Writer Jacqueline Keeler, whose own controversial history includes publishing a list of people she named "Pretendians" in 2021, said she interviewed Littlefeather's younger sisters, who claimed that Littlefeather lied about her ancestry to advance her career. What more do you need? Reclaiming Traditional Ecological Knowledge, Pow Wows In Your State Find Pow Wows Near You On Our Pow Wow Calendar, Pow Wow Etiquette Information- Native American Pow Wows, Native American Recipes: 25 of Our All-Time Favorites. Keeler said she was inspired to create the document this year in response to a New York Times op-ed by Claudia Lawrence a freelance journalist who has since been accused of being a Pretendian. There are many angles to the story, and this one, while not the most crucial, piqued our interest due to the New York Post/Fox News connection and Fox News previous manipulation of photos. Keeler, who has been accused of conducting "witch hunts" to expose fake Native Americans, told The Post she met Wurth a few years ago when the novelist publicly accused Native American writer . Mnikwou Lakota poet Trevino Brings Plenty writes: "To wear an underrepresented people's skin is enticing. "[4], In October 2021, the CBC published an investigation into the status of Canadian academic Carrie Bourassa, who works as an Indigenous health expert and has claimed Mtis, Anishinaabe and Tlingit status. [] Harm is caused when resources and even jobs go to fakes instead of the people they were intended for. Because what appears to be real, may not be the reality after all, especially when in comes to dealing with the Abenakis of the Northeast. Let me explain WHY I have an issue with this articles statement. Staff genealogist. Littlefeather died on 2 October following a breast cancer diagnosis. The term is a pejorative colloquialism, and if used without evidence could be considered defamatory.As a practice, being a pretendian is considered an extreme . Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. In October 2022, Teillet published the report, Indigenous Identity Fraud, for the University of Saskatchewan. Rhiana Yazzie, a Native-American playwright, said she had mixed feelings about the list. It can really feel like a damned if you do damned if you dont situation if you dont say youre Native are you a pretendiwhite? Any findings should only be released publicly after they have been determined. Among famous names like Johnny Depp and Elizabeth Warren are seemingly random people. His family came from Mexico. Joseph M. Pierce, an associate professor of Latin American and Indigenous Studies at Stony Brook University, said he wouldnt be surprised if Keelers claims were true. Are there pretendians out there, sure. "Report on Conclusion of Preliminary Review in the Matter of Professor Ward Churchill". 100% Genuine Mtis writer and pretend lawyer. As for Jacqueline Keeler, I haven't interacted with her in real life as you have, but in this case she reacted the way a number of people over many years have said she has to other situations in the past. [3][8][9][10] It is sometimes also referred to as a form of fraud,[1] ethnic fraud or race shifting.[11][12]. Most claim Native Nations in the States, only a few are Metis from Canada operating here in the U.S. Michelle Latimer is not on it since she's mainly working her grift in Canada. Read it. Indigenous Wire is a Native-owned, reader-supported publication. She may need more disclaimers and better notes, and may otherwise be doing a poor job, but I see no reason why a work in progress like hers ought to be kept a secret from the rest of us. Self-identification, or even DNA tests, for instance, obscure the fact that American Indians have not only a cultural relationship to a specific tribe and the United States but a legal one. Why aren't either public to allow for observation and/or scrutiny without the need for data collection? in an attempt to undermine people it disagrees with). Keeler is doing the colonizers work and just being kind of a toxic bully. They claimed they were all hiding in plain sight due to fears of discrimination, and of course, using the Eugenics Survey of Vermont 1925-1937 as an excuse, hijacking that for gains publicly and politically. [34], While some people have criticized her for "conducting a witch hunt", Native leaders interviewed by VOA, such as Shawnee Chief Ben Barnes, report Keeler has strong support in Native circles. It takes a person with enough knowledge of the gaps in the system to exploit them. We will release the names and findings of all those who are found to have no relation to the American Indian tribe they claim in the United States.. The list represents the collective work of generations of Native peoplemany who paid the price with the shriveling of their prospects. Keeler has faced backlash for her list, which allegedly included LinkedIn profiles and places of employment alongside the names. It is also another colonial act. Distorted Descent: White Claims to Indigenous Identity, Inventing an Indigenous People in Algonquin Territory, Settler Colonialism + Native Ghosts: An Autoethnographic Account of the Imaginarium of Late Capitalist/Colonialist Storytelling, Waterloo, Ontario: University of Waterloo, Becoming Indian: The Struggle Over Cherokee Identity in the Twenty-First Century, Native American DNA: Tribal Belonging and the False Promise of Genetic Science, APTN Investigates: Cowboys and Pretendians, "Indigenous 'Race Shifting' Red Flags: A Quick Primer for Reporters and Others", Pretendians and Their Impact on Mtis Identity in the Academy, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pretendian&oldid=1138314384, Erika T. Wurth is a novelist claiming Apache/Chickasaw/Cherokee descent whose novel, This page was last edited on 9 February 2023, at 01:08. The Vermont Eugenics Records NEVER once mentioned in the 40+ boxes of materials the word Abenaki for any of his or any other family (including my ancestors, the Wood(w)ards, nor their lateral line relatives, the Ways, Sweetsers, etc. My moms full Navajo. Laura Browder, " 'One Hundred Percent American': How a Slave, a Janitor, and a Former Klansmen Escaped Racial Categories by Becoming Indians", in Beyond the Binary: Reconstructing Cultural Identity in a Multicultural Context, ed. Littlefeathers act in 1973, declining Marlon Brandos Best Actor Oscar for The Godfather on his behalf, brought immense backlash within the industry. It's not a . This is a contentious document that questions peoples identity by insinuating ethnic fraud is being carried out. . [4][5][6][7] The term is a pejorative colloquialism, and if used without evidence could be considered defamatory. Its not that hard to see why the Northern Cheyenne might want a Senator in the tribe even if he doesnt have the right ancestry. A screenshot from 2014 purporting to show Jacqueline Keeler advocating for dressing up in blackface began circulating on Twitter. Sometimes people exploit this by claiming, In an apparent response to these incidents, Navajo and Yankton Dakota writer, The Google doc can be viewed by requesting access with an email address. Yet, in March-June 1975, up popped up a fraudulent organization claiming to be Abenakis themselves, soliciting membership outside themselves and their families, and all of them, were French-Canadians with a 200-300 yr. Embattled now by the Miamis who share the reserve land in OK. One thing less important than the main part here was that tribes might lose the power in law to distinguish themselves in kindness in continuing to bring kindred into the circle. By claiming indigeneity without the recognition of Native nations, pretendians undermine a core tenant of tribal sovereignty: the ability for tribes to determine citizenship. Unless a person shares their background and history, appearance isnt going to give anything away. [32] Academic Kim TallBear writes that all those mentioned on the list are public figures who have profited from their alleged Indigenous status, that Keelers and her teams list documents that the overwhelming number of those who benefit financially from pretendianism are white, and that these false claims are related to white supremacy and Indigenous erasure. Stolen identities undermine us to the point where we end up fodder for the tabloids the likes of Daily Mail. Listen closely, to the reality and truth, discern the lies and distortions, and be careful. The "Alleged Pretendians List" is the creation of Jacqueline Keeler, a Native American writer and activist who has spent years busting fakers in politics and academia. (Keeler is referring here, we think, to the fact that we define the already-established terms Karendian and Kendian within our piece with which she takes umbrage, but we assure you, no misogyny on our behalf was intended. Individuals who made careers out of pretending an Indigenous identity include James Beckwourth,[14] Chief Buffalo Child Long Lance,[15] and Grey Owl. Jacqueline Keeler is a Native American writer and activist, enrolled in the Navajo Nation and of Yankton Dakota descent, who co-founded Eradicating Offensive Native Mascotry (EONM), which seeks to end the use of Native American racial groups as mascots. Its a perverse kind of reverse assimilation.[47]. Check out my Amazon gift list." Karendian Keeler. They take up a lot of space and income from First Nation, Inuit and Metis Peoples. Pretendianism is particularly prevalent in entertainment, publishing and academia. Contemporary Mexican-Americans experience many forms of racism, including state violence, criminalization, discrimination, educational and income gaps, and health disparities. [8] However, since the 1990s and 2000s, a number of controversies regarding ethnic fraud have come to light and received coverage in mainstream media, leading to a broader awareness of pretendians in the world at large.[2][4][8]. We must proactively address the issue of fraudulent proclamations", "Joseph Boyden's Apology and the Strange History of 'Pretendians' Boyden is hardly the first person to be alleged to have faked Indigenous roots for material or spiritual gain", "Pretendians and what to do with people who falsely say they're Indigenous", "Pretend Indian Exegesis: The Pretend Indian Uncanny Valley Hypothesis in Literature and Beyond", "Joseph Boyden must take responsibility for misrepresenting heritage, says Indigenous writer", "Becoming Indigenous: The rise of Eastern Mtis in Canada", "APTN Investigates: Cowboys and Pretendians", "The Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990. There is a lack of empathy because they will retaliate against native people who try to expose their fraud.. [48] Discussing her research, she wrote for the Globe and Mail, Who are these people? It is so difficult to hold one another accountable these days. [36][35][44][45][46][47] In Settler Colonialism + Native Ghosts - "Community, Pretendians, & Heartbreak", Robinson posits that, Quite often this seems to be a cynical ploy towards some kind of anti-Indigenous political programme, as Darryl Leroux and others have demonstrated quite convincingly and handily regarding the explosion of groups in eastern Ontario, Qubec, the Maritimes and parts of New England (2019) where quite often the absolutely astronomical growth in new claimants of Indigeneity can be clearly traced back to white supremacist, anti-Native, political projects in opposition to Aboriginal and Treaty rights. In an apparent response to these incidents, Navajo and Yankton Dakota writer Jacqueline Keeler recently created an "alleged pretendian" list a spreadsheet of people she thinks are pretending to be Indian. https://t.co/pW3Uwb8xdc, Kayla-Wayla (@KaylaWayla20) May 2, 2021. Hardly. From 2012 to this year. Keeler references we in many of her posts regarding this list without publicly disclosing exactly who else is involved. Shortly thereafter her sisters spoke to Navajo reporter Jacqueline Keeler and said that their family has no ties to the Apache or Yaqui tribes Sacheen had claimed. records were people who ALREADY incarcerated in institutions previous to the Eugenics Survey, as the Childrens Aid Society had been documenting child of impoverished homes, truancy cases, and abusive homes across both states, and Harriet E. Abbott, came from that organization (as did others) and later became agents of the Eugenics Movement. Heres an article in the Washington Post (11/3/22) about Sasheen Littlefeather, who rejected Brandos Oscar for him in 1973 and passed away a month ago at 95, and Keelers list. A pretendian is a person who has falsely claimed Indigenous identity by claiming to be a citizen of a Native American or Indigenous Canadian tribal nation, or to be descended from Native ancestors. The sisters also assert that Littlefeather's stories about their violent and impoverished upbringing were also patently false. By. '"[30] Rebecca Nagle (Cherokee Nation) voiced a similar position in 2019, writing for High Country News that, Pretendians perpetuate the myth that Native identity is determined by the individual, not the tribe or community, directly undermining tribal sovereignty and Native self-determination. I know. And I have witnessed tribes, simply NOT leading the investigations into fraudulent claims of native identity. Copyright 2023 Pow Wows, Inc. All rights reserved, on Opinion: The Real Problem With Jacqueline Keelers Alleged Pretendian List, Unless a person shares their background and history, appearance isnt going to give anything away. A controversial piece in the San Francisco Chronicle features interviews with the actress sisters, who say she wasnt part of a Native American tribe. Littlefeather clearly looks like a Native/Mexican woman in the last photo I saw of her. of writer and activist Jacqueline Keeler in its coverage of the Pretendian/Karendian/Defendian Native identity and ethnic fraud controversy, Keeler shot the messenger in this case, yours truly. ", "Genetic Markers Not a Valid Test of Native Identity", "Elizabeth Warren's claim to Cherokee ancestry is a form of violence - Be it by the barrel of a carbine or a mail-order DNA test, the American spirit demands the disappearance of Indigenous people", "Can DNA Determine Who is American Native American? If we soon turn up on Keelers list, dont be surprised. There is an element of narcissism. Peaceful sleep and the joke of roads to laugh at in the morning i wish for you. Im investigating actual ethnic fraud which harms Native people. The Alleged Pretendians List is the creation of Jacqueline Keeler (inset), a Native American writer and activist who has spent years busting fakers in politics and . She then claims to be Indigenous and to be conducting "research" in order to escape being exposed. [42] Deloria also explores the white American dual fascination with "the vanishing Indian" and the idea that, by "Playing Indian", the white man can then be the true inheritor and preserver of authentic American identity and connection to the land, aka "Indianness". ", "Why Your DNA Results Didn't Show Your Native American Ancestry", "Native Americans fear potential exploitation of their DNA", "DNA tests stand on shaky ground to define Native American identity", "How 'pretendians' undermine the rights of Indigenous people - We must guard against harmful public discourse about Native identity as much as we guard against harmful policy", "Across North America, academics have allegedly manufactured indigenous identity for personal, professional and financial gain", "The Curious Case of Gina Adams: A "Pretendian" investigation - She was hired by Emily Carr University in an effort to recruit Indigenous faculty. EXAMPLE: Vermont and New Hampshires alleged and reinvented Abenakis. Again, believe it or not. (DISCLAIMER: this all relates to us not the whyte supremist racists out there) Meanwhile in Indian country From keeler's pretendian list, Kim tallbear alleged support of list, Sephora, sarian fox, to dynami thomas, myself (but on a smaller scale), all being held accountable for various reasons. Indigenous nations hold the power to decide who is and is not a member of their nations. We attempted to respond to Keeler with a calm, rational tweet, assuring her we werent attacking her; rather, we were investigating the Posts coverage. I beg to differ. Imposters in the academy gain six-figure jobs, prestige, grants and tenure in exchange for a few lies. And the payoff is well worth it. Required fields are marked *. [2] The IACA makes it illegal for non-Natives to offer or display for sale, or sell, any art or craft product in a manner that falsely suggests it is Indian produced, an Indian product, or the product of a particular Indian or Indian Tribe or Indian arts and crafts organization. If the editors had known that there were questions about her connection to the Native community, this essay would not have been published until those questions had been resolved.. UC Santa Barbara making progress on planned student housing development in partnership with visionary philanthropist Charlie Munger. But how I digress, as with Sacheen Littlefeather who sadly passed away recently, there have been plenty of people who insist that she was a woman of Apache and Yaqui Indian ancestry. On Dec. 6, 1974, the Berkeley Gazette quoted Littlefeather calling . The past and present shows their complicity with the race shifters who claim to be Abenakis and thus the silence, and lack of objective investigation. Sometimes family stories with no truth behind them run amuck. The crux of the article is as follows: Cruz' sisters deny that . ), (Keeler is referring here, we think, to the fact that we define the already-established terms Karendian and Kendian within our piece with which she takes umbrage, but we assure you, no misogyny on our behalf was intended. You might be a pretendian if you've legally changed your name from "Weissvogel" to "White Eagle Soaring." You might be a pretendian if you burn to a crisp in ten minutes of strong moonlight. Keelers methodology and ethics around investigating peoples Indigenous identity is extremely flawed and her credibility is out the window. Believe it or not, some non-Indian folks, not steeped in this stuff, dont know what a Pretendian, a Defendian, a Karendian and/or a Kendian are. in service of a greater discourse of this topic. The assumption of Indigenous identity, through the growth of the so-called Eastern Mtis movement, is clearly, at least in terms of its foundational leadership and organizational nature, antagonistic at a fundamental level towards Indigenous peoples and livelihoods.[45]. Pretendians rarely can name any people they are related to in a Native community or in their family tree. It is a shame Keeler has refused to listen to a different opinion. Among famous names like Johnny Depp and, Theres not a clear process on how this research is being conducted or how individuals are singled out for suspicion. Indigenous Definition: How To Use It Correctly and Related Terms To Avoid, Interview Jana Schmieding Lakota Actress From Peacocks Rutherford Falls, To Fight Gangs and Their Grip On Our Children, Stereotype Proved incorrect: Natives drink LESS than European Americans. 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