Now stop pretending to be Cherokee, dammit!
Keep it Classy, Scott Brown!
His asshole staffers get caught doing “Indian war whoops” and “tomahawk chops” on camera. As has been extensively documented, Elizabeth Warren’s claims of Cherokee (now, apparently, Cherokee AND Delaware) ancestry are risible. That being said, Scott Brown doesn’t give two shits about Indian issues and his followers seem to be dominated by ignorant, racist jacklegs.
There Is Power In the Blood
A good concise article about “Indian blood”.
Elizabeth Warren receives the US Senate nomination at the Massachusetts Democratic Convention.
This is a golden opportunity for Warren to address this issue, apologize for offending Indians (and not just Cherokee), and get on with the important business of cleaning Scott Brown’s clock. Ms. Warren, I really REALLY want you to win this race but you are playing right into the hands of your opponents, not to mention coming off as untrustworthy and insensitive.
UPDATE: Esquire has a decent run-down on this self-inflicted political wound.
UPDATE 2: Another viewpoint, this time from Crooks & Liars
In a bizarre twist, there are now Warren supporters accusing her Cherokee accusers of being Republican operatives, affiliated with Breitbart.com. That’s insane, for a number of reasons. First, I know several of those Cherokee and they are either liberal or non-political. Second, I know for a fact that Polly’s Granddaughter hadn’t even heard of the late and unlamented Breitbart until I mentioned to her that he was a Right Wing hack and notorious liar. She didn’t have anything whatsoever to do with Breitbart.com until they started running stories of Warren’s fake Cherokee heritage. As bad as the racist attacks have been from the Right Wing, it’s even more discouraging to see liberals stoop to this level.
Free Speech Writing for Elizabeth Warren
“When I was a little girl growing up in Oklahoma, I heard family stories about Cherokee ancestors, just like a lot of families. I loved the stories; my cousin even wrote a cookbook of what he and I thought were authentic Cherokee recipes. Later, when I came to Harvard, an article in the Crimson described me as a ‘Native American professor.’ I never bothered to consider how insensitive and hurtful it was to citizens of the Cherokee Nation and other Native Americans for people like me, with no documented Indian ancestors, to make such claims. Even though I never sought any professional advantage based on my family history, I should’ve known better. Harvard should’ve known better. Listing me as a Native American was an insult to the many authentic Indian lawyers, law professors and law school deans. I apologize for my insensitivity to all Native Americans and to the Cherokee in particular, who are plagued by fake tribes and fake claimants who steal and dilute their heritage and culture. But I am also offended by my political opponents who made hay of this issue by using racist terms like ‘squaw’ and ‘Pocahantas’. Such language is hateful and I call upon Senator Brown to join me in condemning it. What’s more, I call on Senator Brown and all Republicans to drop their obstruction of the Violence Against Women Act and in particular their efforts to prevent tribal courts from regaining jurisdiction over non-Indians who abuse Indian women. Native American women are two-and-a-half times more likely than any other group to be the victims of domestic violence, mostly at the hands of non-Indians. Because tribal courts were stripped of jurisdiction over violent crimes and crimes committed by non-Indians on Indian land, these horrible attacks on women and children often go unpunished. The Justice Department has utterly failed Indian Country with its pitiful record of prosecution. In fact, the Justice Department can’t even be bothered to keep statistics on crimes reported, investigated or prosecuted. I may not be Indian myself, but as your senator I will work tirelessly to protect Indian women and children from abuse. We owe the first Americans no less.”
The Only Thing Worse…
…than Harvard University’s lame attempt to use Elizabeth Warren’s (at best) tenuous Cherokee ancestry to bolster its claim to a diverse faculty or the Warren Campaign’s subsequent frantic attempts to locate a suitable ancestor, would have to be Megyn Kelly’s idiotic attempt at humor. Leave it to FOX “News” to find a way to work racist jokes into any story…
UPDATE: The Great and Powerful Kos urges Warren to put the issue behind her and excuses the ham-fisted response because she isn’t a “professional politician.” Great. Another amateur in Washington. Exactly what we need…
The Local Crank
