Grandchildren of the Buffalo Soldiers is the voice of one Assiniboine man. The play is one voice from so many Native people and Nations, but it is not the quintessential voice, or spokesman, not is it a reflection of a collective. The play is the second play in a four-part cycle dealing with the ‘blood quantum’ that many United States Federally recognized Native Tribes presently face. The play touches and reminds many Native communities of a simple question which is, if a person’s blood can be quantified into a representational numerical fraction, can a person’s identity, humanity, and spirit be easily measured? Does the word, ‘breed’, or ‘mixed blood’ describe the very essence of a person?

When working with the play or with a community I have discovered that to generalize, or homogenize, a person’s voice, based on a non-Indigenous or non-communal ethnocentric based quantitative standard, the voice can be invalidated, or marginalized.

I would like to thank Lou Bellamy and Penumbra Theatre Company who have developed and nurtured a vessel, or theatre, that explore similar issues in the communities Penumbra serves. I am honored that Lou and his Theatre members and staff have shared their home to explore the themes of the play. I hope this production will serve as a catalyst to create more potential opportunities and venues for other communities and their members to combine the talents and means to share voices, ideas, and an essential element, breath.

William S. Yellow Robe, Jr.