The photo on the left is Chief Big Foot. He and an estimated 300 Native Americans were massacred at Wounded Knee in 1890 by the United States Army. Most of them were women and children that died face first in the freezing snow, shot in the back as they tried to run. This incident is a drop in the bucket as compared to the literal genocide that took place here until the early 1900’s and the cultural genocide that some argue still takes place today. Of the millions upon millions that were executed, NONE were dressed as a “Slutty Indian” or the ill representation of “Pocahontas.” These people were AND ARE more than a costume or a fake headdress. You may find this petty or sensitive, perhaps we should “grow up” or “focus on other real issues.” I wish we could. How can a people be taken seriously about the “real issues” if we are still a slutty costume at a Halloween party, a crude drawing on a baseball jersey, or a derogatory mascot on a football helmet. If you wouldn’t paint your face black and dress as a slutty African American woman, why on earth would you do that to a Native American and think it isn’t racist, that it’s “in good fun.”
I love Halloween as much as the next person, probably more since it is the day after my birthday, but we can all have fun without being an ignorant bigot. I implore you to respect our culture, to respect our traditions, and to respect our ancestors. I BEG YOU TO RESPECT US!
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