Opinion

Harjo: Anti-Indians rear their heads on whale hunt

Friday, September 14, 2007

"Five Makah citizens harpooned and shot a gray whale Sept. 8 in tribal waters in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the northern boundary of the Makah Reservation. Within hours, hundreds of bloggers, posters and reporters let out a stream of invective against the Makah hunters, but their most hateful rhetoric targeted the entire Makah Tribe and all Native peoples.

The Associated Press and others erroneously reported that the 30-foot-long mammal was killed with a machine gun, which both ignited and fueled the firestorm as reports were cycled and recycled on broadcasts, in newspapers and on the Internet.

The following set of five comments was carried at aol.com as news of the whale hunt broke:

''So much honor these indians have. So close to the earth and oh so spiritual. It's no wonder they were given the name of savages.'' (patricksqueri1)

''Remember this bit of BS the next time you drop a quarter in a slot machine on an Indian reservation.'' (handofgloom)

''What COWARDS these people are. The claim to be killing whales as part of their heritage. I guess machine guns are part of that heritage. They should stick to drinking booze and falling down.'' (simonbacat)

''I agree Patrick. Savages is a well given name for these cowards.'' (kevinb2005420)

''The tribe will do nothing because they feel they are above the law.'' (twinzfanz96) "

Get the Story:
Whale-killing incident revives anti-Indian racism (Indian Country Today 9/14)