by Marsheila Rockwell
(Content Warnings: racism, trauma, murder, death)
1. Once upon a time:
(Choose all that apply)
a. In 1492
b. That time you read about in the news
c. All the times you didn’t
d. Every 92 minutes*
e. Right now
2. A girl went missing:
(Choose all that apply)
a. Little Red Something-or-Other
b. A daughter, a sister, a wife
c. A maiden, a mother, a crone
d. A mindimooyenh (noun 1. old woman 2. revered Elder)
e. You?
3. She was:
(Choose all that apply)
a. A hooker, an addict, a drunk
b. A victim/survivor of sexual assault
c. A victim/survivor of domestic violence
d. A student, the first in her family to go to college
e. A human being
4. It happened when she was:
(Choose all that apply)
a. Partying, bar-hopping, scoring, whoring
b. Visiting a sick Elder/family member/friend
c. Getting groceries/gas/medicine
d. Studying
e. Existing
5. Her body was found:
(Choose all that apply)
a. In a shallow grave
b. Naked in a ditch, in a field, in the woods
c. After the snow melted
d. Half-eaten, perhaps by wolves
e. It wasn’t
(Hint: There is only one correct answer)
6. Her spirit:
(Choose all that apply)
a. Sees only red—hands, dresses, blood
b. Journeys west forever, never arriving
c. Cannot find peace, cannot find happiness
d. Is lonely and seeks your warmth
e. Is hunting
7. Your guilt:
(Choose all that apply)
a. Manifests in silence, denial, complacency
b. Manifests in protests, donations, retweets
c. Manifests in victim-blaming
d. Draws her spirit like fire
e. Does not exist
8. In this fairy tale, you:
(Choose all that apply)
a. Are the wolf
b. Are the witch
c. Are the girl
d. Are the author
e. This is not your story
(Hint: Your answer is wrong)
9. Based on your answer to Question 8, this is how you die:
(Choose all that apply)
a. A poisoned conscience
b. The huntsman carves your heart out
c. You run into someone bigger and meaner
d. She finds you
e. No one knows or cares
10. Write an essay explaining how justice for #MMIWGT2S is a fairy tale. Be sure to address:
a. How her murderers/abductors never pay
b. How her family never finds closure
c. How her spirit can never reach the afterlife
d. How her story is never told
e. What you will do to change all that and ensure she is the last stolen sister
You will have 92 minutes for this portion of the test. That is how long it will be before the next girl goes missing. Write quickly.
*According to the National Crime Information Centre, there were 5,712 known incidents of missing and murdered Indigenous women in 2016. The true number is likely much higher.
MARSHEILA (Marcy) ROCKWELL (she/her) is a Rhysling Award-nominated poet and the author of multiple books, short stories, poems, and comics. She is a disabled pediatric cancer and mental health awareness advocate and a reconnecting Chippewa/Métis. She lives in the desert with her family, buried under books. Follow her on Twitter: @MarcyRockwell
Reservation Fairy Tales 101 Final Exam can be found in Augur Magazine Issue 4.1.
