Re: Amerind an offensive term (was: Early Amerind assimilation

Chris Cracknell (ad329@james.freenet.hamilton.on.ca)
4 Aug 1996 04:44:41 -0400

In article <Pine.SOL.3.91.960803163421.25053C-100000@lonestar.jpl.utsa.edu>, "Stephen W. Russell" <srussell@lonestar.jpl.utsa.edu> wrote:
>Please accept my abject apology, Little Joe, I did not notice your
>e-address was Canadian until I saw Eric Brunner's post on this thread.
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Wow talk about bizarre syncronicity. I downloaded a packet. Read your
rage directed at me for injustices the Native Peoples of the United States
have suffered. Responded in a rather irritated way that I am not an American
and should not be held accountable for the actions of the government of
the United States. I upload my reply packet. Something goes wrong and my
ISP eats the reply. I download a packet and see an apology from you for
mistaking me for an american. Now I'm spared both the need to repost my
responce and the need to return the apology to you for getting so steamed at
being blamed for the crimes of the US government.

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>I'm sure you guys have always scrupulously honored all treaty obligations
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Well if I have broken any treaty obligations I assure you it was done only
out of ignorance and not out of malice.

However, the government of this country I live in cannot make the same claim.

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>and the Canadian Indians who keep complaining otherwise are just a bunch
>of victim wannabes.
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No, I'm sure many of them have quite legitimate reasons for complaint.

You seem to be taking some of my previous statements out of context. So
allow me to briefly recap what I have so far posted to this thread.

Firstly I was drawn to this thread by the subject of the discussion. That
being what are and are not offensive and appropriate terms for addressing
Native American peoples as a group.

I wished to express that I felt the term "Indian", while not offensive to
Native American peoples was not an appropriate term since it really
refers to people from India.

When I was younger, growing up in this country, I always associated the
term "Indian" with Native Americans. However, now that I'm so closely
connected with the Indian community (that is the community of people in my
area who are from India) I now tend to associate the term "Indian" with
people from India. And I've discovered just how frustrating it can be to
have to explain to people that my wife is an Indian from India and not a
Native American "Indian". And I would imagine that my personal frustration
over the dual meaning of the term "Indian" in our country pales when
compaired to the frustration that Indians (people from India) must feel when
they have to deal with it.

I can't speak for the United States, but here in Canada we have a fairly
large Indian Community (that is a community of people who immigrants from
India or decendents of people from India). If we only had a couple of dozen
Indians (people from India) in our country then maybe sharing the term
"Indian" wouldn't be such a big issue. But the Indian Community in Canada is
pretty big.

The other tangent that was running through this thread basically involved
a Native American person and a person of Irish descent bickering over
whose people had been victimized more.

Somebody, I don't recall who, posted that they found this one-up-manship
over who was the bigger victim to be distasteful and a diservice to both
cultures. To which I posted a very flip and off the cuff comment that went
something to the effect of:

"Hey, get with it. This is the nineties. Some people wear victimization
like a trendy new T-shirt."

The comment was neither directed at the victims of injustice and suffering
in Ireland (who would be my ancestors and relatives) nor Native Americans
many of whom are still suffering injustice today.

It was mearly a tongue-in-cheek commentary on our times. I suppose I should
have framed it with a ;) but I thought the sarcasm was pretty self evident.

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>BTW, how did it make you feel when the FBI filed perjured affidavits to
>get Leonard Peltier extradited from your country and then admitted it
>after they had him? Messed with your sovereignty, didn't they? Welcome
>to the club.
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When was it that this happened again?

If it was in the early 70's I was probably too distracted with the problem
of hair loss that my G.I. Joe was suffering to notice. If it was the late
70's I was probably too distracted by the problem of winning the affections
of Janice McGee to notice. If it was the early 80's I was probably too
distracted by the problems of winning the affections of any number of girls
to notice. I really wasn't too big on current affairs in my youth.

But to be honest with you, it's just one more notch on the bedpost for all
the times the US has given Canada the shaft, not that I want to get into a
"Who's a bigger victim, Canadians or Americans" discussion.

CRACKERS
(Johnny Shaft from hell!!!!)

-- 



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