This plaque is at the Oklahoma State Capital. Obviously, made by someone ignorant of the Trails of Tears
Native Americans experience significant racism, which along with colonization and settler colonialism informs the status of Native American nations and languages.
There is a strong and undeniable link between racism and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW). Racist educators teach racism overtly, and then covertly — which results in more Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women.
This first example of racism reads like a research paper. For instance, linguistics organizations such as the LSA must respect Indigenous nationhood and the associated sovereignty, which includes a firm recognition of ‘Native American’… as a political category. One said staff member of Black River Falls School District did not respect Indigenous nationhood, and in fact perpetrated upon a female student significant racism.
(Bold mine)
She had a question, so she asked a staff member she sees every day for some help, someone with whom Naomi said she, to this point, had only had positive interactions.
The answer was captured on Naomi’s phone.
“You don’t care. I don’t care if you get a D minus. You’re Native, right? So just … collect a check, don’t give two [expletive] about your future? So why should I care?” the staff member is heard saying.
“I just looked over at my friend who heard the whole thing. She was pretty shocked. I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know what to do,” Naomi said.
Perhaps one may wonder, in context of significant racism, why the following is true.
Between 86-96 percent of the sexual abuse of Native women is committed by non-Indigenous perpetrators who are rarely brought to justice.
Consider the term “dehumanization,” before watching the three video examples.
Indigenous Peoples2 around the world—including here in the United States—have endured unimaginable dehumanization at the hands of so-called explorers and conquistadors, religious saviors and educators, frontiersmen, and many more who may go unnamed here but are not forgotten to the annals of history and storytelling. Like the varied hands that played a part in those acts of inhumane cruelty, present-day organizations maintain and perpetuate the power structure that permits those dehumanizing acts to persist when we normalize them in our institutional language (e.g., chief; scalp(ed); “off the reservation;” “Indian giver;” powwow), behaviors (war cry mockery; “Hollywood Injun English”), or representations (wearing traditional headdresses; slogans; mascots). Indigenous people have informed us directly that they are NOT our mascots3.
Is this educator not teaching throughbehaviors (war cry mockery; “Hollywood Injun English”), or representations (wearing traditional headdresses; slogans; mascots) to dehumanize?
Also, isn’t this educator engaging a dehumanizing act(s) to persist when we normalize them in our institutional language (e.g., chief; scalp(ed); “off the reservation;” “Indian giver;” powwow)?
Finally, what does the below teach students about treatment of any tribal member, as to whether or not they have the right to control their own bodies?
While the above mentioned are at lower age levels of education with younger students, what about higher education?
The tumultuous relationship between institutions of higher learning and First Nation Peoples can be explained in part by the use of education to colonize and force the assimilation of Native Peoples. The end result of centuries of dehumanization and marginalization is invisibility, “the modern form of racism used against Native Americans” (the American Indian College Fund, 2019, p. 5).
Therefore, when Native American students are younger, the racism is overt; yet, when they are older in college, the racism is more covert. Native Americans experience significant racism, which along with colonization and settler colonialism informs the status of Native American nations and languages. No wonder the media doesn’t give a flying fuck about the 86-96 percent of the sexual abuse of Native women (is) committed by non-Indigenous perpetrators who are rarely brought to justice — they’re taught to ignore it, too.
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Settler colonialism also introduced sexualized stereotypes and racist attitudes upon Indigenous women which served to dehumanize them and continue to influence Canadian society today. Indigenous women are often portrayed as prostitutes, street people and addicts so when they are victimized the blame is often placed on them, however, the context of their differing socio-economic status is often ignored (Moeke-Pickering et al., 2018). Crimes against Indigenous women are frequently under reported in the media which contributes to normalizing the perspective that crimes against Indigenous peoples do not matter (Palmater, 2016). Turning a blind eye to what is happening also allows settlers to continue to see themselves as good by not acknowledging their role in what is currently happening to Indigenous women (Eberts, 2014). The ongoing racist stereotypes and attitudes against Indigenous women play a large role in the Canadian silence of the undeniable problem of MMIW.
As long as the dominant culture sees itself as good — it’s just fine.
Understand that here in the United States, racism against and disrespect of natives is embedded in the American psyche early in life, and it begins with things like holidays to Indian killers, Hollywood Westerns of Indians being killed, and fanatic sports culture where on any given Sunday in autumn a headline in Dallas reads, “Cowboys Scalp Redskins.”
Don’t have time to recheck links. They worked last year.
