By Adity Choudhury
Who knew a small act of “solidarity” could change the Academy Awards in 1973?
The legendary actor Marlon Brando won the “Best Actor” award for The Godfather that year. In an interesting turn of events, he boycotted the event as a protest against the depiction of Native Americans in Hollywood. A woman named Marie Louise Cruz, aka Sacheen Littlefeather, actress, model and Native American civil rights activist, declined the award on his behalf, dressed in traditional Apache attire.
She said, “He (Brando) very regretfully cannot accept this very generous award. And the reasons for this being are the treatment of American Indians today by the film industry… and on television in movie reruns, and also with recent happenings at Wounded Knee.”
Littlefeather was referring to the armed conflict between the federal government and the Native American activists in Wounded Knee in South Dakota.
As she added, “I beg at this time that I have not intruded on this evening, and that… in the future, our hearts and our understandings will meet with love and generosity,” the audience mocked her. Later, in a documentary, it was revealed that Hollywood star, John Wayne, a vocal conservative Republican, was held back from dragging the activist off the stage.
Would one view Brando’s protest as tokenistic, or does it reflect true solidarity?
August 9 is celebrated as “International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples” to protect indigenous cultures by raising awareness and protecting the rights of the indigenous peoples across the world, including the recognition of their achievements and contributions in connection to the environment.
The International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs (IWGIA) has defined the term, “indigenous peoples” as “a common denominator for distinct peoples, who, through historical processes, have been marginalised and denied their right to control their own development. For indigenous peoples, self-identification is the basic principle in claiming and asserting indigenous identity…”
The talk on “what is indigenous?” reflects the west’s obsession with indigeneity as ‘exotic’. The very people who focus on ‘indigenous rights’ also destroy cultures, not very different from their colonisers – ancestors.
Racism, land grabbing, forced development and violence are key issues tribal peoples still face.
Just before the presidential elections in Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, then-presidential candidate, said, “If I take over, there won’t be even one more centimetre of indigenous land,” making his stance clear – profit over preservation – in power, he has served notices to activists safeguarding the Amazon rainforest.
Why is this a cause of concern? Over 100 uncontacted tribes in Brazil are on the brink of catastrophe.
Survival International, a non-profit organisation, fights for tribal peoples’ survival. Their initiatives include “stopping loggers, miners and oil companies from destroying tribal lands, lives and livelihoods across the globe” by working closely with governments. They document and expose atrocities committed against tribal people, and take direct action to stop them.
In one of their reports, they emphasised how elders are unable to teach their children traditional skills like collecting honey, hunting and herbal medicine without access to the forests.
Anti-poaching squads said to be funded by World Wildlife Fund (WWF), terrorise the Baka tribe, Congo Republic and Cameron, if they dare to enter their ancestral forests. They cite conservation as the reason, yet forbid the very people who nurture and depend on these spaces. Why leave out the best conservationists and guardians of forests who have lived on these lands for centuries?
For Guarani-Kaiowás, the indigenous people of Paraguay, there has been a rise in suicides. The youth account for 85 per cent of the cases. The reason for this is land grabbing by ranchers who have occupied their land. Violence is common – gunmen attack the community – making it an everyday affair.
Protecting indigenous peoples remains lip service. In Malaysia, five Orang Asli children ran away from their boarding school in 2015. They were terrified of beatings from the staff. What unfolded next, reflects the racism of the school authorities. Not only did they accuse their parents of hiding them, but they also sent soldiers to hunt for the terrified children.
The UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples opens a window of perspective. It says –
Affirming that indigenous peoples are equal to all other peoples, while recognising the right of all peoples to be different, to consider themselves different, and to be respected as such… that all peoples contribute to the diversity and richness of civilisations and cultures, which constitute the common heritage of humankind…
Reaffirming that indigenous peoples, in the exercise of their rights, should be free from discriminatio
of any kind,
Concerned that indigenous peoples have suffered from historic injustices as a result of, inter alia, their colonisation and dispossession of their lands, territories and resources, thus preventing them from exercising, in particular, their right to development in accordance with their own needs and interests.
Recognising also the urgent need to respect and promote the rights of indigenous peoples affirmed in treaties, agreements and other constructive arrangements with States
The goal may be novel, but it ignores people to suit the interests of big businesses. In 2018, the German government admitted that indigenous peoples in Africa face continuous discrimination and that “public demands” to implement their rights could lead to further conflicts.
On closer examination, theory and practice suggest otherwise. For both to align, collective action also means an unbiased, collective change of worldview.
(The writer is a features coordinator with The Meghalayan)