Original subtitles

Most people really don't know tribal history.

Like, right on our own reserve, we had Squaw Lake and we had Squaw Bay.

And that's a very derogatory term. It's an Iroquois word for female body part.

Like... Grabbed by the squaw?

Right, there you go. Thank you. And so through the media and Hollywood, that

took off. Like, somehow it meant woman. And one of the ladies there...

who was on the county board, said, we're honoring you by naming it that.

And I got really mad in the meeting and said, fine, we'll name it after you,

Honky Bitch Bay.

And boy, but that, you know, caused a furor and that got attention.

Just devil's advocate, if you're looking for tourism. If I was a high school

kid, I'd definitely go fishing at Pussy Like.

I've seen the heat up in the side of college troubles.

You're listening to 88 .9 FM, WOJB, Reserve, Wisconsin.

Here with Jordan Cleppers today. Welcome, Jordan.

Good to be here. I've been told I have a face for radio and a voice for print

media, so fingers crossed.

You do.

Thank you for coming.

Thanks for having me.

I'm on the La Couture Indian Reservation because I don't want to be a hunky

bitch who says squaw or a hunky bitch who tweets Pocahontas or a hunky bitch

that wears a headdress to support a losing football team.

And this Wisconsin town figured out how to turn hunky bitches into allies. And

you're doing that through terrestrial radio?

Yes. In 1982, clashes between natives and white residents were at a fever

over, of all things, Fishing rights. It was pretty rough here. It was pretty

rough. I mean, they were carrying signs that said, uh, to save a walleye spear

in India. That was the mentality of people here.

This is Gordon. He was the tribal chairman of the Lakutere Ojibwe tribe.

He says WOJB aimed to give voice and clarity to indigenous issues and

We felt the station would build a bridge between the tribe and the surrounding

community. You feel like it's been successful?

It has been successful. It brought a message that we do bring something to

community. There's still a lot of work to be done.

Have you thought about a podcast?

Pod Save Native America could be a good one there.

Or This Native American Life.

Very popular.

There are limitations to terrestrial radio.

Like the fact that this station only has a 70 -mile broadcast radius.

And even worse, 140 -mile diameter.

Leaving the rest of the country in the dark.

The FBI just came out with a report that Native American hate crimes have gone

up almost like 60 to 70 percent. This is Crystal Echohock of the Pawnee Nation

of Oklahoma.

She co -led the first comprehensive study about America's view of indigenous

people. When I read it, I was shocked because it blamed media assholes like

According to her, the problem is invisibility.

Not sure why I didn't see it coming.

Invisibility to some is a superpower.

Invisibility is not a superpower.

It's actually one of the biggest threats we face.

When they don't see us, they dehumanize us, and we don't exist.

And so we oftentimes don't get included in important pieces of legislation.

And this lack of legislation leads to terrifying real -world consequences.

Native Americans are being killed by police at a rate higher than any other

group in the country.

Native American women have the highest rates of rape and assault.

and Indian youth have the highest rate of suicide.

This is eye -opening, and I want to be an ally in Crystal's mission, especially

considering white liberals often need more information about how to move

in a pro -native way.

Eesh.

I don't want to just thinkle out white folks by any means, but that is also

where we probably have the most work to do. Well, it's scary for white people.

So let me ask you a question. What do you want to do, though?

What do I want to know? Yeah, like, what are you motivated about after reading

the big, thick report and seeing yourself show up on page 37? I am

my own ignorance, which is something that I'm often motivated by. Right.

What do I need to know?

Have you heard of Deb Haaland? Deb Haaland. She's Dutch?

No, she's Laguna Pueblo. She is one of the first Native American women elected

to Congress, a force in tribal politics. She's a badass.

So tonight we made history.

And today is another historic day.

I mean, not as historic as the day Deb protested at Standing Rock, or as the

she won the election, but still a pretty historic day.

The day Deb Haaland carefully packed her kitchen utensils.

See those plates there?

Yes. You need to, like, put newspaper between them.

You know, because she's moving to Washington, D .C.

You've been an organizer.

I have.

If you want to make an actual difference, why do that in Congress?

I try to look at things as an opportunity.

Yeah, Congress is the most, like their approval rating is like 29%. I didn't

want to bring it up, but acne has a better approval rating than Congress.

Exactly. But I think we're not talking enough about Native American issues

now. The environment, climate change, renewable energy, missing and murdered

indigenous women is not anywhere near the...

you know, level of discourse that it should be in our society.

On some reservations, Native American women are killed at a rate 10 times the

national average.

The exact number is hard to calculate because literally no one is even

the data, let alone trying to stop it. For Holland, this is just one of many

examples of why she feels it's vital to provide visibility for Native people.

Isn't this nice? What is that? It's like a sample of a Navajo rug.

All these flowers and seeds they use to dye the wool with. I bought this from a

mom and a son. That's how they made their money. People who have no money,

job, they find ways to make ends meet.

You know what I'm saying?

I do. Like, I think we need to respect people like that.

Is that going to Washington?

Yeah.

So I can remember my time in Indian countries every day.

I'm curious, are you worried about... Over -representation? Over

-representation? Two whole people in Congress?

Oh. No, not at all.

Even with Deb's win and that of her fellow freshman, Sharice David, that

the total number of Native Americans in Congress all the way up to four.

Still a grave under -representation. And Crystal Echo Hawk thinks she knows one

of the reasons why.

Invisibility in media.

I bet you'd be hard -pressed to think of one film about modern Native Americans.

Dance with Wolves. But I mean in a contemporary light.

Okay.

Yeah.

So... Wait.

According to a new report co -led by Crystal Echo Hawk, Native Americans face

massive social problems because of their invisibility in media.

Where are you pointing the finger? It's not me, right? It's everywhere. And when

they do show up... There are either these stereotypes about the mystical,

magical Indian or drunks or over -sexualized Native women. We're really

relegated to these historical stereotypes.

She's right.

Misrepresentation is everywhere.

Books, butter, butter substitute, television, cigarettes, Victoria's

models, movies, mascots, costumes, cornmeal, Coachella.

Misrepresentation is a magical cloak of invisibility.

It would be like using a caricature of Martin Van Buren to depict all white

people and their experiences.

And it's still very much accepted within the United States to engage in this

level of racism. The Washington football team, that is a racial slur, right? The

R word is a racial slur. It's the N word. When Megyn Kelly, when all that

up around the blackface, right? America was like, quick. Nobody noticed if you

watched that segment.

Those horrible Native American costumes were in the background. Somehow both

invisible and in plain sight.

Now let's rewind.

You cannot dress as a Native American. That's apparently been some rule.

Isn't the whole purpose of Halloween to dress up and pretend you are something

other than yourself?

People understand that blackface increasingly is wrong.

People don't understand that that's sort of...

You know, objectification and misrepresentation of Native peoples is

well. We can double kick out Megyn Kelly. I think a lot of people would.

Right. Seriously.

Can I come clean with you?

Yes.

I was in a thing called Indian Guides.

It was like the Boy Scouts, but somehow whiter.

Why Indian Guides? A great idea.

Here's some of the literature from the Indian Guides. 20 teepee tail.

This is my vest.

No. Could somebody... Seriously?

Dad, can you help me get out of this? I wore a headdress, and I didn't think

much of it. And to be honest, it was a fun bonding thing with my dad.

But I look back on what that was, and I feel... I feel weird about it. Yeah, you

should. What is it about that program? Like, why don't you guys have that? I

think the reason we co -opted the idea of Indian Guides is because our own

tradition, our slavery...

institutional racism, and cultural genocide, which are not exactly great

activities for a father and son.

How do I be an ally, not an appropriator? You need to go meet people

sort of on the front lines, for example, at Standing Rock.

Standing Rock was a reaction to the approved construction of a pipeline

sacred Native American land.

It was also a vital moment in creating visibility for indigenous people.

The whole thing was amplified as protest, you know, and it wasn't protest

We were literally just trying to protect a waterway. It was October, and I was

watching my peers being sprayed at night with fire hoses. It's cold in North

Dakota. I'm from there. I know how cold it is, and I'm one person. What can I

do? Chinupa is an award -winning conceptual artist with work displayed

throughout the world, most of which... I don't totally get.

His contribution to Standing Rock...

Mirror. Lots and lots of mirrors.

I wanted to make a mirror to bring to the front lines. A mirror that was also

shield. It was an opportunity for the militarized police to reflect on

themselves. I don't know if you've ever stood in front of... A mirror? Yeah.

Yeah. Riot police.

Oh, no.

It's hard to see the humanity in them.

But I knew that they could see their own humanity.

That they could see what we were facing.

Maybe it would trigger something inside of their hearts. Like the David

Copperfield of protesting.

Yeah. Instead of making a Statue of Liberty disappear, you're attempting to

intolerance disappear.

Now, I'm a white guy talking about Native Americans being invisible in

partly because guys like me tell that story.

Help me tell that story by not telling that.

What the fuck do I do? Your foundation to create a conversation around Native

people and Native visibility is a false foundation.

Like, I'm from the Great Plains, and I'm enrolled in Mandan Hidatsa Arikara.

Down here, I am like a witch.

You know, there's no such thing as a Native American.

What am I doing this episode on? I mean, here's the question I'm asking you.

If we're going to talk about the invisibility of Native people...

We also need to start talking about the complexity of Native people.

Like, I can't talk for 562 nations. I can't talk for people in my own tribe,

honestly. I can't fucking win.

I'm like a vampire when it comes to self -reflection. I can't see you at all.

Yeah, where am I? Oh, it's because we're in front of a beige wall.

That's what it is.

That's racist. Watch the racist shit.

Unbelievable.

Now, what do you want me to do?

Can you look over your shoulder?

Into the past.

Don't do it.

I'm not supposed to go on any kind of spiritual journeys. I've been told

appropriation. So is there any way for me to engage with it in a more literal

sense?

Well, yes, but also recognize that there is room for contradiction under the

Native American umbrella.

Okay, yeah. I'm going to look over my shoulder to see into the past. Yeah.

All of the scholarship on Native people is dependent on us being dead and gone.

But they haven't talked to us within the last 200 years. You're a white man in a

society that has incredible amounts of power for right now. Talk to Native

people and get to know them one -on -one and weaponize that privilege.

Dear God, with this knowledge, I can save my Native American brethren.

Yeah, another white savior story.

We're looking for expressions of Native Americans in culture. And guess what?

You don't ever fucking see any.

We're doing some illegal guerrilla artistic activism.

Were you commissioned for this?

Uh, no.

They will call the police on you. Hell yeah.

I'm on a mission to meet modern Native Americans, like Syntex, a Detroit

graffiti artist.

He paints huge murals of native figures as a way to make sure his people are

seen. So you're just putting the finishing touches on this? Yeah, man.

adding some little details.

Keep a lookout, man. Don't let nobody roll up.

Here in Detroit, they can slap you with a felony and up to 10 years in prison

for graffiti.

So even though this episode is about getting seen, I'd rather go unnoticed.

We don't really get to see our people, and so by me painting these portraits,

get to see the indigenous people, too.

I didn't expect illegal art to be so adorable.

I have to admit, when I met Syntex, I thought he didn't look Native American

me, which sounded oddly familiar.

I will tell you right now, they don't look like Indians to me.

Whenever I sound like Trump, I know I need to change my perception.

In this case, the outdated perception that all Native Americans look like

We're not the Lone Ranger and Tonto. We don't live in T .P. Here, we never did.

We don't wear headdresses. We use computers. We have cell phones.

We exist in a 21st century.

It's ripe, you know, for arts and culture and music, fashion designer, New

Times bestseller.

There's a new film that was written by a Native American writer named Sterling

Harjo. Not only are we still here, we got some real cool shit going on. And in

addition to cool shit here in Washington, D .C., there are also Native

that are basic as hell.

So you guys are a super PAC?

Yeah, we are a super PAC, yeah. I think I'm supposed to not like you guys.

Why not?

Do you like the face of money in politics?

We created this seven -generation super PAC to help give Native Americans and

our communities the voice to help elect members of Congress.

Now leave.

focused this year on Deb Haaland and Sharice Davids. We both knew that if

weren't going to have a voice in this, we were going to be shut out.

So the only thing that can stop a bad guy with a super PAC is a good guy with

super PAC.

These suits used PAC money to elect the first two Native American congresswomen.

The Koch brothers would be proud if they weren't so pissed about their

candidates losing to Sharice and Deb. You are now...

all members of the 116th Congress.

They say there's 500 plus tribes in America and they're expecting people

each one of them to be here tonight.

It's fun. People are really happy to see themselves reflected.

It's a great day to be indigenous, isn't it?

Indigenous representation in Washington is an important step forward, especially

given the historical context.

Just outside this room are monuments to men who waged genocide against Native

Americans. Andrew Jackson, Ulysses S. Grant, and even Abe Lincoln, who

the largest mass execution of Native Americans in U .S. history.

Oh, come on, Lincoln.

That wasn't in the movie.

Stoically speeding through our nation's capital, I yearn to fill our public

areas with updated monuments that reflect what I just saw.

We need to take back these spaces.

And as a white man, I want to use my own empty space for good. And tag me,

syntax. All right.

It's time to make it clear that Native Americans need to be seen. And on behalf

of honky bitches everywhere, let the world know... It's not about

me.

Not about me.

Not about me. Not about me.

Not about me.

It's about Native Americans.

It's down here somewhere.

I made it about me again.

Shoot.

I think I need more help.

Chinupa, how are you?

Native stories tend to only get told by white men, a fact frequently cited by

the Native Americans whose stories I was telling.

But if I've learned anything, it's that increasing visibility isn't just about

listening to their stories. It's about giving over the power to tell them in

first place. So that's what I'm doing.

I could put it on the floor. Would that make more sense?

Let's do it.

I asked Chinook to finish this episode.

He could do whatever he wanted. Under 75 seconds and within budget constraints.

I imagine it being ceremony for a future time.

What's in here is the forms that I wanted it to take. It's a couple of

slayers because, you know, around the world, there's stories of heroes playing

monsters in order to create space for humans to exist in.

And they were made out of the body armor that I took to Standing

Rock to engage on the front line. But I wanted to amplify it so that it had, you

know, a...

An indigenous flair on it. These are like ceramic shoulder pieces.

That's a shin piece. I think all of it goes back to these ideas of like native

people are embedded in a historical past.

So I want to create an imagined future where we still exist, are still

and are also a primary provider of technology and information.

Seems like a pretty good idea.

We'll see. I'm in it. Looks like dots from here.

All art looks like that to me. But I had given control to Chinupa. What's the

worst he could do? Tank my emotionally charged docuseries with some science

fiction bullshit?

I love science fiction.

But you don't see a lot of science fiction with an indigenous lens that

fall into the exact same tropes that happened to us in the past.

So the purpose of this is to look into the future?

Yeah. Are they still watching linear television?

That's all I want to know. Tell me.

Tell me. They're barely watching it now. I know. I know. I know.

If you have any insight, I would love it.

Anything I need to know before?

No. It was all done with native people.

The whole production. Is that right? Yeah.

Sound, everything.

We got to tell our own story.

A couple notes.

Yeah.