By: Billy BeerSlugger
Someone recently accused me of being an Indian Giver. It got me thinking about the etymology or whatever the origins of this terrible racial stereotype came from.
First I’m thinking we essentially ripped off the Indians for their land and they asked for it back. Our Forefathers got the Indians drunk and either got them to straigt up sign over the land rights or sold them beads and whiskey for it. I can just see British Colonists at the local watering hole laughing about the Indians asking for the land back after being swindled out of it.
In my extensive research consisting of Wikipedia and some other shit I made up, it seems that American Indians expected something of equal value in return when they gave you something. Apparently if you didn’t offer anything they asked for the given item back. Probably just a cultural misunderstanding between American Indians and British/American Colonists but I think the Indians are getting a really bad rap about this. I mean even in our Imperialist, Manifest Destiny conquering of North America someone had to feel really bad about this.
It’s only until the last 15 years or so that we as a country have begun to try and pay the Indians back. What did we do? We gave them tax free Casino’s. Hilarious. Let’s give them a place to get drunk and lose their money. Does no one else see the irony in this?
I’ve decided not to use the racial stereotype “Indian Giver” anymore and I’ll be visibly upset if you call me one even if I did give you that half bottle of Old Grandad thinking I’ll never drink it then asking for it back after the bar closed. I may even shed a single tear like the Indian pictured above.