The Dance of Intuition & Intention
For the Diné (Navajo), the horse is central to their creation story, land management, entertainment, work, and k’e (family and clanship systems). In her talk, Kelsey John positions horses as knowers who can promote healing within their communities, even possibly by challenging the power structures inherent in colonization. Grounded by her own experiences riding and training Navajo horses, Kelsey John, a postdoctoral fellow in American Indian Studies, reveals how horses teach us to relate to each other, the land, and other nonhuman animals.
About the Speaker
Kelsey John, who received her Ph.D. from Syracuse University, is a postdoctoral fellow in the UA’s Department of American Indian Studies. Her dissertation focused on the Navajo horse as a central point of indigenous decolonization. John’s research on “rez ponies” led her to organized a horse knowledge conference hosted by the Navajo Tribal University. She is a volunteer at both Four Corners Equine Rescue and the Sexual Assault Services of Northwest New Mexico.
