“The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me”

Why is a “smart Indian” Dangerous? Since outsiders discovered the place we now call America, there has been a separation of Indians and White men. Indians have kept their tribes together by letting no one in and shunning those who venture out of the tribe. There are stories of the few Indians who helped the White man learn to track, hunt, and survive in the most hostile climates and when they share the secrets of their tribe they are always rejected by their tribe for their betrayal.
The term “smart Indian” is one given to him/her by an outsider, not fellow Indians, because they proved that they had brains while everyone else in the tribe played dumb. If one Indian shows that they are smart, then questions about the rest of the tribe and their ability to learn. If Indians were to come join our schools and live in our society they would realize how different their life could be and how their tribe has in reality been holding itself down for years. Indians act like they are not smart and cannot learn because it’s their way of sticking together and anyone who tries to break free and save their own life like the author mentioned really is deciding to leave the tribe and depressed way of life.
So why is a smart Indian dangerous? A smart Indian is dangerous because Indians have put up barriers for centuries between their tribes and white people. They have formed their own communities and rely heavily on the government for food and money to keep them alive, and a smart Indian could destroy the lifestyle they have grown accustom to.