Is it proper to call us Native American -

[Nashitheki]

Names have strange & capricious origins, & different meanings to different people.
We all argue about what something should be called (eg, black vs African American),
& after much gnashing of teeth, an uneasy compromised is reached.....& then changed.
I don't understand it all. I'll just watch for consensus, & try to avoid being overly offensive.
I prefer the term "Aboriginal American". What think you of this one?

Edit: Let me know if I've gone too far prefacing my question in a DIR not my own, eh?

Aboriginal American sounds pretty cool to me. But you can also call me Na****heki.

Just offering another perspective concerning American Indian cultures. It is through all these many different perspectives we can all learn about each other upon more level ground.

 

[Nashitheki]

I hear ya girl. In the summer when the family gets a good beach tan we have been hit on by all these Mexican dudes. I don't even speak Spanish, and they get all bent out of shape when I tell them that. My daughter just tells 'em to go pick something. But hey, if she's wearing her gun, they do just that!

Indians with guns ? People may think y'all are hostile

What some don't realize is that most Mexicans have more Indian blood than a lot of people calling themselves Indians here in the states.

 

[TsalagiElder]

I much prefer to be called a member of the tribe of Tsalagi, this is what I identify myself by and this is what I have grown up learning...

 

[lewisnotmiller]

Outsider, but found this thread interesting. I am aware of the disparity of the various tribes/nations, and am kinda working under the assumption that most would prefer to be referred to by their tribe...

I'm interested in the American Indian term though. Was always under the assumption it wouldn't be liked because of it's inaccurate origins...but...is it a matter of trying to own the tag rather than be defined by it?

Thanks in advance for any thoughts, and happy to slide back out and lurk if you'd prefer.

 

[Alceste]

I prefer First Nations as a general category and specific bands / nations / tribes for discussing details of specific individuals, disputes, treaties, traditions or beliefs. I'm Canadian, for the record.

I feel weird saying "Indian". Maybe because where I grew up (suburban Alberta) I heard that term most often in a negative context, so it feels bigoted to me.

Reading Thomas King is gradually changing that though. The trouble with "First Nations" is that it's difficult to cram it into an elegant sentence. The trouble with specific bands is that I usually don't know what they are and there are a lot of them. I am learning, but geography (associating names with specific sections of a map) was never my strong suit.

 

[Alceste]

Outsider, but found this thread interesting. I am aware of the disparity of the various tribes/nations, and am kinda working under the assumption that most would prefer to be referred to by their tribe...

I'm interested in the American Indian term though. Was always under the assumption it wouldn't be liked because of it's inaccurate origins...but...is it a matter of trying to own the tag rather than be defined by it?

Thanks in advance for any thoughts, and happy to slide back out and lurk if you'd prefer.

I'm not native myself, but I get the impression it's considered quite amusing that Columbus thought he was in India. Using the name Indian can help remind us that the Europeans were not as smart as they thought they were.

 

[apophenia]

I'm not native myself, but I get the impression it's considered quite amusing that Columbus thought he was in India. Using the name Indian can help remind us that the Europeans were not as smart as they thought they were.

Well, he intended to get to India, not expecting the North American continent to be there. I think he would have realised early on that he wasn't in India. He was however smart enough to know that there were two general directions which would get him to India - east, and west.

Regarding the naming of indigenous Americans, I notice there is another thread about the name 'redskins'.

I am wondering if someone with indigenous American background can explain to me why that would be considered more offensive than 'Indian'. I am an Australian. We call our aboiginal folk 'blackfellas' quite often. They use the same word. It is not considered a racial slur by either group.

I am called a white man by blacks or some of my Indian neighbors, or ''white fella' by Aborigines (though my skin is of course not white) and that is not an insult. African Americans are called black without the term being considered racist (though of course they are not black).

Also ... 'aboriginal' is basically a synonym for 'indigenous', it is not specifically a reference to Australian blackfellas. That is just a modern linguistic trend.

The Australian aborigines are sometimes called Kooris (by anyone), although Koori is actually the name of a specific tribe.

It seems to me that 'red man' or 'redskin' is no more offensive than 'white' or 'black', and at least it not a fundamental error like 'Indian'. I can't see why 'black' and 'white' are OK, but 'red' is not. Can anyone explain please ?

I'm not sure what to call myself anymore. Genetically I'm a black Irish Jew. You can see the Irish and Jewish, but you have to hear me sing or play bass to perceive the West African. I'm as funky as James Brown. So I guess you can call me a hamburger (one with the lot).

 

[lewisnotmiller]

Columbus wasn't aiming for India...pretty sure it was the Dutch East Indies he was aiming for. And whether he realised he was not there or not, he continued to communicate to the Spanish Government that he was for some considerable time. I can probably find references for that if you like.

Minor clarification on Koori...it wasn't a specific tribe. It was a naming used by South Eastern tribes at one point to describe their collective.

Totally agree about the use of blackfella and whitefella over here...they're basically part of the pidjin language. But that other thread you are mentioning is talking specifically about the Washington Redskins. If there was an AFL team called the Tasmanian Blackfellas, and it incorporated whitefellas performing a corroboree pre-game the proverbial would hit the fan. The context is important. *shrugs* Not suggesting there has been a massive outcry over the Washington 'Skins or anything...

Black Irish Jew has gotta be one of the more unusual mixes I've heard of, bud. Especially one living Down Under...lol

 

[apophenia]

Minor clarification on Koori...it wasn't a specific tribe. It was a naming used by South Eastern tribes at one point to describe their collective.

That's correct, I was using a kind of shorthand.

Totally agree about the use of blackfella and whitefella over here...they're basically part of the pidjin language. But that other thread you are mentioning is talking specifically about the Washington Redskins. If there was an AFL team called the Tasmanian Blackfellas, and it incorporated whitefellas performing a corroboree pre-game the proverbial would hit the fan. The context is important. *shrugs* Not suggesting there has been a massive outcry over the Washington 'Skins or anything...

I get that entirely. I was more interested in hearing how indigenous Americans feel about the term 'red', given that black and white are not slurs, merely identifiers.

Black Irish Jew has gotta be one of the more unusual mixes I've heard of, bud. Especially one living Down Under...lol

Yeah it is kinda funny. And the West African dude arrived in Australia as a free settler on the second fleet, whereas his Irish wife's mother was deported here as a criminal for stealing a bag of beans ( she was a very poor single mother - hellish in that time). Add to that the fact that my mum was from a middle class background and ended up poorer than working class in the 50s after my father deserted - the middle class people thought we were crap ( poor, and a 'broken' home, which was very stigmatised back then) and the working class thought we were posers because we were literate and well educated (but poorer than them). So I got stick from both sides - and they were 'sides', I went to a primary school which serviced both a wealthy neighborhood and an area of public housing including immigrant hostels.
The street I grew up in was literally the border line between the rich and poor. On our side of the road (and for miles behind us) were houses run by the Housing Commission, and on the other, the upper middle class zone began.

So I do know about being a minority. I was a minority of one.

 

[AlchemicalSoul]

when everyone born in America is in fact a Native American ? I agree with others who want to be identified by their nation or tribe. These are people who called themselves something else long before the word America/n came into play.
A name held in common by a good many of us is American Indian and I tend to go along with Oglala Lakota activist and one of the founders of A.I.M.,(American Indian Movement) Russell Means -
"I Am An American Indian, Not a Native American!", Russell Means, a Lakota activist and a founder of the American Indian Movement (AIM), stated unequivocally, "I abhor the term 'Native American.' It is a generic government term used to describe all the indigenous prisoners of the United States. These are the American Samoans, the Micronesians, the Aleuts, the original Hawaiians, and the erroneously termed Eskimos, who are actually Upiks and Inupiaqs. And, of course, the American Indian.
I prefer the term American Indian because I know its origins. ... As an added distinction the American Indian is the only ethnic group in the United States with the American before our ethnicity.
At an international conference of Indians from the Americas held in Geneva, Switzerland, at the United Nations in 1977 we unanimously decided we would go under the term American Indian. "We were enslaved as American Indians, we were colonized as American Indians, and we will gain our freedom as American Indians and then we can call ourselves anything we damn please."

Russell Means

[youtube]-LA-S64QY3o[/youtube]
Russell Means: Welcome To The Reservation - YouTube

I prefer Indigenous American as a general term. However I agree that whenever possible the proper tribe/group should be used. I would much rather be called a Kiowa than anything else.

 

[JesusFreaKMyHero1]

when everyone born in America is in fact a Native American ? I agree with others who want to be identified by their nation or tribe. These are people who called themselves something else long before the word America/n came into play.
A name held in common by a good many of us is American Indian and I tend to go along with Oglala Lakota activist and one of the founders of A.I.M.,(American Indian Movement) Russell Means -
"I Am An American Indian, Not a Native American!", Russell Means, a Lakota activist and a founder of the American Indian Movement (AIM), stated unequivocally, "I abhor the term 'Native American.' It is a generic government term used to describe all the indigenous prisoners of the United States. These are the American Samoans, the Micronesians, the Aleuts, the original Hawaiians, and the erroneously termed Eskimos, who are actually Upiks and Inupiaqs. And, of course, the American Indian.
I prefer the term American Indian because I know its origins. ... As an added distinction the American Indian is the only ethnic group in the United States with the American before our ethnicity.
At an international conference of Indians from the Americas held in Geneva, Switzerland, at the United Nations in 1977 we unanimously decided we would go under the term American Indian. "We were enslaved as American Indians, we were colonized as American Indians, and we will gain our freedom as American Indians and then we can call ourselves anything we damn please."

Russell Means

[youtube]-LA-S64QY3o[/youtube]
Russell Means: Welcome To The Reservation - YouTube

Hello, I grew up in The Black Hills and had several Native Americans The Souix tribe. There is still a lot of racism towards them. I love their culture and have been to many "sweats" and Pow-Wow's. In my experience they didn't mind being called Indians or American Indians. Native Americans seemed weird to them because of the PC factor. I agree what our forefathers did to them was wrong and we have a lot to learn from them. They've always believed that we belong to the Earth, not that the Earth belongs to us.

 

[JesusFreaKMyHero1]

when everyone born in America is in fact a Native American ? I agree with others who want to be identified by their nation or tribe. These are people who called themselves something else long before the word America/n came into play.
A name held in common by a good many of us is American Indian and I tend to go along with Oglala Lakota activist and one of the founders of A.I.M.,(American Indian Movement) Russell Means -
"I Am An American Indian, Not a Native American!", Russell Means, a Lakota activist and a founder of the American Indian Movement (AIM), stated unequivocally, "I abhor the term 'Native American.' It is a generic government term used to describe all the indigenous prisoners of the United States. These are the American Samoans, the Micronesians, the Aleuts, the original Hawaiians, and the erroneously termed Eskimos, who are actually Upiks and Inupiaqs. And, of course, the American Indian.
I prefer the term American Indian because I know its origins. ... As an added distinction the American Indian is the only ethnic group in the United States with the American before our ethnicity.
At an international conference of Indians from the Americas held in Geneva, Switzerland, at the United Nations in 1977 we unanimously decided we would go under the term American Indian. "We were enslaved as American Indians, we were colonized as American Indians, and we will gain our freedom as American Indians and then we can call ourselves anything we damn please."

Russell Means

[youtube]-LA-S64QY3o[/youtube]
Russell Means: Welcome To The Reservation - YouTube

I grew up in The Black Hills with and around the Lakota Sioux. I am white but I had a lot of Indian friends. They didn't mind being called Indians or American Indians. They did, however, not like Native American because it was created by the government and it's too PC, it's weird to them. I love the Sioux people and they have always accepted me into their culture and let me participate in Powwow's and Sweats. I love to be around them and learn about their culture. They are amazing people and the way they respect the earth and lived in complete harmony with Nature is awesome to me. I have been to 2 reservations in South Dakota, Pine Ridge and Rosebud and have seen first hand what they are like, desolate and un able to farm on them.

Also, history that is being taught in the schools regarding, at least the Great Plain Indians, is lacking facts, minimized, and sometimes just incorrect. I get angry because the truth and reality of what happened to them will become a distant memory.

 

[Sister Cyber]

Is it proper to call us Native American
It is probably as proper as calling an Ethiopian "Black" or calling a Caucasoid "White."