I was fascinated by Nicole’s point that some German people think the Indianer image, that severs Native American identity from its roots and perverts it into a frozen 19th century caricature, is somehow a complimentary or reverent. I think this situation is a big part of Nicole’s overall story – that indigenous peoples are frequently asked to look at funhouse-mirror distortions of their heritage and feel grateful because ‘at least we’re talking about you!’, or that these images are so important to the cultures that create them that the indigenous peoples are somehow no longer entitled to control depictions of their own identity. The very fact that her research is seen as obscure or niche shows that this is a problem well worth addressing.
This might seem slightly ironic, given that Nicole herself is neither Native American nor German, so one could argue that by researching this issue, she is taking the conversation out of their hands. However, after listening to her, I really felt the opposite to be true. I found her grasp of nuanced and specific cultural concerns from both groups inspiring. She has clearly spent a lot of time talking to people of these cultures and inhabiting their lives herself to the extent that she is able, which gives her research authenticity and credibility. The fact that she deferred to Native American artists and their reactions to/representations of this image through archives, case studies and media/art showed that she’s highlighting indigenous voices. In light of our round table this week, I found this possibly the most important aspect of her research.
