“Ladies! Please don’t be a Pocahottie this Halloween. For your own sake. A real Native woman might ask you to eat those dyed chicken feathers. A real Native woman might swing you around by your fringe until you ruin the party. Worst of all, a real Native woman might corner you and let you know why your outfit is so offensive.”
The above excerpt is a post from multiple-award winning author Louise Erdrich’s Facebook page. Erdrich explores Native-American themes in her award-winning series of related novels and short stories and weaves stories representing Chippewa experience in the Anglo-American expanse. Her book, The Roundhouse, just won the American Book Award (it won the National Book Award last year).
At Maxim Hygiene, we believe ferocity is defined by the courage women have to recognize the need for change and to act upon it. As women, many of us are subjugated to socio-cultural norms, but some women face greater oppression as their otherness is augmented. To understand the world, people use labels and categories – for those of us who fall into many, it becomes harder to define ourselves outside or in spite of those categories.
Some people shed their labels in hopes of creating their own unique ones, and some, like Louise Erdrich, embrace our labels and identities in hopes of changing the perceptions and stereotypes that surround them.
This Thanksgiving, our advocacy work is to deconstruct the myths surrounding the history of the holiday, exposing them to be as nothing more than propaganda.
Thanksgiving for many of us means delicious eats and stretchy pants; for some, it means sewing a Pilgrim’s hat for their child’s school play; and for some of us, it is a day we take a moment to be really grateful for what we have been blessed with and earned. But this “holiday” has quite a turbulent past that goes unrecognized and unmentioned, which is a dishonor to the people who suffer(ed) due to political conquests fueled by colonialism and expansionism. To honor the holiday, we must recognize its roots.
It’s a common notion that the injustice to Native Americans was done in the past (and not any more) and that the reparations and government services now provided to them is an appropriate amendment. But the truth is that injustice happens every day, on and off reservations. Our government created an oppressive system that marginalizes Native Americans, putting them at a disadvantage that many struggle to overcome.
This post isn’t about victimizing Native Americans, but rather a wake-up call for the people who exoticize or fabricate the Native history and people. Through Erdrich’s work, and other authors like Sherman Alexie, the average American is awakened to the current and prevalent racism that populations still face in the our “land of the free”. This Thanksgiving, we ask that while you are grateful for what you have received, that you recognize who is fighting for those same rights.
We had the fortunate opportunity to interview Erdrich about her work, the Thanksgiving holiday, and for some insight into the Native mindset. Here are some of her thoughts:
At Maxim Hygiene, we define a fierce woman as a “glorious female creature whose idea of beauty is hinged upon the idea that she can change the world with each choice.” Who in your life is a Fierce Woman and why?
I very much admire Elizabeth Warren for her uncompromising advocacy for working people in this country. Her crusade is against the banks, the super billionaire heads-of-corporations, and those of extreme wealth who just do not care about the income inequalities that may have already wrecked our democracy. I think she should be the next President of the United States.
How do Native people conceptualize of the “Thanksgiving” holiday and what does the day signify to them?
My sister Heid just published a cookbook that is all about eating well on Indigenous food. That is, not just local food but food that originates wherever you live. She is into getting people to call Thanksgiving by another name. Indigenous Foods Day! Then we could get away from the fake pilgrim/Indian story which was in truth a tragic piece of American History.
What are Native People thankful for? Or, perhaps, what are/are there any core values that have been strengthened over time, because they have been under attack and exoticization for so long?
Certainly I can’t speak for all Native people, but I am personally thankful for the same things anyone is thankful for — family, friends, the earth itself. As a Native person I am also thankful that our ancestors stood firm and insisted on making treaties with the United States. These treaties have not been fully honored, but they exist as legal documents and undeniable facts.
If you could dispel the most common stereotype that non-Native people believe about Native tribes/culture/history/ current situation — what would it be and how would you do it?
I remind people of legal treaties that are still valid even though the United States has all of the political power, and Native people only the power of truth. These treaties are in some way like a rental agreement. “Yes, we will let you live on our land in perpetuity but nothing is free. You must guarentee our children’s basic survival and education as long as the grass grows and the rivers flow.” The treaties may have been made because the United States saw so many Native people dying that it seemed there would be none left in only a few years. However, these treaties are still valid. Native people don’t get anything “free”. I’d like to dispel that myth.
I would also encourage people to read the real story of Pocahontus, and, of course, not to dress up for special Halloweeny occasions as a Pocahottie. Wearing fake eagle feathers is sort of like wearing a fake consecrated Host. Dressing like Pocahontus only sexy is like dressing up the Blessed Virgin Mary in a blue veil and hot pants. I am using Catholic imagery because that was also my background. But take any sacred image and make it cartoony and smarmy-sexy — that’s how Native people feel about seeing fake Indians including sports team mascots.