Teabaggers = Indians?!

It started with King George III

Americans' distrust of government has deep roots.

By Gregory RodriguezThe movement's very name has a lot to say about how emotional such discontent is. Think back to your grade school lessons about the Boston Tea Party and remember its carnivalesque aspects. The conspirators that night painted their faces and dressed up as Mohawk Indians. As University of Michigan historian Philip J. Deloria points out in his book, "Playing Indian," the dress-up part of the party wasn't only about masking identities; it was about exercising New World liberty, which would become a fundamental part of forging a new collective identity as Americans.

The Tea Party wasn't the only instance in which colonial whites acted out in Indian disguise. To these revolutionaries, Deloria writes, "Indianness lay at the heart of American uniqueness." Donning feathers and darkening their faces, they symbolically proclaimed their separation from the mother country. And what did they think the Indian costume meant to the representatives of King George? Unconstrained, even aboriginal, freedom.

That would be a breakthrough on a therapist's couch. From the very beginning, to go with our legitimate fear of tyranny, we've idealized an end to all authority.

In a 1923 essay on U.S. literature, British novelist and poet D.H. Lawrence ridiculed the American fetishization of liberty as a source of perennial tantrums. "Somewhere deep in every American heart," he wrote, "lies a rebellion against the old parenthood of Europe. Yet no American feels he has completely escaped its mastery." To Americans, he went on, liberty means "the breaking of all dominion."Comment:  Rodriguez's analysis of the Indian role is valid as far as it goes. I made similar points in The Political Uses of Stereotypes--also based on Philip J. Deloria's Playing Indian.

Some links on Tea Parties and Indians:

Another phony Indian teabagger
"Indians" at the Boston Tea Party
Real Indian at tax protest
Teabaggers misuse Indian imagery

But Rodriguez ignores the many differences. The original Tea Partiers were fighting the imposition of taxation without representation. Today's teabaggers are complaining even though Obama has reduced taxes for most people.

The teabaggers came out of the woodwork soon after we elected Obama president. But the Bush administration (mis)managed the present recession. It eliminated the regulations that allowed financial gambling. It initiated the bank bailouts and other recovery measures. It created most of the soaring deficit. So why protest Obama and not Bush?

The teabaggers explained

The main difference is that the original Tea Partiers were white men protesting other white men. Today's teabaggers are white men protesting blacks, Latinos, gays, and anyone else who isn't a white Christian.

Return Of the Repressed? Birtherism, Homophobia, Racial Paranoia Rise To Surface At Tea Party Confab

By Zachary RothThe National Tea Party Convention, which wrapped up Saturday night with a televised speech by Sarah Palin, offered an outlet for some of the fouler strands of modern conservatism that had long been bubbling beneath the surface of the Tea Party movement.

Tea Party leaders had worked hard to keep the public face of the movement focused tightly on a small government, anti-tax message, largely steering clear of social issues, and appeals based explicitly on race. But this weekend, from the podium at Nashville's Gaylord Opryland Hotel, convention speakers espoused birtherism, anti-immigrant nativism, homophobia, Christian fundamentalism, and an apparent nostalgia for racially discriminatory barriers to voting.

Here's a quick recap:

• Joseph Farah, the publisher of the right-wing website WorldNetDaily.com, drew cheers from the crowd by questioning whether President Obama was born in the U.S.

• Tom Tancredo, the former Colorado Republican congressman, declared that the president was elected because "we do not have a civics, literacy test before people can vote."

• Roy Moore, the former Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court charged that by proclaiming a gay pride month, Obama "has elevated immorality to a new level."Wow...a literacy test? I wonder which segment of the population Tancredo is targeting with that suggestion? Could it possibly be...minorities?

For more on America's origins, see Fun July 4th Facts and America's Cultural Roots. For more on the teabaggers, see The Evidence for Teabagger Racism and Decoding the Teabagger Code.

Below:  One of the 10 Most Offensive Tea Party Signs with Photos.



Pretty funny considering not a single conservative hypocrite protested this:

Kuekuatsheu in Wolverine

In the movie X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Kayla Silverfox tells Logan (aka Wolverine) the following legend:KAYLA:  Why is the moon so lonely?

LOGAN:  Why?

KAYLA:  'Cuz she used to have a lover.

LOGAN:  Ohhh. You tell this to the kids?

KAYLA:  No.

KAYLA:  His name was Keukuatsheu and they lived in the Spirit World together.

LOGAN:  Oh, this is a true story.

KAYLA:  Mmm-hmm.

LOGAN:  All right.

KAYLA:  And every night, they would wander the skies together.

LOGAN:  Oh.

KAYLA:  But, one of the other spirits was jealous.

LOGAN:  Mm.

KAYLA:  Trickster wanted the moon for himself, so he told Keukuatsheu that the moon had asked for flowers.

LOGAN:  Mm.

KAYLA:  He told him to come to our world and pick her some wild roses. But Keukuatsheu didn't know that once you leave the Spirit World, you can never go back.

LOGAN:  Mm.

KAYLA:  And every night, he looks up in the sky, and sees the moon, and howls her name.

KAYLA:  But...he can never touch her again.

LOGAN:  Wow. "Koo-koo-ka-choo" got screwed.

KAYLA:  "Keukuatsheu."

[laughter]

KAYLA:  It means "the Wolverine."Comment: A nice little legend, but wolverines don't howl at the moon. Wolves do, but a wolverine isn't a kind of wolf. Oops.

I presume this legend is made up. I couldn't find any evidence of it on the Web. But I was pleasantly surprised to find the name "Keukuatsheu." It's really a Native word for "wolverine." I gather it comes from the Inuit of the Quebec-Labrador region.

About Kuekuatsheu

Information about Kuekuatsheu (Gulo gulo, carcajou, wolverine)

Wolverine myths and historical referencesLucien Turner. 1979 [1894]. Indians and Eskimos in the Quebec-Labrador Peninsula Ethnology of the Ungava District. Quebec, Presses COMEDITEX. p.163.

The Indian conceives the wolverine to be an animal embodying all the cunning and mischief that can be contained in the skin of a beast. To its cunning is added great bodily strength, enabling this medium-sized animal to accomplish destruction apparently much beyond its strength.
Leacock, Eleanor B. and Nan A. Rothschild (eds.). 1994. Labrador Winter: the Ethnographic Journals of William Duncan Strong, 1927-1928. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution. pp.67-68.

The purpose of racks...in camp is to raise damageable articles and food above the reach of dogs, while those away from camp are for the protection of stores from wild animals. The wolverine (kwiwa'tchu) is the worst offender in this regard and the solid log storehouses are especially designed to circumvent the wiles of this powerful and ingenious animal.I dreamed the animals: Kaniuekutat: the life of an Innu hunter by Kaneuketat, Georg HenriksenI know one story that tells how the animals made fire, and it's about the wolverine, Kuekuatsheu. He is crazy, but also very clever. Here is the myth about Kuekuatsheu.The Innu (the Montagnais-Naskapi) by Peter ArmitageThe Innu myth of the origin of the world is the Kuekuatsheu. In this tale, Kuekuatsheu (the wolverine) creates the world and everything in it.Myth of Kuekuatsheu

Kuekuatsheu Kutukuaniutshuahp, Quebec, Canada

Anyway, kudos to Wolverine for using a tiny bit of genuine Native lore. For more on the subject, see Debating Lynn Collins as Silver Fox and Wolverine Trailer.

Below:  Kuekuatsheu aka Wolverine.

Two views of “The Way of the People”

Kindred Spirits

Two Navajo painters explore their culture from contrasting perspectives

By Kat NicholsOne’s contemporary, one’s traditional. One’s brilliantly colored, the other more subtle. Two very different pictures—both handling the same subject matter—but from two very different men who will display their work together for the first time and present a taste of the yin and yang of Native American art.

The Echo Canyon Art gallery will be featuring the work of Navajo painters David K. John and Charley Singer in their upcoming show “The Way of the People.” It is the first time since opening their doors in 2008 that Echo Canyon Art has had Native American artists prominently displayed.Comment:  For other contemorary Native artists, see Mural Commemorates Ojibwe Rescuer, Marketing Minnesota's Native Artists, and IN/SIGHT 2010 at Chelsea Art Museum.

Below:  "Dragon Fly Chanter" by David K. John.



"Yei Bei Chei" by Charley Singer.

Legends of the Olympics mascots

Legends Of British Columbia Welcome The World to 2010 Vancouver Olympics

By Phyllis MayLegends abound in the British Columbia regions and the mascots represent those legends. The creation of Miga came from the rare, beautiful, small Kermode bear (called a "Spirit Bear") only found in British Columbia and a killer whale. The many stories of Orca whales transforming into bears was a perfect mascot to represent the First Nations. Miga, the little sea bear, represents the tribes who were protectors of the sea. Miga LOVES snowboarding!

The mountains of British Columbia are represented by Sumi. The beliefs of those First Nations' often reflected a theme of transformation and how the spirits, animals and human, connected for the transformations. Sumi represents a powerful animal spirit who is a protector, not only of the animals but also the land and sea. His spirit is a combination of the thunderbird, the black bear and the orca whale…all revered creatures of the area.

The third mascot is more familiar since most have heard of Sasquatch or Big Foot. Legend has it that Sasquatch is a mysterious creature that roams the Canadian forests. Sasquatch has been a local legend of the Pacific West Coast for years so the third mascot is Quatchi, the shy one. Quatchi will be everywhere but he does love hockey and wants to observe the best so that he can fulfill his Olympic dream. He can't wait to meet new friends.Comment:  For more on the subject, see Whale and Bear and Sasquatch.

Tonto and Ranger's sister-in-law

Greg Burgas reviews the latest issue of THE LONE RANGER:

What I bought--3 February 2010The Lone Ranger #20 by Brett Matthews (writer), Sergio Cariello (artist), Marcelo Pinto (colorist), and Simon Bowland (letterer). $3.50, 22 pgs, FC, Dynamite Entertainment.

Tonto and Linda Reid, John's sister-in-law, have been getting busy, I suppose. The horror of miscegenation!!!!!!Why I don't buy this comic:Of course, it's another slow burn issue of The Lone Ranger, meaning that John has to deal with the fact that the blonde hottie in his life digs the hunky Indian more than the masked man while Cavendish plans his move against our heroes. I mean, it's an enjoyable comic, and Matthews and Cariello do such a good job with mood and thousand-yard stares and pregnant pauses, but the book does move slowly.Comment:  For more on the subject, see Standalone Ranger Comic and Comic Books Featuring Indians.

Questions about Carrie Underwood

On Facebook's NativeCelebs page, the name of country singer Carrie Underwood came up. She's set to star in her first movie:

Carrie Underwood to make film debut in 'Soul Surfer,' biopic of shark-attack victim Bethany Hamilton

Some sources list Underwood as a Muscogee Creek Indian. In Carrie Underwood, Creek Idol? I quoted these sources. In particular, I quoted her Wikipedia entry that said:Carrie Marie Underwood was born to Stephen and Carole Underwood in Muskogee, Oklahoma, and was raised on her parents' farm in the rural town of Checotah, Oklahoma. She has two older sisters, Shanna and Stephanie, and is a member of Muskogee Creek Nation of Oklahoma.People make fun of Wikipedia, but it gets vetted constantly by readers and editors. I consider it semi-official, at least. I don't think falsehoods stay on it for long.

But now her Wikipedia entry makes no mention of Underwood's being a tribal member or having any Native blood or ties:Carrie Marie Underwood was born to Stephen and Carole Underwood in Muskogee, Oklahoma. She was raised on her parents' farm in the rural town of Checotah, Oklahoma. She has two older sisters, Shanna Means and Stephanie Shelton.The deletion seems significant. People don't take information out unless it can't stand up to scrutiny.

More sources

Checking around the Web raises more questions than it answers. Here's what other sources say:

Carrie UnderwoodReportedly a member of the Muscogee Creek Nation (mainly information spread through her Wikipedia entry, which carries no credence whatsoever). Prior to admission to a tribe, often a "Certificate of Degree of Indian or Alaska Native Blood" must be obtained from the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The Creek tribe at one time had a 1/32 blood quantum requirement. Alternatively, lineal descent to an individual listed on the 1906 Dawes Roll will grant citizenship, no matter the blood quantum. It is not publicly known how much Creek blood Underwood has in her, if any, or whether any membership, if it exists at all, is honorary or actual.What contributions has the Creek Indian's culture given us today?I am Muskogee Creek.

Carrie Underwood is only 1/32 Creek--we don't claim her as part of the tribe (blood quantum rule). She does, however have Creek ancestry, albeit extremely diluted.Carrie Underwood:  American Country IdolDuring her university years, Carrie Underwood was also actively involved in the Sigma Sigma Sigma sorority, and maintained her close ties with the Muscogee Creek Nation of Oklahoma.Close ties, but not necessarily tribal membership or even Native blood.

Cherokee celebs actually Creek?By the way, country singer Carrie Underwood is a full citizen of the Creek Nation. She dyes her hair blonde.

Brother Mountain LionHmm. I tend not to trust anyone named Brother Mountain Lion or Sister Wolf Moon. Until we hear from the Muscogee Creek Nation or Underwood herself, I'd say her status is doubtful. Best guess is that she's 1/32 Creek but not an enrolled tribal member.

For more on the subject, see "Actual Indian" Defined.

Movies teach "racist assumptions"

Do Disney Movies Misrepresent Native Americans?

By Shawndrea CorbinDisney is one of the world's most beloved crafters of classic fairy tales, but is it possible for "harmless" children's stories to cause irreparable damage to an entire people?

According to Kevin Gover, director of the National Museum of the American Indian Smithsonian Institute, the answer is 'yes.'

In his lecture "Will the White Man's Indian Ever Die?" Thursday evening at ASU's Tempe campus, Gover discussed how centuries of distorted Native American images in art, cinema and advertising have left majority of Americans with a highly misconstrued image of American Indians.

According to Gover, Disney's portrayals of Native Americans in films such as "Pocahontas" and "Peter Pan" have greatly harmed the Native American image by feeding inaccurate stereotypes to young children.

Gover said that although these Disney films weren't made with intentional malice, young children who view them have no available source to put into context for them that the Native American images they see in films, such as "Peter Pan," aren't true.

"Images are memorable, powerful and very hard to shake," Gover said.

Gover said that even the most adored American Indian characters such as Pocahontas represent inaccurate stereotypes. He stated that Pocahontas represents the theme of the "self-sacrificing Indian" who is willing to give up her life for the "better ways of the White civilization."

Gover elaborated on the transition of the Native American image through popular American culture. The themes of Native American images presented by Gover ranged from the noble and somber "Indian Chief," the "violent savage" and the "disappearing Indian" leading up to today's "mystical Indian."

To demonstrate the popular concept of the "mystical Indian," Gover showed images from the popular film "Twilight: New Moon," in which Native Americans belonging to the Quileute tribe have the ability to transform into wolves. According to Gover, this romanticized "magical" concept of Native Americans can also be seen in the primitive blue creatures of the mythical planet Pandora in the recent film "Avatar."

"These images are teaching us all racist assumptions about Native Americans," Gover said.Comment:  Thanks to Gover for saying what's obvious to some of us. Namely, that Avatar and New Moon aren't the remedy for Pocahontas and Peter Pan. That all these films fill impressionable children with half-truths or lies. That movies are a primary source for the Native stereotypes in our culture.

For more on the subject, see Modern Indians Anger Museum Goers and The Best Indian Movies.

Below:  "Rescue me from my primitive magical life, noble white man!"

DeLanna Studi on Native roles

DeLanna Studi discusses role and life as a Native actress

By Will ChavezAfter high school, she attended Northeastern State University in Tahlequah before moving to Los Angeles 10 years ago. Since then she has had roles in eight movies, including “Pow Wow Dreams,” “Edge of America,” “Dreamkeeper” and “Skins.” She has also performed in two one-woman shows–“What’s An Indian Woman To Do?” and “Kicks”–in Los Angeles.

Studi said one role she especially enjoyed was a strong-willed woman in “Dreamkeeper.”

“They allowed a Native woman to not be the victim. Since we’re Cherokee and were matrilineal, that really spoke to me,” she said. “I was just so happy to play a strong Native woman because I know so many of them, and yet when Hollywood makes a movie we’re never strong women. We’re always the victim.”

Of all her movie roles she said she has not played a Native “stereotype” and hopes she never has to, but she realizes she’s not at that point in her career where she gets to pick and choose roles.

She loves playing Native roles and likes that more of those roles are going to Native people.

“I believe we have a history that only we can share. You can cast another ethnicity in that role, but they’re not going to quite get the complexity of that role,” she said.

But it’s a double-edged sword, she said. She added that at some point she would like to play a non-Native role. Native people are modern-day people but rarely portray themselves in the modern world. It would be exciting, she said, to see a Native woman play a “Desperate Housewife” or Native people play detectives or doctors in shows.

And with that hope comes a position to help change things in Hollywood as she was recently elected chairwoman of the President’s National Task Force for American Indians of the Screen Actor’s Guild. One of the seven goals of the task force is to “increase employment opportunities by expanding the range of character portrayals and eliminating negative stereotypes.”

“We’re working on educating the industry about who we are as a people so that our people can get those roles…and you’re not limited to playing one type of person,” Studi said. “We’re slowly getting there.”Comment:  For more on August: Osage County, see DeLanna Studi in August: Osage County and Pix of August: Osage County Primiere. For more on Natives in movies, see Indians Hold Steady at 0.3%, Movies Teach "Racist Assumptions," and Studi Challenges Sterotypical Roles.

Below:  "Beverly Weston (Jon DeVries), left, introduces his wife Violet (Estelle Parsons) to Johnna Monevata (DeLanna Studi), right, during the Pulitzer-Prize winning play August: Osage County on Jan. 26 at the Performing Arts Center in Tulsa, Okla." (Photo by Will Chavez)

Quileute name used without approval

Sucking the Quileute Dry

By Angela R. Riley“Twilight” has made all things Quileute wildly popular: Nordstrom.com sells items from Quileute hoodies to charms bearing a supposed Quileute werewolf tattoo. And a tour company hauls busloads of fans onto the Quileute reservation daily. Yet the tribe has received no payment for this commercial activity. Meanwhile, half of Quileute families still live in poverty.

It’s important to point out that the outside uses of the Quileute name, from the “Twilight” books to the tattoo jewelry, are quite likely legal. American intellectual property laws, except in very specific circumstances, do not protect indigenous peoples’ collective cultural property.But:At the same time, like indigenous peoples around the globe, the Quileute want to be meaningful participants in the treatment of their own cultural property. This means, first and foremost, having their sovereignty and their culture respected by outsiders. The Quileute’s Web site tells visitors about the tribal laws that govern Quileute territory. One of these laws specifies that burial grounds and religious ceremonies are “sacred and not to be entered.” Had MSN acknowledged the tribe as a sovereign government, it might not have broken that rule. The Quileute believe that respect for Indian tribal sovereignty could likewise bridge cultural gaps between other Indian communities and outsiders.

Going forward, the Quileute should be engaged in the “Twilight” phenomenon. They should be able, first, to welcome Ms. Meyer to the reservation and introduce her to the Tribal Council and all the Quileute people. They should be consulted on projects where the Quileute name and culture are used to market products. And Quileute elders should be able to share with the world the true Quileute creation story, in which tribal members were transformed into humans from wolves (not vampire-fighting wolves).Comment:  I haven't heard about Stephenie Meyer or the Twilight people consulting with the Quileutes before using their name. I'm guessing it isn't happening.

For more on the subject, see Quileute Werewolves in Twilight.

Below:  "Get your genuine Quileute tanning lotion here! Look like a real dark-brown Indian!"

Remembering Bear River

Bear River massacre larger than Wounded Knee

Remember » Northwestern Shoshone tribe gathers at burial site.Tribal members descend in late January each year to the burial ground near the Bear River where soldiers felled hundreds of their ancestors in one of American history's bloodiest--but little remembered--massacres.

Descendants of the Northwestern Shoshone, whose ancestors were decimated at their winter encampment in a surprise attack 147 years ago, stamp their feet in the cold and offer songs and prayers to the dead.

Bodies from that distant morning were never officially counted, and the bones were long ago scattered to the surrounding hills.

The commanding Army officer involved counted 220-270 dead. Settlers who went in later found many more bodies in ravines or under deep snow and put the number as high as 500, a figure cited in a National Park Service history. The tribe estimates 400 of their number were killed. No more than 60 survived.

Any of those numbers are larger than the much more well known massacres at Wounded Knee in South Dakota, where some 146 Lakota Sioux were gunned down in 1890, and at Sand Creek, Colo., where an 150 Cheyenne and Arapaho were killed in 1864.

And yet, history books make little mention of Bear River, perhaps because the nation was elsewhere engaged in the Civil War. The Battle of Gettysburg with its estimated 51,000 casualties was later that same year, one of the bloodiest ever on American soil.Comment:  For more on the subject, see First, Worst, and Forgotten Massacre and 493 Shoshones Killed at Bear River.

Below:  "In this Jan. 29, 2010 photo, Ben Lomond High School student David Rivas, of Ogden, Utah, hanging ornaments at the National Historic Landmark where the Northwestern Shoshone suffered a massacre in 1863 near Preston Idaho. Tribal members descend each year to the burial ground near the Bear River where soldiers felled hundreds of their ancestors in one of American history's bloodiest but little remembered massacres." (AP Photo/Jessie L. Bonner)

Vermont to apologize for sterilization?

Vt. lawmakers weigh apologizing for eugenics

By Dave GramIf the state of Vermont had carried out a plan to sterilize his grandmother, Don Stevens said Tuesday, he “wouldn’t be here.”

Many Vermonters of mixed French Canadian and Native American heritage, like Stevens’ grandmother, as well as poor, rural whites, were placed on a state-sanctioned list of “mental defectives” and degenerates in the 1930s and placed in state institutions like the Home for the Feeble Minded in Brandon.

Some had surgery after Gov. Stanley Wilson in 1931 won enactment of a sterilization law. It was designed to reduce the number of people seen as placing demands on public services, and to purify what University of Vermont zoology professor Henry Perkins, a national leader of the so-called “eugenics” movement, called “the fine old stock of original settlers in Vermont.”

Now the Vermont Legislature, which once endorsed breeding people like cattle, is considering a resolution expressing regret. It vows never to repeat “this dark chapter in Vermont’s history” and expresses the Legislature’s “profound sorrow and sincere regret that such a program of sterilization was sanctioned.”Comment:  For more on the subject, see The Straight Dope on the Sterilization of Native Women.

Chief Cliff Singers at 2010 Olympics

Flathead Reservation's Chief Cliff Singers to perform at Winter Olympics

By Vince DevlinThe singing and drumming group from the Kootenai Tribe on the Flathead Indian Reservation--and their ancient drum--are headed to the Winter Olympics later this month.

The Chief Cliff Singers will perform on Friday, Feb. 19, at the 2010 Aboriginal Pavilion--also known at the Chiefs' House--in the center of Olympic activity in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia.

They'll be singing and drumming for dancers from Canada's Ktunaxa Tribe at the pavilion, which will feature Indigenous performers daily throughout the Games' Feb. 12-28 run. Singer-songwriter Buffy Sainte-Marie, born on the Piapot Cree Indian Reserve in Saskatchewan, kicks off the Chiefs' House performances for the Four Host First Nations, sponsors of the pavilion.Comment:  For more on the subject, see Asham Stompers at 2010 Olympics and Youth Choir's Olympics Invitation Axed.

Seeing Indians is believing

Students tackle stereotypes on trip to Browning

By Jasmine LinabaryStudents from Bigfork and Browning met in January to break down stereotypes through conversation and shared experiences.

The two-day trip, funded through Indian Education for All money, was meant to allow Bigfork students to get to know their peers on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. Bigfork High School teacher Hans Bodenhamer, who worked as a teacher in Browning for six years before coming to Bigfork, said he noticed a lot of negative attitudes about the reservation and his experience had been the opposite. This was why he has taken a group of students on a trip to Browning the last two years and why many of the students themselves decided to go.

"You hear a lot about reservations and not all of it is good," BHS senior Lena Olson said. "I wanted to figure it out for myself."

Nine BHS students and 15 students from Blackfeet Academy, Browning's alternative high school, teamed up and experienced a tour of Browning, rode horses bareback and climbed a buffalo jump, among other activities including a shared meal Friday, Jan. 22.

Several students went on the trip last year when Bodenhamer first set up the visit and were anxious to go again. In fact, it was at their "pestering" that Bodenhamer said he decided to do the trip a second time.

Olson said she was nervous the first year, not really knowing what to expect or how she'd respond. Others shared similar sentiments.

"Going in, I thought they would all be the same," senior Cassie Campbell said. "But they are all different, just like us."A key point:Teaching about drums and teepees is not exactly comprehensive, Bodenhamer said, because there is a whole modern, contemporary culture.

"Getting groups together, I think, is one of the strongest ways to do it," he said.

Other experiences with Native American culture the students remembered experiencing include making moccasins in art class and learning a bit about it in U.S. history classes.

"You can read about a culture in textbooks, but you never really know about it until you experience it," Olson said.Comment:  I'm not surprised that personal contact is the most effective way to teach kids about Indians. But what does this say about our educational process?

A typical Thanksgiving pageant or classroom project to make paper headdresses is something like three degrees removed from reality. It bears almost no relationship to the Native reality today.

A history lesson, a textbook, or an instructor showing beads and moccasins is two degrees removed from reality. Even if the information is accurate, it's 1) conveyed by non-Indians, and 2) presenting Indians as people of the past.

If these approaches include info on today's Indians, they still may be counterproductive. The message kids get is "Indians: past, past, past, past, past--and, oh yeah, a little bit of the present." The "past" part usually predominates, leaving kids with the belief that Indians are historical artifacts. That they're like a coelacanth fish that just happened to survive from prehistoric times.

Even meeting modern Indians in class, or seeing them in movies or TV shows, is one degree removed from reality. Seeing a few healthy, wholesome Indians doesn't necessarily contradict the stereotypes: that Indians are lazy drunks, reservations are hellholes of crime and poverty, Indians don't pay taxes and are rich from casinos, etc.

Actually going to a reservation or a powwow, seeing it with your own eyes, is undoubtedly the most effective means of educating people. If studies haven't proved this already, someone should do a study on the alternatives I've listed above. Assuming I'm right, let's get rid of the headdresses, beads, and moccasins and add field trips to school curricula.

For more on the subject, see Phony Tribes, Headdresses, Totem Poles and "Grey Eagle" Teaches Stereotypes.

Below:  The kind of lame lesson schoolkids shouldn't be getting.

Pankiw compares chiefs to KKK

Aboriginal leader 'felt sorry' for candidate who compared him to Ku Klux Klan

By Lisa ArrowsmithControversial comments made by a Saskatchewan political candidate show he holds some "uneducated" views about aboriginal people, says the chief of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations.

Chief Guy Lonechild said Friday he was shocked and saddened when he heard that Jim Pankiw, who says he intends to re-enter federal politics, had likened an aboriginal headdress he was wearing in a newspaper photo to the garb worn by the Ku Klux Klan.

"I felt sorry for Mr. Pankiw that he still held those kind of views and is seeking public office," Lonechild said, adding that no more public attention should be paid to this issue.

The headdresses worn by aboriginal leaders is considered sacred and signify that the chiefs are carrying the responsibility of their people, Lonechild said. They were also worn by aboriginal leaders throughout history, including those who signed treaties with the federal government and helped to create Canada, Lonechild said.

He didn't think the comparison with members of the Ku Klux Klan was fair.

"Klan members in times past looked to hide their identities, looked to cover up their true identities. We wear our identity very proudly, so I think it's exactly the opposite of the message that the Ku Klux Klan has, in terms of their intolerance of other people," Lonechild said.

"It was very, very bad judgement on the part of a former member of Parliament."How this came about:On Thursday, Pankiw called a news conference to announce he plans to run as an independent in the riding of Saskatoon-Humboldt.

He told reporters that aboriginal chiefs "want a bunch of special privileges based on their ancestry" and added that he doesn't want a "racially segregated society where your ancestry determines what you get."

When asked if his views could be racist, he referred to Lonechild's photo and said, "guy with a big headband thing on, feathers and stuff, if there was a guy with a white sheet with holes in the eyes, wouldn't you say that guy's a racist?"

When asked whether he was comparing the chief to a member of the Ku Klux Klan, Pankiw replied "absolutely, they are racists."Comment:  I thought Pankiw was just ignorant about tribal sovereignty, but clearly he's a racist too.

For more on the subject, see Sask. MP Decries "Race-Based Privileges" and "Handouts" and The Facts About Tribal Sovereignty.

Barbarian Princess plods

Kilcher elegant, but Hawaiian costume drama plods

TITLE ROLE:  Good actress is still waiting for the right movie to come along.

By Mike Dunham Kilcher's unique and exotic face (startlingly similar to the historical Ka'iulani, despite her German-born Swiss, Alaskan and Peruvian roots) is something one could stare at all day long, particularly when animated by her nuanced and lively expressions.

The character's emotional shifts are bare yet credible. One gets the impression that here is a good actress waiting for the right role.

"Barbarian Princess" might have been that role, but it isn't. Previous reviews have called the script "clunky."

I found it slow. How slow? Well, about 30 minutes into the thing I took a shower and left the DVD running. I returned after drying off and found the plot was right where I'd left it.Comment:  I wasn't impressed with the trailer, so I'm glad to hear the movie wasn't impressive either. It's good when a trailer accurately conveys a movie's essence.

Marc Forby has been working on this movie for years, but still he can't do better than "clunky"? Call me if you need a script doctor, people.

Of course, casting Kilcher as a Hawaiian and calling the movie Barbarian Princess are still unfortunate moves. I gather Kilcher's portrayal isn't a problem, but maybe a Hawaiian actress could've done even better.

For more on the subject, see Hawaiians Criticize "Barbarian" Movie and Q'orianka's Hawaiian Epic.

Aztec treasure in Human Target

Human TargetHuman Target is an American action drama television series broadcast by Fox in the United States. It is based on the comic book character of the same title created by Len Wein and Carmine Infantino, and developed for television by Jonathan E. Steinberg.

The series follows the life of Christopher Chance (Mark Valley), a unique private contractor, bodyguard and security expert hired to protect his clients. He protects his clients by completely integrating himself into the lives of the client, to become the human target.Mark Valley describes the episode Sanctuary (airdate: 2/3/10) in an interview:"There's an episode where I have to save this one guy who was involved in this kind of high-stakes theft ring," Valley said. "He goes undercover in a monastery, so Chance has to go into this monastery in Quebec and dress up as a monk and be a monk to try to find this guy. Once they get there, they realize that why he went there has to do with something that the chief abbot brought back after World War II, which is something that belonged to the pope. It's hidden somewhere in these caves and these caverns of this little monastery."Comment:  In an initial flashback, we see the high-stakes theft that sent the inside man fleeing to a monastery. The crooks try to rob an "Aztec treasure" from shipping crates at a museum.

We mostly get glimpses of the exhibit logo, but at one point someone lifts a gold statue from a box. It looks reasonably authentic, but it's as big as a large coffee pot. I doubt a golden Aztec object that large exists.

If it did, it might be the most valuable Mesoamerican artifact in existence. It would be getting the "King Tut" treatment, with round-the-clock guards and other forms of security. It wouldn't be sitting in a crate waiting to be stolen.

Anyway, Human Target is a lightweight action show that's hardly worth watching. Among the shows airing new episodes in 2010, Lost, 24, Castle, and the new Life Unexpected are all much better. Check it out only if you've run out of other things to watch.

For more on the subject, see TV Shows Featuring Indians.

Redskins make children cry

MU diversity groups bring Native American issues to foreground

The week's events focused on Native American imagery in sports.

By Alex SilvermanCornel Pewewardy, professor of Native American studies at Portland State University, presented some of his research on the effects of Native American sports images on Native American populations Thursday. The National Indian Education Association named Pewewardy the 2009 Teacher of the Year. In his lecture, Pewewardy discussed the negative effects of stereotypical Native American imagery in both sports and society on the self-esteem of Native American people.

He recalled an instance from his time as an elementary educator in a predominantly Native American area when he took some of his students on a trip to an NFL game between the Minnesota Vikings and the Washington Redskins. While walking his students through the parking lot, the war-chanting and tomahawk chopping of Redskins fans in full "Indian garb" brought some of his students to tears.

"If you see babies cry and you know why they're crying, you do something about it," Pewewardy said.Comment:  If you're a typical American, what you do about crying Indian children is ignore them. Or perhaps blame them for not being "man" enough to take racist insults in stride.

For more on the subject, see Red·skin n.  Dated, Offensive, Taboo and Team Names and Mascots.

Russian skaters change costumes

Russian ice dancers changing controversial costuming [Updated]In the face of intense international criticism, Russian ice dancers Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin, the reigning world champions, are changing the costuming that has offended leaders of the Australian aboriginal community, the Tribune has learned.

Russian Figure Skating Federation President Valentin Piseev confirmed via telephone Friday that changes were being made before the Olympics. "I am aware of this [controversy]," he said.

Piseev said the team will keep the supposedly aboriginal music, which has been called inauthentic by aboriginal leaders. "The music is OK," he said.

Asked about the changes a couple minutes into a telephone conversation, Natalia Linichuk, the team's coach, abruptly replied she could not talk until after practice Friday.Comment:  Another protest works. People are slowing learning that they can't get away with stereotyping indigenous people.

For more on the subject, see Russian Skaters Bad, Gaultier Good and Russian Skaters Should Rethink Routine.

Below:  Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin. (Ivan Sekretarev/Associated Press)

Where are Obama's Cabinet reports?

Uh, hello? Anybody remember that Obama issued an order to his Cabinet members to produce reports within 90 days? It's been 92 days by my calculation, so where are the reports? I expect we'll hear about 15 detailed action plans in the next day or so...right?

Otherwise, we'll start talking about Obama's broken promise to tribes. I suspect he won't appreciate the negative publicity.

Someone on Facebook said, "Maybe the nix on discretionary spending will result in a delay." To which I responded:

The deficit may delay when the plans are implemented, but it shouldn't change when the plans are due. That's now.

There will always be cutbacks and crises in government. I don't think they're a legitimate excuse for ignoring issues in Indian country. As with anything, you make time for your highest priorities.

This is especially true of the Cabinet members' reports. Obama promised the reports knowing we were in the middle of a recession, deficit spending, healthcare reform, etc. Nothing earth-shaking has happened since Nov. 6. So where are the reports?

For more on the subject, see Obama at the Tribal Summit.

Warpaint and feathers for Cowboys game

Push for American Indian garb at CSU game draws fire

By Monte WhaleyStudents and administrators at Colorado State University will meet today to talk about a Facebook posting that encouraged fans to wear war paint and feathers to a basketball game this Saturday.

CSU sophomore Ben Margolit asked that CSU fans wear the American Indian garb at the men's home basketball game against the Wyoming Cowboys. His posting sparked comments from detractors who thought it was racist and degrading to American Indians.

Supporters, meanwhile, wrote that Margolit's critics were being too politically correct.

A statement by CSU administrators decried the posting, and students who objected to the posting held a rally Wednesday on campus.CSU students drop plan for Indian costumes at Wyoming game following protestsA student-created effort to get CSU students to dress up as American Indians for the weekend's Wyoming-CSU basketball game has sparked a campus protest and a nasty discussion on Facebook.

Organizers of the event have already decided to change the dress to "Orange Out" to honor CSU's history as the Aggies. But the damage appears to have been done.

In a letter to the campus community, CSU administrators said they can understand why some students think dressing up might be fun. However, they said, such events perpetuate "cartoonish cultural stereotypes."

CSU administrators noted that students have a First Amendment right to free expression, so they took no official action to stop the planned event. But they did reach out to the organizers in an effort to persuade them to change their focus.Comment:  Margolit, the student who posted the notice, took it down immediately when notified of the backlash. He didn't mean to denigrate anyone. It was just good clean fun.

So Margolit's racism is unconscious and ignorant rather than conscious and mean-spirited. It's still racism. For whatever reason, he thought it was okay to characterize a race with cartoonish cultural stereotypes.

Ironically, schools with Indian mascots often hold events like this. And the schools' administrators support these activities rather than criticize them. I guess Colorado State University is more enlightened than other schools.

For more on the subject, see Tricking or Treating Indians and Team Names and Mascots.

Below:  Similar "fun" at sporting events.

"Tribal Priority" for radio stations

FCC adopts tribal preference for radio CPsUnder a new FCC rule, Native American tribes will have preference over all other applicants for new AM and FM stations which would serve communities located on tribal lands. But, will the new rule stand up in court?

Groups which filed comments opposing the unprecedented preference for a single group had argued that it amounts to unconstitutional discrimination. Others had argued that the proposal is simply unworkable for the AM band and would create havoc.

In rejecting the discrimination issue, the FCC order cited the “unique legal status of Indian tribes under federal law.” The news release announcing the new rule noted that only 41 US radio stations are currently licensed to native tribes.The "Voice of the Broadcasting Industry" frets:RBR-TVBR observation: Assuming that this is headed to court--which is a pretty safe assumption--what will that do to the process of awarding new CPs? Will wide swaths of the nation, particularly in the West, be put under a virtual freeze until the constitutionality of this rule is decided by the courts?Actually, it appears the FCC has already addressed the constitutional question and come up with the correct answer:

Tribal groups applaud FCC preference voteAccording to James Dunstan of Garvey Schubert Barer, attorney for NPM, “It is vital for people to understand that the Tribal Priority is based on the government-to-government legal relationship between the Federal government and Tribes. Tribes are classified politically, not racially. The Commission’s new rule understands and applies the correct legal analysis to streamline a critical barrier to entry previously faced by Tribal entities in the Commission’s licensing processes. Native Radio stations provide critical connections for local communities in the form of information, dialogue and emergency services. The possibility for Tribes to provide their own radio broadcasting to their own communities will be a critical development that many in more urban areas take for granted,” he said.Tribes react to this ruling:As you would expect, Native Public Media (NPM) and the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) are applauding the FCC’s adoption of a new “Tribal Priority” for the allocation and licensing of new radio stations serving communities on tribal lands.

The two groups, in a joint statement, hailed the FCC’s order as groundbreaking important step in the right direction to solve the pervasive problems of the lack of myriad communications services in Tribal communities. “In addition to some of the lowest levels of telephony and broadband internet services in the nation, American Indians and Alaska Natives have been largely invisible in the broadcasting industry on all levels ranging from media access, to control and ownership of broadcast facilities,” they stated.Comment:  Even if the FCC's decision is correct, one could argue that it's bad PR for the tribes to get absolute priority over everyone else. A better ruling would be to grant priority to any isolated community that doesn't have media access. Tribes would still get as many stations as they needed, I suspect. And no one would be complaining about racism because they don't understand tribal sovereignty.

For more on the subject, see Increasing Tribal Radio Opportunities.

What Napier is ranting about

I figured Barry Napier didn't know what he was talking about when he compared a bill increasing tribal jurisdiction to "Custer legislation." I suspected he was either exaggerating or lying. Now we have some objective reports on the issue:

Let officers do their jobsThe issue is this: When a cross-deputization agreement between the county and tribe broke down in 2006, tribal officers no longer had the authority to arrest non-tribal citizens on the reservation. Keep in mind that 80 percent of those living on the checkerboard reservation are not members of the tribe. In many cases, crimes have been committed against non-tribal members by non-tribal members, yet because there is no cross-deputization agreement in place, the perpetrators have walked away with impunity. Tribal officers have estimated 100 such crimes a month have been taking place. DUI. Assault. Drug dealing. Domestic violence.

The new law would essentially bypass the cross-deputization requirement so tribal officers could arrest anybody committing a crime on tribal lands, regardless of who's a tribal member and who isn't. As part of the proposed law, the tribe would incur all expenses involved with proper training and liability. One of the potentially contentious points is moot: These crimes would be prosecuted at the state level, not tribal courts. Fines and fees would go to the state, not the tribe.Human rights group calls for tribal arrest powerA northern Idaho human rights group says 1 of the region's county sheriffs is refusing to cooperate with the Coeur d'Alene Indian Tribe on law enforcement matters.

As a result, the Kootenai County Task Force on Human Relations Thursday called for legislation to allow Idaho tribal police officers to arrest or cite non-tribal members violating state law on reservations.Benewah sheriff calls rights group’s letter ‘stupid’

By Betsy Z. RussellThe problem: Without a cross-deputization agreement, tribal police officers can’t arrest non-tribal members, even if they catch them in the act of committing a crime. Instead, they must call on a county deputy or state trooper to make the arrest. Roughly 10,000 people live on the Coeur d’Alene Reservation, but only 1,400 are tribal members. In the Kootenai County portion of the reservation, a cross-deputization agreement is in place; there was a longstanding one in Benewah County until Kirts revoked it in 2007.

Christie Wood, a Coeur d’Alene Police sergeant and first vice president of the Kootenai County Task Force on Human Relations, wrote in the open letter, “The failure of Sheriff Kirts to work with the tribal police has left citizens in bedlam. Perpetrators have been set free that have committed serious criminal offenses against citizens living in Benewah County. The Tribal Police have documented cases of domestic violence, driving under the influence incidents, criminal assaults, and other criminal offenses that have occurred with no arrests or prosecution.”Comment:  The proposed legislation doesn't sound so bad now, does it? It doesn't have anything to do with the tribe, Obama, or the New World Order grabbing power, as Napier asserts. It has to do with increasing the effectiveness of law enforcement so more bad guys get arrested.

So yes, Napier is a racist, just as we suspected. He attacked an entire race for legislation that has nothing to do with race--the epitome of racism.

Ray charged with manslaughter

Self-help guru in court on manslaughter charges

By Felicia FonsecaSelf-help guru James Arthur Ray says it was all a tragic accident when his followers began collapsing one by one in a sweat lodge at his retreat, with three of them dying. As unfortunate as the ordeal was, he says the participants knew about the risks the ceremony presented.

Prosecutors say it's a blatant case of manslaughter by a man who recklessly crammed dozens of people in a 400-square-foot sweat lodge and chided them for wanting to leave, even as people were vomiting, getting burned by hot rocks and lying lifeless on the ground.

The two sides will be on display in coming months now that prosecutors have charged Ray with manslaughter in a case that could send him to prison for more than 35 years. The 52-year-old Ray said nothing during his first court appearance Thursday, and his lawyer entered a not guilty plea.How the trial may unfold:Despite the shocking details that have emerged from that night in the sweat lodge, legal experts say prosecutors won't have an easy time landing a conviction.

Ray's strongest defense will be that the participants were made aware of the risks the ceremony presented, including extreme temperatures in a small space and the possibility of injury or death, and voluntarily went in, criminal defense attorneys said.

But that won't necessarily put Ray in the clear.

"Even though they assumed risks, that doesn't necessarily take the defendant off the hook," said Roy Black, a Miami defense attorney whose clients have included Rush Limbaugh and William Kennedy Smith. "He has an obligation to people. He's the one leading the program, he has a responsibility to make sure it's run safely."

Any evidence of illnesses at prior Ray-led events, cover-up or lying about incidents and testimony that Ray ignored signs of medical distress would bode well for prosecutors, said former federal prosecutor Laurie Levenson, a law professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles.Comment:  Manslaughter sounds like the right charge to me. If Ray thought he was going to get away with a slap on the wrist, he was sorely mistaken.

Even if he beats this rap, he'll face civil lawsuits with a lower burden of proof. As I think I said before, I suspect his days as a high-flying motivational guru are over.

For more on the subject, see James Ray's Perp Walk and Ray Arrested for Sweat Lodge Deaths.

Below:  "Motivational speaker James Arthur Ray, foreground, is led into the Yavapai County jail in Camp Verde, Ariz. on Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2010. Ray was arrested on three counts of manslaughter for the deaths of three people at a sweat lodge ceremony he led in October 2009." (AP Photo/Matt York)

Ignorant Pankiw runs again

Controversial Sask. politician Pankiw announces comeback bidFormer Saskatoon member of Parliament Jim Pankiw launched what he hopes will be his political comeback Thursday at an often rambling news conference filled with long pauses and some awkward moments.

Pankiw, 43, a two-term Reform and Canadian Alliance MP representing Saskatoon-Humboldt, told reporters in Saskatoon he plans to run as an independent candidate in the next federal election.

Before he got to that, however, he gave reporters an account of his modest beginnings, which included living in a trailer near Unity, Sask., and sleeping on a concrete floor.

Pankiw is known for his controversial comments about aboriginal people, some which have resulted in human rights complaints.

He didn't back away from those comments Thursday, saying he would be campaigning against "race-based" government spending policies. He also called Saskatchewan First Nations chiefs "racists."

"I don't think Indians should have special race-based privileges," Pankiw said. "I think we should all be equal. Do Italians have special race-based privileges? Chinese people? Ukrainians? Germans? Not that I know of, but Indians do."Comment:  As the lawyer said in "Tribal Priority" for Radio Stations:It is vital for people to understand that the Tribal Priority is based on the government-to-government legal relationship between the Federal government and Tribes. Tribes are classified politically, not racially.For more on the subject, see Sask. MP Decries "Race-Based Privileges" and "Handouts" and The Facts About Tribal Sovereignty.

Gangs, suicide, and stereotypes

National gang expert: Gang life, reservation suicides linked

By Dirk LammersGang activity and teen suicide on American Indian reservations need to be addressed together, according to a national gang expert who says there's a strong connection between the two problems.

Christopher Cuestas with the National Violence Prevention Resource Center spoke Thursday to a gathering of tribal members and legal and law enforcement officers during a "tribal listening conference" hosted by U.S. Attorney Brendan Johnson.

Cuestas said that once a gang emerges in a community, the group establishes itself by recruiting and indoctrinating members. A gang during this stage will dovetail the community's risk factors, which for Indian reservations include drugs, alcohol, poverty and unemployment--the same ones linked to teen suicide.Comment:  I think stereotypes are connected to both gang activity and teen suicide. First, there's the culture-wide pressure to achieve: to keep up with the Joneses, to be no. 1. Then there's the particular Native pressure to be a man and a warrior: strong, proud, stoic. This is stoked by countless media stereotypes portraying Indians as mighty chiefs and braves.

To prove your toughness, you join with a gang. Gangs practically exist so youngsters can flaunt their machismo to each other. And if you can't prove yourself in a gang, you give up. You commit suicide because you feel worthless and hopeless.

For more on the subject, see Tribalism = Solution, Not Problem and Gang Culture in Indian Country.

Wayne Newton's abandoned jet

Wayne Newton's abandoned jet rotting at Oakland County airportOfficials say "Mr. Las Vegas" Wayne Newton owes a Detroit-area airport more than $60,000 after abandoning his plane more than three years ago and leaving it to gather mold.

Joe Borgesen, president of Oakland County International Airport in Waterford Township, says the plane once worth about $2 million was flown into the airport about 25 miles northwest of Detroit to have interior work done that took about a year to complete. He said Newton initially paid storage fees, but then stopped.Comment:  From a high point ("Half Indian and Half Human?") to a low point (Wayne Newton's Legal Battles) of Newton's career.

Indians hold steady at 0.3%

Native Americans Still at the Bottom in Hollywood

By Roscoe PondThe "screen actors guild" (SAG) diversity "report card" has been around for ten years (1998-2008). The last report was October of 2009. It tracks the shared acting roles for theatrical films and television. Caucasians have dominated all roles from 79.1% in 1998 to 72.5% in 2008. African American roles went from 13.4% to 13.3%. Native Americans shared fewer supporting roles plus background extra work from 0.20% to 0.30%. They peaked in 2005 to 0.40%. By the end of 2008 SAG reported that, "American Indians held steady at 0.3% of all roles for each of the last two years. While the feature film, low budget and episodic television categories all dropped in proportion to total roles."

Those statistics are not good. It is now 2010 and still there are no lead acting roles for native men or women on primetime television. The same can be said of no lead characters in major studio films.

Movie executives care only about money and top box office receipts. Network TV cares only about top ratings. Where would the Native American fit in on all of this? They don't. They have never had a chance to be "tested" in any lead roles on TV. Sponsors would never buy advertising of a TV show with a lead native actor or actress. The reason is clear. The public only wants to see Native Americans in "buckskins" and "loincloths." That's why the mini-series, "Into the West" (2005) and "Comanche Moon" (2008) produced good TV ratings. Both are westerns.Comment:  Natives make up 1-1.5% of the US population but get only 0.3% of the roles. That means they're getting about a fourth of the roles they should be getting.

I think Pond's analysis is correct as far as it goes. But let's discuss it further.

If movie executives care only about money, why aren't they rushing to do movies with Native themes or actors? The biggest hits of the last year are Avatar and New Moon. Why isn't some exec saying, "Let's combine Avatar and New Moon! A wolfish Native soldier fights blue-skinned alien vampires...it's a guaranteed hit!"

Answer: Because Hollywood, like much of America, is culturally conservative. Which is another way of saying it's prejudiced against minorities. Minorities such as, say, Barack Obama, whom a significant number of Americans believe is a Kenyan and a Muslim.

As Pond said, people want to see stereotypical Indians. (Or think they do until movies like Avatar and New Moon prove them wrong.) Indians like the ones in countless old Westerns, sports logos, statues and paintings, and on and on.

They get angry when someone tells them the reality contradicts their fantasies. That Indians are doctors, lawyers, and teachers, not half-naked warriors on horseback. They insist they're "honoring" Indians by asserting their stupid and stereotypical beliefs are more important than the facts.

So Hollywood cares only about money, but ignores the fact that Natives make money when given half a chance. So money can't be what's holding Native actors back. What's holding them back is the racist attitudes shared by studio execs and other Americans.

Racism, not profits

No other explanation makes sense. And why would anyone even look for another explanation? Studio execs come from the same population that worships stereotypical mascots and gets angry at modern museums. They love their racist beliefs about Indians.

These Americans aren't championing stereotypes because it's profitable. They're championing stereotypes because they've been brainwashed since childhood to believe our foundational myth. Columbus, Pilgrims, and Founding Fathers good! Indians, blacks, and immigrants bad! Taming the wild frontier! Progress and civilization! God bless America!

With that cultural mindset, the idea of a movie or TV show starring modern-day Indians causes cognitive dissonance. Most executives can't imagine it, and they can't imagine audiences imagining it. So they trot out their money-making excuses--e.g., the fallacy of the big-name actor--to avoid greenlighting Native projects. So no Twilight until Stephenie Meyer forces the issue and no Avatar until James Cameron forces the issue.

Translating from Hollywood-speak to English, what these execs are really saying is, "When I grew up, Indians were savages. My parents and teachers believed it, I believe it, and everyone I know believes it. Therefore, we won't make a movie with Native themes or actors unless it's a Western. No one would believe in modern-day Indians as soldiers, astronauts, or vampire fighters. The movie would fail and I'd be unemployed like some lazy, drunken, wretch of an Indian."

In short, it's all about Hollywood's racism, not its quest for profits. Get it now?

For more on the subject, see Roscoe Pond or a Big-Name Actor? and Producer Says No to Pond. For more on the subject in general, see The Best Indian Movies and TV Shows Featuring Indians.

Below:  The only acceptable Indians (from Comanche Moon).

White History Month needed?

'White history' topic creates buzz

By Steve LynnFarmington resident Zang Wood, who is white, said prior to Monday's meeting that he felt the commission was discriminating against him by celebrating black, Hispanic and American Indian cultural periods, while not recognizing whites.Wood's "colorblind" argument:Wood, a member of the San Juan County Historical Society, said he only wanted to make a point that the commission should celebrate all races and cultures or none at all. He said he wasn't trying to promote one race over another.

Commission member Catalina Liles said she would organize a white history month, but she withdrew her motion to do so Monday after criticism from people at the meeting and fellow commissioners.

Wood, who missed Monday's meeting because relatives were in town, didn't expect the commission to celebrate white history month.

"What made this country great is the melting pot," Wood said. "You either make a level playing field and honor everybody or honor nobody."

Wood doesn't think the city should "honor some of the citizens some of the time, but none of the citizens the other times," Wood said.Comment:  How about a month for whiny crybabies? We don't have one of those yet.

As one website put it:When most of us were little, and asked our mom why mothers got a special day, we may have heard, "Every day is children's day!"Similarly, every month is White History Month.

Wood's colorblind argument is essentially racist. Why? Because it argues for maintaining the status quo, which is racist. Because Americans have devoted the vast majority of their historical studies and "honors" to whites. Even though the country was originally 100% nonwhite and is still 30% nonwhite.

If Wood wants a colorblind society...great. Let us know when 30% of the history textbooks, TV and movie roles, statues and monuments, comic books and cartoons, coins and stamps, etc. feature minorities. Until then, the country isn't colorblind. And you're deluding yourself with racist blinders if you believe otherwise.

For more on "white history," see White History Means "We Won." For more on the subject in general, see The Trouble with Stereotyping...and What to Do About It and Highlights of the US Report to the UN on Racism.

Below:  "Colorblind" (white) casting in The Last Airbender.

Maya-style temple in Lost

The two-hour debut of Lost's last season debuted Tuesday (airdate: 2/2/10). One prominent locale was a Maya-style pyramid they called the Temple.

I don't think it was supposed to be a Maya pyramid, since I didn't see any Maya-specific indicators such as glyphs. But it resembled a Maya pyramid more than anything else.

This is another example of the common Indiana Jones trope: a lost indigenous civilization in the jungle, complete with scary defenders and magical powers. In this case, an apparent fountain of youth, which is also based on Native legends.

If Natives want to prove how strange they are, why don't they build glass-and-steel boxes like modern buildings? (In a jungle climate, that would be strange.) Why do they always build Maya-style pyramids and temples? From Yavin 4 to Lost's island, "Maya" signifies mysterious and exotic.



[*spoilers*]

Lost looks to be better than ever this season. Last season's nuclear blast apparently split the timeline into two: one where Oceanic 816 crashed and one where it didn't.

I'm guessing we're going to follow both timelines all season, which should be fascinating. It'll create great "man in the mirror" comparisons. We'll see which characters would've done better and which would've done worse without the crash.

If Lost were smart, it would have the characters in the two timelines gradually learn about each other. (That's already started with Juliet's parting words: "It worked.") Eventually, they realize they have to do something to unite the timelines. Each character must choose which one he or she prefers.

This will lead to an incredibly fitting and happy ending. Dead characters (e.g., Charlie, Mr. Eko, Faraday) will appear in the non-crash timeline and get another chance at life. Couples (e.g., Sawyer and Juliet, Sayid and Nadia) will be reunited. The island will fade away for good and take (some of) our heroes with it.

Just remember: You read it here first.

For more on the subject, see TV Shows Featuring Indians.

P.S. If J.J. Abrams wants to produce a spinoff called The Hugo and Miles Show, I'm totally on board. That could be the funniest show ever. ;-)

Amazon Indians watch Avatar

'Avatar' in the AmazonIf there were ever a place that came close to the magical world of Pandora in James Cameron’s new film "Avatar," it would be the Amazon. There may not be butterflies that look like flying squid, but in the Amazon can you eat giant worms and lemon-flavored ants for dinner in a forest that is home to both the jaguar and the pink dolphin. Reporter Melaina Spitzer joined a group of indigenous leaders from the Amazon in Ecuador’s capital, Quito, to see "Avatar" on the big screen in 3D.A positive response:When it’s over, I speak with Mayra Vega. She’s 24 years old and head of the Women’s Association of the Shuar Nation. She says "Avatar" hit home for her people.

“It left a huge impression on us. For example, the movies are almost real. It’s an example that makes us think a lot because the indigenous are defending their rights. We have to defend, just as the indigenous so clearly defended in the movie. We had an uprising; we had a confrontation with gases. It’s the same as what we just saw in the movie.”A more nuanced response:Others say there was at least one thing in the movie that veered from their reality. Achuar leader Luis Vargas says it’s where the white guy sweeps in to the rescue. But he says that’s to be expected.

“This is a Hollywood movie, so it’s practically a given that a mestizo comes to the defense and leads [the people] to triumph in the end.”Comment:  Even people who have never seen a movie before picked up on Avatar's obvious flaw. A white guy leading the Na'vi to victory is just plain wrong.

For more on the subject, see Minorities = Children in Avatar and White Guilt in Avatar.

Graham Crackers' stereotypical newsletter

David Martinez posted the following on Facebook:This is from the email newsletter sent out today by Graham Crackers, a comic book store with several locations in the Chicago metropolitan area.Cheryl Cash adds:I do not see this on their website, but as Dr. M. said, it was in an email newsletter. This is the contact info from their site:

Phone: (815) 254-3410

Email: johnrobinson@grahamcrackers.comComment:  We have Chief Illiniwek aka the big chief: a Plains Indian figure who wouldn't have set foot in Illinois. "Big Heepum" Tonto talk. Wickiups: dwellings used in the Southwest and West, but not in Illinois. ("Wigwams" might've been correct.) And "Ugh."

But this is just a newsletter that doesn't influence anyone, right? People learn about stereotypes from some invisible source that has nothing to do with stereotypical movies, TV shows, comic books, and images like this one. Yeah, right.

For more on the subject, see The Harm of Native Stereotyping:  Facts and Evidence.

Alaska Native Playwrights Project

Native playwrights prepare to tell their own stories

By Maia Nolan"It was really hard to choose one (story)," said Kavelina Torres, one of the newly-minted playwrights, during a lunch break. Torres sat at a table in the Heritage Center's theater, checking her Facebook account, while her tablemate, Maureen Mayo, flipped through a notebook. Both women are from the Fairbanks area--although Torres is quick to specify that she actually lives in nearby North Pole.

A college student and mother of four, Torres applied for the project because she wants to see Alaska Natives better represented in entertainment, and because she worries about Native languages disappearing. Torres, who is Yup'ik, Inupiaq and Athabascan, began studying Yup'ik at the University of Alaska Fairbanks after she realized she was missing out on an important part of her heritage.And:When she was growing up, Torres said, the people on TV didn't look like the people she knew.

"How come there's no brown people?" she remembered thinking. "How come there's no tan people? How come they all have perfect teeth?" She said she dreams of turning on her television and seeing real stories about Alaska Natives and "the drama of real people"--not documentary footage of smiling "happy savages."Comment:  For more on the subject, see Native Plays and Other Stage Shows.

Below:  Not a typical Alaska Native.

James Ray's perp walk

'Sweat lodge' guru charged in deathsSelf-help guru James Ray was arrested Wednesday after a grand jury indictment charging him with three counts of manslaughter in the deaths of three participants at an Arizona sweat lodge ceremony he organized last year.

Yavapai County Sheriff Steve Waugh said Ray was arrested at his attorney's office in Prescott, Arizona, Wednesday afternoon.

He will eventually be housed at the Camp Verde Detention Center, the sheriff's office said, and his bond has been set at $5 million.Comment:  For more on the subject, see Courting Death in Ray's Sweat Lodges and Inside the Death Lodge.

Roscoe Pond or a big-name actor?

In response to Producer Says No to Pond, correspondent Jet posted an insider's look into how the "industry" works. Thanks for your thoughts, Jet. Let's continue the discussion and see how it applies to the plight of Natives in Hollywood.

For starters, Pond isn't pitching his script as a low-budget indie film. It sounds like a mid-range action movie that needs a studio's backing. So I'm not sure how your points about indie movies apply.

Johnny Depp wasn't a bankable star until Pirates of the Caribbean made him one. Judging by movies such as Public Enemies, it's still not clear if he's bankable.

What's the URL for the Forbes list you mentioned? All I see is Most Marketable Faces: A Forbes List, which is about magazine covers.

I understand that investors, studios, and distributors think they need "names" attached to a project to sell tickets and copies. I'm just saying I haven't seen any evidence that they're right.

Here's a list of the Greatest Box-Office Bombs, Disasters and Flops. What's notable is that many of them involve a big-name actor, director, or "property." The investors, studios, and distributors who banked on the "big names" screwed up royally. They basically threw their money away. Roscoe Pond's movie would've been a better bet than these losers.

Here's a list of Hollywood’s Most Overpaid Stars. And another list of 18 Film Stars Impervious to Box-Office Flops. Why do investors, studios, and distributors keep turning to these stars? The movies they make often flounder. Explain the logic of hiring these "big names" when they're likely to lose money.

There must be tons of action and horror movies that had moderate budgets and no big-name stars but made money hand-over-fist. In fact, this kind of movie may be your best bet if you're an investor looking to earn a profit. Roscoe Pond's project falls squarely into this category.

In short, when someone shows me a study that proves the correlation between a star's popularity and a movie's sales (box office, DVDs, etc.), then I'll believe it. Until then, we're talking about what people think, not what actually is.

For more on the subject, see Jet's Film Financing Story and Fallacy of the Big-Name Actor.

Below:  Some movies that flopped despite having "big names" attached.

Reel Injun interview

A lengthy interview with Neil Diamond, maker of the Reel Injun documentary, includes three interesting anecdotes. The first refers to Sacheen Littlefeather's appearance at the Oscars.

Going Native

By Matthew HaysLittlefeather describes just how controversial her appearance became.

Apparently several people had to hold John Wayne back, as the right-wing icon was so infuriated by what Littlefeather had said he appeared to want to attack her physically. And some journalists promptly suggested that Littlefeather was a fake and not in fact a Native person. “It was a very brave thing for her to do,” says Diamond. “She did some roles after that, in B-movies like The Trial of Billy Jack, but, for the most part, her promising film acting career was over. She was ostracized in Hollywood. There were no more offers.”

At the time of Brando’s famous move, actor Russell Means was holed up at the Wounded Knee standoff. Diamond includes an interview with Means, as he talks about how much Brando’s decline of the Oscar meant to him and other Native activists. Means also recalls the effect that Saturday-morning serials had on him and other Native children where he grew up. “Means told us about going to the cinema—and all the kids would watch the Natives portrayed in Westerns. After the movies were over, he and the other Native kids would have to fight their way home. These images had a tremendous impact on him.”

Some of the clips are entirely strange. Diamond shows us glimpses of the so-called Red Westerns, genre films made east of the Iron Curtain during the Cold War, in which the roles are reversed. A critique of the capitalist system and imperialism emerge as Natives were portrayed as victimized good guys or freedom fighters, while the American cowboy was shown as greedy, violent and oppressive.Comment:  So John Wayne wanted to attack Sacheen Littlefeather for saying Hollywood stereotypes Indians? Like many Americans, this so-called patriot was a raving hypocrite. He believed in the status quo and white privilege, not in free speech and equal rights for all.

And Means reports that white kids beat up Native kids after seeing Indians as savages and killers on the screen. Is anyone surprised? Yes, all the doofuses who claim a movie is just a movie that can't influence anyone must be surprised. Stupid idiots.

Anyway, Reel Injun may be interesting if it focuses on points such as these. But its revelation that Iron Eyes Cody wasn't an Indian hasn't been news for several decades.

And I'm not sure its claim to be the first "feature documentary" on Natives in film is accurate. Imagining Indians by Victor Masayesva was one, I believe, and I bet there are others.

For more on the subject, see Mistakes and Stereotypes in Westerns and The Best Indian Movies.

"Half Indian and half human?"

Wayne Newton advocates for Virginia state recognition of Patawomeck Indian

By Fredrick KunkleThe Virginia-born tenor, wearing a highflying pompadour and a pair of alligator-skin cowboy boots, set the town aflutter as he argued for the state's official recognition of the Patawomecks--a tribe whose name, in slightly different form, now belongs to the river flowing by the nation's capital.

Playing in the General Assembly building--what had to be one of the smallest venues of his career--Newton, 67, described hearing stories from his grandfather about his Native American heritage and absorbing his appreciation of the culture. Both of Newton's parents were half Native American: His father was Patawomeck and his mother was Cherokee. Newton also displayed a picture of his grandfather in full-feathered regalia and passed around a heavy green sash that bore what Newton called a peace medal his ancestors received from Gen. George Washington.

Speaking in a husky voice, Newton also said that when he told his 7-year-old daughter of their heritage, she replied: "Does that mean I'm half Indian and half human?"

"I realized I had let her down," Newton told reporters after the brief appearance, saying more must be done to preserve the tribe's place in history.Comment:  Why would Newton's daughter think Indians aren't human? Because of a million stereotypes portraying them as savages, demons, and monsters. As nightmarish cartoon characters only vaguely resembling human beings.

We see several examples of this every week. The Stilwell savage, the SCALPED marauders, the Neverland Indians in Peter Pan, the Jack Chick comics, Injun Joe in Tom Sawyer and Warner Bros. cartoons, the "fierce" Yanomami, the pseudo-Indians in Avatar, the Quileute werewolves in Twilight, and on and on.

Again, I say to defenders of Stilwell, SCALPED, and other stereotype sources: If your products aren't giving children like Newton's daughter the idea that Indians aren't human, what is giving them that idea? Name the specific sources you think have given them that idea. Put up or shut up, stereotypers.

For more on Wayne Newton, see Newton Stumps for "Newton Indians" and Wayne Newton's Legal Battles. For more on what Americans think of Indians, see "I Thought John Wayne Killed You All" and The Influence of Movies.

Below:  "Singer Wayne Newton, a member of the Patawomeck tribe of Virginia, testifies during a House of Delegates committee meeting at the Capitol in Richmond, Va., Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2010. The committee passed a bill that would officially recognize the Patawomeck tribe. Chief Robert Green, left, looks on." (Steve Helber | AP)

Salazar tours Cape Wind site

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar tours proposed Cape Wind site

By Christine McConvilleHundreds of Cape Wind fans and foes braved the afternoon’s bone-chilling temperatures today to lobby Interior Secretary Kenneth Salazar about the project.

Today, Salazar was on Cape Cod and out on Nantucket Sound to see firsthand the proposed location of the controversial Cape Wind project.

Salazar spent the early part of the day in Mashpee with members of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe.

He participated in a 6 a.m. sunrise ceremony on a spit of land at Ponponesset Beach, and then met at tribal headquarters with Cedric Cromwell and Vernon “Silent Drum” Lopez.

Later, Salazar and his staff traveled to meet with members of the Wampanoags’ Aquinnah tribe on Martha’s Vineyard.

Tribal Chairman Cheryl Andrews-Maltais said she took Salazar to sites where tribal members greet the sun, and look at the shoals.

The tribes say Cape Wind will interfere with ancient burial grounds and tribal spiritual practices, which include worshipping the sun at daybreak.

“It’s the wrong project, in the wrong place, at the wrong time,” she said.

“There are plenty of places for wind turbines, but only one shoal,” she said.

Salazar then went on a nearly three-hour boat cruise with members of the national media.Comment:  "I'm shocked," said Salazar after the tour. "It's just a big ol' empty ocean. There are no cliff dwellings or burial mounds. I didn't even see any pottery sherds or arrowheads."

Salazar took several years' worth of food and clothing on the cruise with him. "The dangers of three-hour tours are well known," he told reporters. "One minute you're putt-putting around the harbor, the next you're shipwrecked on a desert island thousands of miles away."

For more on the subject, see NPS Rules Against Wind Turbines and Wampanoag vs. Wind Turbines.

Below:  Mary Ann, the Skipper, Gilligan, the Professor, Ginger, and Mr. Howell. "Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, second from left, on Nantucket Sound Tuesday, flanked by officials of Minerals Management Service and the Interior Department." (Joanne Rathe/Boston Globe)

Ray arrested for sweat lodge deaths

Motivational speaker charged in sweat lodge deaths

By Felicia FonsecaMotivational speaker James Arthur Ray was arrested Wednesday afternoon on three counts of manslaughter for deaths that happened after a sweat lodge ceremony he led in northern Arizona last year. Ray was taken into custody on an indictment at his attorney's office in Prescott, and was to be booked into the Yavapai County jail in Camp Verde, sheriff's officials said. His bond was set at $5 million.

Ray's attorneys said Wednesday he surrendered to authorities but that the charges were unjust and they were confident he would be exonerated in court.And:Participant Beverley Bunn previously told The Associated Press that Ray did nothing to help the sick during the October sweat lodge ceremony. Following Ray's arrest Wednesday, she said she had "many tears of joy."

"It's kind of a strange feeling," said Bunn, who was not among the hospitalized. "We've been waiting a long time."

Ray's attorneys have said he took all necessary safety precautions and wasn't aware of any medical problems until the ceremony was over. Ray declined to speak with authorities that night, on the advice of his attorneys, public records have shown.

Authorities said they quickly determined the deaths were not accidental and focused their investigation on Ray. They conducted hundreds of interviews that reached into Ray's past ceremonies and events, including one in which a man fell unconscious during a 2005 sweat lodge ceremony at the same retreat near Sedona.Comment:  Busted!! Now all we need is a perp walk and an ugly booking photo. <g>

Even if Ray somehow manages to wriggle free, this is some vindication for the sweat lodge deaths he caused.

For more on the subject, see Courting Death in Ray's Sweat Lodges and Inside the Death Lodge.

Osage book selected as best

BOOKS:  “Meet Christopher” is a winner“Meet Christopher: An Osage Indian Boy from Oklahoma” has been named the Best Middle School Book for 2009 by the American Indian Library Association.

Courtesy of the National Museum of the American Indian “Meet Christopher”—the fourth title in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian’s illustrated series for 9- to 12-year-olds—introduces a young Osage boy from northeast Oklahoma.

Author Genevieve Simermeyer selected her cousin as the focus of the book, the fourth in the My World series published by the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian. Christopher Cote lives in Skiatook, Okla., a town on the border of the Osage reservation. Simermeyer, who is the museum’s school programs manager, and Katherine Fogden, who is a museum photographer and Mohawk, traveled to Oklahoma to document Christopher’s life.

“I think what makes him interesting is that he is a lot like every other kid in his school,” Simermeyer said. “He’s in the band, he likes to play the trombone. He very much has a sense of not having to be only one thing or another. Participating in all the extracurricular activities doesn’t impinge on being an Osage person. They are all a part of who he is; he doesn’t feel like one thing is more important than the other.”Comment:  News flash! Life in Indian country is pretty normal. Fans of SCALPED must be shocked.

I'm guessing the number of times the comic has portrayed children playing in a school band is roughly zero. Unless they were caught in a gang-related shootout that riddled their bodies with bullets, that is.

For more on the subject, see The Best Indian Books.

Space station in Grand Canyon?

One-of-a-kind space-station hotel proposed at Grand Canyon

By Jim SecklerAn architect presented a state-of-the-art concept Monday to the county supervisors of a space station-like resort at the Grand Canyon.

Michel Sarda submitted a conceptual plan for a resort hotel to be built in the western section of the Grand Canyon possibly in Mohave County. The resort would be built into the walls of the canyon similar to the Anasazi Native American cliff dwellings of Northern Arizona.Comment:  This project is reminiscent of the Hualapai's Skywalk. But that was on tribal land, not federal land.

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say we probably shouldn't defile one of the world's wonders by carving a hotel into its side.

For more on the subject, see Grand Canyon vs. Grand Canyon West.

Indian curse in Saturday Night Live

On last week's Saturday Night Live (airdate: 1/30/10), the SNL Digital Short featured an Indian curse.



We can summarize this digital short quickly. A yuppie (Andy Samburg) accidentally steps on a homeless man's "trinket." The angered man (Fred Armisen) curses the yuppie. The curse causes a saxophone player named Sergio (Jon Hamm) to appear at inopportune moments.

No one in the video utters a single Indian name or word, so what makes it Indian-themed?

First, the "homeless man" has the long black hair and turban of a Tecumseh-style Shawnee Indian. The feather is angled exactly as in the picture below.



Second, the crushed "trinket" initially looks like a dead bird or something made of feathers. But later we see it repaired and it's clearly an Indian dreamcatcher.

Most people will consider the turbaned man some sort of Arab, Asian Indian, or Romani ("Gypsy"). Few people will notice the dreamcatcher or connect it to American Indians. So this video probably won't affect people's impression of Indians.

But still...what is SNL's excuse for showing a traditional Indian as a homeless beggar? And worse, attributing a demonic curse to him? If the show isn't identifying him as an Indian, why make him an Indian? Why not give him an invented costume and "trinket" with no connection to any ethnic group?

It seems Saturday Night Live is trying to have it both ways. "Let's choose the least obvious costume for a traditional Indian. And let's not refer to him as an Indian in any way. That way, we can show him doing what Indians do--performing nasty black magic--without being criticized for it."

Nice try, SNL. Next time, I suggest you make your Indian stereotypes even more subtle. Otherwise, some cranky critic like me is bound to notice them. <g>

For more on the subject, see Cobell Skit in Saturday Night Live and Indian Outtakes in Saturday Night Live. For more on the subject in general, see TV Shows Featuring Indians.

Shimásání

Shimásání is a 15-minute Navajo film that's playing at Sundance. Here's some background:

Sound Lounge-Mixed Short Screened At Tribeca

Trust Collective May 4th, 2009Shimasani, a hauntingly beautiful short mixed in Sound Lounge’s studios, recently screened at the Tribeca Film Festival. Ryan Price mixed the final audio of the beautiful film by Director Blackhorse Lowe.

Shimasani is set in the late 1920s on the serene Navajo reservation surrounded by massive vistas trailing off to distant foothills. A young woman named Mary Jane spends her time daydreaming and tending to her family’s flock of sheep. When her older sister returns from boarding school with a world geography book, she reveals new worlds that are “just over the mountain.” Conflicted by her obedient nature and her curious imagination, Mary Jane must privately decide to either maintain her lifestyle or depart into the exotic unknown.

Price notes, “In a piece as minimalistic as Shimasani--with no music and little dialogue--I focused all my attention on the sound design. A major character was the wind, Blackhorse and I went back a forth a few times with options, in the end I think the soundtrack complements the cinematography and really brings the audience to where the director wants them to be.”

“In a film as short as this one, each element takes on special importance, and the soundtrack is certainly no exception,” stated Partner/Sound Designer Marshall Grupp. “Ryan nailed it perfectly, setting the tone for this wonderful little story.”Comment:  Check out the trailer at the official site. Unlike most short films--even most short Native films--Shimásání has an impressive look and feel. It looks like a window into the 1920s Navajoland--but of course it's a recreation.

Shimásání is another film co-produced by Heather Rae. Just from the trailer, you get a sense of an authentic Navajo filmmaker, actors, and landscape. Would it be the same if a non-Native made it with actors with a "bit" of Native ancestry? No.

For more on the subject, see The Best Indian Movies.

Newton stumps for "Newton Indians"

Wayne Newton to testify on Patawomeck Indians

By Julian WalkerA bit of Las Vegas glitz will come to Virginia's General Assembly today.

Entertainer Wayne Newton is scheduled to testify in support of legislation that would extend state recognition to the Patawomeck Indians, a tribe to which he belongs.And:The measure, sponsored by House Speaker Bill Howell, R-Stafford County, would add the tribe to the eight already acknowledged by the state. The tribe is also known as the Potomac.

"They used to be called the 'Newton Indians' because Newton is a very common surname in a particular part of Stafford County where these Indians all lived," Howell said. "And there's lots of Newtons there now who can trace their heritage, their ancestry back to the Patawomeck Tribe, and Wayne Newton is one of them."Wayne Newton | Vegas icon proud of his local rootsVirginia lawmakers shouldn't have any trouble recognizing Newton--a native Virginian--when he pulls into Richmond today to urge the General Assembly to formally recognize the Patawomeck Indians of Virginia.

Newton, who spent part of his childhood in Stafford and Spotsylvania counties, says he's descended from the Patawomeck tribe. He agreed to lobby lawmakers after Chief Robert "Two Eagles" Green sent him a letter, asking him to write to the General Assembly on the tribe's behalf.

"I called him and said, 'Would it be more effective if I came there and delivered it myself?'" said Newton, who canceled his regular performance at the Tropicana's Tiffany Theater so he could appear in Richmond.

Eight other tribes, including the nearby Rappahannocks, already have state recognition, which opens the door to land protection and other important benefits. Newton, whose two daughters have been inducted into the Patawomeck tribe, is hoping his efforts will sway lawmakers.Comment:  For more on the subject, see Wayne Newton's Legal Battles.

Producer says no to Pond

Producer Says NO to Native American Screenplay

By Roscoe PondIt is no secret that I have been working on an action thriller screenplay. It is about a Native American LAPD officer who tries to solve the murder of his brother. I had a premature "table read" of this script a few years back. It has come a long way since then. The story has stayed the same. I just felt I had to amp up the action. I received great feedback on it by many, but nothing really concrete in getting the screenplay made into a film. I even got advice from a film distributor who really liked it, but said he wanted to love it. The question in my mind is always "how can I make this better?"

Matt gave me a great response. He loved my screenplay and thought it had potential. His big concern was not having enough money for the budget of an action thriller. He told me to try and get a studio behind it. He warned though that it could be tough without the right actor. We had a long talk about "casting" the lead in my screenplay. I've had this conversation before and it is always about which "star" name could carry this film. Who can bring in money at the box office? I told him like I tell everybody else. I am the "lead" character. I don't want to direct it. I want only to "star" in it. I wrote the "lead" for me! Matt's point was that if I had a known "name" actor in the lead. The studios might take it on.Comment:  Roscoe Pond is arguably the Gene Shalit of Native movie "critics": He likes everything he sees. Therefore, I wonder how good his screenplay is.

But this "producer" doesn't seem to understand how to make money in Hollywood any better than the studios do. A "name" actor? Did Shia LaBeouf sell The Transformers? Did Chris Pine sell Star Trek? Did Sigourney Weaver sell Avatar? No, no, and no.

If you have a great story, great action, and perhaps a great director, that's all you need. A superstar doesn't sell a movie--except to the scared bean-counters--and is arguably a waste of money. Hence the fallacy of the big-name actor.

I don't know if Pond is a good actor. But he looks like he could play a tough SOB. Put him on a good movie poster and in a good trailer and you're already halfway to selling the movie.

For more on the subject, see The Best Indian Movies.

New Will Sampson book

New Book Showcases Actor Will Sampson’s Life and Art

Now for the first time, fans and Western art enthusiasts can meet the real Will "Sonny" Sampson in a beautiful coffee table book, Beyond Cuckoo’s Nest–The Art and Life of William Sampson, Jr.Known for his unforgettable role as Chief Bromden in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, William Sampson, Jr. entertained and moved audiences in numerous films, TV shows, and on stage. But his most important role was one that he played all of his life, that of Indian cowboy and artist.

Now for the first time, fans and Western art enthusiasts can meet the real Will "Sonny" Sampson in a beautiful coffee table book, Beyond Cuckoo’s Nest–The Art and Life of William Sampson, Jr.

Illustrated with photographs of more than 50 paintings and over 70 sketches, the originals which are in private collections, the poignant book takes the reader on a rare and tender journey. The 200 glossy pages begin with a three-year-old-boy drawing in the dirt, taking the reader all the way to the 6′ 5" actor, whose talent and charm influenced many.

The Muscogee Creek Indian also holds a special place in American history. Together he and the book’s author started the American Indian Registry, forever changing how Native Americans are viewed in Hollywood.

"Painting is my life," he said. "I am first, last and always a painter."

Indeed, Will Sampson claimed that acting supported his painting habit.Comment:  For more on the subject, see Will Sampson Gets Medallion and The Best Indian Movies.

The Dry Land at Sundance

The Dry LandA U.S. soldier returning home from war struggles to reconcile his experiences abroad with the life and family he left in Texas."The Dry Land" a wrenching Iraq war storyIt's no secret that thousands of soldiers are coming back from Iraq and their lives are shattered, but no one wants to think too much about it.

Writer-director Ryan Piers Williams does, and he has been researching and reading about the subject for five years. The result is "The Dry Land," a troubling meditation on one man's fall from grace. It's rough stuff and not for everyone, but there should be an audience--most likely at home--that cares enough to seek it out.Sundance 2010:  America Ferrera's new movie, The Dry LandThis moving, taut story of redemption and reconstruction extends beyond a post-traumatic-stress-disorder narrative. O’Nan is heartbreaking as he explores the depths of his internal struggle; Ferrera fearlessly tackles her role of a young wife in turmoil.Sundance Review:  "The Dry Land"The Dry Land is a hauntingly beautiful, quietly understated but ultimately powerful film that explores the fragmented life of a returning soldier without ever belabouring the point.Comment:  Wrenching Iraq war stories aren't my kind of movie. But The Dry Land is getting some buzz at Sundance.

The Dry Land is relevant here because Heather Rae co-produced it. Because it includes Misty Upham (billed 12th in the cast on IMDB.com). And because it reunites Rae and Upham with Melissa Leo from Frozen River.

For more on the subject, see The Best Indian Movies.

Below:  Misty Upham at Sundance.

Avatar/Dances with Wolves mashup

Comment:  For more on the subject, see Avatar/Ferngully Mashup and Avatar = Dances with Wolves?