-Sa.