fandomsecrets | [ SECRET POST #3795 ]

[ SECRET POST #3795 ]

⌈ Secret Post #3795 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 01 pages, 10 secrets from Secret Submission Post #543.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

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01. http://i.imgur.com/QG539wn.png

Fair enough.

Oh my God, get over yourself. If it's not an exclusively NA name, you've got no leg to stand on.

But I'm super curious as to what the name is now.

I'm not sure OP is saying anything more than that they're personally annoyed by it.

The phrasing makes it seem like they think the writers on the show did something egregiously awful on purpose, though. They "dared" to write a cowboy with a last name they personally have. The temerity!

FFS.

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sarillia - 2017-05-26 01:11 (UTC) - Expand

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(Anonymous) - 2017-05-26 01:18 (UTC) - Expand

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diet_poison - 2017-05-26 01:24 (UTC) - Expand

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tree_and_leaf - 2017-05-26 20:51 (UTC) - Expand

But if, as you say, it isn't a Native-exclusive name and "anyone could have it," then...the name choice for the character isn't really anything to do with Natives, specifically? I mean, I get why you would feel this way, because you personally identify with that name, but it doesn't make a lot of sense objectively speaking.

If it's a name anyone could have, then it's just a coincidence that this character happens to share it with you, right? It doesn't sound reasonable to expect the writers to avoid using the name because of the possibility that there might be a Native American family somewhere that has it.

You share a surname with a fictional character. Check.

The surname is common among Native Americans, but also non natives.

The character is a cowboy, ie one who herds cattle.

And somehow the producers have made a cultural error because of a common surname and cowboys and indians?

You feel how you feel, but man, more context would really be useful, because it feels like you're looking for reasons to be offended, because sometimes Indians were cowboys too.

To be fair, they said that anyone could potentially have the name, not that the name is common.

are you really using the term indians to describe native americans in 2017

...The only cowboy that's coming to my mind right now is McCree...

Can't be McCree, OP said it was a show

That said, I also run out of cowboys after McCree lol (unless you count some people from Fallout: New Vegas, but I'm not sure they count as cowboys). Westerns aren't really my thing.

What's weird to me is that I watched a bunch of old classic western shows with my grandparents growing up, yet he was the first one I thought of

Actually, that's a good point

What shows on TV even have cowboy characters right now

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junee - 2017-05-26 01:43 (UTC) - Expand

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(Anonymous) - 2017-05-26 03:39 (UTC) - Expand

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sadiesockmonkey - 2017-05-26 04:29 (UTC) - Expand

But when will we get media with some racially accurate cowboys in general - aka mainly black and mexican cowboys.

I have an original short story (original in the sense that it's not fanfic, not that it's never been done before) about a black (ex-slave) trail boss, but I'm afraid I'll be appropriating, because I'm a Whitey McWhiterson. So it's still sitting on my hard drive, waiting for me to decide if it's even worth revising.

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(Anonymous) - 2017-05-26 03:09 (UTC) - Expand

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(Anonymous) - 2017-05-26 19:16 (UTC) - Expand

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arcadiaego - 2017-05-26 22:14 (UTC) - Expand

You need to let this go. It wasn't hard to figure out what surname you are talking about and not to hurt your feelings, it's a generic last name. I could see being upset if was a "stereotypical" Native American name like Youngbear or Lightfoot. It doesn't immediately represent any culture when you hear or see it. I could easily see some writer just using this name because it's plain enough to not be offensive to anyone. It would work as a Native American, White, Black, or Hispanic last name.

What show?

Or at least what network if you're really gunshy, or what year it aired

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(Anonymous) - 2017-05-26 02:54 (UTC) - Expand

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(Anonymous) - 2017-05-26 03:04 (UTC) - Expand

Interestingly, I had a teacher in third grade whose surname was Lightfoot. To the best of my knowledge, she was not Native American.

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(Anonymous) - 2017-05-26 21:13 (UTC) - Expand

Is this like when Disney put a heavy named Clayton in their version of Tarzan for no good reason?

But a name that is used by both cowboys and Indians? Unless it's something like Alexie or Peltier, I don't know what to tell you.

Wait, what connotations does "Clayton" have? It sounds very British.

That sucks, OP. I imagine it's an extra burn what with the character being a cowboy. Is your last name common enough that such a character could have had your last name by chance, or is it a surname that with research could have been avoided for that character? (Not that anything could be done now, but still, you feel ways, makes sense).

Is it Longmire? (I know he's not *really* a cowboy, but he fits the aesthetic and there are seriously not a lot of cowboy shows airing atm).

Either way, if you wanted to feel better about the situation, would imagining a back history for the character where he had some Native American ancestry that he might not even about, and that's how he got his name, help at all? Alternatively, researching your name, and finding out how it came to be (or likely came to be) your family's name might give you some peace about sharing it with this character.

Also, I know this is obviously a sensitive topic and I'm not Native American so I can't relate, but I am interested in how a show about cowboys can be your favourite show but the only part that offends you is that one of the cowboy characters shares your name. Does that maybe take you out of the fantasy of the show (enjoying it for the story it is and not relating it to what actually happened in history)? Reflecting on the reasons you like the show and how you rationalise that might help you continue to enjoy it despite the name issue, if that is what you want to do.

For many reasons. I am not Native American, but I grew up on a reservation and so did my dad, though different ones. And I knew a fair amount of Native American cowboys and so did my dad. The rodeo is actually kind of a big deal and several people I went to high school with got rodeo scholarships. So, I'm really confused about being offended about the whole cowboy thing. Also, I don't know which tribe you are with, secret maker, but I do know that some Native American families actually lost their surnames when kids were put in BIA schools and given more "Christian" names.

I don't mean to be rude but I do think we should raise the possibility that OP is just being less than entirely sincere.

Re: This secret is really weird to me.

(Anonymous) - 2017-05-26 10:42 (UTC) - Expand

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