April 13, 2011

Y-Guides still stereotype Indians

Someone on Facebook posted the following. He couldn't believe the Y-Indian Guides still exist....but they do. Apparently they call themselves the Y-Guides now--omitting the word "Indian," which is kind of stupid since they refer to Indians constantly. More to the point, their terms and customs are as stereotypical as ever:

Great Coastal Nation

West Orange County Family YMCA
Indian Guides



Comment:  Native singing, "tribes," "braves," a drum, a teepee, a "medicine man," the "Great Spirit," a talking stick, Indian names, Tonto talk ("heap good"), and a woo-woo chant to show approval. The only thing they don't do is wear headbands with feathers, although they do don headdresses occasionally (below).

Note:  Perhaps realizing how racist this video was, the "Great Coastal Nation" made it private. But you can still see a bit of their shenanigans in the initial image.

For more on the subject, see The Y-Indian Guides.

at

8 comments:

  1. Jaine6:37 PM

    what the hell
    so Y Guides is kinda of like an Indian themed Boy Scouts and they play at being Indian whilst living consumeristic middle class lives? Ew

    ReplyDelete
  2. none5:36 AM

    This isn't real. Is this for real? Tell me this isn't for real!! That's just...wow.

    I have this sudden urge to bang my head off my desk and I'm not sure why. o_o

    ReplyDelete
  3. dmarks5:40 AM

    It's for real... memories come back. I'm pretty sure I was in it.

    ReplyDelete
  4. dmarks8:39 AM

    "...Tonto talk ("heap good")..."

    Question: Does the use of such phrases as "many moons" and "...With Wolves" in an opinion piece about Leonard Peltier smack of racism/stereotypes to you (Rob and other readers) ?

    ReplyDelete
  5. Jaine5:41 PM

    I would have to read the article you are referring to dmarks. Though "heap good" is not grammatically correct whereas 'many moons' and 'with wolves' are.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous1:27 AM

    Dear Lord...I thought they just studied Indian nations and dressed up. I had no idea it was this bad. Literally made my flesh crawl! There are lots of Guide and Princess groups here. I don't go to the local parades because they make up at least a third of them. Ack!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous4:07 PM

    So the video is private? what kind of blog posting is that?

    ReplyDelete
  8. Rob1:24 PM

    It's the kind of blog posting where the organization makes its video private after others point out how embarrassing and offensive it is.

    Fortunately, the initial screen still gives you a hint of the "Great Coastal Nation's" stereotypical approach. You can take my word for the rest of the video's content.

    P.S. I was briefly a member of the Y-Indian Guides or the Woodcraft Rangers too.

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.