Who is Chrystos from the collection, This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color?

Chystos is a Native American writer who contributes several poems and one essay. She writes about the shame her father had for their heritage, not wanting to teach her so she could blend better with white society, and about the abandonment she experienced by people who shunned her for her heritage. She teaches about how to appreciate the wisdom of writers, poets, and those who have lived different lives, and how to give and receive knowledge. Her last piece is about the ways we can learn from the honesty and balance in nature how to accept and celebrate our own differences, and balance our giving and taking.