Spencer Oneal
SOS Commodification Processes & Alternatives
Week #5 February 5, 2017
216 Words
Probably a lot of counseling will be required for those with Indian Mascot Identity Loss Syndrome…They live with no cell phones no television and then they remember who they are.
(Laduke 2016: 105,106)
…a symbol of the Western desire to both know in the most intimate detail possible and to conquer with any amount of violence, the black body, especially the black female body.
(Tompkins 2013: 90)
…The poor old public must eat fresh butter and eggs…
(Newman 2013)
The main theme of these chapters that really struck me was the concept of identity. In order to survive in this world and with an ego we must all has a sense of identity to distinguish ourselves from the other. These quotes represent various aspects of how we identity ourselves in relation to others and the things that we give a sense of personal attachment to such as the mascot for example. It is amazing to me to see how we have become so inextricably connected to so many false aspects of our society especially and probably most importantly food. Unfortunately unlike the Native Americans who valued their relationship with nature and identified with these qualities we have continued to segregate and isolate ourselves from our true selves and thus perpetuating these cycles of hate and destruction and lack of fulfillment and feeling of loss because we really dont know who we are. We are struggling and suffering from much more than Indian Mascot Identity Loss, we as a society are at a total loss of identity and has lost touch with our real human nature. It is this lack of authentic connection that is the root cause of addictions such as food, drugs and violence and I believe most of the problems in the world.