Why the Buffy St. Mary's 'representation' case is causing wariness.

Prominent personalities in North America have faced accusations in recent years of lying about their Native identity. But none have caused as much outrage as the recent allegations against Buffy Sainte-Marie, the Oscar-winning actress-singer long considered a symbol of indigenous peoples.

The allegations against Buffy Sainte-Marie

When playwright Drew Hayden Taylor learned of the doubts raised about Buffy Sainte-Marie's indigenous origins, his "jaw just dropped." Pan Taylor, of the Kerve Lake First Nations tribe, is a longtime fan of the singer, known for songs such as "Until It's Time for You to Go" and the anti-colonocide anthem "Universal Soldier. "

"I just thought it must be a set-up. "In no way could Buffy Sainte-Marie be a 'pseudo-Indian,'" he said, using a term that refers to people who pretend to be indigenous peoples.

Rumors of an investigation into the 82-year-old singer have swirled around a long-running documentary series by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's Ffs Estate.

The Canadian broadcaster finally revealed its bombshell in late October.

The allegations stunned many fans of Buffy Sainte-Marie, who was considered a symbol and pioneer of Canada's indigenous peoples.

She became the first Indigenous person to win an Oscar, spent five years as a contestant on the children's show "Sesame Street" where she explained Cree identity to children, and her 60-year career has earned her a loyal fan base in North America.

She is also credited with raising the profile of indigenous issues on the continent and being a voice against colonial oppression, which once got her banned from U.S. radio stations.

The investigation thus raised difficult questions about Indigenous roots and evoked feelings ranging from pain to betrayal, shock and chagrin among Indigenous fans in Canada.

The adoption and investigation

The St. Mary's website says she was allegedly born on the Piapot tribal territory in Saskatchewan and then adopted by a white American family as an infant.

She has stated that she is aThe allegations led to her returning her Order of Canada, the country's highest civilian honor.

The sisters of Sachin Littlefisher, the actress and activist best known for her 1973 Oscar acceptance speech in place of Marlon Brando in defense of indigenous rights, said after her death that she was not among them at all.

Reaction to the allegations

St. Marie's story also includes another aspect: in the early 1960s, she met a Piapot couple in Saskatchewan who eventually adopted her as their own daughter.

The couple's granddaughter, Ntuanis Piapot, told Gloval News that the adoption process took several years and was done in accordance with Cree tribal custom.

The family's statement rejected the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation investigation and confirmed that St. Mary's is a "beloved member" of the community.

In response to the allegations, Sainte-Marie herself said it was "painful" for her to become the subject of questions about her own identity.

"I've always been honest in saying I don't know where I come from or who my parents are," she said.

Saint Marie noted that she has always had difficulty answering questions about her identity and that she has instructed her attorney in the past to look into information about her background.

She said her "upbringing mother" told her many things,But she said she missed the complexities of Native identity, including St. Mary's adoption and questions about the authenticity of her U.S. birth certificate.

"Being a Native person is not just a biological detail," she said. - "It's a political affiliation, it's a citizenship issue. "

Miss Zika said St. Mary should still be held accountable if she deceived about her identity.

"We must respect the Piapot Tribe and their rights ... But it doesn't undo everything she said as she built her career," she said. - "It's important that we can recognize that nuance.

Crystal Fafard, a Yellow Quill tribal lawyer and co-founder of the Native Women's Collective Organization of Canada, considers pretending to be Indigenous peoples "a form of colonial violence. "

"Colonialism itself is a process of taking away - it takes away resources, land, culture and language and children," she said. - "Now he's taking away an identity. "

In her career, St. Mary's has received various awards aimed at Indigenous musicians, including four Canadian Indigenous Music Awards.

Miss Fafard's organization has requested that one of those awards, Juno for Best Indigenous Album of the Year 2018, be rescinded.

She and others have also called on St. Mary's to submit to DNA testing so members of the Indigenous community can get some closure.

"It is disturbing that it allows us Indigenous people to continue to struggle," she said.

St. Mary's won't be the last to face accusations of "pretending to be Indigenous." About that, I'd like people to focus on now," Ms. Tsika said.

"How does it go on? Why does it continue? That's what we need to find out. "

Mr. Taylor, the man who spent a "considerable amount of money" on St. Mary's recordings, said he would still try to enjoy her work, though in a different way.

"I still think she's a talented artist," he said. - "Every time I hear the song I think, 'Yeah, that sounds kind of weird,' and now I enjoy it more from an aesthetic standpoint rather than a cultural standpoint. "