About a year ago, the Canadian public broadcaster CBC received a tip. The tip was that Buffy Sainte-Marie (82) should have lied about her indigenous background. It became the starting point for what the CBC calls a “comprehensive investigation” into the background of the high-profile and award-winning Canadian-American musician Buffy Sainte-Marie. Who is Buffy Sainte-Marie? Photo: Jonathan Hayward / AP Buffy Sainte-Marie was born in 1941 and is known for mixing folk song, country music and elements of indigenous folk music. She is considered an indigenous icon, and throughout her career has been committed to indigenous rights. She is recognized as the first person of indigenous origin to win an Oscar. In addition, she has been awarded for her indigenous music. The musician has, among other things, performed at the indigenous festival Riddu Riđđu in Kåfjord in Nord-Troms several times, most recently in 2019. Source: Store norske lexikon and CBC. “A changing story” Buffy Sainte-Marie herself claims that she was adopted away from her parents, who are said to have belonged to the indigenous Piapot First Nation in Saskatchewan in Canada, and into a white family in Maine in the USA. It was part of the Canadian government’s assimilation policy. From the 19th century until the 1970s, several thousand indigenous children in Canada were taken away from their parents and sent to boarding schools. The tip to the CBC was that the popular musician was actually born in the United States. Nor should she have been adopted. A copy of what appears to be Sainte-Marie’s birth certificate shows that she was born in Stoneham, Massachusetts in 1941. LIE: The tipster claimed that Buffy Sainte-Marie lied about her Indigenous background. Photo: Dave Pickoff / Ap – She was not born in Canada. She was obviously born in the United States. That’s what Heidi St. Marie tells the CBC. She is the daughter of Buffy Sainte-Marie’s older brother. – She is clearly not indigenous or Indian, she claims. Documents obtained by the CBC show that what Sainte-Marie has told about her ancestry is “a shifting narrative, full of inconsistencies and inaccuracies.” In 1963, within ten months, she was referred to as both Algonquin, “Mimac by birth” and child of the Cree tribe (Piapot First Nation). She herself rejects the allegations and believes she has been open about her entire history. – What I have always been honest about is that I don’t know where I come from or who my birth parents were, and I never want to know, writes Sainte-Marie. Read Buffy Sainte-Marie’s full statement here: PUT IT BEHIND: Buffy Sainte-Marie says in a statement that she had long since put this behind her, and that she has never lied about her own background. Photo: Screenshot “Manufactured indigenous people” is a growing problem in the US and Canada. – When being indigenous can provide advantages, there are more people who are willing to wrongfully claim that they are indigenous, Professor Kim TallBear at the University of Alberta in Canada told news in January. In 2022, Sacheen Littlefeather was accused of lying about his ethnicity. She too was known as an indigenous activist. – It bothers you when you think about what Historian and Buffy Sainte-Marie fan Katri Somby has followed the case. – This is such a big news that it simply bothers you when you think about it. Buffy is probably the world’s best-known indigenous artist, she says. – What is a bit serious about this is that she has claimed that she belongs to so many different tribes, when we look at interviews that have been done. Somby thinks this case can be painful for those who have actually been adopted away. WORSE: Katri Somby believes this case can make it worse for those who want to take back their indigenous identity. Photo: Svein Harald Lian – Suddenly it becomes so that everyone is doubted. – There are many people who do not know their background, so it can be particularly bad for them if they want to look for their roots, she adds. Although Somby thinks the CBC has done a thorough investigation of Sainte-Marie, she believes the documentary lacks some aspects. – Are we the ones who decide whether she is indigenous or not? It’s a debate they’re having in Canada now. The indigenous people say that she is their people like everyone else. She adds that adoption in American indigenous families is different from adoption in Norway. – Being adopted has a strong spiritual side. They don’t take in just anyone. It’s a long process, and it’s about trust, love, belonging. And so argues her family and the tribe she belongs to. Adoption is not the same there as here, she concludes.
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The Canadian musician Buffy Sainte-Marie is accused of lying about her indigenous background – news Sápmi
