Story #87: Kenneth Roemer and How PBHA Inspired His Research and Literature on Native Americans

“My PBH position at the Gallup (NM) Indian Community Center in 1965 continued my family's tradition of serving Native communities. The experience reinforced my family commitment and influenced my role organizing clothing drives, advising a Native student group for 25 years, planning powwows, helping to start a national academic organization, writing articles and publishing books, notably co-editing The Cambridge Companion to Native American Literature, speaking at grade and high schools, teaching courses, and currently serving on a committee designing a course on Native Studies for all Texas high schools. I devote a chapter in my MS "Allies to Indian Country: One Family, One Century" to the Gallup experience.” - Kenneth Roemer

Kenneth Roemer ‘63 took on a position at the Gallup Indian Community Center in New Mexico through PBHA. This experience was a pivotal moment that aligned with his family's long-standing commitment to serving Native communities. His immersion in the vibrant cultures of the Diné, Zuni, and Hopi people provided him with firsthand insights into their needs and aspirations, shaping his understanding of what it means to be an ally. He emphasizes the importance of communities defining their own needs:

“The communities and centers that hired us defined what they needed. We weren't the 'wonders from the East' telling the communities what they needed.”

Roemer’s work at the Gallup Indian Community Center also helped shape his literary career. He dedicated a chapter of his manuscript, Allies to Indian Country: One Family, One Century, to this transformative experience. He observed how the role of an ally can be complex, marked by the highs of collaboration and the challenges of being perceived as an outsider. This nuanced understanding of identity and community is reflected in his academic work and writings on Native American literature, including the co-edited Cambridge Companion to Native American Literature. Roemer’s scholarship has been instrumental in elevating Native voices and narratives in literature.

Through his time at PBHA, Roemer developed a profound empathy and appreciation for knowledge gained outside of traditional academic settings. He credits this experience with deepening his recognition of systemic inequalities.

“PBHA developed empathy, appreciation of knowledge gained beyond the classroom, recognizing the causes of inequality.”

His journey from PBHA to becoming a prominent literary voice illustrates the powerful impact of community engagement and personal experience in shaping a meaningful career dedicated to social justice and advocacy.

Check out his books here.