I’m full blooded Indigenous … I was born into my family, I have a status card, I grew up in my home community and my first language is Ojibway-Cree … I’m a brown skinned darked hair Indian … the first 12 years of my life, all I ever knew was my Indigenous culture, family and language.
The whole Buffy Sainte-Marie fiasco is not so much about who can identify, who should say what or who claim identity and how it should be accepted or rejected by anyone.
The biggest issue I have with this is … she lied and continues to lie. If she were more honest and forthcoming about who she really is and why she did what she did … everything would be more acceptable and we could continue to respect the work that she has created.
The questions surrounding all of this is a lot more difficult to answer when millions of dollars of awards, legal issues, and entertainment income are at stake.
My only pushback is that she used her fame to help indigenous people her entire career. If it was from a point of dishonesty, (could have been some type of delusion) she still tried to make the world better. It’s not a Jordan Peterson or Steven Seagal situation where they try to get legitimacy by association and only give lip service.
But ultimately, this isn’t an issue where my opinion matters much. I don’t have indigenous lived experience beyond close association.
I agree that she did a lot of great work.
The problem is that it was born out of dishonesty.
I can accept much of what she’s done over the years but I take it all reluctantly and I can’t accept it all.
If she had been honest and if she were honest now, everything would be a whole lot easier.
Instead, the dishonesty continues. The problem with this is that it sets a stage where others can be emboldened to try the same because they know they know they can get away with it.
This is the core of what makes her story so complex and fascinating.