Rights to ‘Crying Indian’ Go to Native American Group

Rights to ‘Crying Indian’ Go to Native American Group

In 1971, an anti-pollution public service announcement showing a man crying a single tear at the sight of polluted land got a lot of attention in America.

A public service announcement supports a cause that is in the public interest. They are normally broadcast without cost.

Since that "Crying Indian" message was released, it has become an important part of American popular culture.

It has been talked about and parodied¹ over the years on TV shows like The Simpsons and South Park and on social media. But recently, a Native American advocacy group was given the rights to use the message. The group is retiring the ad, saying it has always been inappropriate. That is because the man in the ad is wearing Native American clothes.

The "Crying Indian" ad made actor Iron Eyes Cody a recognizable face in households nationwide. But to many Native Americans, the public service announcement, or PSA, has been a reminder² of the stereotypes⁴ they face and caused pain.

Keep America Beautiful is the nonprofit group that paid for the PSA to be produced. The group had been considering how to retire the ad. It announced this week it is doing so by transferring ownership of the rights to use the PSA to the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI).

Noah Ullman is a spokesperson for Keep America Beautiful. He said in a statement that the nonprofit group wanted to be careful about giving ownership to the right owners.

"We spoke⁵ to several Indigenous⁶ peoples' organizations and were pleased to identify the National Congress of American Indians as a potential caretaker," he said.

NCAI plans to end the use of the ad and watch for future use that is not permitted by law.

"NCAI looks forward to putting this advertisement to bed for good," said the group's executive director Larry Wright, Jr.

When it was released in the 1970s, the ad got a lot of attention. It led to Iron Eyes Cody filming three additional PSAs. He spent more than 25 years making public appearances and visiting schools as part of the anti-pollution campaign.

Cody was an Italian American but claimed to have native ancestry⁷ through his father. He played the part of a Native American in many movies, appearing in over 80 films.

Jennifer J. Folsom is a journalism⁸ and media communications professor at Colorado State University. She is also a citizen of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. She remembers watching the public service announcement as a child.

But as she grew up, Folsom noticed how media gave little attention to Native American environmental activists⁹.

"There's no agency for that sad so-called Indian guy sitting in a canoe, crying," Folsom said. "I think it has done damage to public perception and support for actual Native people doing things to protect the land and protect the environment."

She said Keep America Beautiful's decision was an "appropriate move."

The ad's power has already largely disappeared. The social media service TikTok has many examples of Native people parodying¹¹ or strongly criticizing the advertisement, Folsom said.

Robert "Tree" Cody, is the adopted son of Iron Eyes Cody. He said the advertisement had "good intent and good heart."

"It was one of the top 100 commercials," said Robert Cody. He is a member of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community in Arizona.

His wife, Rachel Kee-Cody, is sad that an ad that means so much to their family will be retired¹². But she has accepted the decision.

"You know, times are changing as well. You keep going no matter how much it changes," she said.

Words in This Story

parody¹⁰ — n. an artistic¹³ creation that copies another one in a way that is funny or humorous

advocacy — n. the act or process of supporting a cause using many methods

inappropriate — adj. not right for the situation

stereotype³ — adj. a representation of certain qualities of a group of people which members of that group, or even people who are not members of the group, object to and dislike

indigenous — n. existing naturally in a certain place, area or environment

perception — v. the way a person thinks about or understands something

intent –n. the aim or purpose behind an action; what someone meant to do

1 parodied   

v.滑稽地模仿，拙劣地模仿( parody的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• All these peculiarities of his style have been parodied by his assailants. 他的所有这些风格特征都受到攻击者模仿嘲弄。 来自互联网
• The above examples are all slightly parodied versions of classical dance steps. 上述例子都可以说是经典舞步的模仿版本。 来自互联网

2 reminder   

n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示

参考例句：

• I have had another reminder from the library.我又收到图书馆的催还单。
• It always took a final reminder to get her to pay her share of the rent.总是得发给她一份最后催缴通知，她才付应该交的房租。

3 stereotype   

n.固定的形象，陈规，老套，旧框框

参考例句：

• He's my stereotype of a schoolteacher.他是我心目中的典型教师。
• There's always been a stereotype about successful businessmen.人们对于成功商人一直都有一种固定印象。

4 stereotypes   

n.老套，模式化的见解，有老一套固定想法的人( stereotype的名词复数 )v.把…模式化，使成陈规( stereotype的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Such jokes tend to reinforce racial stereotypes. 这样的笑话容易渲染种族偏见。
• It makes me sick to read over such stereotypes devoid of content. 这种空洞无物的八股调，我看了就讨厌。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

6 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。

7 ancestry   

n.祖先，家世

参考例句：

• Their ancestry settled the land in 1856.他们的祖辈1856年在这块土地上定居下来。
• He is an American of French ancestry.他是法国血统的美国人。

8 journalism   

n.新闻工作，报业

参考例句：

• He's a teacher but he does some journalism on the side.他是教师，可还兼职做一些新闻工作。
• He had an aptitude for journalism.他有从事新闻工作的才能。

9 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 parody   

n.打油诗文，诙谐的改编诗文，拙劣的模仿；v.拙劣模仿，作模仿诗文

参考例句：

• The parody was just a form of teasing.那个拙劣的模仿只是一种揶揄。
• North Korea looks like a grotesque parody of Mao's centrally controlled China,precisely the sort of system that Beijing has left behind.朝鲜看上去像是毛时代中央集权的中国的怪诞模仿，其体制恰恰是北京方面已经抛弃的。

11 parodying   

v.滑稽地模仿，拙劣地模仿( parody的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• They are called deviant hypertexts parodying zero-degree hypo-texts in the intertextuality theory. 在互文性理论中，它们仿拟的零度原词即是底文，而它们自己则是偏离了的超文。 来自互联网
• Dahua shows the trivialness and absurdness of life through parodying and has deep society connotation. 大话语言通过嬉戏、调侃表现生活的琐碎、荒诞，具有较深刻的社会内涵。 来自互联网

12 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

13 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。