by Ulises Silva
It must be nice to have attack helicopters named after you. It must be cool to have drunk sports fans wearing paraphernalia stamped with caricatured versions of you while chanting something culturally resonant—like the Tomahawk chop. And now, to have the world’s most notorious terrorist code-named after one of the great leaders in your history? Wow, Native America, I bet you’re feeling really honored now!
And why not? Our best helicopters—the Apache, the Chinook, and the Black Hawk—bear Native American namesakes. Those shock-and-awe cruise missiles of ours? Tomahawks. And it’s not just the military honoring Native America. Turn on ESPN, and you’ll see Americans willingly cheering for Chiefs, Braves, Indians, Redskins, and the Fighting Sioux. And last year, the Chicago Makataimeshekiakiaks…sorry, the Black Hawks…won the Stanley Cup!
So with all this rampant honoring, how come Native Americans got so angry over the use of Geronimo as a code name for Osama bin Laden?
I’m guessing it has to do with history—both past and current. The horrible truth about “honoring” Native America with sports teams and hi-tech weaponry is that it’s a duplicitous combination of cultural appropriation and historical amnesia.
In case you didn’t hear, Native America didn’t fare too well during that Manifest Destiny thing. And the reservation system? Most reservations, isolated from economic opportunities, remain in abject poverty. (Don’t think for a minute that casinos have cured all of Native America’s ills, please.) Activists like Leonard Peltier remain imprisoned for dubious reasons. And for whatever reason, some folks continue to call Wounded Knee a battle.
And now, the world’s most wanted terrorist was code-named Geronimo. Which would make sense if we described both men as leaders of outnumbered armies who were eventually hunted down by the U.S.—and left it at that. But that’s where the similarities end. Geronimo was a courageous leader who resisted American and Mexican colonization of Apache lands by fighting alongside his outnumbered warriors; bin Laden sent fanatical extremists on ideological suicide missions while he holed himself up in his million-dollar bunker.
But it’s all good; they used Black Hawks and Chinooks in that daring operation to kill “Geronimo.”
It’s not just the U.S. who’s doing this. In Mexico, the FX-05 rifle bears a Nahuatl name, and their air force uses Aztec iconography aplenty. And yet, Subcomandante Marcos and the war in Chiapas are recent reminders of Mexico’s racist policies against people of indigenous descent (the irony of our collective indigenous descent notwithstanding). 
The rationale for all these—according to sports fans who rabidly defend their teams whenever Native Americans argue that “redskin” is a derogatory term—is that we’re simply “honoring” the proud Native Americans. Uh-huh. There’s something inherently wrong with “honoring” a people’s bravery by naming teams and weapons after them, while keeping those people contained and ignored in institutionalized poverty. And the negative impact and influence of team names like the Washington Redskins have been discussed at length by Native and American academics alike.
If we really want to honor Native America, let’s try something different. Like getting to know more about them in a modern context—because, yes, they’re still around, they’re still proud, and most hated Dances with Wolves. Like rethinking the reservation system so that Native America can still retain its cultural uniqueness while having connections to economic opportunities. Like accepting that we can’t change history, but can take bold steps toward reshaping a shared future.
In the meantime, the next time we have a high-value terrorist target, or the next time we have a team to name, let’s “honor” someone else.
The Decepticons, maybe.
To learn more about Ulises, visit Digital Decaf.
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Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those
of the author and should not be understood to be shared by Being Latino, Inc.
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Hmm, you have managed to convert me, Ulises.
Initially when I heard the backlash about the “Geronimo” codename, I was rolling my eyes and going, “really?! they’re pulling out the ‘race card’ on that one? talk about grasping at straws!” Which is ironic given my personal views on the importance of diversity and respect for cultural differences. But, your article helped me recognize its significance when placed in the context of overall stereotyping and misrepresentation of this demographic (and others.) Shame that I didn’t see the validity of the argument in the first place, but kudos for effectively using reason and wit to change my mind!
You robot hater!
Geronimo is now technically at the bottom of the sea with Megatron…
Nancy, I had the privilege of learning a lot from one of my mentors in grad school. She was a Cherokee woman who really opened my eyes to a lot of the issues facing all of Native America. In fact, my dissertation was going to be about Native American representations in cinema, believe it or not. Though I haven’t spoken to her in years, she continues to influence the way I think, and I’m just glad to be able to share a little bit of her knowledge with everyone. Thanks for your kind comments. It’s always very flattering when a writer of your caliber says things like this.
LOL! Yeah, I know. I’m such a jerk ^_^;
Apparently, yes! ^_^
Wasn’t osama put on a playing card? They could have said the target is E- KIA the desert rat is , why
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! It is so hard to try and get people to understand the “Geronimo” issue and the issues around mascots and colonial military naming appropriations. Thank you!!!
Brown folks need to stick together!!
Hear hear, Red Power! I think we often forget just how much we have in common, and how much our goals and even our histories and genealogies overlap!
Gracías por escribír esto. Not too many people of our generation take the time to try to learn the truth about Native American tribes, culture, genocide and truth. This is a nice introductory post and a good way to open peoples minds.