Mascots and Stereotypes with Scott Davis

You know I use the example of my youngest daughter who last year in fourth grade she brought up she said daddy who are the Blackfeet people what tribe is that daddy I said well they’re from traditionally from Montana you know they have a large reservation beautiful reservation in western Montana and I said well daddy they’re they’re bad people I said what do you mean so i my will start turning and she said well they stole horses daddy you know I’m thinking well who said that well the teacher taught us that and know that I was in our in our book today it’s I said show me your book so we went home and there was a page or two about the Blackfeet tribe and much of it was about stealing horses and I’m thinking up here we go again you know so now you have my daughter and her you know twenty some friends in the class thinking this way and when you’re that age it’s kind of like that’s the truth in yours so now you have nothing to counter that you know you don’t have a trueness behind like okay well there was a reason why they stole horses that was yeah tribes did that with each other you know I was just the way of life you know and yeah the Blackfeet had the best horses you know and but it was just the way it was but does that make them bad people no it does not absolutely does not you know that’s just the way it was back then you know for survival and economy and trade and so forth and but you know that there I thought you said she’ll understandings that there can prove you know why reasons and ultimately that you know Blackfeet tribe any tribe for that matter are not bad people you know so that’s the example of my hope of turning this thing around about history and stereotypes and identity and this fearfulness the sphere nough that you know there that they them are they’re bad because what they did in history well you know you got a really look between the lines and ask yourself why it must have been a reason people just don’t do things and mom I shouldn’t say that some people do but at least for our people you know and even the word Lakota know we use a lot of the word whoa Lakota means peace Ally friend you know peaceful that’s that’s who we are versus a you know the savage in this you know ready to attack and kill that is so you know that goes back to monikers and logos and you know we’ve been through all that and there was those are the reasons why you know myself included we get a little upset by that imagery you know and using that logo in a frame of respect while we’re trying to do this in honor of you well maybe we don’t want to be honored that way you know it’s like me put in a cowboy hat on you because I want to honor you and I’m doing this out of respect and you’re like wait a minute I’m not a cowboy yeah you are and we’re cuz you know and by the way there’s a policy to follow that you have to wear this I’m like okay time on no now you’re forcing something on me that I don’t like and that’s not who I am and we’re very accustomed to that over you know policy federal government policy kind of you know oppressing that on us and much to our disliking so when these happen when these type of things happen in contemporary today sense there’s a desert there’s pushback and there’s reasons for that when you look at history and so again that’s my hope that a lot of this true history written by our people by our elders and so forth that this will change things around for the better for everybody