Native American student told to remove feather at graduation

Considering the barbaric circumstances under which much of the Native American population of Oklahoma came to live there those school officials were as arrogant and barbaric as the US Cavalry that marched the Native Americans from their traditional homes to Oklahoma. Shame on the adults who did this! Absolutely disgusting.

Having a feathers of many (most?) birds in the US is a federal offense to pretty much everyone except Native Americans. Even if found on the ground, best not to pick it up, unless you'd like to be fined $15,000 or are 100% positive it isn't one of the many, many, species protected.

Clearly not all feathers are for protected species and those are fine to have. For example, feathers of birds that are typically legally hunted. Eagles of all types are protected in the US, even when they take down drones - which is a regular thing. Eagles definitely rule the skies.

https://www.fws.gov/lab/featheratlas/feathers-and-the-law.php

I think Canada, Japan, and Russia have similar laws, since they are party to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, but I don't really know.

Native peoples probably have an exception in each signatory country.

I feel bad for the young man. He was trying to do what was allowed. Graduation is a big deal and should be honored.

Desert TortoiseToday  11:39 am JST

Considering the barbaric circumstances under which much of the Native American population of Oklahoma came to live there those school officials were as arrogant and barbaric as the US Cavalry that marched the Native Americans from their traditional homes to Oklahoma. Shame on the adults who did this! Absolutely disgusting.

A native of this land who gets fed BS tacist education while growing up and then isn't permitted to express her cultural/racial identity.

Another slap in the face. These racist cretins owe her an apology, right now!

You know, I kinda get the whole "culturally significant" angle of this. But from the school's side, it only opens a big can of worms. For example, if other students had asked to put THEIR "culturally significant" emblems or designs on their hats and were refused... best from an institutional point of view to have a simple and equal policy.

No racism here. IF other groups had been allowed to decorate their hats (Catholics allowed to attach crucifixes for example) then the student would have a valid argument. Otherwise, I think the young lady could probably survive without her feather in her cap for the 1-2 hours of the ceremony.

In the US, some Native Americans have been an underclass for a very long time, especially those that live on reservations or tribal lands in the midwest.

In the early 1990s, the dropout rate for Native Americans was double the national average for any other ethnic or racial group.

In 2004, nationwide graduation rates for Native Americans were less than 50%.

They've moved up drastically to about 74% in 2021. This is lower than any other group. The total national average is 86% with Asians/Pacific Islanders leading at 93%.

Things are improving. That's a good thing. If rules seem to change all the time in your interactions with the "white man's world," you'd have a different view too. There are already enough obstacles. More aren't necessary.

It is not surprising that a couple of thugs would show themselves and abuse a young Native woman. Next to Texas (literally), Oklahoma is one of the most rightwing White states in North America. And probably one of the most hypocrisy enriched areas in a country whose whole 'taught/learned' 'history' (see: self-serving lies) is based on hypocrisy, and the Whites there have just recently demonstrated it again by embracing murderous (to women) PRO-LIFE laws while being ~100% PRO-WAR as well. And they are blind to the glaring contradiction in these completely opposed percepts and would become actively hostile to anyone attempting to point it out. If one were looking for 'rational thought' in the United States, Oklahoma is one of the last places it might be found.