But Native Americans shouldn't be a "niche," and neither should women, LGBT people, or people of color. The cultural appropriation police answer the yoga and banh mi objections with a familiar counter-argument: it's about power. In addition to denoting a cannibalistic monster from certain traditional folklore, some Native Americans also understand the wendigo conceptually. The Cambridge Dictionary, defines it as "the act of taking or using things from a culture that is not your own, especially without showing that you understand or respect this culture."And a lot of times, it is marked by a dominant culture taking from one that has been colonized and oppressed . My tongue and my brain do not speak the right language. In Algonquian traditions, the wendigo monster emerges not randomly or in violent response to colonialism as it often does in popular media but through a specific set of circumstances that are unique to different tribal groupings. Cultural appropriation by a dominant culture is harmful to underrepresented cultures because it reduces cultural significance and reinforces double standards. [26][27] During the winter of 1878, Swift Runner and his family were starving, and his eldest son died. [23], What caused us greater concern was the news that met us upon entering the Lake, namely, that the men deputed by our Conductor for the purpose of summoning the Nations to the North Sea, and assigning them a rendezvous, where they were to await our coming, had met their death the previous Winter in a very strange manner. The Indians asked the Windigo if there was any fat on them. does not have antlers or have any wolf features. In Ojibwe, Eastern Cree, Westmain Swampy Cree, Naskapi, and Innu lore, wendigos are often described as giants that are many times larger than human beings, a characteristic absent from myths in other Algonquian cultures. Is it okay for a white person to celebrate the culture. There's also Wendigo psychosis. For Indigenous peoples in Canada, cultural appropriation is rooted in colonization and ongoing oppression. Truly insensitive cultural appropriation is when you're taking a part of another culture and portraying it in a deliberately insensitive or disrespectful manner. As described by the Native American Cree legends, they were humans who have been mutated into cannibalistic monsters after being possessed by the Wendigo spirit, causing them to eat the flesh of other humans. Hah hah! From Stephen Kings Pet Sematary to the television series Hanibal, the flesh-eating image of the wendigo is often presented apart from its original cultural contexts where it carries deep moral significance. What I do think is not so great was it could have been something that was corrected for the films, where they do have access to people and the internet was more developed in the mid 2000s. (Not to put too fine a point on it, but you should totally go buy my novella. Creative freedom is a beautiful luxury too many do not understand; it wasn't but a hundred years ago when art was said to have an objective hierarchy, and that was how it was for thousands of years. Far from just being a monster in an escapist horror flick, Forbes and LaDuke demonstrate that the wendigo can help us grasp the horrors of our real world so we can be here now and, ultimately, work toward solutions. And whoever!). Basil H. Johnston, an Ojibwe teacher and scholar from Ontario, gives a description of a wendigo: The Wendigo was gaunt to the point of emaciation, its desiccated skin pulled tightly over its bones. They are seen as malevolent, cannibalistic, supernatural beings of great spiritual power . I believe cultural appropriation is Only when someone of another 'race' or culture creates something and passes it off as if it is authentic. Writer, musician, activist, single father from Chicago. Mistgod Edited Oct 11, 2020 Hobbyist Traditional Artist Apparently, wendigos are sacred creatures from several indigenous cultures. The legend of the wendigo has long been associated with real-life problems like insatiable greed, selfishness, and violence. Why is indigenous culture suddenly more sacred than any other culture? Native Americans, Our headquarters are located at: 89 South Street, Suite 401, Boston, MA 02111. MORTUI VELOCES SUNT! Windigo psychosis may well be the most perfect example of the construction of an Aboriginal mental disorder by the scholarly professions, and its persistence dramatically underscores how constructions of the Aboriginal by these professions have, like Frankenstein's monster, taken on a life of their own. Twenty-five miles away from emergency food supplies at a Hudson's Bay Company post, Swift Runner butchered and ate his wife and five remaining children. 5. And besides that, it never hurts to include your sources. #QuickBooksVictoryPose #vtuber #culturalappropriation #nativeamerican #wendigo #folklore, justin bieber interview with ellen arranged marriage, Airplane ticket off at terminal five on 2023 on the 10th 2023, enriquecrespo habla de la hija de alexandra, Command too spawn in iron in a township tale. However, when reading Magic in North America, it's hard not to get the sense that Rowling did not understand the thin ice she was treading on when it came to representation of Native Americans, nor did she make any effort to treat these themes with the weight they deserve. Welcome to Facing Today, a Facing History blog. Cultural appropriation, feel like a real blur to me but I never worry about it I feel it can dampen the creative process. Lurking in the deep woods of the Northern United States and Southern Canada lies a mysterious and fearsome Native American monster, the Wendigo. Archived post. Political correctness started out as one thing, a good thing. [21] The last known wendigo ceremony conducted in the United States was at Lake Windigo of Star Island of Cass Lake, within the Leech Lake Indian Reservation in northern Minnesota.[when? Beyond Forbes, other Native American thinkers have also used wendigo stories to present critical perspectives on various social problems and call for their resolution. This makes them so ravenous for human flesh that they pounce upon women, children, and even upon men, like veritable werewolves, and devour them voraciously, without being able to appease or glut their appetiteever seeking fresh prey, and the more greedily the more they eat. cultural identity theft, many would argue that cultural appropriation is inevitable in a melting pot like the United States. wendigos originate from spiritual beliefs held by Algonquian Indigenous peoples, whom are from the north eastern part of north america. Since the concept of a wendigo stems from First Nations folklore, maybe someone making a cute little doll of this evil spirit figure was seen as inappropriate or making fun of their culture? Appropriating the Wendigo As it so happens, I am currently working on a project involving a Wendigo, so this is personal to me. Funny how it's only creatures from certain culture's folklore people get pissy over and not others. In addition to characterizing individual people who exhibit destructive tendencies, the wendigo can also describe movements and events with similarly negative effects. This inspired an entire thread -->, Sucks to be these artists I guess. 9 Neil Jamieson-Williams Science Fiction Writer (part-time/now full-time) at Self-Employment (1977-present) Author has 1.7K answers and 1.1M answer views Updated 6 mo Ah, another Mike Wilson question Cooper and del Toro made the conscious decision to tell the story of the wendigo in a way that is respectful to its Native American roots, which in turn helps make Antlers a more authentic horror film. I would advise anyone, however, who feels that way about my choice to create art or literature based on a wendigo, to simply avoid my gallery and writing. We enjoy liberties today that aren't even a freckle on the face of human history, and yet some individuals would go so far as to throw them all away because something offends them. Chippewa author Louise Erdrich's novel The Round House, winner of the National Book Award, depicts a situation where an individual person becomes a wendigo. Character can be mean, evil or complete asshole but you still should be respectful while writing said character. By the mid-1990s, it had gained a solid place in academic discourse, particularly in the field of sociology. This post was published on the now-closed HuffPost Contributor platform. With the comments turned off on Dollightful's apology video, I thought that maybe we could have some discussion here(if anyone ever sees this, anyway). (Anything that isnt outright vandalism isnt likely to harm the statue at all, but I wouldnt dare do anything disrespectful around it. Handle the characters and the story with respect. So for some woke culture types it's considered a form of disrespectful cultural appropriation to make your own Halloween monster or character based on a wendigo. It never occurred to me that what I was doing might be offensive, because I've never even met a Native American person in real life. It shouldn't be bad thing if you don't mock culture, make sure to have all information you can ( read books from culture or ask someone who grew up with said culture if they are willing to teach you) but then again they aren't from your culture and unlike creatures like vampires they are a bit more closed i don't know is it good to use them. Without really understanding the conflict here, it seems like the issue is not people illustrating the creature, but using it as a creepy Halloween themed prop. J.K is weird for using name like that, it isn't hard to google names, i know she wrote books before internet was as "popular" as now, but i honestly doubt that she couldn't find name and surname of east asian person, she could of used names from either celebrity ( use surname of one and name of other or something like that), she could of used name from character from some book, there were ways of finding name that isn't bad as Cho-Chang, also i find it a bit weird that said character is in "smart" house, feels way to stereotypical for me. [20], Among the Assiniboine, the Cree, and the Ojibwe, a satirical ceremonial dance is sometimes performed during times of famine to reinforce the seriousness of the wendigo taboo. That will depend on who you ask. To fully understand its consequences, though, we need to make sure we have a working definition of culture itself. Replying to @luciproletariatfox #culturalappropriation #wendigoon, #yeti #wendigo #voodoodoll #culturalappropriation, #duet with @firelotusthewitch #culturalappropriation #vvitchtok #vvitch #witchywoman #pagantok #norsepagan #norsetok #pagansoftiktok #pagancommunity, I am curious to hear the opinions of others on this one. Is it Cultural Appropriation if I have a Wendigo character. Some controversial new studies question the syndrome's legitimacy, claiming cases were actually a product of hostile accusations invented to justify the victim's ostracism or execution."[35]. [51], Television series employing the figure include Teen Wolf, Supernatural,[52] Blood Ties,[53] Charmed,[54] Grimm,[55] and Hannibal, where an FBI profiler has recurring dreams or visions of a wendigo that symbolizes the titular cannibalistic serial killer. Even before it went live, she was being criticized for her apparently blatant cultural appropriation of Native American folklore, and since publishing the criticism has only grown more pointed. It really depends who you talk to. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. WAYNE MILLER is the owner and creative director of EVIL CHEEZ PRODUCTIONS (www.evilcheezproductions.blogspot.com, www.facebook.com/evilcheezproductions), specializing in theatrical performances and haunted attractions. Okay, dont anybody get me wrong. So, thanks, Dave! Historically, deciding exactly what culture is hasn't been easy. Cultural appropriation is a huge red flag that the brand has minimal diversity or representation behind the scenes," she explains. https://www.deviantart.com/forum/community/complaints/2611618/. Dont look at it! What is cultural appropriation vs. cultural appreciation? I think she knew that her decision would be challenged and she wanted to let people know that she had valid reasons for doing what she did. I would refuse to be shackled by political correctness. Kaitlin Smith on November 30, 2021. Idiots have just made a religion out of being racist about culture and only allowing genetic descendants to participate in cultures. The legend of the Wendigo stems from Native American folklore, primarily in Algonquian-speaking tribes located in south and southeastern Canada, the Great Lakes Region, and northeastern United States. One example is Ojibwe activist Winona LaDuke who has called for a decisive shift away from what she has termed Wendigo Economics for the sake of the health of the natural world. All of these Indians went to where the Windigo was and cut off his legs. Now time to go back and make some changes. If so, what did you think about it? Discover short videos related to wendigo cultural appropriation on TikTok. It also seems to me to be unacceptable for authors to be unable to use one (or more) of those characters/symbols/etc. And we merely follow".[38]. They're monsters. He ultimately was granted a pardon but died three days later in jail before receiving the news of this pardon. Tell us about it in the comments. [5], In his 2004 treatise Revenge of the Windigo on disorders and treatments of the behavioral health industry in the United States and Canada that are peculiar to indigenous people, James B. Waldram wrote,[34]. Second, he determines the relevant issues as "aesthetic" and "moral," and then discusses the most prominent arguments that surround each type of appropriation. In another unaware move made by a YG artist, mega girl group BLACKPINK, were recently called out for cultural appropriation. Topics: without permission. Doing so is an honorable endeavorbut only if we actually do our homework first. I mean, I have native heritage, grew up with the culture and I even have a wendigo character in my own comic that's based on the pop-culture version with the elk skull and whatnot so I honestly don't see an issue with it but if you're really concerned then perhaps try a different monster called the Leshy from Slavic folklore? I really just want to learn about how to appreciate aspects of cultures that I am not included in respectfully. It springs from the well of the collective human unconscious, the communal soul. In the course of the transformation from human to wendigo, the person exhibits increasing selfishness, violence, hunger, and greedparticularly for human flesh. Ill admit, my initial reaction was very dismissive. The protection of minorities from the materialization of the majority's different thoughts is an asset of democratic constitutionalism. Im just struggling to understand the significance of it. No cultural appropriation in it, I promise! The Wendigo is a mythical creature that has been reported in many different forms. As researchers, most of us are lost in a wilderness filled with Windigo, Skinwalkers and various other indigenous cosmological entities, and we need to recognize we have no idea what we are talking about. The appropriation, and reclamation, of Native American mythology', Journal of . [30], Fascination with Wendigo psychosis among Western ethnographers, psychologists, and anthropologists led to a hotly debated controversy in the 1980s over the historicity of this phenomenon. He writes: Wtiko is a Cree termwhich refers to a cannibal or, more specifically, to an evil person or spirit who terrorizes other creatures by means of terrible evil acts, including cannibalism I have come to the conclusion that imperialism and exploitation are forms of cannibalism and, in fact, are precisely those forms of cannibalism which are most diabolical or evil It should be understood that wtikos do not eat other humans only in a symbolic sense. It first appeared in The Incredible Hulk #162 (April 1973), and again in the October 1974 issue. The moral lessons contained in wendigo stories are also used to support the task of social critique in the late Native American scholar Dr. Jack D. Forbes book Columbus and Other Cannibals: The Wtiko Disease of Exploitation, Imperialism, and Terrorism (1978). Copyright 2022 Facing History & Ourselves. I just posted a new video talking about cultural appropriation and art! I do not possess the cultural or social knowledge required. It's a term for what happens to people who for one reason or another turn to eating other people. If you need to flag this entry as abusive. Basically, the word wendigo can also function as a symbol for gluttony and the image of excess. How dare they? You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. For more information, please see our The wendigo is a terrifying presence that feeds on negative energy and human flesh, making it a natural addition to the horror genre. Mythologynote my use of the capital M to convey that it is far more than just some made-up stories; it is stories containing deeper spiritual truthsbelongs to all of humanity. I won't pretend I know everything about NA culture, but I believe that headresses and that kind of finery is only used on special occasions and was not how ordinary NAs dressed all the time. Im glad, because I dont believe that it is. I wouldn't be offended if someone dressed as a stereotypical Scottish person whatever that looks like lol. They are afflicted with neither lunacy, hypochondria, nor frenzy; but have a combination of all these species of disease, which affects their imaginations and causes them a more than canine hunger. What makes the wendigo any different from other culturally important mythological creatures like unicorns? Monsters like Wendigos often represent, in the imprecise language of emotion, a common cultural fear. spellings (see Colombo 2) but is most commonly rendered as Windigo, Wendigo, or Witiko. In 1661, The Jesuit Relations reported: Wendigos, teepees and cultural appropriation I read some stuff yesterday saying that teepees are cultural appropriation and there was a long post about how wendigos aren't cryptids and how stories about them are cultural appropriation. You're absolutively spot on! I think if a Native American person were telling me not to speak about wendgos or name them out loud near them, I would comply, as I don't want to unreasonably make someone feel anxious or uncomfortable. Send them to Marvel. The "Dark Horse" singer . "** 40. MORTUI VELOCES SUNT! Some researchers argued that, essentially, Wendigo psychosis was a fabrication, the result of nave anthropologists taking stories related to them at face value without observation. This year's Met Gala theme China: Through the Looking Glass was just begging for cultural appropriation, which led many starlets to play it safe with minimal references to China.Emma Roberts, however, earned herself Twitter backlash for wearing chopsticks in her hair.. Chopsticks in the hair is one of many broadly "Asian" styles tried on by Western dressers (for what it's worth . With teepees, Im not sure I get it. By Christian Chiakulas, Contributor Writer, musician, activist, single father from Chicago. In a report from the Contemporary Folklore conference covered in issue 388 of FORTEAN TIMES, the go-to magazine for all things paranormal, weird, or unexplained, a complaint is voiced about the "cultural appropriation" of the Wendigo, likening it to the "sexualization" of the Mothman statue in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. I mentioned above that I was guilty of doing the same thing. Facing History and Ourselves invites educators to explore our case study Stolen Lives: The Indigenous Peoples of Canada and the Indian Residential Schools, particularly our reading "Culture, Stereotypes, and Identity" which features reflection questions surrounding some of the stereotypical media representations that we touch upon at the beginning of this essay. Rowling tries (and fails) to mitigate these implications by saying "although it is generally held to be a mark of the very greatest witches and wizards that they have also been able to produce wandless magic of a very high quality." Let's stop dancing around this ugly truth: Right now, Katy Perry is pop culture's most prominent purveyor of racist cultural appropriation. Return to Article Details Culturally Conceptualizing Trauma: The Windigo in Joseph Boyden's Three Day Road New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. People were not really using Google until the 2000s and that kind of info might have not been available in the 90s. This term only applies to a . In my blind quest to represent everyone, all I did was reinforce the problem. Cultural appropriation definition, the adoption, usually without acknowledgment, of cultural identity markers from subcultures or minority communities into mainstream culture by people with a relatively privileged status. LOL. Cultural appropriation, defined Culture refers to the traditions, customs, beliefs, and practices of any given ethnic, racial, or religious group. Draw/write what you want, I say. [56], Various characters inspired by the legend, or named for it, appear in Role-playing video games, such as 2018's Fallout 76 by Bethesda Game Studios, where wendigos are featured as one of the cryptid enemies found in the area of Appalachia, mutated from people who consumed human flesh in isolation. [29], Another well-known case involving Wendigo psychosis was that of Jack Fiddler, an Oji-Cree chief and medicine man known for his powers at defeating wendigos. This country is seeking to be whole Stretching out its arms and consuming all it can. [16] Whenever a wendigo ate another person, it would grow in proportion to the meal it had just eaten, so it could never be full. Not so for anyone who isn't a straight, white male, and this trend in entertainment forces many people to seek out "niche" markets to find characters who look like them and are portrayed honestly and realistically. Privacy Policy. and our There's too much variety of opinion on the question to obtain a consensus. Certainly Navajo "skin walkers" are one of the more common Native American legends that non-native writers reference (the only other example I can think of that comes close is the Algonquin Wendigo), but like I said, it would be presumptuous of me to guess at Rowling's research style. So for some woke culture types it's considered a form of disrespectful cultural appropriation to make your own Halloween monster or character based on a wendigo. The concept of cultural appropriation began well enough, but just like everything else woke culture political correctness, it's gone way too far. The film dives deep into cultural appropriation during those pivotal scenes in which the black crows help save the day for the titular flying elephant. Wendigo psychosis is a fascinating condition with a storied history. There's nothing wrong with drawing the popular concept of a wendigo monster, or drawing any monster with antlers, and calling it a wendigo. He has written, produced and directed (and occasionally acted in) over a dozen plays, most of them in the Horror and Crime genres. This ailment attacked our deputies; and, as death is the sole remedy among those simple people for checking such acts of murder, they were slain in order to stay the course of their madness. So some may be fine if you draw it but don't say its full name. and our That's an easy solution and I still keep my freedom to create. A nice summary is found here: The concept of cultural appropriation emerged in academia in the late 1970s and 1980s as part of the scholarly critique of colonialism. It's fine for colonized Indians to incorporate European fitness . The question of how to challenge the wtiko psychosis as described by Forbes and Wendigo Economics as described by LaDuke is a difficult one, but the mythic force of the concept of the wendigo helps to underscore the urgency of these questions. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. It's taking those cultural. .mw-parser-output .verse_translation .translated{padding-left:2em}@media only screen and (max-width:43.75em){.mw-parser-output .verse_translation.wrap_when_small td{display:block;padding-left:0.5em}.mw-parser-output .verse_translation.wrap_when_small .translated{padding-left:0.5em}}, Ce qui nous mit plus en peine, fut la nouvelle que nous apprismes ds l'entre du Lac, sauoir: que les deputez par nostre Conducteur, qui deuoient conuoquer les Nations la Mer du Nord, et leur donner le rendez-vous pour nous y attendre, auoient est tuez l'Hiuer pass, d'une faon estonnante. The Wendigo was gaunt to the point of emaciation; its desiccated skin pulled tautly over its bones. To Helheimr with it! teachers and their students to stand up to bigotry and hate. It just looks like a human that may be bigger than normal. The beautiful maang tikka, or hair accessory falling down the part in the middle of the hair, marks a . One does not need to delve very deeply into the annals of American film, television, and literature to find an array of caricatured depictions of Native American peoples and a distortion of their knowledge. As a result, in 1907, Fiddler and his brother Joseph were arrested by the Canadian authorities for homicide. One day they came to an Indian village and the Windigo sent the boy to the Indian village to get some things for him to eat. [17] Therefore, wendigos are portrayed as simultaneously gluttonous and extremely thin due to starvation. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. The Indians then killed him and cut him to pieces. But, but, what if they're looking at something that erodes the moral fabric of civilization? Their visitations speak to the inseparability of human experience National identity is irrelevant to this borderless horror. I can write whatever fiction I want, and draw whatever I want. I have drawn my own version of golems too, and that is Jewish mythology. I have always felt a distinct emotional connection to it, in fact. Check it out here:https://youtu.be/fHE4fkvUpWMI really just made this video to express how I am currently feeling about the wendigo doll situation and the questions I have about it.
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