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Stereotype of the Month Entry
(3/12/02)


Another Stereotype of the Month entry:

Hoo boy...
I thought this site was some kind of joke at first, but no, it's in all seriousness. Here are the articles:

Indian Curses and Boy Scouts [no longer online]

Indian Burial Ground and Battlegrounds

Dream Catcher

Rob's comment
This may be the most racist (pro-Christian, anti-Indian) website of the year. Perhaps of the decade. To see its full glory, visit DemonBuster.com.

The site's owners list themselves as:

Stan and Elizabeth Madrak
Deliverance Ministers
We are located in Montgomery, Alabama

The Madraks have removed their Boy Scout page, perhaps because of the protests they received. On this page, they claimed the Boy Scouts are an Indian-derived, demon-riddled organization. A third of the way down, they listed every aspect of Indian culture they considered demonic. The following is a brief excerpt:

How I praise God each day for DELIVERANCE from the lies and deceits of the enemy.

SPIRITS (Each name is a demon that must be driven OUT in the name of JESUS)

Buffalo
Indian rituals
Drums
Indian corn
Indian artifacts
Indian Art
Indian folklore
Eagle
Indian pierced ear spirit
Indian scalp spirit
False Indian prophecy
Indian spirit of bondage
False tongues
Indian spirit of poverty
Feathers
Indian spirit of war
Knives
Great Spirit
Kachina doll (Ojibway)
Longhouse
Great White Father
Geronimo
Mother earth
Nakedness
Pow-wow
Submission to tribal custom
Teepee
Totem pole
Sitting Bull
Wolf

A Native replies
A response from correspondent Firehair (edited for clarity):

Your site has just been posted all over Native America, and to our European support groups.

Firstly, from all here, and from those I know, associate with, our prayers for the dishonor you bring to all YOUR ancestors, and how, what they survived to make it possible for you to even exist. May the Creator who made all guide you back to the true ways of humanity.

Your site is ignorant, at the very least. Were you the least bit academic, you would have done some research before exposing your total lack of any knowledge based in reality.

As already pointed out—kachina is Hopi—and represents the varying gifts of Creator. No different than the Catholics, who use saints for intervention (ancestors in our belief system).

Many churches burn candles, incense, we use natural items—sage, sweetgrass, pine bark—indigenous items of an area.

Drums? As they represent the heartbeat of Mother Earth, a gift for us from Creator—what your thinking is here is beyond me.

Jesus was dark-skinned, with tight curly hair, read a 14th century Bible in Hebrew—not today's cleaned-up version.

Scalping? Limited to certain tribes, overall, and—a stunt taught by the French. From Europe. Oh, and they skinned Native women and children, using varying items for tobacco pouches, etc. Way tooo gross to write about this early.

Didn't see you mentioning all those white folks sending Christians to the Lions, etc. Hmmmmmm.

Columbus's own priests...wrote of his hacking off the hands and arms of Indians who didn't bring him enough gold, etc. You forget to mention that.

All animals are honored, sacred—they were put here by Creator—for our enjoyment in their beauty, their meat if we are in need, their furs for warmth, their hides for clothing—and their adornment for ours, if we happen on this part in a right way. Meaning, you don't kill to get a feather. Birds molt. Animals die.

And, if you knew anything, you'd know we always honor the spirit of the creature who donated an item to us. When you put on shoes, do you smile and say a quick "thank you" to Creator and the cow who supplied you with your shoes, belt, purse?

Many of us do. I pat my car's dashboard and thank Creator and her for the energy that keeps her going, my kids off to college, day in, day out.

We thank Creator for the river we may be about to jump into or fish from. Or the tree that just stands there, looking so nice.

Christian Indians we know don't do this very much, seeing it's not what they are taught by the churches.

Those who are very traditional, know—24/7/365—thanks to the Creator, the ancestors for all we have, use, see, do and manage. The Creator I believe in loves us all, and is in every molecule in this solar system.

The Creator you tout is mean, vengeful, nasty, hateful and racist. And weeping at your portrayal, probably.

I'll take the one we were given—any day of the week, thanks.

Wanishi—which is thank you in MY People's language!

(Oh, speaking of false tongues—guess that means you will deep-six parts of your Bible, which speaks heavily of "speaking in tongues.")

Firehair Shining Spirit
Eastern Delaware/Minisink Band

Rob busts the Demon Busters
Some comments on the Demon Busters' list:

  • I may be wrong, but I'm pretty sure Jesus didn't take a stance against animals such as the buffalo, eagle, or wolf.
  • I'm also pretty sure Jesus didn't have a strong opinion on the type of domicile one chooses to live in—whether it be a tipi, longhouse, or condominium.
  • It'll be tough to eat some foods if we drive out knives. Fortunately, forks and spoons didn't make the list. Perhaps we can cut our food with scissors.
  • Without feathers, a lot of pillows and down jackets will become useless. Luckily, I think there are artificial substitutes.
  • If we drive out drums, is it okay to keep all our CDs—the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, et al.—with drum performances on them? Or do we have to drive them out too?
  • Sitting Bull and Geronimo are dead, so I don't think we have to—or can—drive them out. What about live Indians like Russell Means, Buffy Sainte-Marie, or Notah Begay? Are they demons because they practice their Indian customs? Should we drive them out the way we're supposed to drive out Sitting Bull and Geronimo?
  • Kachina doll...Ojibway? Try Hopi. 'Nuff said about this couple's knowledge of Indian culture.
  • I fully agree that George W. Bush, the present Great White Father, is a demon and should be driven out. I think we can all agree on that.
  • Since "Great Spirit" is synonymous with God, looks like we'll be driving out most if not all religions, including Christianity. That might be a pleasant change.
  • Since the fictitious Indian pierced ear spirit, scalp spirit, spirit of bondage, spirit of poverty, and spirit of war—along with many other "spirits" listed—don't exist, they're already taken care of.
  • I'm in favor of driving out false Indian prophecies. I think all Indian prophecies should be true or there's no point to them.
  • I wasn't aware Jesus denounced particular languages. If "false tongues" are bad, what would be an example of a true tongue...English? Did Jesus speak English in the first century AD? (Hint: The Bible is written in English today, but it wasn't originally. Duh.)
  • Since the Constitution is partly based on Indian custom and folklore, I guess we'll have to drive it out. We'll also have to eliminate the Sacagawea dollar, buffalo nickel, and Indian head penny. Oh, and the quarter too, since it has an eagle on it. That suggests we'll also have to get rid of paper money (God's eye, pyramid, eagle), the Great Seal (eagle), and most of the monuments in Washington DC and elsewhere. Maybe we can use wampum (surprisingly, not on the list).
  • Most of the states' names and thousands of place names are based on false Indian tongues, so they'll have to go. We'll have to reprint almost every US book and map in existence. I hope these people are willing to increase their taxes to pay for this colossal effort, 'cuz I'm sure not.
  • On the bright side, we'll be able to drive out all the offensive sports team names and mascots...all the Indian wannabes and New Agers...indeed, most of the stereotypes in the Stereotype of the Month contest. Say hallelujah!
  • If we're driving out mother earth, I assume we'll be taking a rocket ship to another planet? One without demons, Indians, and Boy Scouts, I trust? Otherwise, we won't have any ground to stand on.
  • Finally, I'm overjoyed to hear these people want to drive out nakedness. If they manage to drive it out of their own home, they'll never reproduce and we'll be spared future generations of their idiocy.
  • More meek, mild comments
    Let me see if I understand these doofuses. They want to drive out every aspect of Indian life they can think of, but they don't hate Indians? What part of Indians do they accept: their bodies (as long as they're not naked), their cars, their TVs and cell phones? Will they love Indians as soon as Indians abandon every aspect of their identity and become white, Anglo-Saxon Protestants?

    Jesus must be turning over in his grave, so to speak.

    What a surprise to learn this couple lives in Alabama. They call themselves Deliverance Ministers, perhaps from the movie Deliverance, which took place in the area. Is everyone in Alabama an inbred idiot, or is it just my imagination?

    If anyone wants a list of all the stupid, hateful, racist things fundamentalist Christians believe about indigenous people, I suggest they bookmark this page. It's a classic.

    Apparently, these nuts are getting a lot of hate mail—for obvious reasons—accusing them of racism. They're so concerned about it they have a disclaimer at the bottom of every page. Too bad they can't do anything about this page, in which I proclaim them hate-filled racists for all eternity.

    For the Madraks' sake, here's a clue to relieve their ignorance. They've listed all Indian rituals, artifacts, art, folklore, customs, spirits, and gods as demonic. They've said nothing about their own (presumably white) rituals, artifacts, art, folklore, customs, spirits, and gods.

    In words even the Madraks can't misunderstand, I'll summarize their position: All Indian things = bad. No white things = bad. That's discrimination based on race, or racism.

    Contact Stan and Elizabeth to let them know what you think of their site.

    Related links
    Tract portrays drunk Indians needing Christ for salvation
    "Primitive" Indian religion


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