wendigo appropriation

and our WAYNE MILLER is the owner and creative director of EVIL CHEEZ PRODUCTIONS (www.evilcheezproductions.blogspot.com, www.facebook.com/evilcheezproductions), specializing in theatrical performances and haunted attractions. This is a place to learn more bout Social Justice 0000012030 00000 n That, I would affirm, is truly and literally cannibalism, and it is cannibalism accompanied by no spiritually meaningful ceremony or ritual., More than a commentary on the life of wendigo stories amongst his own people, Forbes deploys the metaphor of the wendigo to advance nothing less than a critique of civilization at large and describes the violence that he argues lies at its foundation as one driven by a kind of wendigo psychosis. Thats just asking for trouble.) The windigo is a per-sonal spirit that still belongs to the Native American cultures from which it has been taken, and the appropriation of this spirit harms Native American communities by poorly representing their beliefs for a marketable gain. <<410561E535828C4ABA4EA5627C70A225>]/Prev 78716/XRefStm 1365>> Political correctness started out as one thing, a good thing. It has no place in the world of Folklore and monsters. 9'b_X~~@0CKYO~8yOK9I$^I>t hbspt.cta._relativeUrls=true;hbspt.cta.load(443401, 'c61f3219-a9f3-4b0c-95ea-f614a80c184b', {"useNewLoader":"true","region":"na1"}); Pictured above: A portion of the poster for the film Antlers (Fox Searchlight, 2021). However, PCism taken to its extreme would say that neither Cooper, nor I, should be telling stories about Wendigos at all, since were not of aboriginal descent. Cookie Notice 2 0 obj In a report from the Contemporary Folklore conference covered in issue 388 of FORTEAN TIMES, the go-to magazine for all things paranormal, weird, or unexplained, a complaint is voiced about the cultural appropriation of the Wendigo, likening it to the sexualization of the Mothman statue in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. I'm just struggling to understand the significance of it. Posted by Western appropriation has long-lasting effects on the perceptions of Native American cultures by the average consumer and even scientific communities. As a concept, wendigo can apply to situations other than some Native American-European relations. P\^$'$@YWSB;Td54BD?YH"'kh::a;Vqz&4|:>)xP2n |94NrOqE'6 <>/Metadata 266 0 R/ViewerPreferences 267 0 R>> Privacy Policy. Scan this QR code to download the app now. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Stolen Spirits: The Appropriation of the Windigo Spirit in Horror Literature. endobj By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. 0000001546 00000 n J.K. Rowling's Cultural Appropriation Should Be A Lesson To White Writers Native Americans shouldn't be a "niche," and neither should women, LGBT people, or people of color. With teepees, Im not sure I get it. Dollightful's Apology: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wW-KBzKWvrUTo clear up the addition that I made even more, I think that it would be pretty important for the information on this topic to be easily accessible to her viewers. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. Welcome to Facing Today, a Facing History blog. In the course of the transformation from human to wendigo, the person exhibits increasing selfishness, violence, hunger, and greed particularly for human flesh. The latest addition to this lineup of wendigo tales is Scott Cooper and Guillermo del Toros horror film Antlers (2021) in which a Native American character provides some brief exposition before the story centered around a white community contending with the monster begins in earnest. (Anything that isnt outright vandalism isnt likely to harm the statue at all, but I wouldnt dare do anything disrespectful around it. % This article analyses prominent examples of the Wendigo myth in modern North American horror media and the implications of misappropriation by non-Indigenous creators for non-Indigenous audiences. ])yB\}OIZyY8 aA6Vo !C_D#!MYik.1>%'5ryZ*>fb=n#_dr;j5 { Just as the vampire and werewolf do not belong exclusively to people of European descent and the Mummy doesnt belong to Egyptians. In Algonquian traditions, the wendigo monster emerges not randomly or in violent response to colonialism as it often does in popular media but through a specific set of circumstances that are unique to different tribal groupings. Check it out here:https://youtu.be/fHE4fkvUpWMI really just made this video to express how I am currently feeling about the wendigo doll situation and the questions I have about it. Vol. Wendigos, teepees and cultural appropriation I read some stuff yesterday saying that teepees are cultural appropriation and there was a long post about how wendigos aren't cryptids and how stories about them are cultural appropriation. For more information, please see our 0000020040 00000 n 0000023412 00000 n Those things, the predation on the Indians by Europeans, most certainly happened. Learn how your comment data is processed. The question of how to challenge the wtiko psychosis as described by Forbes and Wendigo Economics as described by LaDuke is a difficult one, but the mythic force of the concept of the wendigo helps to underscore the urgency of these questions. It's taboo to the Anishaabe people, but the common depiction of it in media is no where near the original frozen cannibal spirit that the legends are based off of. 4. In this paper, I document the depictions of windigo in Native American mythology, those of Western literature, and the effects of appropriation and misrepresentation on Native communities. Finally, it's just not that hard to do two minutes of. Only those entitled to them should wear them. 0000000974 00000 n 0000000016 00000 n U%.CI$ FKe{CiV/\Lg1DD$A!=FHD6 EInw^9qkCh&1rvR'`{7X wEB7Az~q0n8 t)$xh1rQJ,p>O/$-J)'OTk|m9(k|6U g/-JU;WM}7d5)V.yX=Qu,TDI+CA_5U|nH$WK7G3-aYaqeV2jWQV6C6OY"W5?x;f_27j3Y)/G`j|e9NHCp+-r4g7D? c! Cooper and del Toro made the conscious decision to tell the story of the wendigo in a way that is respectful to its Native American roots, which in turn helps make Antlers a more authentic horror film. 0000001365 00000 n Its incredibly validating to know that other people have heard about it and enjoy the story enough to make reference to the name and concept. George warns those who are leaving about the Wendigo myth: anyone who consumes the flesh of their enemies takes their strength but becomes a demon cursed by an insatiable hunger for more human flesh. Archived post. So, thanks, Dave! If you do go as a specific person, avoid figures of religious or cultural significance to a particular group to which you do not belong. Now that I have a major problem with. o&g( 4 0 obj This analysis will trace the process of these media, made by non-Indigenous white creators, removing the Wendigos indigeneity and placing it within fictional settings as an antagonist. Scan this QR code to download the app now. When she was brought to the lab she already had the curse of the Wendigo but after she was "updated" she had visible antlers and could change her shape. Tell us about it in the comments. Facing History and Ourselves invites educators to explore our case study Stolen Lives: The Indigenous Peoples of Canada and the Indian Residential Schools, particularly our reading "Culture, Stereotypes, and Identity" which features reflection questions surrounding some of the stereotypical media representations that we touch upon at the beginning of this essay. I analyze the way the windigo are represented in Western literature and argue that Native American spirits should belong to the cultures they originate from. During a panel at YES! She's part of a group of young adults created in a lab (she's the only one who wasn't) who have these special abilities. Privacy Policy. There, he uses the cannibalistic wendigo as a metaphor for the behaviors and attitudes central to patterns of social domination visited upon his own people in the Americas and subjugated peoples everywhere. It was intended to be a lesson on human greed and the damage it can cause. 0000012532 00000 n If you were to look around the world about other religions, anything that is associated with death and disease is regarded upon. This space is not for debate. As a creator, I believe it is my responsibility, the responsibility of any creator, if using characters that belong to a culture other than mine and exploring themes from that culture, to be accurate. Far from just being a monster in an escapist horror flick, Forbes and LaDuke demonstrate that the wendigo can help us grasp the horrors of our real world so we can be here now and, ultimately, work toward solutions. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. i love the videos uploaded to youtube and try to keep up with posts, so this is by no means a bash at Wendigoon. Handle the characters and the story with respect. When the soldiers reach Ives' cave, Boyd and Reich investigate. Ojibwe scholar Dr. Brady Santi has developed this guide for teachers who would like to teach students about her communitys unique belief systems with an emphasis on the wendigo as it appears in popular films. WAYNE MILLER is the owner and creative director of EVIL CHEEZ PRODUCTIONS (www.evilcheezproductions.blogspot.com, www.facebook.com/evilcheezproductions), specializing in theatrical performances and haunted attractions. If so, what did you think about it? In a report from the Contemporary Folklore conference covered in issue 388 of FORTEAN TIMES, the go-to magazine for all things paranormal, weird, or unexplained, a complaint is voiced about the "cultural appropriation" of the Wendigo, likening it to the "sexualization" of the Mothman statue in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. 0000007477 00000 n Cultural appropriation is the co-optation of elements, customs, or practices of one culture by another culture without acknowledgment or consent. symL,JyvCq;[H~! Answer (1 of 6): First and foremost, I'm not telling you this because I personally have a problem with you dressing as a wendigo for a cryptid fair, but we are living in an age of cancel culture where a costume you sported ten years ago might be used against you. 1 0 obj Answer (1 of 8): Yes, unless actively researched with proper resources and talked to with First Nation folks as proof-readers. %%EOF 0000008549 00000 n HeyYaIQ 21 days ago. This construction is problematic in the horror genre as it presents an Indigenous antagonist that poses a threat to white culture for its otherness and indigeneity while at the same time, misappropriating, discarding and demonising the Indigenous culture the myth comes from, at whim. MORTUI VELOCES SUNT! I really just want to learn about how to appreciate aspects of cultures that I am not included in respectfully. One does not need to delve very deeply into the annals of American film, television, and literature to find an array of caricatured depictions of Native American peoples and a distortion of their knowledge. <> But as far as cultural appropriation and the Wendigo goes, dont you daredont you DAREtry to take our monsters away from us, PC wankers! Facing History and Ourselves combats racism and antisemitism by using history to teach tolerance in classrooms around the globe. Basically, the wendigo was supposed to be a creature you didn't even say the name of or else you could draw the attention of one. i enjoy his content, but the w*ndigo is part of a closed religion and is supposed to be a lesson about human greed and selfishness, not a cannibal monster story. Driving down a dark quiet highway in Southern Manitoba, a man sees someone bent over on the side of the road. 0000001705 00000 n When you comment on, Asian American and Pacific Islander History, Race and Membership in American History: Eugenics. As I mentioned during our latest episode of the NYMG podcast, I've been playing Until Dawn, and the game has got me thinking about a few different things that I'd like to spend some time parsing through, like the game's representation of things like gender and race, how it is that the idea of choice seems to influence the way we think about these representations, and the manner in which . My basic rule is simple: be respectful. After thinking about it some more, I understand that its a kind of It was okay for these kids to pretend to be Indians but not for these kids to actually be Indians thing but I saw someone claim that it was contributing to colonisation and the death of death of their culture and that felt a bit strong. 0 Indigenous, The Windigo also has the power to turn humans into cannibals who suffer the same . 0000005961 00000 n No one can try to stake a singular claim to it. Not only is it not offensive, I LOVE seeing references to wendigos in popular culture! The windigo is a Native American spirit belonging to the Algonquian tribes of North America and Canada. 0000006529 00000 n Cookie Notice In most traditions, the wendigo is human in origin and becomes a monster through a process that results either from acts of starvation-induced cannibalism or from possession by a spirit. <> and our You dont have to be French to love the Phantom of the Opera. For artists, writers, gamemasters, musicians, programmers, philosophers and scientists alike! By Christian Chiakulas, Contributor Writer, musician, activist, single father from Chicago. This article's cross-media analysis covers television, film and game media; Teen Wolf (2011-17), Supernatural (2005-20), Bruce Wemple's The Retreat (2020) and SuperMassive Games' Until Dawn . they've been stripped of cultural context. 0000008020 00000 n 0000003862 00000 n I dont know who originally posted it, or where. defence-cultural-appropriation Cultural appropriation is defined by Britannica.com as "When members of a majority group adopt cultural elements of a minority group in an exploitative, disrespectful, or stereotypical way." Cultural appropriation is a growing topic in this country that when it occurs, or is discussed, often creates controversy. So yeah, if anyone could offer any insight/information, thatd be appreciated. The Wendigo may be a figure from American Indian mythology, but it belongs to all of humankind. Im glad, because I dont believe that it is. i don't think there should be any 'canceling' of Wendigoon or whatever, but definitely something should be said. This article analyses prominent examples of the Wendigo myth in modern North American horror media and the implications of misappropriation by non-Indigenous creators for non-Indigenous audiences. I think she knew that her decision would be challenged and she wanted to let people know that she had valid reasons for doing what she did. That taste of human flesh, which out of that rose the wendigo.. Ill admit, my initial reaction was very dismissive. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. Participate in good faith. These new narratives that white people make fail to acknowledge that the wendigo, and the Indi. Posts and comments should be substantive, and assertions backed in fact or personal lived experience. I have this character in a webcomic I want to write who is a Wendigo. You must be here to either learn more about social justice or answer questions from a social justice viewpoint. "@TheThiccholas @realcoolJAY They can't say Issa wendigo cus of cultural appropriation props to them buuuuuut also WENDIGO type energy sooo " Still though, Im not sure I fully get the Native American spirits(?) (A friend sent this screenshot to me, along with the info, because he knows how much PC-ism pisses me off. Cultural appropriation consists of borrowing something from another culture in mockery or thoughtless misuse. How stupid to think otherwise. Beyond Forbes, other Native American thinkers have also used wendigo stories to present critical perspectives on various social problems and call for their resolution. I have always felt a distinct emotional connection to it, in fact. To Helheimr with it! however, the w*ndigo originates from spiritual beliefs held by Indigenous peoples. I have named this observation of the Wendigothe Caveless Creature phenomenon. so im sort of clueless how reddit works and made an account for this, so bare with me. Kaitlin Smith on November 30, 2021. In this paper, I document the depictions of windigo in Native American mythology, those of Western literature, and the effects of appropriation and misrepresentation on Native communities. He has written, produced and directed (and occasionally acted in) over a dozen plays, most of them in the Horror and Crime genres. Abstract. Western appropriation has long-lasting effects on the perceptions of Native American cultures by the average consumer and even scientific communities. Although this article is specifically observing the Wendigo, I argue that it is one of many caveless creatures, and the treatment of them by creators of non-Indigenous horror genre should be analysed in the future. Rules: endobj Early folklore described them as tall and impossibly emaciated humanoids with sharp incisors and a heart of ice. The wendigo is intended to embody hunger, particularly as refracted through the icy cold of winter and the monstrous things that people do when their appetites overwhelm them. Okay, dont anybody get me wrong. The windigo is a Native American spirit belonging to the Algonquian tribes of North America and Canada. 0000005554 00000 n This subreddit is about sharing your worlds, discovering the creations of others, and discussing the many aspects of creating new universes. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. The moral lessons contained in wendigo stories are also used to support the task of social critique in the late Native American scholar Dr. Jack D. Forbes book Columbus and Other Cannibals: The Wtiko Disease of Exploitation, Imperialism, and Terrorism (1978). 0000005304 00000 n Marvel Comics pay tribute to classic Monsters. Scan this QR code to download the app now. Usually, the appropriating culture is in a relation of domination to the appropriated culture. +9*]aty``mZm/[= ${2R{!g=b{B,L0R2"T]IDa. This articlescross-media analysiscovers television, film and game media;Teen Wolf(201117),Supernatural(200520), Bruce WemplesThe Retreat(2020) and SuperMassive GamesUntil Dawn(2015). One of those advisors I just mentioned, Chris Eyre, had this to say of the Wendigo: They [meaning Native peoples] truly, truly believe in it, because it represents greed and colonialism when we first came to the shores of what is now America, and pillaged all of their resources and forced them [into] cannibalism. Only assholes think thats offensive. media has really misconstrued the original lore and importance of the w*ndigo to Indigenous culture. The Wendigo is a 'terrifying cannibal ice monster that has its genesis in stories of people forced into cannibalism by the long winter' (Smith and Fiore, 2010: 68). The concept of cultural appropriation began well enough, but just like everything else woke culture political correctness, it's gone way too far. Copyright (c) 2022 Francesca Amee Johnson, https://doi.org/10.31273/reinvention.v15iS1.906, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, Accepts submissions from any undergraduate student, worldwide, including student-staff collaborations (student must be lead author), Edited by students and staff at the University of Warwick and Monash University. And were on the right side, thats what were working on but sometimes you get that cannibal tendency. I just posted a new video talking about cultural appropriation and art! And whoever!). Learn how your comment data is processed. One recurring theme across these storytelling mediums is the use of the wendigoalso spelled wtikoa monstrous figure from Algonquian mythology who exhibits an insatiable greed along with a desire for human flesh. Be supportive, this is a place for growth, not hostility. the origins don't even depict the w*ndigo with deer antlers, but a human with bitten off lips. Copyright 2022 Facing History & Ourselves. It springs from the well of the collective human unconscious, the communal soul. 17spaz 2 yr. ago 0000003465 00000 n On top of that, the wendigo is a part of death. 0000009954 00000 n Please report rule violations. Hunchman, K. N. (2020). His first novel, THE CONFESSIONS OF SAINT CHRISTOPHER: WEREWOLF, is available for purchase at https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/734763 However, it never provents for people of that tribe to share this and that story. The paper concludes that employing the Wendigo as a caveless creature is a common practice within horror as it easily creates a villain for white protagonists to defeat repeatedly. And you know what? 0000010400 00000 n s\&|5T!JN04hy'I0 1pv=~0-K$k}xSK"g:O*ox&zGa13(YXzy_{v-N^!c@[H stream In most traditions, the wendigo is human in origin and becomes a monster through a process that results either from acts of starvation-induced cannibalism or from possession by a spirit. wendigo cultural appropriation [26][27] During the winter of 1878, Swift Runner and his family were starving, and his eldest son died. 0000007047 00000 n Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. 0000011489 00000 n %PDF-1.7 spellings (see Colombo 2) but is most commonly rendered as Windigo, Wendigo, or Witiko. From Stephen Kings Pet Sematary to the television series Hanibal, the flesh-eating image of the wendigo is often presented apart from its original cultural contexts where it carries deep moral significance. That's just pulling a potential explanation out of my ass, though, I have no idea if its accurate or not. Theyre revered spirits to the point where people wont speak their name so it must be frustrating when people are just like Oh yeah, I saw one of those, it was so spooky or have an aesthetic called wendigocore. 0000004071 00000 n Europeans may well have behaved like Wendigos when they invaded the Americasthey didbut they didnt bring the Wendigo with them. And I accept that the Wendigo can symbolize for them that exploitation. Film, 246 33 Mythologynote my use of the capital M to convey that it is far more than just some made-up stories; it is stories containing deeper spiritual truthsbelongs to all of humanity. I read some stuff yesterday saying that teepees are cultural appropriation and there was a long post about how wendigos arent cryptids and how stories about them are cultural appropriation. 0000002723 00000 n He writes: Wtiko is a Cree termwhich refers to a cannibal or, more specifically, to an evil person or spirit who terrorizes other creatures by means of terrible evil acts, including cannibalism I have come to the conclusion that imperialism and exploitation are forms of cannibalism and, in fact, are precisely those forms of cannibalism which are most diabolical or evil It should be understood that wtikos do not eat other humans only in a symbolic sense. 0000013308 00000 n 3 0 obj Theres something else. 0000010971 00000 n Although well-documented in Western literature, the windigo spirit of stories like . 0000012791 00000 n By looking at the depictions of windigo in these specific Western stories and in Native American beliefs, it is possible to see how stripping spirits of their original contexts is harmful to Native communities. The moral lessons contained in wendigo stories are also used to support the task of social critique in the late Native American scholar Dr. Jack D. Forbes' book Columbus and Other Cannibals: The Wtiko Disease of Exploitation, Imperialism, and Terrorism (1978).There, he uses the cannibalistic wendigo as a metaphor for the behaviors and attitudes central to patterns of social domination . The deaths of tens of millions of Jews, Slavs, etc., at the hands of the Nazis, the deaths of tens of millions of blacks in slavery days, the deaths of up to 30 million or more Indians in the 1500s, the terribly short life spans of Mexican Indian farm workers in the US, and of Native Americans generally today, the high death rates in the early industrial centers among factory workers, and so on, all clearly attest to the fact that the wealthy and exploitative literally consume the lives of those that they exploit. teachers and their students to stand up to bigotry and hate. arent cryptids thing. One example is Ojibwe activist Winona LaDuke who has called for a decisive shift away from what she has termed Wendigo Economics for the sake of the health of the natural world. hb```b``Ub`e``s`g@ ~+ a1fm{s/K5N9MHd@*2Ey]#B}>x,&ucrnhm:HkN=_B }Wzp.S#WCXi;dRa ,.0H*. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. 3. It has become something else altogether. Native Americans, Our headquarters are located at: 89 South Street, Suite 401, Boston, MA 02111. 278 0 obj <>stream His first novel, THE CONFESSIONS OF SAINT CHRISTOPHER: WEREWOLF, is available for purchase at https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/734763 Although well-documented in Western literature, the windigo spirit of stories like Pet Sematary by Stephen King and The Wendigo by Algernon Blackwood are stripped of their original context and are mere stereotypes of the cultures they originate from. The Wendigo happens to be part of my own (Anishiinaabe) cultural heritage. For more information, please see our Topics: I believe that the Wendigo is far older than that, far more primal. Windigo is a malevolent manitou or spirit whose insatiable appetite for human flesh can never be satisfied. But I do notice that Eyre stopped short of saying colonialization is the origin for the Wendigo legend. And besides that, it never hurts to include your sources. Magazine with fellow environmental thought leaders, LaDuke said: Theres this conflict between the cannibals and Mother Earth, and its going on everywhere. For resources: http://reddit.com/r/SRSDiscussion/wiki/required. With the comments turned off on Dollightful's apology video, I thought that maybe we could have some discussion here(if anyone ever sees this, anyway). Here's some links:Website - https://thesierramistify.wixsite.com/thesierramistifyEtsy - https://www.etsy.com/shop/thesierramistify?ref=simple-shop-header-name\u0026listing_id=736195213Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thesierramistify/Art Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thesierramistify.art/- Music used in this video -Prime Beatz - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkG3r3-ODOw As much as I would love to tell everyone to just read her sources and then be able to understand everything better, I just don't think that's realistic for most people(because they are not easily accessible to most, and I don't think that was her intention by including these in her description.
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