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boxer_dogs_dance t1_j18ixmu wrote

Reply to comment by SmylesLee77 in Native Hawaiian women and girls experience sex trafficking and violence at alarming rates, report says by SunCloud-777

California just instituted what they call a feather alert system for missing indigenous people. Modeled on the Amber alert system. I'm not thrilled with the name of the program but they are making an effort to respond to the problem.

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eimichan t1_j19fxpz wrote

I mean, Assemblyman James Ramos sponsored the law and he's a member of the Serrano/Cahuilla tribe (https://a45.asmdc.org/biography). He's actually California's first indigenous Assemblyman. He's responsible for a lot of initiatives that benefit indigenous peoples.

I haven't seen any indigenous groups come out against the name. https://ethnicmediaservices.org/domestic-violence/tribal-leaders-law-enforcement-discuss-implementation-of-feather-alert-system/

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boxer_dogs_dance t1_j19k6oo wrote

I am not indigenous and he is certainly qualified to approve the name, so that is good to hear about. My first reaction to the name was cringe. But my first reaction to the iPad name was cringe also and that became popular. I didn't see how people would get past menstruation jokes, but they did and now use the name unironically. Bottom line, it's a well intentioned program that may do some good.

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RandomAngeleno t1_j18vqt3 wrote

Yeah, that name is really something else.

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jpterodactyl t1_j19ywli wrote

Some of The alert names are strange to me.

Like, The “silver” alert is interesting. It makes it sound like silver fox. I feel like “gray would’ve been more appropriate.

It reads like: “Everyone be on the lookout for someone who looks like Pierce Brosnan”

But I think that might be on purpose. More memorable or something.

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Raalf t1_j19l6fp wrote

Feather - as in dot not feather? How is that not considered offensive in CA?

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boxer_dogs_dance t1_j19m7lh wrote

I'm just a random person on the internet who had a hot take on a word.

What is dot not feather? I would love to learn more.

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softwhiteclouds t1_j1a3iuw wrote

It comes from a joke.

"OH, you're Indian? Feather (meaning First Nations) or dot?" (meaning South Asian, as in a bindhi forehead mark).

That said, I don't see a problem with the name Feather Alert. The Eagle Feather is almost universally seen as important in nearly every North American First Nations community/culture.

It seems like a very respectful way to denote the importance of addressing missing FN women, especially given the bill was introduced by a FN person.

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Raalf t1_j19mu87 wrote

So when I lived in Texas the vernacular slang to distinguish between native American and individuals native to the country of India was "indian. Dot not feather" - indicating native Americans were thought to wear feathers on their head and Indians are known to have a red dot on their forehead called a 'bindi' as part of a religious practice. While effective at clarification of race/origin, it was never meant as a compliment.

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softwhiteclouds t1_j1a3wio wrote

Having been married to a South Asian woman and we both worked at s place with lots of First Nations colleagues, I assure you most don't care, and they often use the term amongst themselves.

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Hey-GetToWork t1_j19u6bk wrote

'They're indian'
'Indian? Dot or feather indian?'

Dot stereotyping people from the country of India (the Bindi).
Feather stereotyping native american peoples.

(Source my grandmother from South Dakota talking to her older friends)

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SmylesLee77 t1_j19pu67 wrote

I heard that joke in New Mexico on the Navajo Reservation. It is a joke told by natives. In a way it shows White ignorance. You cannot discover a new place last. Chinese and Vikings discovered it before Columbus!

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