#indigenous people appreciation

[crabussy]

god I'm so fucking furious at the removal of Te Reo Māori names from organisations around Aotearoa. it's a complete non-issue, every organisation has the English name directly underneath the Māori name. I have never once as an English speaker been unable to understand what an organisation is for. Winston Peters, the Deputy Prime Minister, who is literally Māori himself, said “Te Papa is a historic name but tell me this waka kotahi, how many boats have you seen going down the road?”. Waka does not just mean canoe. it means vessel, and waka kotahi (the transport agency of Aotearoa) explains this VERY SIMPLY on their official website. waka kotahi means to travel together as one. Can you see how fucking upsetting this is. A Māori person in power who is in agreement about banning his own language, being so cocky about something that he does not even understand due to the suppression of the language of his people. It makes me sick. I've seen reports from Māori people all over Aotearoa speaking out about how upset and furious they are, how decades of progress have been undone in the fight to restore the rights of their people who have for so long been oppressed and have suffered the effects of colonisation. Please share this if you can, I hate knowing how few people will hear about this, I know there is so much injustice in the world right now and it is so exhausting, I know. I love you all, keep it up.

https://waateanews.com/2023/11/27/te-reo-public-service/

#godd. I feel sick to my stomach #ask to tag #not tagging with relevant tags because I just know there are people out there who would tear me apart for this #just. share as much as you can. thank you #white prime minister after white prime minister after white prime minister #jacinda was fantastic and I appreciate her so much but godd #our government is so fucking full of pakeha officials and it really really shows #indigenous rights #colonialism #settler colonialism

[nopeferatu]

idc what people are whining abt, i actually really enjoyed the netflix avatar series. the costume and set design was really beautiful, the effects were great, the performances were great. i think people are weirded out about the pacing and i understand that, but at the same time, they're working on netflix's budget and i think they did a great job utilizing the important material in book 1 to tell as well rounded of a story as they possibly could. and like sure, i get that it was jarring to see them start at the VERY beginning instead of starting w katara and sokka finding aang like the original show does for ex, but like. idk! i think they shouldn't feel obligated to hit every plot point beat for beat and i don't think we lost anything by establishing aang's background early on. actually, every single scene with master gyatso made me fucking bawl lol. aang's loss is soooo much more palpable in this show than the original one imo bc it lingers on that pain a lot more. there were a few story choices that kinda made me scratch my head a bit, like the fact that teo wasn't introduced as part of the new Northern Air Temple population and what effects that had on aang, but i'm really not mad about it. anyways i give it two big thumbs up and i hope it gets renewed for another season

#i hate it when uber fans get uppity bc the thing isn't exactly the same as the thing they love and they go into it w a shit attitude #i chose to be optimistic abt it and i really enjoyed myself watching this season today #also tho like seeing how much fun the cast had working on it and hearing them talk abt how rare this experience is #(the experience of working on a primarily asian and indigenous american casted show) #was like. a once in a lifetime.life changing event for them. and most anything that provides jobs for people of color in the art is a #net good imo #anyways give it a shot if you're curious abt it #i actually bawled so much throughout the whole season lol it made me sooo emotional #zukko and iroh will never fail to get me but the aang and master gyatso stuff also supremely fucked me up #also azula is way more sympathetic very early on this time around and i appreciate them being realistic #abt the fact that having an abusive father like ozai would fuck any child up #avatar the last airbender spoilers #atla spoilers #atla #avatar the last airbender

[itsdeanwinchester]

critical reviews barraging the new godzilla x kong: the new empire movie, probably for decent reasons, but look I'm not here for a serious time with this movie, I'm here for a silly good old time. I see monsters fighting, I get hyped. Also, the human story is cheesy but minimal and straightforward. No further thoughts needed, I just take things as they are.

#i do really love that the folks down in that realm are asian/east asian looking! #people forget that there are indigenous folks who have east asian southeast asian features #so i appreciate that fact #godzilla x kong spoilers #godzilla x kong: the new empire #jina watches movies

[mueritos]

(different anon) u don’t see how it’s inappropriate be drawing western usa “cowboys and indians” genre romance art?? and with the fake polynesian tattoo on the white guy,,,,,

i understand being detribalized as so am i, but we still have to be careful about how we’re interacting w current native communities especially those to whom we are outsiders

thank you for clarifying you're a different anon and this one i'll respond to with care, and thank you for sending this because it is a genuine critique. I drew that header after finding a western/cowboy artist that I liked, and I wanted to draw something t4t centered. After finding the artist again (linked above), yes he is not indigenous, but in the article he describes his work with the Wampanoag community in MA. But you're right; there is a fine line between depicting western/cowboy culture that doesn't negate the colonization/manifest destiny of its time. I believed I made the image more "contemporary" (both have punk/lgbtq patches in the full image), but if that's not clear because the man on the left's patches are cut off from the header, then that's on me.

as for the white dude, I wasn't clear on either of their races, but both of the men in the photo are drawn from the indigenous people in my life. When i think of dark haired dark skins indigenous folks, I think of my long time best friend who is Nahuatl and detribalized, and for the "white man", I based him off myself and other detribalized/mixed folks who are paler and look "less native". Obviously none of this is clear because the image is just there, but these were the thoughts that went into that drawing. It was all based on the Mexican culture around me in terms of vaquero, because I associate the masculinity that I am comforted by with vaquero culture.

as for the tattoo, I made it up on the spot. but you're right, it does look similar to indigenous communities' like the maori or polynesian/samoa. I'll be more careful about that and I have not drawn any tribal like tattoos on anyone else since that drawing (the drawing is from 2019).

and you're right about your last point. I have been thinking of changing the header, but it has also been there for several years so I don't know what to change it to and I have had many folks in my inbox say they were comforted/affirmed by the header. at the same time, I don't want to drive off any folks who don't know im detribalized and may think i'm just randomly drawing indigenous people because I am like, fascinated with them.

i'll be more careful from now on, but thank you for sending this and feel free to lmk anything else, or if any indigenous folks want to add any other points feel free to do that in the notes!

#muertoresponds #ty again! #i appreciate critique #theres a reason why i havent drawn anything regarding to indigeniety since then and its because i was beginning to question my roots then #i believe around that time my friend had/was finding out about her own nahuatl history so we were having conversations about it #and ive refrained from drawing anything else because yea im detribalized and doing my best to reconnect #but i also know i cant depict any experience but my own #and that is the deeply detribalized and confused and mixed person #its something im still learning to be open about but while i have no tribal affiliation i also will not negate the fact #that i am half indigenous and half spanish slash portugal #and ive had people say i shouldnt say i am indigenous but i dont see a reason to not say i am mixed and detribalized because well #i dont want to erase that part of me even if i have no tribal affiliation #im rambling at this point but thank you again ^-^

[zhuhongs]

just found out the lead singer of taiwans biggest death metal band is also an active parliament member since like 2015.... and is still active as a death metal singer. he's a pretty standard taiwanese center left anti communist from what i could gather. which like as a leftist i dont really agree with but i also dont know enough abt taiwanese politics to like make a full judgement. though he seems to be a standard liberal nothing remarkable, radical, or new, not overtly horrible but just bland. but that was something i definitely did Not expect. apparently he's very pro indigenous rights and self determination for indigenous people but being in a centre left mega party like the DPP does not seem like the best way to achieve that. But yea, just thought I'd share

#chthinic collabed heavily with collage last year and ik natsuki (lead singer of collage) is very pro indigenous rights and posts abt it a #lot of instagram and i really appreciate the amount of political stuff on her platform. its all very progressive tho v much limited to tw #so idk. i kind of got the cibe of some groups that see taiwanese indigenous issues as seperate to the larger issue of colonialism and #indigenous rights all over the world to conflicts such as palestine. where some other groups have a lot more of the collective consciousnes #and idk. my view is limited and i didnt see that much but when i go back i def wanna look for more political groups in tw and learn about #the political landscape there for leftism. theres a lot of potential in tw imo #chthonic* natsuko** #edit: overall i think that like.. i get the spirit but i feel like for many taiwanese the identity of tw has been everyone united agaisnt #china which i can understand from the perspective of the indigenous ppl that had their land colonized by the japanese then had to share with #the fleeing kmt settlers. but like i dont think that its the best approach to say only china bad rather than big governments threatening to #take your land by force is bad. because idk my take on china and tw is that regardless of the historical claim or wtv. taiwans indigenous #people have been there long before the han ever stepped foot. and china isnt all good as seen in its treatment of the uyghers and tibetans #but is overall not nearly as bad as the west paints it to be. china is neither fully a communist paradise. and has many capitalist undertone #s influence the government ever since deng xiaoping came to power. personally i never fully agreed with mao. i think mao was a necessary #figure in the beginning and let power go to his head and i believe zhou enlai always shouldve been the founder of the PRC #fuck the kmt.. never liked the kmt and it seems as they are also slowly losing favor in tw also. and like... hmm #i need to do more reading tho. none of this is like 100% set in stone how i feel bc theres a lot i dont know

[bepisconsumer]

I feel like an archaeologist unearthing ancient relics when actually I am just rediscovering late '00s-early '10s Lady Gaga songs

#like bro i was literally alive and heard them play on the radio #I'm like if Columbus knew that he hadn't reached India and also didn't do genocide and was just vibing #speaking of Columbus (specifically his Day) #I'm all for replacing it with indigenous people's day #but we should give the Italians a little other something #as a treat #my proposition: Mario and Luigi Day #everyone gets big fake mustaches and overalls and green and red hats and shirts #and lugs around a giant 10 pound wrench #(that's 10kg for you non-americans out there) #and then everyone buys wine from their local 'Italian couple that has a grape arbor in their backyard because why not' #trust me there's only good things that would come from a bunch of cosplayers getting absolutely shitfaced together #the Italians would truly feel appreciated

[arthistoryanimalia]

For #CrowAndRavenAppreciationDay:

Raven Hat, Tlingit (Pacific NW Coast), early-mid 1800s. Carnegie Museum of Natural History display.

“RAVEN HAT Tlingit, early to mid 1800s This raven crest hat probably belonged to a clan that owned the right to display Raven in this guise accompanied by story and song. The basketry rings may refer to the number of times that the hat was publicly displayed and validated as a crest object. Since the rings are woven as a single piece, at some point the number was set and no more were added. Unidentified wood, Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis), mineral paints, abalone shell (Haliotis sp.), commercial cotton, unidentified adhesive, laundry blueing, tanned hide, iron 3178-60 & 3178-1236”

“Raven and Eagle Tlingit society is divided into two halves, or moieties, named the Ravens and the Eagles. (Note: it’s more broadly Raven/Crow and Eagle/Wolf as there are regional variants) Every Tlingit person belongs to one side or the other. Within each moiety, there are many clans. When introducing themselves, Tlingit individuals identify their moiety and clan. We're very clanish people. We are proud of who we are, like I'm a Raven, says Isabella Brady (1992). Other Northwest Coast cultures have similar and equally complex social structures, some with two divisions and some with more. Each clan has rights to its own designs, songs, stories, and more.”

“Raven also moves between the creature and human worlds, bestowing gifts yet playing tricks on humans in an extensive series of stories. He has a dual personality. As a culture hero and transformer, Raven is credited with shaping much of our world. As a trickster, he is driven to outlandish adventures by his selfishness, greed, and hunger.”

#Tlingit #Pacific Northwest Coast peoples #Native American art #First Nations art #Indigenous art #animal holiday #International Crow and Raven Appreciation Day #raven #crow #eagle #wolf #moieties #Tlingit culture #wood carving #hat #Carnegie Museum of Natural History #19th century art #museum visit #interpretive signage #animals in art

[vake-hunter]

I'm not really back sorry

This game means so much to me but the way fbg has been and how fans have been treating things. Im still taking a step back.

My main is @0rdis and I'm currently in baldur's gate 3 hell.

#most people know I'm indigenous and since mask of the rose I've been just... very hurt #also I'm sorry to all my mutuals who I unfollowed #I do appreciate you all and I'm glad everyone is having fun #I'm just going through a lot

[subconsciousmysteries]

oh yeah... It is now time to talk about how 1s are The Most artistic type

#enneagram #enneagram 1 #1w9 #1w2 #2w1 #9w1 #I wish I had the patience of 1s to read #To find value in words and language and structures #It's not a gift you appreciate until it's gone #Even 1s who are super fucked like contra points end up making thesises about language that speak to people #The love of structure 1s have means they can embody ideals in reality #Through meticulous work #Often this meticulous work isn't literal painting and cleaning physical spaces (tho it can be that) it's also #The meticulousness of language and law and philosophy #I see the value of that stuff to another person but to me it needs to be burned down completely #It's an ancient 1/8 war that will never be solved #I'm sure there is a way 1s can be 1s in the wild tho #We just don't know about it cuz we killed off all the indigenous #Lol

[aroaessidhe]

2023 reads / storygraph

The Impossible Resurrection of Grief

novella

in the future with the increasing extinctions and collapse of ecosystems, people have started to succumb to the Grief, a madness that ends in suicide

a jellyfish scientist’s friend succumbs after the loss of the great barrier reef, and the letters left behind send her & her estranged husband on a trail to Tasmania and Aotearoa, where Grief-stricken scientists and artists are trying to resurrect species

short and introspective

#The Impossible Resurrection of Grief #aroaessidhe 2023 reads #this is kinda weird! i mostly enjoyed it #some interesting conversations and thoughts; but it feels a little - I don’t want to say unfinished? #but also like. I don’t know. it kinda just ended. (Also I don’t quite understand how x came back? #I don’t think it should be novel length but it could have done with a little more? idk #I appreciated that it also questions like. is this Grief a new thing? does colonisation/genocide not have a similar effect #what with Indigenous populations having higher s rates. is this just privileged people being fragile. since that it a question I had lmao

[crabussy]

Happy Waitangi Day, if you celebrate!

thank you!!! I'd like to take this opportunity to make people aware that the current government of Aotearoa are attempting to change the treaty in a way that puts decades of work towards Māori rights at risk.

this article provides some excellent info on the situation. please notice how they're framing it- saying that "all new zealanders will be treated the same" is their way of saying "we don't think the oppressed indigenous people deserve special protection of their land and taonga". it is fucking nasty how they are reframing it as a positive thing for equality when they are simply destroying attempts at equity. it sssuuuuuucks and its bad and I would love for more people to know about it. the article also touches on the other shit things they're doing like forcing organisations to remove the te reo māori translation of their names, and withdrawing from the UN declaration on the rights of indigenous people.

basically!!!!! it sucks really really really bad and it goes so much deeper than this but I won't get into it here. happy waitangi day and let's hope future amendments of te tiriti o waitangi are made that support Māori rights!!!!

#waitangi day #māori rights #raising my hand. I am pākehā so if I have worded things wrong or my facts are off PLEASE let me know!!!! #it is important to amplify māori voices about this! #ask tag #thank you lovely tumblr user davtroc42! #ask to tag #I CAN VOTE NOW THANK FFFFUCK. I want these cunts GONE they are so vile. Act is spreading malicious rumours about māori people #by the way #talking about the 'māori elite'. saying they're not indigenous. #saying that the 'māori elite' (any māori person who engages with their culture proudly) must be eradicated #fucking disgusting! get hit by traffic now #rant #racism #ANYWAY. I DO APPRECIATE THIS ASK AND THANK YOU!!!! its important to use events like this to spread awareness!!!!! #everyone. I know there are a LOT of awful things happening across the world right now. thankyou for staying strong

[lesbianamalvada]

I think we need more stories like Wizard of Oz where a young person wants to run away and gets transported to a magical place but then realizes how great home actually was. A lot of young people more than ever are calling their families abusive and toxic for minor disagreements, and really ageism is one of the deadliest bigotries. It stops you from learning from and appreciating your elders and I think a lot of gen Z will regret this when they're older.

#yes this post was inspired by reservation dogs #i know some people come from genuinely abusive house holds but so many kids think their parents are abusers for normal disagreements. #and discount what their elders say because “lol old” #there's a reason they took children away from their parents and grandparents as a way of disenfranchising indigenous people #cutting away your roots is dangerous and friends are great but many of you would throw away your loving families for a “queer found family” #and want to be raised by a 23 year old man with a dark past #and I feel like so many groomers are going to use this to isolate vulnerable lgbt kids bcuz “found families are apart of queer culture” #which is true since a lot of us were kicked out of our families but I see a lot of gen z kids feeling like they missed out on some queer #experience and like no having your support system be other fucked up people all around your age is Not Ideal and you shouldn't run away wit #stranger you meet online because mommy doesn't understand what pangender means #tldr: found families irl are for people with no other options #appreciate your own family imperfect as they may be.

[jojotier]

I'm not sure about white horse- Indian is kind of a derogatory word for native americans :/

the author of white horse is herself literally an Indigenous woman. this is in her site's author bio. she herself wrote that word into the description so i'm gonna trust her on this

#asks #like i appreciate the sentiment but like #i checked. dw #i'm quite sure that the indigenous author isn't being racist to other indigenous people.

[rouge-wall-enthusiast]

Urgent issue of environmental racism in Minneapolis!

Community members from Little Earth and East Phillips have been fighting for this site for many years, with plans to create a community center and indoor farm. East Phillips was quite recently a federal superfund site with arsenic-laced soil being removed from many near and adjacent to the roof depot site, but the land the roof depot sits on, locked under concrete, is untested. Children in East Phillips already have a higher incidence of asthma than surrounding neighborhoods, and they city’s plans to demolish the depot and use the space to store city vehicles make residents fear further for the health of their families.

The announcement of the immanent demolishment (planned for February 27th) have added new urgency to the fight. A protest at the site on Tuesday, February 21st was stopped by what appeared to be the majority of the Minneapolis police force. Elders were arrested and police occupation the the area several blocks in each direction from the depot lasted for hours. As well as the physical health risks, this city “project” is further traumatizing and marginalizing indigenous people in Minneapolis. The disregard for Indigenous lives is clear and the Minneapolis government, particularly mayor Jacob Frey, know exactly what they are doing.

(Infographic shared anonymously to the DefendTheDepot Instagram page. Image descriptions in alt text.)

#environmental racism #activism #Minneapolis #indigenous lives matter #no good cops in a racist system #defend the depot #roof depot #racism #I really hope that people will see this considering my account is not working the best these days #all reboots are appreciated to spread the message but I know this is intense #the organizing is really beautiful even in a terrible time

[chronicparagon]

Does Harmony believe in possessing a spiritual guide? In some native tribes, spirit guides are among the norm? Does she have one? Does it take the form of an animal or simply an alignment with nature? How strong is the connection?

Guidance is important to all Indigenous people since humans have a relationship with the spiritual realm. However, it may not be like having a spirit animal or totem like what is depicted in media. It is not the norm among all Indigenous people. The concept of spiritual guides varies by tribe and nation with some having sacred totems, clan animals, or guides.

Generally, we have more than one spirit guide. Everything has a spirit: Animals, plants, water, rocks, soil, fire, and even air. They are relatives and have spiritual as well as physical relationships with people. Ancestral spirits are also guides along with creators or gods and goddesses.

In Lakota beliefs, people are guided by the Great Spirit, Wakan Tanka. He is the supreme entity who guides the people with guardians who follow him like the White Buffalo Calf Woman who came to teach the Lakota people about the Seven Rites. The Lakota people listen to what the relatives in the physical and spiritual worlds say, and help guide them to make the best choices.

One of the seven rites is "crying for a vision," which is also known as a vision quest. Long ago, the Lakota people used to take these quests through ceremonies like fasting and prayer, to see. For some people who take this quest, they may see an animal that becomes a guide, but this does not always happen. These visions are sacred messages that are interpreted by a wičháša wakȟáŋ, of holy man.

In Harmony's case, she believes in Wakan Tanka, often referring to him in his Lakota name or sometimes using the term "God" as some of her relatives have interchangeably. She never took a vision quest, but she prays for guidance whenever she thinks she needs it. She has a deep love for nature since she has been around it since birth. It makes adjusting to urban environment difficult, but Harmony does what she can and always know that she will always have a spiritual bond with the natural world.

This may not be considered a guide, but Harmony has connections with the grizzly bear. These bears prefer not to cause trouble and can even be seen as cute and gentle...unless they encounter a threat. They lash out and become fierce in the face of an enemy that dares harm them or their loved ones. This is also why she is seen as a mother bear as well, for what is scarier than a grizzly bear is a mother grizzly bear when her cubs are threatened.

#Anonymous #Anon #answered #thank you!! #might make this a headcanon #this is pretty broad because the idea of guides varies by who you ask #and I don't want to take away from nations that do use spirit guides #some do but not all of them #my tribe has clan animals and guides like Abi Binnili but not like totems or spirit animals #and Lakota have connection with all forms of life and seek guidance from them #as other Indigenous people do #I appreciate the question very much and I hope this helps

[skylordhorus]

i wish i could read japanese in order to look up more stuff because to me the end arc of okami can be read as having an anti colonialism/imperialism message (ie. the final boss is an amalgamation of european technology, and the Root Of All Evil is a ship that has crashed into the land of kamui, ie ainu mosir/hokkaido, and its called the ark of yamato)

and im curious if any of this was intentional or whether this is simply coincidental

#*deep space noises* #like today i also found out that there is an ainu creation myth #that says that the ainu people were born of a union between a wolf kamuy and a goddess #which provides some cultural context as the why the oina can shapeshift into wolves #beyond my surface level assumption that they could do that because of racist stereotypes of indigenous people being more ‘wild’/‘animalistic #of course still not my place to say if that was an appropriate writing choice or not #and i have no idea if there were ainu writers or researchers on the okami team #but i still appreciate more knowledge and context