Flashback Friday | Indian Lore, Not Really

Two years ago I came across this little ditty from Sociological Images: Vintage Levi’s Brochure Provides a “Round-Up of Western Indian Lore.”

It is a crazy mash up of wild stereotypes and Native appropriations. I actually like to use this post in some of my classes, because the overt racism and ignorance is really obvious.  It is a fantastic example of the skeletons in our (American) closet. And, this brochure was published only 58 years ago.

Navajos, Rodeos, Levi's and Pendleton

It's like a recipe for awesomeness.

Over a year ago, Levi's teamed with Pendleton to create a line of denim/blanket gear (sounds funky when I word it like that), and then they crewed up with Vice Magazine to present a documentary titled "Bares, Broncs and Bulls, Ranching and Riding in the Desert of the Southwest with the Hardest Working Navajo Kids Around."

Levi's Indian Lore

Here's a lil repost from the always fascinating Sociological Images!:

Vintage Levi’s Brochure Provides a “Round-Up of Western Indian Lore”
by gwen

Rob Walker (author of the fascinating book Buying In: What We Buy and Who We Are) sent me a link to a post at Drinkin’ and Dronin’ of a 1954 Levi Strauss brochure about “western Indian lore.” It’s a nice round-up of stereotypes and appropriations of Native Americans. We start off with an angry, bare-chested (and Levis-clad) man with a tomahawk, shield, moccasins, and headdress; I’d guess he’s supposed to be a warrior doing a war dance:

Then some descriptions of items associated with different tribes and the obligatory broken English (“just want ‘um”) familiar to anyone who watched The Lone Ranger and paid attention to Tonto:


I have no idea how accurate their descriptions of “unusual Indian weapons” are, but the overall tone of the brochure doesn’t inspire a lot of confidence.
And we have a lesson on “the Indian sign language,” the origins of which are “lost in the mists of time”: