The Law of the Land

WE LIVE IN AN IMMORAL AGE.

Humanity suffers from “nature deficit disorder.” We have lost touch with the Earth, the Great Lawgiver. These poems unveil a moral code derived from the Earth. Part I reveals the moral code of the Lakota Sioux, a Plains Indian tribe whose way of life was taken from them. Part III shows the moral code of a former US Army sniper, an Indian killer who took part in the destruction of the Lakota. Both are moral codes of actions, not words. Part II, the middle section, reconciles these two opposing codes; it is the Law of the Land—the Earth’s moral code which affects animal, mineral, and vegetable. This is the Law which prevails over us all. It is immortal and omnipotent, it has the final say.

With stark and powerful language, The Law of the Land tells a poetic fable through three voices from America’s past, each describing their own unique stories and perspectives which impart lessons about life and morality. Though these voices (and their moral codes) appear in opposition, they interact in ways which illuminate a complex relationship between them. Red Hawk’s poems originate from an intellect and spiritual maturity that reveal a deep wisdom about the nature of life, America’s history, and our relationship with Mother Earth.