Stereotypes of Indigenous peoples of Canada and the United States of America include many

ethnic stereotype An ethnic stereotype, racial stereotype or cultural stereotype involves part of a system of beliefs about typical characteristics of members of a given ethnic group, their status, societal and cultural norms. A national stereotype, or nation ...

s found worldwide which include historical misrepresentations and the oversimplification of hundreds of Indigenous cultures. Negative stereotypes are associated with

prejudice Prejudice can be an affective feeling towards a person based on their perceived group membership. The word is often used to refer to a preconceived (usually unfavourable) evaluation or classification of another person based on that person's per ...

and

discrimination Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of Racial discrimination, r ...

that continue to affect the lives of

Indigenous peoples Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

Indigenous peoples of the Americas The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the A ...

are commonly called Native Americans in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

(excluding

Alaskan Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

and Hawaiian Natives) or

First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...

people (in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

). The

Circumpolar peoples of the Americas Circumpolar peoples and Arctic peoples are umbrella terms for the various Indigenous peoples of the Arctic. Prehistory The earliest inhabitants of North America's central and eastern Arctic are referred to as the Arctic small tool tradition (AST) ...

, often referred to by the English term

Eskimo Eskimo () is an exonym used to refer to two closely related Indigenous peoples: the Inuit (including the Alaska Native Iñupiat, the Greenlandic Inuit, and the Canadian Inuit) and the Yupik (or Yuit) of eastern Siberia and Alaska. A related ...

, have a distinct set of stereotypes. Eskimo itself is an

exonym An endonym (from Greek: , 'inner' + , 'name'; also known as autonym) is a common, ''native'' name for a geographical place, group of people, individual person, language or dialect, meaning that it is used inside that particular place, group ...

, deriving from phrases that Algonquin tribes used for their northern neighbors, in Canada the term

Inuit Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territorie ...

is generally preferred, while

Alaska Natives Alaska Natives (also known as Alaskan Natives, Native Alaskans, Indigenous Alaskans, Aboriginal Alaskans or First Alaskans) are the indigenous peoples of Alaska and include Iñupiat, Yupik, Aleut, Eyak, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and a num ...

is used in the United States. It is believed that some portrayals of Natives, such as their depiction as bloodthirsty savages have disappeared. However, most portrayals are oversimplified and inaccurate; these stereotypes are found particularly in popular media which is the main source of mainstream images of Indigenous peoples worldwide. The stereotyping of American Indians must be understood in the context of history which includes

conquest Conquest is the act of military subjugation of an enemy by force of arms. Military history provides many examples of conquest: the Roman conquest of Britain, the Mauryan conquest of Afghanistan and of vast areas of the Indian subcontinent, ...

forced displacement Forced displacement (also forced migration) is an involuntary or coerced movement of a person or people away from their home or home region. The UNHCR defines 'forced displacement' as follows: displaced "as a result of persecution, conflict, ...

, and organized efforts to eradicate native cultures, such as the

boarding schools A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. As they have existed for many centuries, and now exten ...

of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which separated young Native Americans from their families to educate and to assimilate them as

European Americans European Americans (also referred to as Euro-Americans) are Americans of European ancestry. This term includes people who are descended from the first European settlers in the United States as well as people who are descended from more recent E ...

. There are also many examples of seemingly positive stereotypes which rely on European "

noble savage A noble savage is a literary stock character who embodies the concept of the indigene, outsider, wild human, an " other" who has not been "corrupted" by civilization, and therefore symbolizes humanity's innate goodness. Besides appearing in m ...

" imagery, but also contribute to the infantilization of Indigenous cultures.

Indigenous terminology

The first difficulty in addressing stereotypes is the terminology to use when referring to Indigenous peoples, which is an ongoing controversy. The truly stereotype-free names would be those of individual nations. A practical reference to Indigenous peoples, in general, is "American Indian" in the United States and "First Nations" or "Indigenous" in Canada. The peoples collectively referred to as

have their own unique stereotypes. The communities to which Indigenous peoples belong also have various names, typically "nation" or "tribe" in the United States, but "comunidad" (Spanish for "community") in South America. All global terminology must be used with an awareness of the stereotype that "Indians" are a single people, when in fact there are hundreds of individual

ethnic group An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...

s, who are all native to the

Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America, North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. ...

, just as the term "

Europeans Europeans are the focus of European ethnology, the field of anthropology related to the various ethnic groups that reside in the states of Europe. Groups may be defined by common genetic ancestry, common language, or both. Pan and Pfeil (20 ...

" carries an understanding that there are some similarities but also many differences between the peoples of an entire continent.

American Natives

Myths about American Indians can be understood in the context of the

metanarrative A metanarrative (also meta-narrative and grand narrative; french: métarécit) is a narrative ''about'' narratives of historical meaning, experience, or knowledge, which offers a society legitimation through the anticipated completion of a (as yet ...

of the United States, which was originally "

manifest destiny Manifest destiny was a cultural belief in the 19th-century United States that American settlers were destined to expand across North America. There were three basic tenets to the concept: * The special virtues of the American people and th ...

" and has now become "

American exceptionalism American exceptionalism is the belief that the United States is inherently different from other nations. This history includes the description of Native Americans in the

Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood or proclamation of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of th ...

as "merciless Indian savages". These stereotypes have historical, cultural, and racial characteristics.

Historical misconceptions

There are numerous distortions of history, many of which continue as stereotypes. There is the myth that Indians are a dying race, i.e. "The Vanishing Red Man", when in fact census data shows an increase in the number of individuals who were American Indians and Alaska Natives or American Indian and Alaska Native in combination with one or more other races. There is an assumption that Indians lost possession of their land because they were inferior, when the reality is: #Many of the Indigenous peoples died from diseases to which they had no immunity #There were a number of advanced civilizations in the Americas, but they did lack two important resources: a

pack animal A pack animal, also known as a sumpter animal or beast of burden, is an individual or type of working animal used by humans as means of transporting materials by attaching them so their weight bears on the animal's back, in contrast to draft ani ...

large enough to carry a human; and the ability to make

steel Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistan ...

for tools and weapons.

Purchase of Manhattan

The "purchase" of

Manhattan island Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of co ...

from Indians is a cultural misunderstanding. In 1626 the director of the Dutch settlement,

Peter Minuit Peter Minuit (between 1580 and 1585 – August 5, 1638) was a Wallonian merchant from Tournai, in present-day Belgium. He was the 3rd Director of the Dutch North American colony of New Netherland from 1626 until 1631, and 3rd Governor of New ...

, traded sixty

guilders Guilder is the English translation of the Dutch and German ''gulden'', originally shortened from Middle High German ''guldin pfenninc'' " gold penny". This was the term that became current in the southern and western parts of the Holy Roman E ...

worth of goods with the

Lenni Lenape The Lenape (, , or Lenape , del, Lënapeyok) also called the Leni Lenape, Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. Their historical territory inclu ...

people, which they would have accepted as gifts in exchange for allowing the settlers to occupy the land. Native Americans had no conception of private ownership of natural resources.

Pocahontas

The story told by John Smith of his rescue by the daughter of

Chief Powhatan Powhatan ( c. 1547 – c. 1618), whose proper name was Wahunsenacawh (alternately spelled Wahunsenacah, Wahunsunacock or Wahunsonacock), was the leader of the Powhatan, an alliance of Algonquian-speaking Native Americans living in Tsenacommaca ...

Pocahontas Pocahontas (, ; born Amonute, known as Matoaka, 1596 – March 1617) was a Native American woman, belonging to the Powhatan people, notable for her association with the colonial settlement at Jamestown, Virginia. She was the daughter of ...

, is generally thought by historians to be a fabrication. Pocahontas was most likely eleven or twelve at the time, and this popular tale of the "

Indian princess The Indian princess is usually a stereotypical and inaccurate representation of a Native American or other Indigenous woman of the Americas. The term "princess" was often mistakenly applied to the daughters of tribal chiefs or other community l ...

" and Smith's story changed over many retellings.

Cultural and ethnic misconceptions

The Media Awareness Network of Canada (MNet) has prepared several statements about the portrayals of American Indians, First Nations of Canada, and Alaskan Natives in the media.

Westerns The Western is a genre set in the American frontier and commonly associated with folk tales of the Western United States, particularly the Southwestern United States, as well as Northern Mexico and Western Canada. It is commonly referred ...

and documentaries have tended to portray Natives in stereotypical terms: the wise elder, the aggressive drunk, the

, the loyal sidekick, the obese and impoverished. These images have become known across North America. Stereotyped issues include simplistic characterizations, romanticizing of Native culture, and stereotyping by omission—showing American Indians in a historical rather than modern context. There is also the outdated stereotype that American Indians and Alaskan Natives live on reservations when in fact only about 25% do, and a slight majority now live in urban areas. There is an assumption that Indians somehow have an intuitive knowledge of their culture and history when the degree of such knowledge varies greatly depending upon the family and community connections of each individual.

Indigenous women

Native American and First Nations women are frequently sexually objectified and are often stereotyped as being promiscuous. Such misconceptions lead to murder, rape, and violence against Native American or First Nations women and girls by non-Native men and sometimes women. An

Algonquin Algonquin or Algonquian—and the variation Algonki(a)n—may refer to: Languages and peoples *Algonquian languages, a large subfamily of Native American languages in a wide swath of eastern North America from Canada to Virginia **Algonquin la ...

word, the term "

squaw The English word ''squaw'' is an ethnic and sexual slur, historically used for Indigenous North American women. Contemporary use of the term, especially by non-Natives, is considered derogatory, misogynist, and racist.King, C. Richard,De/ ...

" is now widely deemed offensive due to its use for hundreds of years in a derogatory context. However, there remain more than a thousand locations in the U.S. that incorporate the term in its name.

Indigenous men and sports mascotry

In early colonial writings, the most common portrayal of Native men came in the form of what Robert Berkhofer calls "savage images of the Indian as not only hostile but depraved.". In later times, particularly under the influence of

Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revolu ...

's idea of the

, Native American men were portrayed by European sources as fierce warriors that Euro-American writers called braves. Berkhofer summarizes this idea as follows: : friendly, courteous, and hospitable to the initial invaders of his lands and to all Whites so long as the latter honored the obligations presumed to be mutually entered into with the tribe. Along with handsomeness of physique and physiognomy went great stamina and endurance. Modest in attitude if not always in dress, the noble Indian exhibited great calm and dignity in bearing, conversation, and even under torture. Brave in combat, he was tender in love for family and children. The word "brave" often appeared in school sports teams' names until such team names fell into disfavor in the later 20th century. Many school team names have been revised to reflect current sensibilities, though professional teams such as American football's

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The t ...

, baseball's

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in ...

, and ice hockey's

Chicago Blackhawks The Chicago Blackhawks (spelled Black Hawks until 1986, and known colloquially as the Hawks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago. The Blackhawks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Divisio ...

continue. Some controversial upper-level Native American team mascots such as

Chief Noc-A-Homa Chief Noc-A-Homa was a mascot for the American professional baseball team Atlanta Braves from 1966 to 1985. He was primarily played by Levi Walker, Jr. After being a mascot for the Braves franchise for two decades the Atlanta Braves retired th ...

and

Chief Illiniwek Chief Illiniwek was the mascot of the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign (UIUC), associated with the university's intercollegiate athletic programs, from October 30, 1926, to February 21, 2007. Chief Illiniwek was portrayed by a student t ...

have been discontinued, while some such as

Chief Osceola and Renegade Osceola and Renegade are the official mascots of the Florida State University Seminoles. Osceola, representing the historical Seminole leader Osceola, and his Appaloosa horse Renegade introduce home football games by riding to midfield with a bur ...

remain. A controversy over the Fighting Sioux nickname and logo was resolved in 2012. There have been issues with the continuation of professional team names and mascots especially in the

Washington Redskins name controversy The Washington Redskins name controversy involved the name and logo previously used by the Washington Commanders, a National Football League (NFL) franchise located in the Washington metropolitan area. In the 1960s, the team's longtime name� ...

. In 2013, President Obama and NBC sportscaster Bob Costas voiced their objection to the name. After a petition, the Trademark and Trial Appeal Board ordered the cancellation of six federal trademark registrations in 2014. The Redskins are appealing this ruling. The team was renamed the

Washington Football Team The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) E ...

in 2020.

Substance use

Because of the high frequency of American Indian alcoholism, a

stereotype In social psychology, a stereotype is a generalized belief about a particular category of people. It is an expectation that people might have about every person of a particular group. The type of expectation can vary; it can be, for exampl ...

has been applied to all American Indians. As with most groups, the incidence of substance use is related to issues of poverty and mental distress, both of which may be, in part, the result of racial stereotyping and discrimination. Treatment for

substance use disorder Substance use disorder (SUD) is the persistent use of drugs (including alcohol) despite substantial harm and adverse consequences as a result of their use. Substance use disorders are characterized by an array of mental/emotional, physical, and ...

s by Native Americans is more effective when it is community-based, and addresses the issues of cultural identification. This stereotype became most prominent in the mid to late twentieth century when alcoholism became the number one cause of death according to the

Indian Health Service The Indian Health Service (IHS) is an operating division (OPDIV) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). IHS is responsible for providing direct medical and public health services to members of federally-recognized Nativ ...

s (IHS). Reports from the mid-1980s state that this was the time period when the IHS began to primarily target the treatment of alcoholism over its past treatments of infectious diseases.

Ecology-affiliated stereotypes

One named stereotype with affiliation to ecology is the "Noble Savage" stereotype. When referring to American Indians as "Noble Savages", it is implied that these individuals have acquired a special kinship with their "land, water, and wildlife." Furthermore, this stereotype implicitly states that American Indians do not allow themselves or their environment to be corrupted by commercialization or industrialization and that they strive to preserve their environment and keep it untouched. This stereotype has stemmed from the long-term enthrallment many non-natives have had with this particular minority group, causing American Indians to be viewed as "objects of reverence and fascination". In the book, "T''ending the wild: Native American Knowledge and the Management of California’s Natural Resources",'' written by Kat Anderson, Anderson delves into the "hunter-gatherer" stereotype. The "hunter-gatherer" stereotype describes those that survive solely on hunted animals and gathering of berries and other edible plants. The author attempts to break this stereotype by illustrating the varied ways Indigenous peoples of California tended and supported their environment. California Natives have utilized methods, such as effective harvesting, controlled burning, and selectively pruning, in order to maintain their environment and keep many plant and animal species flourishing. Through the book, Anderson wanted to accurately spread the ecological knowledge of California natives to shed light on the impact these groups have had on surrounding wildlife areas.

Inuit stereotypes

, often referred to as

s (which many see as derogatory), are usually depicted dressed in

parka A parka or anorak is a type of coat with a hood, often lined with fur or faux fur. This kind of garment is a staple of Inuit clothing, traditionally made from caribou or seal skin, for hunting and kayaking in the frigid Arctic. Some Inuit ...

s, paddling kayaks, which the Inuit invented, carving out trinkets, living in

igloo An igloo (Inuit languages: , Inuktitut syllabics (plural: )), also known as a snow house or snow hut, is a type of shelter built of suitable snow. Although igloos are often associated with all Inuit, they were traditionally used only b ...

s, going fishing with a

harpoon A harpoon is a long spear-like instrument and tool used in fishing, whaling, sealing, and other marine hunting to catch and injure large fish or marine mammals such as seals and whales. It accomplishes this task by impaling the target ani ...

, hunting whales, traveling by

sleigh A sled, skid, sledge, or sleigh is a land vehicle that slides across a surface, usually of ice or snow. It is built with either a smooth underside or a separate body supported by two or more smooth, relatively narrow, longitudinal runners s ...

and

huskies Husky is a general term for a dog used in the polar regions, primarily and specifically for work as sled dogs. It refers to a traditional northern type, notable for its cold-weather tolerance and overall hardiness. Modern racing huskies that ma ...

, eating

cod liver oil Cod liver oil is a dietary supplement derived from liver of cod fish (Gadidae). As with most fish oils, it contains the omega-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and also vitamin A and vitamin D. Histori ...

and the men are called

Nanook In Inuit religion, Nanook (; iu, ᓇᓄᖅ , lit. "polar bear") was the master of bears, meaning he decided if hunters deserved success in finding and hunting bears and punished violations of taboos. The word was popularized by '' Nanook of th ...

about the documentary ''

Nanook of the North ''Nanook of the North'' is a 1922 American silent film which combines elements of documentary and docudrama, at a time when the concept of separating films into documentary and drama did not yet exist. In the tradition of what would later be c ...

''. Eskimo children may have a

seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to imp ...

for a best friend. Eskimos are sometimes shown rubbing noses together in greeting ritual, referred to as

Eskimo kissing An Eskimo kiss, nose kiss, or nose rub, is the act of pressing the tip of one's nose against another's nose. The original term in Inuit languages for the action of rubbing one's nose against another's cheek is ''kunik''. The ''kunik'' version of t ...

in Western culture, and only loosely based on an authentic Inuit practice known as ''kunik''. They are also often depicted surrounded by

polar bear The polar bear (''Ursus maritimus'') is a hypercarnivorous bear whose native range lies largely within the Arctic Circle, encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the largest extant bear spec ...

s or

walrus The walrus (''Odobenus rosmarus'') is a large flippered marine mammal with a discontinuous distribution about the North Pole in the Arctic Ocean and subarctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere. The walrus is the only living species in the fami ...

es.

Effect of stereotyping

Stereotypes harm both the victims and those that perpetuate them, with effects on society at large. Victims suffer emotional distress: anger, frustration, insecurity, and feelings of hopelessness. Most of all, Indian children exposed at an early age to these mainstream images internalize the stereotypes paired with the images, resulting in lower self-esteem, contributing to all of the other problems faced by American Indians. Stereotypes become discrimination when the assumptions of being more prone to violence and alcoholism limit job opportunities. This leads directly to Indians being viewed less stable economically, making it more difficult for those that have succeeded to fully enjoy the benefits in the same way that non-Indians do, such as obtaining credit. For those that maintain them, stereotypes prevent a more accurate view of Indians and the history of the United States. Research also demonstrates the harm done to society by stereotyping of any kind. Two studies examined the effect of exposure to an American Indian sports mascot on the tendency to endorse stereotypes of a different minority group. A study was first done at the University of Illinois and then replicated at The College of New Jersey with the same results. Students were given a paragraph to read about Chief Illiniwek adapted from the University of Illinois' official website, while the control group was given a description of an arts center. In both studies, the students exposed to the sports mascot were more likely to express stereotypical views of Asian-Americans. Although Chief Illiniwek was described only in terms of positive characteristics (as a respectful symbol, not a mascot), the stereotyping of Asian-Americans included negative characteristics, such as being "socially inept". This was indicative of a spreading effect; exposure to any stereotypes increased the likelihood of stereotypical thinking. In Alabama, at a game between the

Pinson Valley High School Pinson Valley High School (PVHS) is a four-year public high school in the Birmingham, Alabama suburb of Pinson. It is the fifth largest of the Jefferson County Board of Education's fourteen high schools. School colors are garnet and gold, and t ...

"Indians" and

McAdory High School McAdory High School (MHS) is a four-year public high school in the Birmingham, Alabama suburb of McCalla. It is one of fourteen high schools in the Jefferson County School System and was named for early local educator Isaac McAdory. School colors ...

, the latter team displayed a banner using a disparaging reference to the

Trail of Tears The Trail of Tears was an ethnic cleansing and forced displacement of approximately 60,000 people of the " Five Civilized Tribes" between 1830 and 1850 by the United States government. As part of the Indian removal, members of the Cherokee, ...

for which the principal of the school apologized to Native Americans, stated that the cheerleader squad responsible would be disciplined and that all students would be given a lesson on the actual history of the Trail of Tears. Native Americans responded that it was an example of the continuing insensitivity and stereotyping of Indians in America. A similar sign was displayed in Tennessee by the

Dyersburg Dyersburg is a city and the county seat of Dyer County, Tennessee, United States. It is located in northwest Tennessee, northeast of Memphis on the Forked Deer River. The population was 16,164 at the 2020 census, down 5.72% from the 2010 census ...

Trojans when they played the Jackson Northside Indians. The effect that stereotyping has had on Indigenous women is one of the main reasons why non-Indigenous people commit violent crimes of hate towards First Nations women and girls. Because Aboriginal women have been associated with images of the "

" and "

Squaw The English word ''squaw'' is an ethnic and sexual slur, historically used for Indigenous North American women. Contemporary use of the term, especially by non-Natives, is considered derogatory, misogynist, and racist.King, C. Richard,De/ ...

" some non-Indigenous people believe that Aboriginal women are dirty, promiscuous, overtly sexualized, which makes these women vulnerable to violent assaults. Colonial culture has been foundation of these stereotypes creating a relationship of violence and hatred, which justifies the treatment of First Nations peoples to this day.

Film

Modern perpetuation of stereotypes

The mainstream media makes a lot of money-making movies that play along with stereotypes; while accurate portrayals may be critically acclaimed they are not often made or widely distributed.

Overcoming stereotypes

In the 1980s and 1990s, the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the governmen ...

(CBC) made efforts to improve the portrayals of Aboriginal people in its television dramas. ''

Spirit Bay ''Spirit Bay'' was an aboriginal family television show of 13 half-hour episodes that aired on CBC Television and TVOntario from 1982 to 1987. The show focuses on the lives of townsfolk on an Ojibwe reservation town near MacDiarmid, Ontario. Her ...

'', ''

The Beachcombers ''The Beachcombers'' is a Canadian comedy-drama television series that ran on CBC Television from October 1, 1972, to December 12, 1990. With over 350 episodes, it is one of the longest-running dramatic series ever made for English-language Canad ...

'', ''

North of 60 ''North of 60'' is a 1990s Canadian television drama depicting life in the sub-Arctic northern boreal forest (north of 60° north latitude, hence the title). It first aired on CBC Television in 1992 and was syndicated around the world. It is ...

'' and ''

The Rez ''The Rez'' is a Canadian drama television series, which aired on CBC Television from 1996 to 1998. Bruce McDonald and Norman Jewison were executive producers of the series, which chronicled life in an Ojibway community. The series is based o ...

'' used Native actors to portray their own people, living real lives and earning believable livelihoods in identifiable parts of the country. ''

Imagining Indians ''Imagining Indians'' is a 1992 documentary film produced and directed by Native American filmmaker, Victor Masayesva, Jr. (Hopi). The documentary attempts to reveal the misrepresentation of Indigenous Native American culture and tradition in ...

'' is a 1992 documentary film produced and directed by American Indian filmmaker Victor Masayesva, Jr. (Hopi). The documentary attempts to reveal the misrepresentation of Indigenous American Indian culture and tradition in Classical Hollywood films by interviews with different Indigenous Native American actors and extras from various tribes throughout the United States.

21st century

Reel Injun ''Reel Injun'' is a 2009 Canadian documentary film directed by Cree filmmaker Neil Diamond, Catherine Bainbridge, and Jeremiah Hayes that explores the portrayal of Native Americans in film. ''Reel Injun'' is illustrated with excerpts from classi ...

'' is a 2009 Canadian documentary film directed by Cree filmmaker

Neil Diamond Neil Leslie Diamond (born January 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. He has sold more than 130 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling musicians of all time. He has had ten No. 1 singles on the Hot 100 and Adul ...

, Catherine Bainbridge, and Jeremiah Hayes that explores the portrayal of American Indians in film. ''Reel Injun'' is illustrated with excerpts from classic and contemporary portrayals of Native people in Hollywood movies and interviews with filmmakers, actors and film historians, while director Diamond travels across the United States to visit iconic locations in motion picture as well as American Indian history. ''Reel Injun'' explores many stereotypes about natives in film, from the Noble savage to the Drunken Indian. It profiles such figures as

Iron Eyes Cody Iron Eyes Cody (born Espera Oscar de Corti, April 3, 1904 – January 4, 1999) was an American actor of Italian descent who portrayed Native Americans in Hollywood films, famously as ''Chief Iron Eyes'' in Bob Hope's '' The Paleface'' (1948). ...

, an Italian American who reinvented himself as a Native American on-screen. The film also explores Hollywood's practice of using Italian Americans and American Jews to portray Indians in the movies and reveals how some Native American actors made jokes in their native tongue on screen when the director thought they were simply speaking gibberish. ''

Inventing the Indian ''Inventing the Indian'' is a 2012 BBC documentary first broadcast on 28 October on BBC 4, exploring the stereotypical view of Native Americans in the United States in cinema and literature. Presented by Rich Hall and Dallas Goldtooth, a Native A ...

'' is a 2012 BBC documentary first broadcast on 28 October on BBC 4 exploring the stereotypical view of Native Americans in the United States in cinema and literature. In 2022, American animation series ''

Molly of Denali ''Molly of Denali'' (stylized as ''MOLLY of DENALI'') is an animated children's television series produced by Atomic Cartoons in association with WGBH Kids, created by Dorothea Gillim and Kathy Waugh for PBS Kids and CBC Kids.

'' features protagonists, actors, co-creators who are

Alaskan Native Alaska Natives (also known as Alaskan Natives, Native Alaskans, Indigenous Alaskans, Aboriginal Alaskans or First Alaskans) are the indigenous peoples of Alaska and include Iñupiat, Yupik, Aleut, Eyak, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and a numb ...

, with the goal of educating children about informational text as well as debunking Native stereotypes. The show has been celebrated as "the nation’s first widely distributed children’s program featuring an Alaska Native as the lead character."

References

External links

The Top 7… Native American stereotypes
in Video Games, GamesRadar US, 2008
"Run to the Hills?"
– Representations of Native Americans in Heavy Metal, InVisible Culture, 2014 {{Discrimination Indigenous peoples in Canada Anti-indigenous racism in North America Ethnic and racial stereotypes in the United States Canada and the United States Stereotypes of Native American people