 A Brief historyFirst encounters with colonizers Dichotomy began Noble vs Savage justification for treatment from colonizers Even those ‘sympathetic’ to American Indians early on, still condescending and project sense of superiority  Through the 1800s, movement West meant more unfavorable characterizations to serve goals of manifest destiny Native Americans were seen as obstacles to this objective Continued use of Noble vs Savage imageryToday American Indians in the U.S. .8 - 1.5% of population 57% live in metropolitan areas lowest metro % for any racial/ethnic group Perceptions of American Indians largely formed from vicarious rather than direct contact (i.e., media)Film Early Silent Films Take their cues from Dime Novels and tent-show posters Native Americans filled two roles: Barbaric Savages White hero saves the day from ruthless, savage Indian The Battle of Elderbrush Gulch (1913, DW Griffith) Noble Savages Early Native American directors James Young Deer (Winnebago) Yacqui Girl (1919) Edwin Carewe (Chickasaw)  Trail of the Shadow (1917) Then, a virtual absence for decades in front of & behind the camera Cowboy, Will Rogers was a notable exception (Cherokee) The Talkies Few changes from earlier stereotypes “Injun speak” became a Hollywood staple ‘How’ , ‘Ug’ & characters like Tonto Actors in ‘red face’  Such limited roles predominated until the 1960s Attempts to legitimize treatment of American Indians American Indians ill-equipped to handle progress White Americans correct in taking lands by whatever means necessary Westerns tremendously popular from the 1950s-70s Emphasis on the barbaric savage Violent, subhuman, aimed at destroying brave White settlers Therefore deserving of violence  By the late 1960s-70s More sympathetic Little Big Man (1970) Native American main character Prior to this time, Native Americans commonly played by White actors Tell Them Willie Boy is Here (1969) But westerns still prevalent 1980s Ongoing casting of non-American Indians in roles as American Indians Remains prevalent today Twilight saga films After controversy, Taylor Lautner claimed some Native American ancestry 1990s: Some positive changes  Savage imagery lessened “Injun speak” largely absent Still, very few Native Americans in front of or behind the camera Dances with Wolves (1990), Last of the Mohicans (1992), Thunderheart (1992) Chris Eyre (Cheyenne & Arapaho) Director, Producer - Smoke Signals (1998) Native American cast, production, etc. Some technical shortcoming nevertheless an important & popular film Director and/or Producer Smoke Signals (1998)  The Doe Boy (2001) Skins (2002)  Skinwalkers (2002)  Edge of America (2003)  A Thief of Time (2004)  A Thousand Roads, (2005)  Imprint, (2007)  After the Mayflower (2008)  Tecumseh’s Vision (2008)The Current State of the Industry 5868 major motion pictures made between 1990-2000 13 included a Native American with at least a small spoken part 0.2% of films Representations within these 13 films: Spiritual: 100% of films People with problems: 85% Warriors: 85% Conflict with mainstream U.S.: 39% Historical: 31% Professionals: 15% (found in two movies) Overarching Images The Brutal Savage (male) evil, violent, predatory wild, primitive, uncivilized threat to White society dressed in ‘war paint’, buckskin, feathers The Noble Savage & Scout (male) young exotic ally to the Whites Example: Tonto (past & present) Wise & Spiritual Elder (male) chief Wise, mystical, spiritual Earth/nature loving Providing ancient herbal remedies Wearing Buffalo robes, feathers Maiden/Princess (female) virginal nobility, gentility  exotic beauty Rarely set in contemporary societyTV Images: Few & Far Between -- The Good & The Bad The Lone Ranger (1945-1957) Sidekick, faithful follower, broken English Gunsmoke (1955-1975) & Bonanza (1959-1973) Secondary characters, enemy roles as marauding Indians threatening White main characters Hawk (1966) & Nakia (1974) Short-lived programs but with lead “American Indian” characters Played by non-American Indian actors Burt Reynolds – Cherokee? (lead in Hawk) Northern Exposure (1990-1995) praised and criticized Inaccurate portrayal of ceremonies, cultural traditions, etc Positive, intelligent character Dr. Quinn: Medicine Woman (1993-1998) mostly criticized Simplistic, patronizing, apologist approach to history, ignored plight of American Indians during the time-period Did attempt to address social issues Men in Trees (2006-2008) minor role, not played by American Indian Mike and Molly (2010- ) “Arizona? Why would I move to Arizona? It’s nothing but a furnace full of drunk Indians.” Episode: Molly’s New Shoes Feb 25, 2013 Law & Order: SVU (1999- ) Today: between 0.0% - .4% of entertainment TV populationNews 0.2% of newspaper articles (Fryberg, 2003) 80,700 articles printed in the NY Times and LA Times in 1997 190 mentioned Native Americans, American Indians, or Indian (57 in The New York Times, 133 in The Los Angeles Times) Representations: 63% of articles describe Native Americans as spiritual 59% of the articles they were described as people with problems 49% described as historical  48% described as warrior-like 30% in conflict with mainstream U.S.  0% described as professionals  Cherokee Phoenix First Native American newspaper Goals:  First issue was published in English and the written Cherokee language on February 21, 1828 Last issue published in 1934Mascots American Indian Mascots(Fryberg et al., 2008) Positive or negative associations with mascots? Chief Wahoo associated with positive words among Native American high school students, compared to explicit negative terms American Indian mascots not always negative On the other hand…. Lower self-esteem  Lower community worth Less achievement-related possible selves  Implications Content and/or meaning of mascots is not necessarily negative However, mascots have negative psychological effects American Indians reminded of limited ways in which others see their