The Pope in a headdress evokes deep emotions in the country of India | Business

The Vatican and the Pope clearly appreciated the gesture: Francis kissed Littlechild’s hands after receiving the headdress, something he has done in the past to honor Holocaust survivors and did on this trip for residential school survivors.

The Vatican apparently understood the symbolic significance of the moment, placing the photo on the front page of the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano under the headline “I humbly apologize.”

Headdresses are historically a symbol of respect worn by Native American warlords and warriors. For many plains tribes, for example, each feather placed on a headdress has great significance and must be earned by an act of compassion or bravery. Some modern-day Native American leaders have been presented with war hats in ceremonies accompanied by prayers and songs.

Yet these cherished regalia also represent an image that has been co-opted from the tribes into popular culture for decades, fueling stereotypes in everything from Hollywood movies to fashion catwalks to Halloween costumes.

Some members of indigenous tribes said they saw the gesture as inconsistent with past abuses at church schools for which Francis has apologized.

Russ Diabo, a member of Canada’s Kanawake Mohawk tribe and indigenous advocate and political analyst, described the scene as a “show” and the Pope’s statements as “light.”

Diabo said further Twitter it was “Catholic Church and Canada Collaborate on Mythology for Joint Reconciliation Program Told by Prominent Federal Staff/Residential School Survivors!”

“There’s so much I can say about it, and it’s all negative,” tweeted Joe Horse Capture, Vice President of Native Collections and Curator of Native American History and Culture at the Autry Museum of the American West in Los Angeles.

“I practice the mantra ‘If you can’t say anything positive, don’t say anything at all.’ But honestly, it’s hard!” added Horse Capture, a member of A’aniiih Nation.

More than 150,000 Indigenous children in Canada were forced to attend public Christian schools from the 19th century until the 1970s in an effort to isolate them from the influence of their homes and culture. The goal was to Christianize and assimilate them into mainstream society, which previous Canadian governments considered superior.

America’s leading indigenous news agency ICT has made a deliberate decision not to make the military hood the focus of its coverage of the Pope’s visit.

“When I saw the headdress that they put on the Pope, I immediately thought: ‘Absolutely not.’ We’re not showing that photo,” said Jourdan Bennett-Begaye, editor of ICT magazine, formerly Indian Country Today. “It distracts readers from the Pope’s apology and the stories of the survivors who sat in those chairs and listened to his every word. Something they’ve been waiting for for decades.

“It creates an unnecessary fuss about the choice of indigenous peoples, where the real control should be on the Pope and this whole institution.”

Maka Black Elk, executive director of Truth and Healing at Red Cloud Indian School in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, described the scene at Twitter like “#toosoon moment”.

“The discourse surrounding #PopeFrancis headgear is unfortunate,” wrote Black Moose. – He didn’t ask for it. It wasn’t his fault. But it’s also clear that the donors didn’t consider how it would make other indigenous people feel.”

Later in a phone interview, Black Moose said the mixed reaction to the pope’s headdress “reflects the reality of our people and our need for greater dialogue” about the past.

“I think Chief Littlechild felt it was important to honor that moment, and it was an important moment,” he added.

A spokeswoman for Littlechild did not immediately return a message seeking comment Tuesday.

But Keeshon Littlechild took to Facebook to defend his grandfather for giving Francis one of his many hats.

“I hate to see people bash my grandfather, and I understand how much respect it takes to be gifted, but in the end, he was the one paying respect to the Pope for coming all the way to Moscow to ask for forgiveness,” he wrote.

Among those who came to Littlechild’s defense was Phil Fontaine, a former chief of the Assembly of First Nations and a residential school survivor.

“Chief Littlechild followed his protocols,” Fontaine said. “There is a protocol for this kind of gift. He went to the elders, he went to the leadership and asked permission to give this gift. It’s completely in line with how they follow their customs and protocol here.”

John Cryer, a First Nations elder and survivor of the school, said during a news conference after the apology that the gesture meant tribal leaders “have accepted him as one of our leaders in the community.

“It’s a tribute to the man, it’s a tribute to the work he did, and it’s also a recognition … here’s a man who belongs to our tribe,” Cryer said.

Marie-Anne Day Walker Pelletier, a former chief of the Okanese First Nation, told CTV, “I thought it was really cool. Now, I suppose, the chief of all chiefs.’

Nicole Winfield and Peter Smith in Maskwaikis, Alberta, and Rob Gillis in Toronto contributed to this report. Snow is reported from Phoenix.

Associated Press religion coverage is supported by AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from the Lilly Endowment Inc. AP is solely responsible for this content.