“Indian giver!” my older brother yells at me as I grab my stuffed animal from his firm grasp. I was very young at the time; I could not have been older than 7. My knowledge of Indians was sparse. I had no idea what an “Indian giver” was, but it was clear that I did not want to be one.
At 7 years old, Indians were people who wore beads and lived in funny houses. Their culture provided a fun craft around Thanksgiving, as I wore a feather headband made of cardboard and ate a mediocre school meal of turkey and mashed potatoes. However, our Native American curriculum was simply that: feather headbands and a Thanksgiving meal. I never learned of the wars American Indians had to endure. I never learned of the hardships they suffer daily. I never learned how offensive my cheap beads and paper feathers were.
Children growing up hearing the phrase “Indian giver.” They grow up playing Indians and Cowboys. They visit museums …show more content…
“Most of our students learn, through omission or commission, that American Indian history ended in 1890,” he writes. By referring to them historically, and only historically, we are depicting the Indians as a dying race and placing additional emphasis on the stereotypes. The key to abolishing the pattern is to look to the Indians themselves; the key is to read American Indian literature.
Native American literature provides students with accurate information versus the popular story books and movies commonly found in the classroom. In order to remove the stereotypes, we can not reinforce them. By turning to the Native American literature as a learning resource, we are also turning away from the common myths. (Charles, 176-179)
"As mean as an Indian," "as wild as an Indian,” "to be an Indian giver (gift)" "to play the sober Indian,” “red as an Indian,” and “the only good Indian is a dead Indian” are just a few of the offensive phrases that litter our society (Mieder
At 7 years old, Indians were people who wore beads and lived in funny houses. Their culture provided a fun craft around Thanksgiving, as I wore a feather headband made of cardboard and ate a mediocre school meal of turkey and mashed potatoes. However, our Native American curriculum was simply that: feather headbands and a Thanksgiving meal. I never learned of the wars American Indians had to endure. I never learned of the hardships they suffer daily. I never learned how offensive my cheap beads and paper feathers were.
Children growing up hearing the phrase “Indian giver.” They grow up playing Indians and Cowboys. They visit museums …show more content…
“Most of our students learn, through omission or commission, that American Indian history ended in 1890,” he writes. By referring to them historically, and only historically, we are depicting the Indians as a dying race and placing additional emphasis on the stereotypes. The key to abolishing the pattern is to look to the Indians themselves; the key is to read American Indian literature.
Native American literature provides students with accurate information versus the popular story books and movies commonly found in the classroom. In order to remove the stereotypes, we can not reinforce them. By turning to the Native American literature as a learning resource, we are also turning away from the common myths. (Charles, 176-179)
"As mean as an Indian," "as wild as an Indian,” "to be an Indian giver (gift)" "to play the sober Indian,” “red as an Indian,” and “the only good Indian is a dead Indian” are just a few of the offensive phrases that litter our society (Mieder