Fishing lodge asks that you not give booze to the "Native Guides"

My Brother-In-Law, David Finkle, is a musician and traditional craftsperson here in Ottawa. He is also a part of Canada's First Nations communities. He sent me this bit of old-timey racism that is circulating from the guidebook of a Manitoba fishing lodge:

The backlash has been swift and severe.

Chief Arlen Dumas, of the Mathias Colomb Cree Nation (the "Indian guides" referenced) told the CBC, “The statements are so outrageous. Not only does he offend the very people that provide him his livelihood … he insults all indigenous people in North America.”

Chief Dumas wrote an open letter to the owners of the lodge, which operates on traditional Mathias Colomb Cree territory. They have yet to respond.

Meanwhile the lodge's Facebook page has become the target of a massive (and justified) airing of grievances:

"Unbelievable that in this day and age there exists such ignorance and overt racism. I grew up in the times of 'no dogs or Indians allowed' signs and thought it was at least fading, but this shows that sadly, it is not," wrote Robin Maracle. 

"Bravo, you have completely alienated your workforce, your community and an entire nation," wrote Cynthia Mandeville. 

"The best thing to do would be to turn this into an opportunity to educate yourself. Everyone makes mistakes. The right thing to do is to apologize and move toward making things better," wrote Karen SC.

Many cited a post by âpihtawikosisân, a Montreal Métis blogger who addressed the "drunken Indian" stereotype and myths with stats and references. It's worth a read.

Selling artifacts of genocide? (h/t @anishinaboy)

Former APTN reporter and Ojibway factotum Tim Fontaine Tweeted this item from a high-end auction brochure from Waddington's in Toronto.

The item description reads:

NORTHERN PLAINS INDIAN

CHILD’S TUNIC, EARLY 19TH

CENTURY

fringed and with beaded collar, showing

signs of central bullet trauma, cased, 23”

x 31” — 58.4 x 78.7 cm

That's right. It's a child's shirt. From the time when Americans were pushing westward through the Great Plains of the continent, slaughtering bison — and often, human beings —in the name of Manifest Destiny.

This artifact is one among dozens that belonged to anthropological collector Billy Jamieson, who died a few years ago.  The auction house says it was purchased originally from Tom Hampton in Santa Fe, New Mexico. How Mr. Hampton came upon it is not mentioned. But it is valued at $2-3,000.

Mr. Fontaine updates that the post is no longer on the Waddington's site. (He complained via e-mail.) 

The page on the Waddington's site with the dead child's shirt is down. Took a grab from the catalogue: pic.twitter.com/IZgWR2qB2y
— Tim Fontaine (@anishinaboy) April 28, 2014

So, why is this a problem? After all, we have no idea who shot this child. It could have been anyone, even another Native American.

No matter what the original provenance of the tunic, it is evidence of a historical murder of a child, within the context of what many consider an era of attempted genocide of Native Americans by European settlers.

It's not a historical curiosity. It is a symbol of horror. And I hope it will be repatriated soon to the unfortunate child's people for proper respect, rather than becoming a conversation piece in another rich guy's parlour.

The auction is tomorrow. Waddington's contact info is here.

Update:

Looks like the shirt has been removed from the auction: http://t.co/h4hlswtsHW (thanks to @kimpweaver for pointing this out)
— Tim Fontaine (@anishinaboy) April 28, 2014

The other two items removed were "FOUR PAIRS OF NORTHEAST WOODLANDS INDIAN
MOCCASINS, 19TH/EARLY 20TH CENTURY" and "THREE PAIRS NORTH AMERICAN NATIVE INDIAN MOCCASINS, 19TH AND 20TH CENTURIES"

You can still see the original catalogue here.

UPDATE: The issue has been picked up by mainstream media.

Native Americans call themselves many things, but not "Redskins"

Via Osocio

Recently, I was interviewed (twice) by Adweek's David Gianatasio about the highly-problematic sports brand, The Washington Redskins. I received quite a bit of blowback from diehard fans on Twitter about my contention that the name is a racist anachronism that simply has to go away.

Interestingly, here in Ottawa, a local youth league football club who had named themselves after Washington's NFL franchise have just recently changed their name to the Eagles following a formal human rights complaint by Ojibway musician Ian Campeau from A Tribe Called Red.

Mr. Campeau spent two years campaigning against the Nepean Redskins name,  and he says it taught him a lot about the continuing racism against Aboriginal peoples. "The backlash that this whole campaign has received to me tells me this is more than just football," he said. "It's about the entitlement of being able to label an oppressed people, to call somebody they have no ties to... that word."

Meanwhile, Washington Redskins owner Dan Snyder says he will never change the name of his team. But Native Americans and their allies are gaining force. The Oneida Indian Nation was first to speak out. Now National Congress of American Indians has joined in the opposition, backed by leaders from seven different groups:  Cathy Abramson, Councilmember, Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians; Al Goozmer, President, Tyonek Native Village of Alaska; Brian Cladoosby, Chairman, Swinomish Indian Tribal Community and President, NCAI; Edwina Butler Wolfe, Governor, Absentee Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma; Leander McDonald, Tribal Chairman, Spirit Lake Tribe; Dennis Welsh, Chairman, Colorado River Indian Tribes; Candace Bossard, Councilmember, Ponca Tribe of Nebraska. Even President Obama has weighed in.

In my opinion, this is a human rights issue, not matter of "how many people" support the NFL or other regulators taking action to force a name change. But as we have seen with other human rights issues, such as equal marriage, it doesn't hurt to get public opinion on your side.

That's where this PSA comes in. My blogging colleague Marc just posted it on Osocio:



Simple, powerful and truthful, this video released by the Oneida — right before this weekend's Super Bowl — is the "hearts and minds" campaign the cause needs, exactly when it needs it.

You, too, can take action at changethemascot.org.

Thanksgiving tanning ad thanks Native Americans for their "sexy color"

I'm almost speechless. Almost.

The Daily Mail quotes David Arnett, Marketing Director at Alabama tanning salon Club Sun Color Studios"

"We are all Americans no matter what color we are. Just because we promote a nice tan doesn't mean we are racist. 

This was an in house ad that was never intended to be taken as racist or insensitive. We were merely trying to compliment the beautiful skin "color" of Native Americans."

Mr. Arnett also claims to be Native American, which seems to have become the new "I have black friends" or "my uncle is Jewish" of refusing to apologize for casual racism.

The promotional image is no longer on their site.

The problem of retro brand racism

Via CBC

When I was a kid, this kind of stereotyping on native people was simply part of the landscape. We had "Indian" costumes, wallets, fake tomahawks and plastic soldiers. And the brands around us reflected this casual racism.

But the potato chip packaging above is not from the 1970s. Krispy Kernels snack foods, of Quebec, decided to reintroduce their old packaging as a "vintage edition," according to the CBC.

Vintage bag, via Yum Yum

Interestingly, the old design was in use until 1990, when the Oka Crisis forced a more sensitive re-evaluation of Aboriginal issues in Canada.

While there is a certain value in recognizing how much things have changed in the past few decades, the ironic use of such a stereotype for marketing purposes seems at best misguided and at worst ignorantly racist.

It gets even worse: The company has an in-store contest that encourages people to take pictures of theor faces in a standee of a loinclothed "little Indian":

Both images via CJAD

Upon launch, Valérie Jalbert, CEO of Yum Yum Chips and Krispy Kernels, and Renee-Maude Jalbert, marketing director of Yum Yum Chips , happily posed with the campaign for La Presse.

Irkar Beljaars, a Montreal-based Mohawk journalist, told the CBC:

“It's just like ‘look at that, I'm pretending to be an Indian. You're just perpetuating racial stereotypes. You're just continuing to mock us by doing things like this.”

Interestingly, Krispy Kernels claims the packaging is a nod to the legendary founder of the potato chip (disputed), who was Native American:

It all began one August night when a customer, offended by the greasy taste of his french-fried potatoes, sent them back to the kitchen. Chef George Crum, who was of Native American descent (which inspired the Yum Yum logo), was equally offended by this return. Averse to criticism, Crum decided to seek revenge and furiously chopped up a new batch of potatoes. Slicing them as thin as paper, he threw them in a boiling hot oil-filled fryer and removed them once crisp and golden. He then seasoned them heavily and served his dish to the picky patron.

The company said the caricature on the package is a return to the company's roots, and is not meant to be mocking.

The campaign page has since been taken down.

Ottawa Sun co-opts Aboriginal rights meme to welcome back NHL hockey

My sister-in-law, Bonnie, sent me this picture of The Ottawa Sun. Now that the NHL lockout is over, most people here are happy that hockey is coming back. Less happy will be the thousands of aboriginal rights activists for whom #idlenomore has become an important and passionate call-to-arms.

Four stupid Thanksgiving ads with the same racist headline

They're not just unoriginal, obnoxious and offensive, they're historically inaccurate. 

Back in the day, it was the pilgrims who drank beer all the time, simply because they had no reliable source of clean water. The indigenous Wampanoag people probably weren't in much of a partying mood, either, since were being decimated by novel diseases brought to their shores by the Europeans.

From a collection of native stereotyped American Thanksgiving ads at Indian Country.  Thanks to Audra Williams for sharing.

Dress your tween daughter as a "sassy squaw" this Halloween

My sister-in-law, Laura L., shared this picture from a Facebook. I'm used to Halloween being a celebration of awkward and/or offensive stereotypes, but "squaw"? Seriously?

The term was once common for indigenous North American women, entering English as a loan word from the Algonquian languages, but is now usually considered a derogatory (by some, even obscene) term.

This costume is marketed by inCharacter. Here it is in their catalogue:

The company also makes "adult" versions, but omits the "s" word:

The "Sassy Squaw" costume is also for sale at Amazon.com, Sears.com, ebay's Shopping.com and Buy.com (where it was renamed "Sassy Indian Maiden Costume") along with a number of other stereotyped native costumes for girls.

To my First Nations nieces, and all Aboriginal women: I am sorry this shit is still happening.

Gap is in social media hell for not knowing what "Manifest Destiny" is

So, apparently Gap has been selling this shirt with the words "Manifest Destiny" written on it.

As a Canadian, the first thing it made me think of was the rhetoric behind post-1812 border skirmishes with our southern neighbours. But that's just the way I learned it in history class.

FB friend Audra (a social media specialist in the not-for-profit world) made me aware of just how much shit it's causing with the real victims of the policy when she shared this post on The Belle Jar:

The term Manifest Destiny was coined by journalist John L. O’Sullivan in 1845 as part of his campaign to encourage the annexation of Texas and Oregon County. His first use of the phrase, in the 1845 July-August issue of the Democratic Review, didn’t draw much attention, but the second time he used it, in a column published in the New York Morning News on December 27th, 1845, became extremely influential: 

“And that claim is by the right of our manifest destiny to overspread and to possess the whole of the continent which Providence has given us for the development of the great experiment of liberty and federated self-government entrusted to us.” 

Manifest Destiny became the smart, fancy-sounding name for a belief that had already been around for quite some time: namely, that white folks of European descent were destined to rule the entirety of North America. These people truly believed that it was God’s will that they colonize the new world and systematically destroy any civilizations that might already be occupying the lands they wanted.

To make things worse, here's what the shirt designer had to say about it:

Via Ida Hammer

There's now a petition on Change.org that states:

GAP is selling a black shirt with the words "MANIFEST DESTINY" written on it. This article of clothing promotes a belief that has resulted in the mass genocide of indigenous people, and it serves to normalize oppression. This shirt is marketed to teens and young adults, and it gives no context for the racism and inequality that persists in our society, to this day, as a result of this doctrine. We are asking that this shirt be discontinued, and that an apology be issued.

The designer, Mark Mcnairy, is very very sorry:

Like ALL CAPS sorry.

Meanwhile, Gap have lost all control over their Facebook wall. 

Here are some choice posts.:

Seriously. Is nobody minding the store?

Racism again rears its ugly head in anti-abortion ads

It's not the first time charges of racism have been levelled at a "pro-life" ad, but this time there was nothing subtle about the message:

Via Tumblr

This was a homemade job, that showed up on the campus of the University of New Mexico recently. And Native American students were not happy about it:



Feministing reports that a representative for 40 Days for Life, who were thought to be behind the posters, denied that they were associated with the group.

Student placards read, “Racism is not pro-life” and “We will not be used to further your political purpose.”

Feminsting adds:

Native women–who face rates of sexual violence that are twice as high as the rest of the country–often severely lack access to reproductive health care. A recent report found that only 10 percent of the pharmacies in the Indian Health Service system offered Plan B over the counter. And thanks to the Hyde smendment, abortion isn’t covered under the IHS or Medicaid.

Native North Americans are not impressed with the cultural appropriation in your marketing

Sociological Images' Gwen Sharp just wrote an interesting post about Paul Frank's event for Fashion’s Night Out, which "reflects the widespread appropriation of Native American cultures in fashion over the last few years." She described the event as including a dress-up game with stereotyped Native American garb, and photo opportunities. It's important reading for marketers, as is the original post at the Native Appropriations blog by Cherokee writer Adrienne K.

She wrote (directly to Paul Frank), "The bottom line is this: your event stereotypes and demeans Native cultures, collapsing hundreds of distinct tribal and cultural groups into one 'tribal' mish-mash, thereby erasing our individual identities and contemporary existence."

Here's one of her screencaps:

Coincidentally, just yesterday I captured this campaign for an art exhibition at Ottawa's Gallery 101 by Joi T Arcand of the Muskeg Lake Cree Nation, Saskatchewan, called oskinikiskwēwak ("young women"). It looks at the problem of pop culture appropriation of native culture from the other side:

"Look! More Neechies!"
"Nah, it's just hipsters in headdresses."

It's part of a series of works that mock stereotypes with wit and style.

This isn't the 1950s, my friends. (Especially those of you at Red Light PR.) Native Americans and Canada's First Nations people see what you did there. And they will call you on it.

Want to stop the seal hunt? First stop $11 peanut butter in Nunavut

We moved into their land, to get access to valuable resources. We brought the "civilizing" influence of schools, houses and grocery stores to Canada's northern peoples in Nunavut. And now that we've made our case that shopping is better than hunting, we offer them...

The problem, you see, is that almost anything made on a farm or a factory has to be flown in. The traditional diet was mostly meat — mammals and birds from the land and sea, supplemented with fish and berries in season. We're talking caribou, polar bears, seals, whales...

Yeah, that's right. Animals the world doesn't want hunted anymore. But what are the alternatives?

Some Nunavut activists have taken their story to the world, via a Facebook Group called "Feeding My Family". Here, they share their photos of outrageous food prices (the ones above showed up on Buzzfeed) as well as their stories of food insecurity. They have since shown up on The Consumerist,  CBC, The Toronto Star, Huffington Post, and elsewhere.

But what can really be done?

Well, when you have the world's attention, you seize the moment. Just last month, UN special rapporteur for food Olivier De Schutter stated that Canada has over 800,000 households that are considered "food insecure" — a shocking statistic for a first-world country. So an Iqaluit resident, Jessica Ann, started a Change.org petition to the Government of Canada, stating:

Over 70% of Nunavut families with children between the ages of 3-5 are food insecure. Poverty, climate change and high food prices mean that many families in Nunavut go hungry. The UN Rapporteur recently issued a report about Canada's 800,000 families who are food insecure, calling food insecurity in our country a "great concern". The Conservative MP for Nunavut, Leona Aglukkaq, shamed Nunavummiut with her immature and out-of-touch response to the UN Rapporteur. 

We, the people of Nunavut, deserve better from our federal government. Please sign this petition to ask for concrete, effective change that will address poverty and food insecurity in our communities.

There was a time, up there, when food security depended on skill, cooperation, weather and luck. Today, it depends on compassion and fairness.

If people really want to save the seals, etc., maybe we should look at providing affordable alternatives first.

Remember when Canada was horribly racist?

Via Buzzfeed

This poster promoting the Canadian Patriotic Fund, a World War One fundraising effort to help support wives and dependents of Canadian soldiers, is pretty damn offensive by today's standards.

But, almost a century later, we still have a long way to go:

Violations of the basic human rights of Canada's Aboriginal people is still a "Priority Concern" for Amnesty International, and you don't have to look far to see examples of how our country's first populations are still treated like second class citizens.

Sad.

Eska in hot water over "Eskan Warriors" ad

Adrants reports that this Eska Water ad, by Toronto's KBS+P, has been permanently removed from TV (but not yet YouTube) with the apology, "Eska Water wishes to apologize to all those who may have found the campaign and its images disrespectful. Certainly, that was never our intention."



The ad uses the typical dry humour that Canadians like, but it was the portrayal of the "Eskan Warriors" that pissed people off. Especially Aboriginal people.



The problem is that times have changed. Twenty years ago, it was considered fair game to create a stereotyped cartoon image of "natives" of any country. Today, it is seen as offensive.

The native American blog, Newspaper Rock, in context of a different campaign five years ago, put it quite eloquently:

"What’s sad is that this isn’t an isolated incident. If anything, the whole Savage vs. Civilized dichotomy is one of the mainstream media’s favorite cliches. It pops up time after time after time.

The underlying message in all of these representations is the smug celebration of the supposedly inherent superiority of whiteness and “Western” culture."

In other words, it's a lazy trope that's got to go.