Kylia McCoy

Intro to Writing 1010-874

Professor Allison Fernley
11 December 2017
The Modern Native American Self-Image

Currently in the media there is lots of talk about whether or not mass media affects Native
Americans. Mass Media is understood by many to simply be any public means of communication that is
easily reached by a large portion or all of a population. This would include, but is not limited to,
FaceBook, Twitter, News Networks, YouTube, and so forth. Many people agree that Mass Media has an
effect on people in general, but the argument comes into play in reference to the amount in which a
Native Youth is affected as compared to a Non-Native Youth. This includes both positive and negative
stereotypes, of the current times, and the past. So this would include stereotypes that are rooted in history,
like the idea of the traditional looking Native American with the large feather headdresses and so forth.
For many others, especially those in the east where there is a relatively low native population, they are an
ancient culture that is no longer relevant. They are a mascot, logo or a costume to many Americans. It
also would include the image of the modern stereotype; dirty casinos, smoking and drunks. Most agree
that these stereotypes are inaccurate to the real Native Culture, though the argument stems from whether
or not these stereotypes are actually harmful to Native Americans. Everyone is affected to some degree by
Mass Media and by racial stereotypes, but are Native American affected more so than the average Non-
Native American?

Position One: The Tradition

There is no reason to change the current social image of contemporary native americans because
there is nothing wrong with it. Some tribes are even supportive of keeping the Native Mascots and
symbolism because it helps to preserve an otherwise forgotten culture. (Lukas, 2013) They may also
believe that if they do not represent Native American Culture, even if it offends some, then the culture
wont be represented at all. In essence, they may something like Its an honor to be a mascot, we are
giving their culture a pedestal. Many people who believe this position also believe that it is important to
uphold traditional values, to put it into perspective, these people believe that weve always done it this
way, and it hasn't changed people yet so we should keep it. This is to say, that it may be offensive to
some, but those who are offended shouldnt be since generations past have been relatively quiet about this
issue.
Position Two: The No Effect
 This position is seen as more broad than the majority of those mentioned in this paper. This group
makes the claim that no individual is affected by Mass Media to a substantial enough level as meriting a
need to look into this, and it is not racially divided. This argument stems from the understanding that
people, even young children, can easily tell the difference between a cartoon or caricature versus that of a
real individual. This argument also states that a person is only so affected as they allow themselves to be.
If a Native youth sees a negative stereotype on FaceBook then it is up to them to consciously make the
decision to see that as something that is inaccurate. I was unable to find any sources of sustenance
supporting this position, but I was able to find multiple studies showing that children, of all racial and
ethnic background, are unconsciously affected by these stereotypes and it isn't as simple as them
consciously being able to tell themselves to just not believe it. (Conway, 2005)

Position Three: The Middle Road

Like in most things, the majority people people fall into the middle category. This category is
easily a dump of all of the opinions that are not completely left or right, and many people who lean one
way or another will still consider themselves in this section. The main beliefs of this section is that Mass
Media does affect a person but it is not to the level that merits a research and study or merits taking a
course of action to mend the mistake. For many this also includes the idea that everyone is affected by
Mass Media, regardless of race, therefore if we wanted to fix the problem, we would have to fix it with
every racial stereotype. This position is also the most difficult to find information and statistics on,
because it is populated by less interested individuals. A flaw in their argument is that there is little
evidence to support their beliefs, and also that there are strict racial barriers in Mass Media, which can
also cause a different response from their respective race. This position seems to be a comfort blanket to
those who are uninterested or indifferent to the topic, which causes little evidence for their case but it is
still fairly logical and believable since their argument plays mostly on Logos appeals. Sometimes, also
Kairos, being relatively indifferent to the situation until an event shakes up the social issue again.

Position Four: The Rebuild

 The fourth and final position mentioned in this paper is the opinion that Native Americans need to
be represented with the same level of respect and fairness that people of every racial background deserve.
For example, middle to upper class Caucasian Americans are generally seen as the gold standard for a
family by the media, so in many ways they are held to a high respect by the media. People of every
ethnicity deserve to have the same quality of respect, especially the Native American community because
they are incredibly forgotten by the modern world. Meaning that they are still seen as they were in the
1800s, not as they are in 2017. In contrast to the first and second position, this group believes that there is
no fundamental difference between a child watching a poorly represented Native as there would be if they
saw an actual person behaving in that manner. This means, an obviously fake or outlandish character is
unfair and shouldnt be portraying a culture but in realist movies/shows they should also be true to the
culture - and not whitewashed. These people also believe that there is little or no difference between
falsely representing Natives in circumstances like the Washington Redskins mascot as compared to
blackface. (Browser Media, 2017) To them, showing a false image of a pre-colonial Native American and
treating it like it's true to our era is the same as showing a slave from the 1700s and saying it is a modern
African-American.

In Conclusion...
There are many sides to this story, and all of them being good points to the table, though many
are restricted to a limited amount of data to support them. It is my belief that there is far too much
damaging stereotypes in Mass Media, especially of the Native Americans. Characters are still portraying
Natives as being lazy, drunks, stupid, ancient and so forth, even though we would never dare to do that
with another ethnic group. If an individual did that with a black person, as blatantly and often as with
Natives then there would be mass outrage. But it seems that Native Culture have been forgotten as a dead
relic again. It is important to note that this paper is not all expensive, though. This paper also only
mentions four of the most common positions a person might take, and only some of the main beliefs of
that position. This topic is a part of a wider one, racial stereotyping in Modern America, but it has direct
implications for Native Youth and the potential damage they may receive from experiencing racial
stereotypes of their culture.

Citations
Lukas, Paul. Tribe supports Native American mascots. ESPN, ESPN Internet Ventures, 20 Feb. 2013,
 www.espn.com/blog/playbook/fandom/post/_/id/18484/tribe-supports-native-american-mascots.
Conway, Carrie. A Psychological Effect of Stereotypes. Regional Review, vol. Q1, 2005, pp. 4042.,
file:///Users/kysa/Downloads/section3c.pdf.
Browser Media, BrowserMedia.com. Ending the Era of Harmful "Indian" Mascots. Ending the Era of
Harmful "Indian" Mascots, 2017, NCAI, www.ncai.org/proudtobe.