This commentary is by Duane E. Sherwood of Winooski. He is a retired nurse and erstwhile technical writer. He was a member of the Northern Lights inter-tribal pow-wow drum in Alaska for 20 years. He participates in Abenaki cultural activities in Vermont.
There are a small number of people in Vermont who claim Abenaki ancestry. Perhaps some of these claims are based on as little as a story handed down through the family. And perhaps some of these stories are told with pride. These stories are thus akin to the creation stories handed down through a tradition of tribal storytelling. In either case, the heart understands these stories, but they cannot be proven in court.
A family story or other personal reason for claiming Abenaki ancestry is something that can be questioned, of course, or it can be respected. It depends on how you begin the conversation: as an adversary or as a friend. Personally I love hearing how people came to understand their Abenaki ancestry and identity, and how that has influenced their lives.
I don’t know why certain people from the Odanak reserve in Canada are crossing the border to wage a cultural war against Vermont Abenakis accusing them of being “pretendians.” In my view, the only people who can qualify as pretendians are non-natives. Anyone who makes a good-faith claim to Abenaki ancestry, and who works to learn, practice, and preserve what remains of Abenaki culture, is someone I can respect. And really, why would I not?
So who are the real pretendians?
In looking at the types of people found in my birth culture (I identify as white), I’ve discovered there are different types of pretendians in our ranks. Some do serious harm to Native American culture or people, but others range from mildly annoying to relatively harmless.
The first three cultural types I’ve identified are toxic:
- Selfish. There are people who see only their own personal interests. Selfishness leads to greed. Greed leads to an abusive disregard for others. Such people fail to see that their personal well being cannot be separated from the well being of the community. They fully accept the competitive model of aggressive American capitalism where few win, most lose, and the environment gets trashed. The pattern of greed trends toward exploitation.
- Callous. There are people who fail to understand the true nature of fellow human beings. Genetically we all share in the collective ancestry of our species — we’re all related. In my view, each person has a spark of divine nature and is inherently worthy of respect. The failure to understand the fundamental worth and equality of all human beings is a cornerstone of the criminal mind.
- Intolerant. There are people who find it difficult to tolerate differences, be they cultural, linguistic, racial, religious, or intellectual. Such people will draw into their own affinity groups and reject those who are different. This is where racism and many other forms of social and cultural segregation begin. The tendency for like to associate with like is natural and understandable; however, indulging in hatred and violence based on differences is a serious error in thinking.
From these three types come the worst of the pretendians. Some people seek to exploit the current popularity of Native American culture. In a superficial and disrespectful manner they adopt stereotypes of Native American culture as their own and sell them to gullible individuals. Not only is this deceptive and unjust, it muddies the water with third-rate copies of beautiful things, many of which are rightly never sold.
The next three types are not as toxic:
- Intrigued. There are people who are drawn to the commonly understood virtues of Native American culture such as love of nature, connection with all, the hope of finding spirit through rituals and ceremonies, etc. But lacking a good teacher, these people remain shallow as they try to imitate Native American ways. They qualify as pretendians, but they have good hearts that aim in the right direction. They could probably benefit from a little friendly guidance and encouragement.
- Ordinary. There are people who attend to their daily lives as basically decent folk with little awareness of the bigger social issues, such as why claims of Abenaki ancestry have suddenly become controversial. At worst they are guilty of buying an Indian outfit at the costume store for Halloween and having no clue why this might be offensive. As pretendians go, they are innocuous.
- Liberated. There are people who do not fit the patterns of western culture, and who crave a wise, just and sustainable alternative. They see how western culture encourages the three, highly negative types listed above and recoil against it. As a person turns away from western culture, they turn toward understandings that share many elements of a Native American world view. These are not pretendians at all — they are people seeking their humanity. They are but a few steps away from being true allies on the Good Red Road.
When my friends claim to be Abenaki, I don’t ask for a government ID. I know them to be sincere people who invest their time and money in support of Abenaki culture. It’s possible but unlikely that a few pretendians are in their midst. Regardless, I see value in supporting the just and noble cause of preserving an Abenaki cultural heritage in Vermont.
