Office by Alex Penny
I AM DYING.
Not actually.
But close.
This just in; no other child will ever be as cute as this Iñupiaq child.
omgosh little baby
(Source: reasoningwiththeunreasonable, via selchieproductions)
Wasn’t this guy a member of the Seneca tribe two seconds ago?
Anyway - member or not, being indigenous does not mean that it’s impossible for you to offend other indigenous peoples. Your grandma isn’t equipped with an invisible force field that gives you protection from offended indigenous peoples when you - indigenous or not - engage in an offensive, stereotypical depiction of them.
Also, related, but mainly because I’m a linguist; Athabaskan is mainly used to refer to the language family, right? Which, while primarily found in Alaska and western Canada, can be found in Texas and New Mexico as well? Like, the Navajo are Athabaskans for pete’s sake? And don’t most Athabaskans refer to themselves with the name of their respective languages? And if not by language, don’t most call themselves Dene?
So many questions
i think he’s just making it up as he goes along.
Unrelated? Nope, we’re native. You know, real, breathing, dynamic peoples. So we’re in the native tag. Deal.
Unrelated? Unrelated? Unrelated?
Bitch, GTFO.
It is pretty unrelated. They’re just pictures of people being smartasses. Not a goo way of representing any Native Americans. We used to be better people than that. What happened?
You might want to reconsider what you just said there. Making silly faces and tagging posts with your ethnicity/heritage somehow delegitimizes Indigenous cultures? In what universe does that make any sense? If a bunch of German people posted pictures of themselves making silly faces and tagged it “German”, does that somehow falsely represent German culture?
Of course it doesn’t. Because sometimes German people like to make silly faces. Also, German people don’t have to be spokespeople for their culture all the time, because people tend to acknowledge that German culture and history is complex and constantly evolving and, most importantly, made up of the people who live that culture, live that history, inhabit that space, and claim that heritage. Whether they are wearing lederhosen and eating sausages or not.
This may come as a surprise to you, but all cultures and peoples are like that. Every culture and people should bne recognized as complex and valid. People ‘making silly faces’ whilst also claiming their heritage should not, for whatever reason, throw you into a crisis of what makes up their culture. We are Native. We know who and what we are, whether we’re smudging, dancing in jingle dresses, drinking Starbucks, or pulling stupid faces on tumblr. If your understanding of our cultures is threatened by the reality of our lives, then your understanding is pretty fucking faulty to begin with.
And “we used to be better people than that”? WTF is that about? Making a dumb face makes you a bad person? Asserting that your people are still alive and not some archaic icons of the past makes you a jerk?
boom. you got told.
also, why does it matter in the first place? if the native american tag is that ridiculous don’t look at it. you don’t own it, goddamn.
dumbthingswhitepplsay: soydulcedeleche:
Do you know who Native Hawaiians are? They are the poorest, most worse off ethnic group in the United States because when the U.S. stole, yes, STOLE the Hawaiian islands (Hawaii was a sovereign independent country) they were populated by Hawaiian Natives who were all killed off and/or stripped of their land, culture and language. Only in the 70’s were they able to reclaim whatever bits of their culture they managed to retain in secret but not before AMERICANS reduced it to Tiki culture and kitchsy exotic artifacts.
To this day these people are suffering with no end in sight and NO help at all. Most are homeless! Everything was taken from them and along came WWII and all the racist douchefucks decided to make Native Hawaiians sacred Tiki Gods just cute little souvenir relics. They created 34058948756 Hawaiian pin ups of which all were white women.
And now Pin Up culture continues to usurp Native Hawaiian dress, Gods and general aesthetics shamelessly. Grass skirts, leis, Hula, Tiki Gods, their bright floral prints, etc. They have been reduced to just that….As if they arent real, valuable, horribly oppressed people with a rich language, culture and customs. Its a slap in the face from the same careless white people who didnt give a fuck about them and left them dying and on the streets without anything.
Everywhere you look Asians are claiming to be “Hawaiian” and everytime you look up a photo of Hawaiian you are liable to find nothing but tan asian people and not one single Native Hawaiian. Basically asians immigrants to Hawaii have also appropriated Hawaiian culture and identities and are now even perpetrating as something they arent and further obfuscating Hawaiians plight.
Everytime some douchefuck with no Native Hawaiian ancestry (or 1/16th of it) who happened to be born in Hawaii insists on being called Hawaiian it is SPIT in the face of REAL Native Hawaiians. Hawaiian is an ethnicity, a nationality, a culture. Either you are born one or you arent. Being born in a Sioux reservation wouldnt make you Sioux by birth, either.
And no Samoans arent the Natives of Hawaii! Native Hawaiians are Hawaiis natives. Samoans are the natives of *gasp* SAMOA!!!!! Right race, wrong nationality. Hawaiians are polynesian and do look alot like Samoans, the Maori and Tahitians, who, not surprisingly have also been raped and pillaged by white colonizers. However they DONT look at all asian unless they are mixed with them. Get a fuckin clue, people.
Some are still even ignant enough to try to argue Native Hawaiians dont exist because thats like calling yourself Californian. Yeah, if California was a sovereign country before maybe there’d be a comparison, assholes. How do you just erase an entire ethnic group like that?
There are less than 3000 Native Hawaiians left at this point. I am sure in just one generation when they are finally dead and gone the U.S. will suddenly recognize them and give them useless scraps.
Its the plan.
Don’t be an ignant douchefuck. RESPECT people and their culture. Read. And not just what seems convenient to you, either. :)
For all the white people living there who cry about how mean all 3000 of those people are oppressing them.
Pretty much why I do this:
when white people talk about how they went to Hawai’i & the Hawai’ians were rude to them.
(Source: bad-dominicana)
These events -are not for you-.
You are not native. Even if you grew up in a predominantly NDN area. Even if you have peripherally participated in NDN culture(s) through immersion. You are still not NDN. You cannot be a part of NDN culture, because it is not yours. It is not who you are. Ethnicity isn’t something you can convert to.
You can attend powwows that are open to the public, and enjoy the food and the music and the dancers and the vendors; you can purchase native-made arts and crafts to use, display in your home, wear, whatever - we hugely appreciate it when you do because many of us make or augment our livelihoods in this way. Please, watch and participate and enjoy when you’re invited to do so.
But that’s all.
Because you are not NDN.
One of the greatest disservices that white privilege does to -everyone- is that people who have white privilege are led to believe that everything in the world is theirs to have. This is not the case. You’re looking for pointers on how to…what, exactly? How to appropriate better? My advice: Just don’t.
No, really. Just don’t do it.
You’re Irish - you have your own lovely, rich, deep culture with its own fascinating history. You have your own ancestors. Go take an interest in THEM.
"The Navajo Nation even sent a cease and desist letter to Urban Outfitters. They have their tribal name trademarked so they have the legal rights over it and Urban Outfitters is violating the trademarks. It’s honestly sad to see this happen because no one should have to trademark their name just so they’re not disrespected every second. Do you think other tribes should trademark their name?
Yes! If other tribes joined that would send a message to all designers/clothing companies who frequently steal ideas/textiles/patternsfrom native tribes! Good for the Navajo Nation. We should all follow their example.
I agree. To avoid their name being thrown on every half-assed t-shirt with triangles and zig-zags on it, some tribes would have to. For some smaller tribes, I think it would be a good idea as well. I know the name Paiute is used on a bunch of golf courses and shit. It doesn’t sit well with me that my people’s name is being used on a ridiculously expensive hobby for old white men that very probably would exclude any actual Paiute from joining.
another dick move by UO.
Non-Natives telling us what we can and cannot do within our own culture… giant fail. To the OP, please don’t act like you have an authority to tell people what they can and can’t do within their own culture, you have no right to do that.
Sexual inequality will never not be my business. Wouldn’t I be hypocritical if I fought against sexism in my own country but said nothing about it’s prevalence in the rest of the world?
I am sick of all genders being told how to exist, that is all, and yet I’M the one who is expected to “just shut up and get over it.” I am not trying to be the white asshole trying to come in and save the day, I am simply trying to point out that this particular practice is NOT free from the far-stretching arm of inequality. Why is that such a terrible thing to assert?
And yes, I do think the hijab is misogynistic, but I sure as hell would not tell any woman or country what to do, I would just assert that it is misogynistic. This is a fact. One that many people can accept. Why not with so many other things that women are forced to wear or not allowed to wear by virtue of their assigned status at birth?
Who said this meant inequality? I don’t understand why you need to push European standards on us when they don’t apply.
CHECK YOUR PRIVILEGE, right now you think you’re preaching equality while you’re actually FORCING YOUR OWN BELIEFS ON PEOPLE. Honestly, like I could understand this argument if you were a Lakota woman who wanted to wear one but you’re not. You’re just as bad as the nutjobs trying to shove Christianity down everyones throats. You do not have the right to intervene or speak against other peoples cultures which YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND trying to scream misogyny. Every time you invade someone elses culture and tell them what to do all you’re doing is showing your disrespect for other cultures. You were not raised in this culture and are obviously ignorant to this entire issue which is why I’m not judging you for your apparent ignorance. I am however trying to explain this to you: Check your privilege when you think you have the right to judge someone elses culture. Have you ever noticed that Native American women aren’t fighting this tradition because maybe we’re okay with it?
If you’d like to assert anything assert the fact that you’re completely ignorant and intolerant of other cultures if they don’t believe what you believe. That’s a lovely little colonizer mindset you’ve got there.
True story.
I am a Lakota woman I am not fighting to wear a headdress. Headresses were not and are not the only way to honor a person!
My culture never had issues with sexism the way Pigblog is assuming. Pigblog is creating a division of gender that never existed in many Native American cultures. You don’t see men fighting to wear traditionally female clothing, just like you won’t find women fightin to wear traditionally male clothing. If someone is not comfortable with their ”assigned status at birth” no one stops them from being who they want to be or stops them from wearing what they want to wear.
If I, as a Lakota woman, earned the right to wear a headdress, then I’m sure my people would let me wear a headdress if I really wanted to. But, I haven’t earned that right and even if I had, I wouldn’t want to wear one anyway!!
It’s our culture. It’s my culture. Don’t tell us we are doing anything wrong. You’re wrong.
WESTERN FEMINISM DOESN’T WORK THE SAME WAY AS NATIVE FEMINISM.
how dare you try to tell us what’s so ‘wrong’ and ‘misogynistic’ about our cultures. gtfo.
this. png
(Source: trousertheft, via oogishkamaanisee)
I think what white people fail to understand — or, well, you know, one of the things they fail to understand in addition to all of the usual things — is that Two-Spirit is a word for us. Tied to our history. Bringing together both our Native and queer identities.
An indigenous ethnic/racial identity is part of what Two-Spirit means.
Which is to say it’s not for you because you are not Native.
another awesome reminder from wundy!
and white people complain that is cissexism. not it isn’t, fool! you’re telling native queer people that they’re cissexist because you want to appropriate yet another term that has nothing to do with you.
get your weak shit off my track.
(via oogishkamaanisee)
“
I don’t remember if i posted about this last year, but here is some scar work i did on a young, Native American girl. In her Blackfoot tribe it is customary to have a line scarred around their arm for each year they’re alive. It is known as Ponn Miistis, which literally translates to “the rings of a tree”. When they run out of room on one arm they move to the other, then the legs, but apparently their average life expectancy is only 43.
Anyhow, her parents are more modernized now and didn’t want her having this done while she was growing up. She was intrigued by her grandfather’s rings, which covered his arms and legs, so decided to come to me from Montana to catch up. Last year i worked on her upper arm and finished it up this time. She’s 24 now.
She promises to be back every year for another line, too!”
Body modification indigenous style; fucking gorgeous.
It’s why I stretch my lobes; a lot of east coast tribes practiced that. I plan on making a string of porcupine quills to string through as well. Many Iroquois Nation depictions have them wearing it.
