"One person can make a difference in the world. That world might be small, but it's still a world," said one student who participated in an open discussion on Nov. 21 after viewing Two Rivers, an award-winning film that documents the story of a Native American reconciliation group in northern Washington state. The film, screened in the Heller School for Social Policy and Management prior to the discussion, was sponsored by the International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life as part of its "Just Performance" symposium.

The symposium, which took place from Dec. 1 to Dec. 2, aimed to explore the performative dimensions of justice-seeking in the aftermath of violence. There were five group sessions that discussed justice-seeking in different parts of the world. For example, one group session focused on peacebuilding in Peru, another in Cambodia and a third session focused on justice-seeking in the United States.

The last component of the symposium was titled "Continuing the Just Performance Conversation." After attending the various sessions in the symposium, this section was devoted to asking questions about justice-seeking in today's society in the hopes of encouraging students to continue thinking critically after the two-day event. Dabney Hailey, the director of Academic Programs at the Rose Art Museum, led a tour and discussion and posed questions such as, "How do art museums, and the encounters with works of art they offer, contribute to a community's quest for justice?"

The film began by depicting the European colonization of the American Northwest. Settlers believed it was their "manifest destiny" to expand across the continent and then-President Ulysses S. Grant argued that assimilation into white culture could solve the "Indian problem." In an attempt to "civilize" the Native American people, American settlers presented them with a Bible and a Christian education, believing that the only redemption for the Native Americans was through education. Settlers were motivated by the popular motto "Kill the Indian, save the man."

Now that time has passed, we can reflect critically on our greed-driven expansionism and cruel extermination of Native American culture. The film showed images of Native Americans today. The photos were raw and unsettling, providing snapshots of everyday life—a mother holding her child, an old man sitting by a river.

Many Native Americans still feel isolated from the rest of the population. Many of them live on reservations that physically separate them from society, and many still face prejudice and discrimination. Drug abuse and alcoholism have become major problems in that population. Each picture I saw exposed a profound sense of despair. It was the eyes of these people, those hurting, helpless eyes that went straight to my heart.

Phil and Marge Downy, a white couple living in northern Washington, recognized the atrocities committed against Native Americans and the problems these people face today, and decided to initiate a Native American reconciliation group in their community.

The couple facilitated small meetings in their home, letting Native Americans in the area talk about the challenges of being a Native American now, and the pain they feel when they look back on the treatment of their people throughout history. Each of these meetings was cathartic and powerful. One woman said, with tears in her eyes, "I live in a land I didn't come from."

The Downys explained that they wanted the group to be about listening and really getting to know the people to whom they were speaking. They explained that in previous reconciliation attempts, people "went up to a platform and shook hands, and nothing was ever changed. People need to understand why Native Americans are weeping."

The Downys eventually realized that they needed to turn their small meetings into a larger event, so they proceeded to hold a community powwow, a formal ceremony of reconciliation in the hopes of resolving hostilities and misunderstandings about Native Americans.

The ceremony was powerful; Native Americans shared their stories with white community members. They explained that they felt welcomed and comforted by the larger community. Ultimately, the entire ceremony gave me hope that this reconciliation movement could inspire similar efforts for other races in the country.

Following the film, there was a small discussion led by Cynthia Cohen, the director of the Ethics Center's program in Peace Building and the Arts. Cohen explained that there are very few universities that study the ongoing oppression of America's indigenous people, as most of the history is taught only for nostalgic purposes.

In the discussion, one student from Uganda related the experiences of Native Americans to many children in Uganda who were taken to boarding schools so that they could become "civilized and reeducated." The idea was to "get them while they're young."

Another student explained that she held an interview with Tibetan students about cross-cultural disharmony. In Tibet, children are encouraged to learn Chinese to adapt to another culture in the hopes of becoming "civilized," she said. She went on to explain that, as a result, many Tibetan people today are defensive and have a deep-seated hatred of Chinese students."I wish a similar reconciliation might happen [in Tibet]," the student said.

Many of the participants liked how the film's reconciliation approach had an emphasis on the personal and the community. One student said, "Action starts from small places. Everything was face-to-face, that's why the emotions came out."

It's a hard thing to do, to investigate the past and shatter the myths we have grown up with. Hopefully, the recognition that we as a country have committed immense atrocities will inspire actual efforts of change. The Native American reconciliation group in this film may be a small step toward peacebuilding, but it is still a step, and that's what counts.