‘Pocahontas’ A Lie, Indians Tell Viewers
If protests against the movie “Pocahontas” accomplished nothing else Friday, they forced parents to answer questions from their kids.
Outside a north Spokane theater, Jenny Carther, 10, wanted to know why a group of Native Americans was standing near the ticket booth.
“They’re protesting this movie,” said her mother, Teresa Carther. She handed money to the clerk. “They think it’s demeaning to them.”
“What do you mean?” her daughter asked, still looking at the protesters.
“Really, they should just be happy the movie portrays them so beautifully,” Teresa Carther whispered to another mom standing behind her. The woman nodded and ushered her son into the theater’s lobby.
About 20 people carried protest signs at the Lyons theater, where Disney’s latest cartoon movie is playing on two screens. They passed out fliers explaining their picketing.
Five-year-old Cree Whelshula toted a “Film is based on a lie!” sign and waved at passing cars. Her mother, Martina Whelshula, is a member of the Colville Tribe and organized the protest.
“Disney has taken exploitation and discrimination to a whole new level with this movie,” Whelshula said. “It’s not true, it’s not accurate, it’s not right and we resent it.”
The protesters complained Disney manipulated history, portrayed Pocahontas as a sexy young woman instead of a child and made her a heroine who rejected her tribe to save a white man.
They also said Disney’s use of Native Americans for the characters’ voices was a lame attempt at being politically correct. The movie makers refused to discuss any concerns many Indians had about the film while it was being made, the protesters alleged.
“They found Native Americans who didn’t reject their concept and then used them for the film,” Whelshula said.
In reality, Pocahontas was 10 or 12 years old when she first met John Smith, in his 30s. There is little historical evidence that proves she saved his life, Whelshula said.
“We are group-esteem, not selfesteem,” she said. “We do things as a community, together. Pocahontas being some type of heroine in this movie is a white American value, not ours.”
If movie-goers heard the protesters’ message Friday, it didn’t stop them from seeing the film. The first three showings at the North Side theater sold out, manager Scott Dawson said.
“It’s a Disney movie and the children loved it,” Nancy McIntire said as she left the parking lot with her two young girls. “It’s a shame everything has to be such an issue nowadays.”
, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo