Imagining the Indian(2023)

1h 35m
- Documentary

Release Date: Mar 31, 2023 | Limited

Explores the exploitation of Native American culture in sports, including the use of names and logos that have been adopted by teams and franchises with no apparent connection to the tribes and peoples whose cultures they appropriate.

Official Website

Note: Distributed by Ciesla Foundation

Releases

Original Release | Mar 31, 2023

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(U.S. Only)

Director & Top Cast

Aviva Kempner
Director

Ben West
Director

Aviva Kempner

Other Details

Country of Origin: United States

Language: English

Summaries

Plot Summary

Imagining the Indian: The Fight Against Native American Mascoting is a feature-length documentary film that examines the movement to eliminate the use of Native American slurs, names, logos, images and gestures that many Native Americans and their allies and demeaning and offensive. The film investigates the impact that caricatures like Chief Wahoo -- the cartoonish logo of the Cleveland Indians -- gestures like the Atlanta Braves' "tomahawk chop" and epithets like the Washington "Redskins" have on the Native community, the sports community and society in general.Imagining the Indian explores the genesis of the exploitation of Native American culture in competitive sports, including the use of names and logos featuring Indians that have been adopted by teams and franchises with no apparent connection to the tribes and peoples whose cultures they are appropriating. It introduces the audience to Suzan Shown Harjo, President of the Morning Star Institute and recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, whose 50-year fight against the exploitation of American Indians in the sports world is used as a lens through which to investigate the history of this issue. The film provides an account of the genocidal history of Native peoples on this continent, and its role in proliferating negative stereotyping in sports, movies and television.A range of opinions are explored among Natives and non-Natives, including the staunch and steadfast opposition exhibited by Harjo and her contemporaries in advocacy over the years, including National Museum of the American Indian director Kevin Gover (Pawnee), elected Tribal Council of the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation chairman Marshall McKay and Autry National Center of the American West CEO W. Richard West, Jr (Southern Cheyenne). The film also includes the opinions of those who do not consider the use of names, logos, mascots or gestures a concern and examines their justification of those views.The documentary surveys the legal history of the movement, including multiple lawsuits led by Harjo and others over decades of activism, most notably a case involving the "Redskins" that has made headlines over the last 30 years.Imagining the Indian delves into the contentious battle over that National Football League team's nickname in the nation's capital that has long been at the epicenter of this issue, and been a flash-point for Native advocacy on the matter. In a changing cultural climate, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and Washington owner Snyder have faced mounting pressure to establish a dialogue with Indian activists and communities and ultimately and an alternative name for the team.The film answers why the NFL has not changed its stance on this topic while electing to take on other issues of social justice, such as domestic violence, criminal justice and LGBT rights. Imagining the Indian also examines Washington owner Dan Snyder's out- reach to American Indians as supporters, which includes building play- grounds for economically disadvantaged tribes and recognizing members before football game crowds.The film traces the etymology of "redskin" from its birth in 19th century newspaper advertisements -- specifying the reward money for every "redskin sent to purgatory," which differed depending on the county or territory in which the Indian had been murdered, and traditionally scalped -- to the launch of Washington's franchise in the 1930s. It will examine the story of William "Lone Star" Dietz, the team's second coach, a German man who claimed to be Sioux and prompted the franchise to change its name from the Boston Braves to the Redskins in 1937.The film shows the viewer what motivates those who fought to erase depictions of Native Americans in sports, as well as those who are determined to hold onto such names and images as sports fans. It details name and mascot-change campaigns that have been successful at high school and collegiate levels, including Stanford, Dartmouth, North Dakota and Miami of Ohio. Conversely, the film looks into movements like the Honor the Chief Society, an organization of University of Illinois students and alumni who object to the university's retirement of former mascot "Chief Illiniwek" and seek to keep its memory alive.Imagining the Indian investigates why the erasure of Native names from collegiate athletics has not translated to professional sports. It answers how a defined epithet became the name of one of the most recognizable, beloved and financially successful sports franchises in the world. It explores whether brand recognition is more important than cultural sensitivity in the halls and offices of the world's highest-grossing professional sports organization. It asks how the NFL states a moral and ethical obligation to ban a slur for African-Americans on the one hand, but refuses to extend that belief to the nickname of its Washington franchise defined as a racial epithet.The film assesses the position of the American Indian community in moving this cause forward by answering: Does there need to be a moral consensus among Native peoples before the majority of American citizens consider this an actionable cause, as a lack of consensus is an oft-cited argument by dissenters? Is the Indian community at all complicit in the slow progress of this movement? How does the lack of Indian representation in sports and entertainment, both in front of and behind the camera, skew the perception of this controversy as an issue of social justice? How has the historical marginalization of this small segment of the American population influenced the opinions of both Natives and non-Natives on this matter?Critically, Imagining the Indian reviews what is at stake for the people and communities who are demeaned by imagery considered offensive, which is born out in research by academics in the film like Dr. Amy West that finds such imagery creates negative psychological effects on American Indian people, particularly youth.The film also looks at why D.C.'s large African-American fan base, which includes highly visible and influential fans like award-winning actors and native Washingtonians Jeffrey Wright and Taraji P. Henson, hasn't allied with Native American protesters. It will address academic literature that suggests the proliferation of stereotypical Native American imagery in sports promulgates stereotyping and derogatory labeling of other minority cultures, particularly those of color. Cultural leaders in the D.C. African American community, like poet Ethelbert Miller and hip-hop artist HeadRoc, address the phenomenon.In addition, Imagining the Indian chronicles what is a misunderstood momentum to end to Native American mascoting with interviews of people from myriad backgrounds, including Congresspersons Eleanor Holmes-Norton and Deb Haaland, professional Native athletes Bronson Koenig and Ryan Helsley, and national sportswriters including Christine Brennan.Lastly, the film looks forward at political activism among Generation Z, which appears to have a new worldview not only about issues including gun control and climate change, but stereotyping in sports as well. It is with this idea in mind that the documentary will express optimism that as these younger people become the policy makers of the future, the fight against mascoting in sports, entertainment, and beyond, may be won once and for all.The goal of Imagining the Indian is to provide answers to the aforementioned questions in a fair manner, and provide the viewer with a better understanding of the history and significance of this movement in today's social and political landscape.

Storyline

Explores the exploitation of Native American culture in sports, including the use of names and logos that have been adopted by teams and franchises with no apparent connection to the tribes and peoples whose cultures they appropriate.