Native American hobbyism in Germany

Background

According to the history laid out in H. Glenn Penny's Kindred By Choice, many Germans identify their roots as tribes that lived independently of one another that were colonized by Romans and forced to become Christians. Because of this distant tribal background and history of colonization, and despite the fact that all ancient Europeans lived tribally, many of these Germans believe that they are more similar to Native Americans than to fellow European nations in contemporary times. This belief in kindred lifestyle is detailed in Penny's in-depth study of German fascination with and performances as their ideas of historical Native American peoples. These Germans are also interested in depiction of Native Americans in art and anthropology. Penny covers this history in "Kindred By Choice" and other published writings, chronicling German artists such as Rudolf Cronau, Max Ernst, Georg Grosz, Otto Dix, and Rudolf Schlichter's portrayals of Native Americans. German academics such as Alexander von Humboldt, Karl von den Steinen, Paul Ehrenreich, and Carl Jung all traveled to the United States to learn more about Native Americans. Their documentation of their journeys were regarded positively by the German public and assisted in fostering German fascination with Native Americans. Penny also details how Germans often denounced the violence inflicted upon Native peoples by the United States government.

Another factor in the popularity of Hobbyism in Germany can be attributed to the many Wild West shows that toured throughout Germany and featured real Native Americans in stereotypical "cowboy and Indian" performances. One of the most popular Wild West shows was organized by William Frederick “Buffalo Bill” Cody. German Hobbyism is generally believed to have been largely popularized by the dime-store novelist Karl May, whose fictional Apache warrior character, Winnetou, and his German blood-brother, Old Shatterhand, adventure throughout the Wild West. In one of the many novels, Winnetou is murdered and Old Shatterhand avenges him and ultimately becomes an Apache chief. The Winnetou novels were first published in the 1890s.

German hobbyism in the 20th century

Hobbyism was greatly affected by the separation of Germany after World War II. Katrin Sieg’s Ethnic Drag discusses the differences between West German Hobbyism and East German Hobbyism, saying that while West Germany could continue to openly participate in the hobby, East Germans had to go underground for fear of being targeted as rebels. This translated to a difference in opinion between East and West in how they interacted with real Native Americans; East German hobbyist clubs often interacted with Native Americans and supported them in their issues financially. On the other hand, West Germans often avoided contact with real Native Americans, which Sieg surmises is because they feared being told they are not truly Native American. These patterns continue to be true today. Dakota academic Philip Deloria theorizes in his book Playing Indian that there are two types of Hobbyism—people Hobbyism and item Hobbyism. West Germans would be considered, according to Deloria, as item hobbyists who focus on the objects, and the East Germans would be considered people hobbyists, who also include objects but want to interact with real Native Americans and issues facing Native communities.

The East German interest in having hobbyists start engaging with living Native Americans may be partially attributable to the fact that the East German government began to recognize the propaganda value; criticism of the historical treatment of American Indians could be used as an example of why East Germans citizens should criticize US policies in general.

May’s novels featuring Winnetou and Old Shatterhand have been adapted into both theatrical and film productions in German-speaking countries. It is believed that film adaptations of Karl May’s characters in the 1960s may have saved the West German film industry. Each summer in Bad Segeberg, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, the Karl May Festival (Karl-May-Spiele) hosts stage productions weekly and particularly during the Karl May Festival. The Karl May Festival is an annual event purported to bring the Wild West to northern Germany

German hobbyism in the 21st century

German Hobbyism continues today in the form of festivals, museums, pow wows, theater, and clubs. The Karl May Festival in Bad Segeberg continues each year and is a popular attraction to families from all over Germany and Europe. Additionally, there are multiple Wild West Amusement Parks all throughout Germany. The Karl May Museum in Radebeul and other museums that host Native American exhibits continue to be wildly popular. Hobbyists that organize through the means of a club host pow wows and teach each other and communities about Native American culture. The topic of German Hobbyism has become more recently documented by mainstream news sources New York Times, the Huffington Post, and independent filmmakers such as Howie Summers, who created a short documentary titled Indianer that explores German Hobbyists and their fascinations.

Journalist Red Haircrow attended the Winter Pow-wow 2014 in Berlin on February 15. He described the participants as wearing as many “breastplates, bear claw necklaces, feathers and bone jewelry as they seemed able to physically support,” and that the attendees also wore Native American costumes in addition to the hobbyist dancers.

Criticisms

The main criticism of German Hobbyism by Native American journalists and academics regards the cultural appropriation and misrepresentation of Native American cultures and identities. Cultural appropriation is the adoption by one cultural group of some of the cultural forms of a different cultural group, usually against the express wishes of the originating group. When it comes to appropriating American Indian culture, Philip J. Deloria dubs it “playing Indian,” which he defines as the adoption or portrayal of being Native by Anglo-American individuals. These actions are often motivated by financial gain and hobby. Further, Deloria writes that these individuals and groups who play Indian build a collectivity in their performance of otherness, which in turn defines their own identity through the distinction of playing the national "other."

Katrin Sieg applies the thoughts and ideas of Deloria surrounding cultural appropriation to the performance studies field in Germany. Her book Ethnic Drag discusses the ways in which Germans have historically dressed up as “othered” peoples, which includes Jews, Native Americans, and Turks. While the portrayals of Jews and Turks were largely negative stereotypes, the portrayal of Native Americans differed in that they were seen as heroic and noble.

The first Native American women's theater troupe known as Spiderwoman Theater traveled to Germany and Europe in order to perform a satire of the European and particularly German fascination with Native Americans. According to Spiderwoman Theater, it was an act of resistance meant to reclaim their identity as real Native Americans. Their show is titled Winnetou’s Snake Oil Show from Wigwam City, and parodied Karl May’s characters, New Ageism, and individuals who pretend to be Native American.

Red Haircrow has written articles from Berlin, where he resides, regarding the controversial aspects of Hobbyism from the perspective of a real Native American. Haircrow has traveled to pow wows and reported to Indian Country Today Media Network about his experience as a Native American at an event in which Germans performed Native American identity. He reported the premiere of the blockbuster remake The Lone Ranger, in which Hobbyists were hired to perform as Native Americans in Berlin. Haircrow also covered a controversy at the Karl May Museum, when the owners of the museum in Radebeul refused to return Native American scalps to the rightful tribes from which they came. As an act of protest, Native American singer Jana Mashonee chose not to perform at the Karl May Fest in Radebeul, Saxony and released an official statement denigrating the refusal of the Karl May Museum to return the Native American scalps. The scalps were not returned to the Ojibwe nation as requested, but they were removed from display.

Haircrow also notes that not every Native American has a negative view of the German fascination with their culture. Comanche Laura Kerchee, who was stationed in Germany with the U.S. Air Force, told him that "she was impressed with how enthralled the Germans there were by Native Americans." Haircrow adds that "some tribes in North America [are] reaching out to their fans in Europe. They realize that this is an opportunity to promote understanding and education and a way to market Native culture to a highly sympathetic audience."

In the United States, there is a general discomfort within Native communities about the misuses of Native American identity and culture. This can be seen in recent examples of the Redskins Indian Mascot controversy, the backlash against artists, such as Gwen Stefani and Lana Del Rey, who have donned feather war bonnets, and the campaigns to educate the public about wearing Native American costumes for Halloween and themed parties, such as My Culture Is Not a Costume. This same sentiment was expressed by Haircrow’s son, who claimed that “they are stealing from others, but don’t want to admit it. That’s why they didn’t want us there, because they know we know what they are doing is wrong.” In a New York Times short documentary titled Lost in Translation: Germany’s Fascination with the American Old West, the actor portraying Winnetou, Jan Sosniok, is asked if he thinks that real Native Americans would take offense to the portrayal of Native Americans. The actor responds that he does not believe they would be offended. The video also portrays a German man who studied at the Institute of American Indian Arts in New Mexico. This person shares his discomfort with seeing a burial dance take place in the Bad Segeberg performance, and calls it grotesque and claims that it perpetuates a stereotypical image of the Native American.

Journalist James Hagengruber discussed German hobbyists in an article for Salon's website, describing the occasional clashes between the German fantasists and actual Native Americans. Visiting Native American dancers were shocked when German hobbyists protested their use of microphones and details of their costumes (their counter-protest was successful). A hobbyist profiled in the article defended the German tendency to focus on Indian culture before 1880, instead of engaging with issues that affect contemporary tribes, comparing it to studying "the [ancient] Romans." Some Germans have been surprised and irritated when real Native Americans don't act the way they do in the German imagination. On the positive side, a member of the Crow tribe told Hagengruber he was "impressed" by the way Germans maintained a sweat lodge, and Hagengruber comments that "some dying Indian languages may end up being preserved by German hobbyists." Dick Littlebear, "a member of the Northern Cheyenne Nation and the president of Chief Dull Knife College in Lame Deer, MT," told Hagengruber "he doesn’t worry about Germans fixating on his culture," as long as they do not copy sacred ceremonies, and pointed out that he had learned "lost Northern Cheyenne stitching methods from the 1850s" from German hobbyists.

Journalist Noemi Lopinto in her article for UTNE reports that an Ojibwe man named David Redbird Baker found the performance of sacred ceremonies in Germany to be offensive: "“They take the social and religious ceremonies and change them beyond recognition.” Lopinto paraphrases Baker as adding, "They’ve held dances where anyone in modern dress is barred from attending—even visiting Natives." Both Lopinto and Hagengruber quote Carmen Kwasny, who works with the Native American Association of Germany, as saying the Germans need to learn to view Native Americans as people, rather than idealized fantasy characters.