Talk about irony. Some folks who dress up for Mardi Gras in pseudo-American Indian attire say they want legal protection against people they say have misappropriated their images without permission.
The fake Indians use names like the “Monogram Hunters tribe” and the “Yellow Pocahontas tribe.” They wear feathers on their heads, call themselves chiefs, and have a grand tribal council.
As
Indianz.com writes
, “Many costumes contain elements of traditional Indian regalia that could be found at powwows across the country.“But the Mardi Gras ‘Indians’ say they are the ones being exploited. Their likenesses, and costumes, are being used in photographs without their consent and they usually don’t have any recourse.”
Howard Miller, who’s referred to as “big chief” of the “Creole Wild West tribe” in
a New York Times article
on the issue told the paper his “tribe” has “a beef” with those who exploit their images.One must wonder: did the “big chief” get permission from real American Indian tribes to use their regalia, traditions, and cultures to celebrate the drunken New Orleans festival?
According to the Times, the pseudo-Indians have existed for at least a century, and they started as a way to “pay homage” to American Indians.
Looks like they’ve come full circle.