[Vision2020] Rick Perry's Newest Problem

Sun Oct 2 21:01:23 PDT 2011

Sonya Reyes-Rosario did produce a documentary film about the issue in 2001.
http://www.wocaonline.org/documents/press/031013.pdf

I am hopeful that Tom Trail could update us on the status of the use of the
word S**** as a geographic term, and how the Idaho legislature has responded
to the issue since 2002.  (They rejected bills in 2001 and 2002 which would
have mandated name changes. )

Please note the federal websites below which apparently continue to use the
term.

Rose

I don't know the date of the article below, but possibly sometime in 2003. 

Offensive language still plagues Idaho; Legislators slow to make place names
appropriate

by Morgan Winsor. Argonaut staff

Many Native American women refer to it as the "s" word. It's a five-letter,
one syllable vindictive name they have hated for nearly two centuries.

The word "squaw" is a hurtful word, offensive and degrading to Native
American women, said Ruby Bernal, a Shoshone Bannock tribal member.

Yet the word litters Idaho's map. More than 93 locations in the state
contain the word "squaw." And tribal members throughout

Idaho want the name wiped off the map entirely. But that day may take a
while to come. Twice now the state Legislature failed to pass a resolution

to eliminate the word "squaw" from the state's federal map.

The first resolution was killed by one vote last year. The second resolution
went under the knife two months ago. Instead of voting to approve the
removal of the word "squaw," the house drafted a new resolution encouraging
Idahoans to suggest changing offensive names that they think are offensive
and

present alternatives name changes to the State Historical Society.

Some Native American women are offended that the word "squaw" was removed
from the resolution altogether. "It was an easy way out," said Sonya
Rosario, executive director of the Women of Color Alliance. "It takes the
responsibility off them (politicians). They're playing it safe."

The meaning of the word "squaw" has deep roots in history, dating back to
the mid-1800s when the white men who worked as trappers and hunters hiked
through the region and traded goods for sexual services from women, whom
they called "squaws." Bernal, who works a payroll technician for the Boise
National Forest, said the word refers to the genital area of women.

"It was a way to communicate between the white settlers," Bernal said. "When
the white man wanted to have a woman for the night they would ask for a
squaw. They traded horses, furs, guns, liquor and food." Bernal, a member of
the Inner Mountain American Indian Advisory Council for Region No. 4,

said the word "squaw" has disturbed her since childhood. "They (white males)
would drive by while I was walking to school and yell the name (squaw) out

the window at me," she said. "I don't want to worry about that happening to
my children." Lori Edmo-Suppah, a journalist-in-residence at the University
of Idaho and a member of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribe, said the same
name-calling happened to her as a youngster. "The word was always used in a
manner that was hurtful and degrading," Edmo-Suppah said. Janet Ward, a
member of the American Association of University Women, supports
confiscating

the name. "We definitely support changing squaw names," Ward said. "And
people have to realize that the name isn't just offensive to Native American
women, it offends all women." Bernal said abolishing the word is "highly
controversial" and a "touchy subject" because some tribes, such as the
Navajo, have accepted the word as part of their language. Ward said the
process of eliminating any offensive geographical name could be frustrating.

"The forms are complicated," she said. "And you need to have a lot of
support." But having enough support doesn't seem to be a problem when it
comes to the 's' word. "Most tribal members and leaders feel the same,"
Bernal said. When and if the National Geographical Name Sight Board in
Washington, D.C., does approve removing the name, Bernal said she'll begin
her work first by changing some of the "really offensive geographic names on
the map."

She said for example, Squaw Tit in Custer County and Squaw Hump in Benewah
County will be the first names to go. Montana, Oregon, Minnesota, Maine and
Oklahoma have removed the names. "Let's take the 's' word off all forest
service maps," she said. "We need to make a difference in our

life and for our kids." 

  http://www.wocaonline.org/documents/press/020402.pdf

the following sites we googled up in under a minute.

http://trails.mtbr.com/cat/united-states-trails/trails-idaho/trail/squaw-cre
ek-trail/prd_167750_4544crx.aspx

http://www.blm.gov/id/st/en/fo/owyhee/special_areas/wsas/Squaw.html

http://www.hookandbullet.com/squaw-creek-storage-bait-shop_208-628-3578/

http://www.usbr.gov/pn/programs/fcrps/thp/srao/littlesalmon/completion/sqawc
rk-culvert.pdf

Rose Huskey

From: Dave [mailto:tiedye at turbonet.com] 
Sent: Sunday, October 02, 2011 7:06 PM
To: Rosemary Huskey; vision2020
Subject: Re: [Vision2020] Rick Perry's Newest Problem

I thought that all the creeks, bays, etc. have been renamed (at least in
Idaho). Due mostly to the work of a young lady from up north.  There was an
excellent story on it on Yin Radio on KRFP.

Dave

On 10/02/2011 01:45 PM, Rosemary Huskey wrote: 

This must read article is a reminder not just of Rick Perry and his ilk, or
our local defender of Southern Slavery As It Was, but also our "I am not a
racist"  knuckleheaded neighbors who still find the term sq**w an
appropriate name for a mountain or a creek right here in our very own
private Idaho.

Rose Huskey

Posted by Chauncey DeVega
<http://blogs.alternet.org/speakeasy/author/chaunceydevega/>  at 11:49 am
October 2, 2011

http://blogs.alternet.org/speakeasy/2011/10/02/rick-perrys-newest-problem-hi
s-fond-memories-of-niggerhead-and-growing-up-in-a-sundown-town/

Rick Perry's Newest Problem: His Fond Memories of "Niggerhead" and Growing
Up in a Sundown Town

Posted by Chauncey DeVega
<http://blogs.alternet.org/speakeasy/author/chaunceydevega/>  on @ 11:49 am

Article printed from speakeasy: http://blogs.alternet.org/speakeasy

URL to article:
http://blogs.alternet.org/speakeasy/2011/10/02/rick-perrys-newest-problem-hi
s-fond-memories-of-niggerhead-and-growing-up-in-a-sundown-town/

It was a mostly white world. In 1950, the census counted about 900 black
residents out of a population of about 13,000 in Haskell County, numbers
that have declined steadily. Most blacks worked as maids or field hands and
lived in an across-the-tracks neighborhood in the city of Haskell, the
county seat, about 20 minutes from Paint Creek.

Throckmorton County, where the hunting camp is located, was for years
considered a virtual no-go zone for blacks because of old stories about the
lynching of a black man there, locals said. The 1950 Census listed one black
resident in Throckmorton County out of a population of about 3,600. In 1960,
there were four; in 1970, two; in 1980, none. The 2010 Census shows 11 black
residents.

Mae Lou Yeldell, who is black and has lived in Haskell County for 70 years,
recalled a gas station refusing to sell her father fuel when he drove the
family through Throckmorton in the 1950s. She said it was not uncommon in
the 1950s and '60s for whites to greet blacks with, "Morning, nigger!"

"I heard that so much it's like a broken record," said Yeldell, who had
never heard of the hunting spot by the river.

And you wonder why black folks had to use
<http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2010/01/15/news/a1-yugreenbook.txt> The
Green Book as a guide for safety while touring this country?

Rick Perry
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/rick-perry-familys-hunting-camp-stil
l-known-to-many-by-old-racially-charged-name/2011/10/01/gIQAOhY5DL_story.htm
l> 's family retreat was/is named "Niggerhead." The Washington Post's cover
story is a distraction of course from more important issues such as a
failing economy, Perry's questionable record on jobs and the environment in
Texas, and a far-Right leaning Republican presidential field that would
combine Ayn Rand with the Christian Taliban. But a distraction can still be
instructive and productive.

For the Left and other critics, Rick Perry
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/therootdc/post/the-power-and-pain-of-th
e-n-word/2011/10/02/gIQAjOeVFL_blog.html> 's Niggerhead hunting camp is more
proof that he is a racist and a bigot. For the Right, this story will be
greeted as
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/right-turn/post/perrys-perpetually-play
ing-defense/2011/03/29/gIQAik0bFL_blog.html> "gotcha politics" and more bias
from the "mainstream media." Lockstep, the Right-wing media will revert to
form and argue that "all of this race stuff" is playing the "race card"
against white people. Who cares anyway since Perry's dad was a Democrat and
he originally owned Niggerhead anyway? Predictably, there will be more spin
from Conservatives and a recurring blindness to political history, i.e.
Southern Democrats aka "Dixiecrats" are now the base of the Tea Party GOP.

And of course, black Republicans such as Herman Cain will be trotted out to
dance on the stage while they answer questions about Rick Perry and racism.

All in all, theatrics that are par for the course of what counts as
reasonable discourse in the 24 hour opinion driven news cycle.

I would suggest that Rick Perry's Niggerhead family retreat is important in
so far as formative childhood and adult experiences impact political
attitudes and beliefs. Rick Perry is from the Jim and Jane Crow South and
has advocated for secession. He also panders to the Tea Party with all of
their "take my America" pleadings and is part of a cultural movement that
possesses an almost deranged hatred for the country's first black President.
Racism and Conservatism overlap in America; the Conservative political
imagination yearns for a return to the "good old days" and is blinded by a
myopic White nostalgia for the past.

In all, why should anyone be surprised that there is a Niggerhead skeleton
in Rick Perry's closet? Moreover, I would bet that there are many Niggerhead
skeletons in many white folks' closets in this country.

We must also be cautious and not paint with too broad a brush, or suggest
that Rick Perry is somehow unique in this regard. He is not alone in a
willful denial of white supremacy and the Slaveocracy/Jim and Jane
Crow/Confederacy's hold on American popular imagination even into the 21st
century.

The white racist Southern Redemptionist fantasy
<http://www.amazon.com/Making-Whiteness-Culture-Segregation-1890-1940/dp/067
9776206>  and lie that is
<http://books.google.com/books?id=sh4gWmGfBm0C&pg=PA271&lpg=PA271&dq=souther
n+redemption+racism&source=bl&ots=WgY1yhHMGP&sig=FeqYbDSCby4vlEye_Lf-K1099qw
&hl=en&ei=LaaITq-sDsmFsgL98aiMDw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=
0CDkQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q&f=false> Gone with the Wind is still beloved by
millions of people (all those happy black folks
<http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/ht/41.4/briley.html> ; white
people in big houses and fancy clothes; what good fun!). Lady Antebellum is
an acclaimed musical group (where are the Auschwitz singers? Or the Trail of
Tears emo band?). A significant percentage
<http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/04/12/civil-war-still-divides-ame
ricans/>  of Americans do not believe that the Civil War was fought over
slavery
<http://www.alternet.org/teaparty/150569/what_shocking_new_polls_on_republic
an_attitudes_toward_slavery,_interracial_marriage_say_about_the_modern_gop/>
and the rights of White people to hold Black people in perpetual bondage.
The Whiteness of history is glaring. Rick Perry, as demonstrated by his love
for Niggerhead, is just one of many Americans who are transfixed by it.

Nevertheless, Rick Perry's Niggerhead moment is teachable history. For that
reason it is important.

Rick Perry grew up in a sundown town. As James Loewen exhaustively and
masterfully documents <http://sundown.afro.illinois.edu/sundowntowns.php> ,
there were thousands of these communities across the country where blacks
(and in some cases Jews, Mexicans and other non-whites) were not allowed to
live, journey through, or be present in after dark. These towns were often
created by racial violence and the wholesale ethnic cleansing of non-whites
through murder, forced exile, rape, banishment
<http://www.banishedthefilm.com/> , theft, and violence.

When we wonder why some neighborhoods look the way that they do, why there
are no black folks or other people of color living there, or stand vexed by
the intergenerational wealth gap in the United States, part of the answer
lies in American Apartheid. Sundown towns were a key part of the Racial
State's apparatus and how it structured the day to day lives of all people.

Racial terrorism was a tool of economic exploitation. Because many in White
America are loathe to acknowledge the power of structures and institutions
as they cling to the lie that is the myth of meritocracy, Niggerhead is a
reminder of lived history in the present. Yesterday wasn't even yesterday;
it created the present terms of political, cultural, economic, and social
engagement.

While some Americans have a limited knowledge of the relationship between
housing segregation and the maintenance of the colorline, fewer know about
sundown towns and America's history of ethnic cleansing. This history hides
in plain sight. It lives on in debates over the racialized names of rivers,
towns, mountains, and other public places. It is present when real estate
agents refuse to show people of color homes in certain communities. It is
the ether and lifeblood of whitopia
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_279181&v=WFWS5fk6MD8&
src_vid=voFMec-M8VY&feature=iv> .

Ignorance of race and racism's historic role in structuring life chances,
and basic geographies such as where one lived, married, worked, and
traveled, is especially common among the post-Civil Rights generation. This
dynamic is especially true for Millennials who would be aghast at the
reality of white supremacy as the norm for American history where their
imagined multicultural moment is indeed an aberration-a very recent
development-and one that works through conservative colorblindness as
opposed to a deep and radical engagement with human difference, identity,
justice.

Rick Perry's Niggerhead moment will be a short-lived blip on the news radar.
Niggerhead will confirm what his detractors already believe about Rick
Perry. Niggerhead will encourage his supporters to circle the wagons and
double down their support because their "culture" is under assault.
Unfortunately, Niggerhead will be a missed opportunity. This could be a
teachable moment where White Americans could choose to look in the mirror
and see the collective ugliness looking back at them. Whiteness, for most
people in America, and indeed the world, was the face of terror. It was ugly
and not beautiful.

Folks of all colors should know their shared history; instead it is easier
to look away, make up fun fictions, and tell yourself easy lies and
platitudes about "post-racial" America.

Remember folks, there is a little Niggerhead in all of us.for some like Rick
Perry, a good deal more than others.

Editor and founder of the blog We Are Respectable Negroes which has been
featured by the NY Times, the Utne Reader, and The Atlantic Monthly. Writing
under a pseudonym, Chauncey DeVega's essays on race, popular culture, and
politics have appeared in various books, as well as on such sites as the
Washington Post's The Root and Popmatters.

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