A group of Indigenous women says the International Emmy Award for a documentary about folk legend Buffy Sainte-Marie feels like a “slap in the face.”
The Indigenous Women’s Collective describes itself as a group of mothers, grandmothers, academics and activists advocating to stop colonial violence against Indigenous women.
The collective says in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, that “documentaries are supposed to present factual information.”
Documentaries are supposed to present factual information. An Emmy win is a slap in the face to so many Indigenous people tonight. <br><br>Pretendianism is an act of colonial violence and should never be celebrated. We can not denounce it for one, and ignore it for another.
—@IndigenousWome4
Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On, a documentary made before the singer’s Indigenous ancestry was called into question, won in the arts programming category.
An investigation by CBC’s The Fifth Estate released in October contradicts Sainte-Marie’s claims to Indigenous identity.
Sainte-Marie has denied the accusation and White Pine Pictures, one of the companies that produced the documentary, says in a statement on its website that it stands behind the musician.
