Navajo-France Association

What is your name?
Michael V. Smith

Do you live in Navajoland? Where?
Window Rock, Arizona

Have you ever lived outside Navajoland? Where?
Yes, Acoma, Laguna, Albuquerque, Taos in New Mexico
Camp Pendleton and 29 Palms, California
Okinawa, Japan

Do you work in Navajoland? Where?
Yes, Navajo Nation Supreme Court, Window Rock, Arizona

What is your occupation? Can you describe it?
Deputy Clerk of the Court
I work with appeals of lower court decisions.

What are your hobbies?
Playing and Coaching Baseball, Archery Elk Hunting, Hiking,

What do you like the most in your culture?
Peace

What do you want to preserve in your culture?
Hunting

Do you think other cultures know about yours?
No

What do you want to explain to them?
That we are a peaceful people wanting to live in harmony with the land.

What would you like to share the most with other cultures?
That we are all human beings.

What do you think about exchanges between the Dine and other cultures?
I think that respect for one another as human beings is the first step in exchange of cultures.

Do you think Art can link people from different cultures?
I think that art, music, laughter….many things can link cultures.

Would you like to discover Art from other cultures?
Sure

Do you think other cultures can support the Dine Culture/Tradition/Social
Preservation?
I think that any culture can support another culture if there is respect.

We support Traditional Preservation of the Dine including Environment,
Culture, and Social Preservation, what are the great objectives for you to
keep the Dine people on that way?
By doing my best to raise my children on Navajoland and to teach them the importance of education.

Would you like to know about the Tradition and Modernity Preservation of
other cultures?
Sure

Thank you, Michael !