Intro Post

 Hey guys, welcome to my blog! Be sure to check out my 'projects' page and the 'about me' for some cool stuff! Thanks for stopping by!

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Love Letter to the Realeather Scrap Bag

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  Sometimes, the ability to follow the principles of one's culture comes in surprising forms. For example, in my case, I can follow old principles of my culture through the use of the Realeather Scrap Bag.  Something that is very important to the Lakota people is the idea of minimizing waste. In our ways, to take from the environment must be meaningful in order for one's life to be worthy and honorable in existence. In the old days, before colonization and reservation life, the Lakota hunted the buffalo across the northern plains region of North America. To us, these animals were some of the most sacred because they allowed us to live, and we were thankful to them before all else. We understood that without their continued existence, we too would cease to exist.  These beliefs of the duality of our existences resulted in deep parts of our spiritual beliefs. We understood the necessity of preserving the species that were so sacred and important to us. To kill a pregnant bu...
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Cultural Appropriation of Beadwork and Native Designs

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'Iron Eyes' Cody  In my opinion, Native American culture is one of the cultures that has been the most casually appropriated through recent history. While   populations plummeted in the past century, the image of the Native     American was an appropriated one by Hollywood. Natives in Cinema have a long and rich history, but in the mid-1900s, County Westerns exploded in popularity. Natives were a part of these movies, and the white executives in charge of writing these movies pushed stereotypical Native caricatures instead of flushed-out characters as parts of these films. This extended to costume, as the 'Indian look' was an important factor in differentiating the white characters from those who were meant to be Native.     'Iron Eyes' Cody (true name Espera Oscar de Corti) was an Italian-American man who became famous in Hollywood for portraying Native Americans in the 1900s. Not only did he act in films, but his roles spread to real ...
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Brand Names and Inclusivity - Please Follow Link To Learn More About ICWA!

 In the reclamation of Indigenous Identity, names are of the utmost importance. Notes about my culture: names hold a level of sacredness and are part of your holy identity, whether it be your traditional name, your personal name, the names of your pets, your businesses, your cars, etc. To the Lakota and other tribes of the Oceti Sakowin, names are given periodically through one's life, with tremendous weight and ceremony, which were kept close to our chests. Traditional names are not used as one would use a given name, and this extends to the names of our tribes and families. Sicangu Oyate and the Wanbli Tiospaye are examples of this, of sacred names that mean something, that is common across many cultures.  Now, it is necessary to discuss the rampant use of traditional names in branding. There are a huge amount of brands that get their names from either existing names, or stereotypes across the nation. This goes further than brands, including schools and of course mascots tha...
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