Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) is not a member of the Cherokee Nation. She took a DNA test, which found out that she’s 1/1024thNative American. If that’s the standard for declaring your part of any racial or ethnic group, then I’m Irish. It was a joke. One of the biggest underreported blunders of the 2020 cycle. And yet, the Huffington Post decided to defend her with a 2,300-word story. In the story, HuffPo said the outrage was overblown and they spoke to a couple people, who are of Native American heritage, who said this was no big deal. Well, the Native American Journalists Association has a problem with their story, and they’re demanding an apology for the publication’ inaccurate and insensitive reporting (via The Wrap):
The Native American Journalists Association is demanding an apology from HuffPost for an article dismissing tribal criticism of Elizabeth Warren’s 2018 DNA test aimed at demonstrating her Native American ancestry. In a press statement Wednesday, the organization called out reporter Jennifer Bendery by name and described her writing as “negligent and irresponsible.”
“NAJA hopes that Bendery, her editors and staff at Huffington Post reflect on this ethical negligence, apologize for their insensitive reporting, and employ substantive changes to improve their analysis of issues affecting Indigenous communities,” the group said. “NAJA also recommends that Huffington Post reporters take part in cultural sensitivity training to avoid publishing such errors in the future.”
In her piece, Bendery attacked mainstream media reports stating that Native Americans were upset by Warren’s DNA test and past claims of tribal heritage. Bendery also said that tribal leaders she spoke to didn’t care.
“The consensus was clear: This narrative is incredibly overblown,” she wrote. “Tribal leaders have far more pressing matters to deal with than a senator’s DNA test. And, frustratingly, non-Native people are defining a debate about Native people without letting them speak for themselves.”
In their release, NAJA took specific issue with the “more pressing” line, which they dismissed as ill-informed.
“This analysis is not only inaccurate, it is a disservice to audiences that may not be familiar with how charged Warren’s DNA results have been and betrays the trust and agency of Indigenous communities most impacted,” NAJA said.
Huffpo is standing by their story, even though publications, like the Boston Globe, called on Tomahawk Liz not run in 2020. Feminist writer Camille Paglia trashed Warren, saying she wouldn’t have a “snowball’s chance in hell” in appealing to voters outside of the far left-wing urban-based elites that dominate the Democratic Party. And there aren’t enough of these people, Thank God, to win an election. So far, there’s been no real enthusiasm over her 2020 candidacy. Still, a white woman culturally appropriated Native American culture. That has to be a cardinal sin in lefty land.
(H/T NTK Network)
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