I say “American Indians” a lot in an upcoming video as I’ve been told that this is the most common accepted term. I feel insane using it though, I feel my third grade education biting back against this
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Not positive where I heard this but I remember seeing a video from someone talking to native tribes and a lot of them don’t gaf, they actually prefer to just be called by their tribe name which makes the most sense imo
"American Indian" seems to be most accurate when referring to indigenous people in the context of the U.S. federal government. I use indigenous by default, but that's usually in a broader colonial context that includes Canada, France, British Empire, etc.
People will try to say "X term is better" but American Indians everywhere all have their different opinions on what term they prefer to use. There's no one catch all answer for everyone.
Really? It is accurate.
I appreciate that for the last 30 years or so, whenever you hear the word "Indian" it is referring to someone actually from India.
yeah. when someone says “the preferred term is…”, i assume that they’re a terminology-obsessed do-gooder. At no point did everyone get together and have a vote on what term they prefer. May as well put a sign around your neck saying “I’m white and like to trivialise things that I don’t understand”.
The word “First Nations” is used more frequently in Canadian contexts, is what I was saying. I don’t think I’ve ever seen an American resource use the term
I think that's a sensible decision, because you're a Youtuber under the intense scrutiny of the public panopticon. I haven't heard it much here (Australia) either, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander is still quite common.
"Indigenous" has become the more official term up here but yeah, most people who weren't intending to utter a slur wouldn't even think of saying "Indian"
Yeah, same reason South American indigenous people hate being called Native American. They don't identify with it at all. Kinda annoying white people keep insisting on new terms that indigenous folks had no involvement in
Yeah, in Canada "First Nations" is the official term used for one of the three big "distinct" groups of Indigenous peoples (the other two groups being the Inuit and the Métis).
Americans, always changing the names of people, diseases, conditions, by folks who have no clue of what they speak.
The other result of "relabeling" everything, as long as we are renaming things we don't have to fix things
There were no indigenous bipods in North America.
They were first to get here
I had a professor who always used that term and it drove me nuts lol. She was my favorite professor so it felt so strange to hear those words coming out of her mouth.
One of my friends at work is from India. He and I had a good laugh when I asked him why Cleveland had to change their baseball team name but it's ok for Mumbai cricket to still be the Indians.
I was surprised when I went to the Osage reservation when I was 17 and Indian was the term they all preferred. Ever since then I've used that term more than native American.
Who told you that? Most prefer the be called Indigenous, Native Americans, or just plain Native. “American Indian” placates the misguided rhetoric of Columbus landing in India. Which, obviously, is also untrue
AFAIK that may be more common among people who are not American Indian, but American Indians more commonly refer to themselves as American Indian when not otherwise using the name of their tribe.
Yeah, it really just depends on the people and communities and how they identify. There's no singular answer, really. CGP Grey has some videos about it that I remember being pretty good.
"Indian" has been the accepted term for over 400 years. Many have become accustomed to it and identify with it.
Several Ojibwe people I've spoken to were annoyed that white ppl have NOW after 400 years decided they were wrong and so to fix it they decided to rename them without their consent AGAIN
Bitch no. We don't call the Cubans, Japanese for the same reason. Some rapist made a mistake and thought he was in a different place. Everyone when he did it knew he was wrong too. No reason to continue that stupid tradition.
And who are you to tell 5 million people what they're supposed to call themselves? Don't they get a say at all? Or do their opinions on themselves, their traditions, and their identities with centuries of history not count because they're not white?
?????????? Who is telling you that? In my (Native American) experience, the term is still used a lot but mostly by elders, it’s not offensive by any means but anybody under 40 is gonna say Native or Indigenous, or First Nations if you’re in Canada.
that’s the funny thing, right? in both their “original” re-naming and in their revised re-naming, it doesn’t seem like the people themselves had much say.
first nations is usually just for Canadian folks. indigenous is a decent catch-all, but i know folks who prefer American Indian as well, so I think the reality is that there's no broad agreed-upon term. Just refer how they want you to contextually.
I feel like anything in the realm of "native tribes" or "indigenous peoples" feels more right but I haven't exactly gone researching this so I wouldn't know for sure without looking.
the way i see it, "american indian" is such a history textbook way of referring to real living people. "indigenous" is the ideal term to be used by settlers when referring to us imo. "native" is also good.
Don't worry in Canada the Indian act is what the indigenous are under still. To most governments legally speaking they are Indians despite ya know they aren't.
You've probably got a long wait on that last bit, bc indigenous is too many syllables for them to pronounce, and good luck getting them to spell it close enough that autosuggestion does more than shrug.
I have had several Navajo friends and they prefer "American Indian" for a general descriptor of all the indigenous nations but obviously just "Navajo" to describe themselves personally, at least in English.
Anyone who is actually from the reservation knows this. Most people use our actual tribe/nation, or Indian, to describe ourselves. When we go off to college is when we learn that we're "wrong" for doing so.
That’s so wild to me because that’s super duper NOT the most accepted term in all circles I frequent as an indigenous Canadian!!
It’s like… idk calling *ourselves* ndn is chill, but white people doing it kinda weird lol? If you have time to swap I’d recommend indigenous or native american instead!
Like I said tho, idk if it’s become more accepted in indigenous American circles? but if you’re gonna post it, it’ll definitely get a confused side eye from any indigenous Canadians who watch it! Even if ya can’t re-edit, just including a lil text explanation at the beginning might be a good idea! 💖
It depends on the group of indigenous people. Some even just like “Indian.”
There was the American Indian Movement. And Gods does that have awesome history behind it. They were the primary group that occupied Alcatraz Island claiming it as tribal territory back in the…70s? I think?
Yea, I double-checked. They also occupied the BIA in D.C. and Wounded Knee in 73, which was the most infamous standoff between FBI and Indigenous rights advocates.
I feel like Alcatraz in 70 formed their primary strategies, because they just kept occupying buildings and territory for years after.
That's understandable. And I would still hazard that you should use Native American as the terminology. Or bounce back and forth between them. As well as gauging the opinions of those that are of that particular race and ethnicity.
coming from a mestizo with a few indigenous friends, we all usually use “Indigenous” or “Native American”. American Indian is a (non-offensive) dated term that I’ve only ever seen used by older people or sometimes referenced as part of a pejorative (e.g. calling someone “Indio” cuz they’re poor)
Just my anecdote, but every indian that I have known has called themselves and their kin indians, and said that I should do the same. It definitely goes against what I was taught in school too.
So i dont need to change my habit of saying Native Americans? Cause my autistic brain doesn't like calling them American Indians, since they aren't from India. You probably don't have clearance from all the tribes to decide on that, but ill still ask xd
Huh. I grew up between two reservations in the Southwest and Indians was definetely a no go, with indigenous or native American preferred. Interesting to know that's reversed in some areas - Indian definetely gives me the ick when I hear it, haha.
They’ve had names for themselves and the other hundreds of nations but their contention with AI/NA/indigenous is that it’s another name being imposed on them from outsiders. AI was traditionally and begrudgingly accepted only because it’s been around for longer
I know two folks with indigenous families in NH and both prefer different terms, but aren't picky if you say something else. One prefers American Indian, the other prefers Indigenous American. There's really no catch-all, it's all case-by-case preferences, so just go with what they say they prefer.
If my memory is correct, a lecturer at my theatre once shared that he uses the term American Indians in part because that’s the term the legal system uses
Law in the US regarding indigenous tribes and reservations is still called "Indian Law" because of how textually strict interpretations can be, and there's no chance that anyone is going to retroactively alter the text of old case law to represent more modern terminology. Conservative-ass country.
For some places, nothing happened! They still use it! It's really just a preference depending on who you're talking to. There's no unified agreement as to which term to use, it's all case-by-case.
Comments
I appreciate that for the last 30 years or so, whenever you hear the word "Indian" it is referring to someone actually from India.
The other result of "relabeling" everything, as long as we are renaming things we don't have to fix things
There were no indigenous bipods in North America.
They were first to get here
Several Ojibwe people I've spoken to were annoyed that white ppl have NOW after 400 years decided they were wrong and so to fix it they decided to rename them without their consent AGAIN
not indian.
Fwiw, "Indians" would draw some ire in Canada if it's coming from non-indigenous people. @deathgripsisonline.bsky.social might have further context?
I use "indigenous people" but once the racists start abusing it that'll likely change.
It’s like… idk calling *ourselves* ndn is chill, but white people doing it kinda weird lol? If you have time to swap I’d recommend indigenous or native american instead!
There was the American Indian Movement. And Gods does that have awesome history behind it. They were the primary group that occupied Alcatraz Island claiming it as tribal territory back in the…70s? I think?
I feel like Alcatraz in 70 formed their primary strategies, because they just kept occupying buildings and territory for years after.