The Thomas King Affair

 

Thomas King

Thomas King has just joined a long list of “pretendians”: people who have become famous because of their “First Nations” ancestry, who then are revealed not to be native at all.

Here’s a partial list: King, Buffy Sainte-Marie, “Iron-Eyes” Cody, “Grey Owl,” Elizabeth Warren, Ben Nighthorse Campbell, Ward Churchill, Sacheen Littlefeather, who famously accepted Marlon Brando’s Oscar, Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond, Chief Thundercloud, Joseph Boyden.

There is something odd here. Firstly, the prevalence of pretendians shows clearly that many of European ancestry can easily pass as an Indian: Thomas King is actually German and Greek, Sainte-Marie and “Iron-Eyes Cody” were both Italian, Sacheen Littlefeather was Hispanic, Archie Belaney, “Grey Owl,” was English. By appearance, no one can tell.

 And it is not just non-Indians who cannot tell the difference. Indians cannot tell the difference either. There is clearly nothing in physical appearance that consistently distinguishes Indians from Europeans.

My cousins have their Indian cards. Half of them are blonde and blue-eyed.

How can this be? Native Canadians supposedly developed in complete isolation from Europe, far more so that, say, sub-Saharan blacks, or East Asians. Yet in those latter cases physical differences are plain to see.

The obvious explanation is that, over the past few centuries, there has been a thorough integration of blood lines. In genetic terms, there is no separate Indian “race.” 

But the second question is why so many people want to be thought to be Indians, and why it is such a problem for others if they do. It is also pretty easy for any European to pretend to be Irish, say, or Jewish, but few seem to, and if they do, nobody thinks it is a problem.

People do not want to be considered Irish or Jewish, by and large, because they risk being discriminated against. And if they choose to identify as Irish or Jewish regardless, they are greeted with open arms by those communities. So “pretend Jews” are not a problem.

If, by contrast, people want to be considered Indian, and the Indian community considers this a problem, it is the strongest evidence that Indians are actually advantaged by that identity: there is discrimination, and it is entirely in their favour.

As ought to be obvious. In Canada, they get many benefits by treaty. There are many “DEI” or “affirmative action” programs favouring them, in just about any field.

But apart from this, Indians always command great social prestige. In New England, people claim rank by boasting that their ancestors came on the Mayflower. To which Will Rogers was able to boast that his ancestors were already there to greet them. Logically, this trumps in terms of social class. In Virginia, the equivalent boast by the upper classes is that they can trace descent from Pocahontas.

And every Indian woman is traditionally thought to be an “Indian princess.”

Patent medicine firms used to hire Indians to sell their products—"snake oil.” It gained them credibility. Everybody trusted an endorsement by an Indian. It is a bit of an exaggeration to draw a parallel with the British tradition of claiming “By appointment to His Majesty,” but it is on the same spectrum.

It has always been to one’s advantage, therefore, to claim Indian ancestry. It bought respect, sympathy, and attention. And everyone traditionally wants to claim some.

More recently, Canadian “First Nations” seem to be evolving into a legally recognized upper class, with proprietary claims on all the land, just as in old Europe, and the right to be consulted and to veto measures they do not like, just like the House of Lords.