Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

A Rumble: “Indian” vs. “Native American”

Political correctness rules in critic’s favor

Link Wray, one of several Native Amer...Indian musicians covered in the documentary Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World.
Link Wray, one of several Native Amer...Indian musicians covered in the documentary Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World.

Political correctness is a game one must master in order to keep the paychecks coming. One thing this woefully incorrect chronicler has learned the hard way is: what plays in the head need not always be read. Err on the side of caution. If it sounds offensive, chances are it is. Or is it?

Video:

Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World trailer

The word “deaf” has been in common usage for as far back as memory stretches. There was a brief period where it threatened to go the way of “fat,” “cripple,” and “retard,” three expressions that political correctness has long since shown the door. Surely most would look upon the word “deaf “as socially unacceptable. Just in case, “hearing impaired” replaced “deaf” as the descriptor of choice.

A former boss with a deaf daughter hipped me to the fact that while once the preferred term, “hearing impaired” has since been rejected by the community. “Deaf” was once again in favor. The same holds true of “Indian,” as we’ll soon learn.

Sponsored
Sponsored

The publicist representing Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World — opening Friday at Landmark’s Ken Cinema — took exception with the following line from my review: “The film’s one shockingly non-PC move is the use of the word ‘Indian’ over the more socially acceptable ‘Native American.’”

“Wow,” he wrote. “Let me introduce you to the National Museum of American Indian (a Smithsonian institution).” The museum executive who initiated the exhibit that inspired the film also acted as producer.

The rep linked me to the Q&A section of the Smithsonian website:

  • “What is the correct terminology: American Indian, Indian, Native American, or Native? All of these terms are acceptable. The consensus, however, is that whenever possible, Native people prefer to be called by their specific tribal name. In the United States, Native American has been widely used but is falling out of favor with some groups, and the terms American Indian or indigenous American are preferred by many Native people.”

Rejoice! No more calling my favorite team in baseball the Cleveland Native Americans or referring to the guy next door as a Native American-giver after he asks for the return of the pliers he said I could keep.

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Poway’s schools, faced with money squeeze, fined for voter mailing

$105 million bond required payback of nearly 10 times that amount
Link Wray, one of several Native Amer...Indian musicians covered in the documentary Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World.
Link Wray, one of several Native Amer...Indian musicians covered in the documentary Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World.

Political correctness is a game one must master in order to keep the paychecks coming. One thing this woefully incorrect chronicler has learned the hard way is: what plays in the head need not always be read. Err on the side of caution. If it sounds offensive, chances are it is. Or is it?

Video:

Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World trailer

The word “deaf” has been in common usage for as far back as memory stretches. There was a brief period where it threatened to go the way of “fat,” “cripple,” and “retard,” three expressions that political correctness has long since shown the door. Surely most would look upon the word “deaf “as socially unacceptable. Just in case, “hearing impaired” replaced “deaf” as the descriptor of choice.

A former boss with a deaf daughter hipped me to the fact that while once the preferred term, “hearing impaired” has since been rejected by the community. “Deaf” was once again in favor. The same holds true of “Indian,” as we’ll soon learn.

Sponsored
Sponsored

The publicist representing Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World — opening Friday at Landmark’s Ken Cinema — took exception with the following line from my review: “The film’s one shockingly non-PC move is the use of the word ‘Indian’ over the more socially acceptable ‘Native American.’”

“Wow,” he wrote. “Let me introduce you to the National Museum of American Indian (a Smithsonian institution).” The museum executive who initiated the exhibit that inspired the film also acted as producer.

The rep linked me to the Q&A section of the Smithsonian website:

  • “What is the correct terminology: American Indian, Indian, Native American, or Native? All of these terms are acceptable. The consensus, however, is that whenever possible, Native people prefer to be called by their specific tribal name. In the United States, Native American has been widely used but is falling out of favor with some groups, and the terms American Indian or indigenous American are preferred by many Native people.”

Rejoice! No more calling my favorite team in baseball the Cleveland Native Americans or referring to the guy next door as a Native American-giver after he asks for the return of the pliers he said I could keep.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Syrian treat maker Hakmi Sweets makes Dubai chocolate bars

Look for the counter shop inside a Mediterranean grill in El Cajon
Next Article

Classical Classical at The San Diego Symphony Orchestra

A concert I didn't know I needed
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader