Crazy Horse Memorial is calling Thursday’s #DidYouKnowThursdays. We will be sharing information about Native Americans and about Crazy Horse Memorial. Did You Know? • What is the difference between the terms “American Indian” and “Native American”? The terms “American Indian” and “Native American” are often confusing for a great many people. This confusion comes in part from the fact that both of these terms represent historical attempts at describing what was once mistakenly thought to be a unified demographic of indigenous people and in part from some of the historical and political contexts surrounding these terms. There are over 500 different nations of indigenous peoples in the United States. Accordingly, American Indians are as diverse and varying in culture, language, and history as are Europeans. For example, the Cherokee and the Lakota are as different from each other as are the Spanish from the French, and while many indigenous peoples share common experiences, each nation is distinct in its own right. The terms “American Indian,” and “Native American,” have come into being as a means of generally referring to all of the indigenous populations of North America. Some believe that the term “America Indian” cannot be separated from a dark history of colonization in that it is a constant reminder of Columbus’s misidentification of the Taino people of the Bahamas as East Indians, when as he mistakenly believed that he had landed in East India. Others feel that the term “American Indian” is a positive reminder of the more recent red power movement of the 1960s, which was a time of cultural and political re-empowerment for indigenous peoples. Likewise, some believe the term “Native American” is a more politically correct choice in language, while others believe that all people born in America are in fact “Native Americans” and that the term is therefore insufficient to describe indigenous people of America. Indigenous people themselves have varying views on which of these terms are most appropriate. Understanding that this debate continues, these terms are often used interchangeably; however, it is generally agreed upon that it is most appropriate, when possible, to use the particular name of the tribe when referring to specific groups of indigenous people -- for example, Wilma Mankiller was a “Cherokee” principal chief, Tecumseh was a “Shawnee” leader, and Crazy Horse was an “Oglala Lakota” leader. The Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation (CHMF) often uses the terms “American Indian” and “Native American” interchangeably. In using “American Indian,” CHMF follows the lead of American Indian led initiatives from around the United States that are aimed at recognizing, celebrating, honoring, and serving American Indians – the National Congress of American Indians, the National Indian Education Association, and the National Museum of the American Indian. In using the term “Native American,” CHMF recognizes the development of this term as commonplace during the 1980s and 1990s.
Posted on: Thu, 02 Jan 2014 15:32:15 +0000
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