Post by Rudy CanozaSacheen Littlefeather Talks About What Really Happened Before, During And After
Rejecting Marlon Brandoâs Oscar
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or https://tinyurl.com/yc757c4t
He really did. It was so in character for that shitbag.
You never met the man. He used to hang out in the Ortegas with locals and was a fairly decent fellow.
Littlefeather was an activist and shit-stirrer.
What did John Wayne say about Sacheen Littlefeather?
1973: Native American actor Sacheen Littlefeather boo'd (and cheered) by Hollywood at the Oscars before being mocked by Clint Eastwood and almost physically assaulted by John Wayne simply for asking that Indigenous people not to be dehumanized in film.
Sacheen Littlefeather begins by announcing that this will be one of her last interviews: Im very, very ill. I have metastasised breast cancer terminal to my right lung. And Ive been on chemotherapy for quite some time, and daily antibiotics. As a result, my memory is not as good as it used to be
For the next couple of hours, speaking over Zoom from her home in northern California, as she trips down memory lane her solemn demeanour gives way to chattiness and laughter. At 74, she has lived a full, eventful life, though she will be for ever remembered for an event that took up little more than one minute of it, on the night of 27 March 1973. This was when she took the stage at the 45th Academy Awards to speak on behalf of Marlon Brando, who had been awarded best actor for his performance in The Godfather. It is still a striking scene to watch. Amid the gaudy 70s evening wear, 26-year-old Littlefeathers tasselled buckskin dress, moccasins, long, straight black hair and handsome face set in an expression of almost sorrowful composure, make a jarring contrast.
When the presenter, Roger Moore, attempts to hand Littlefeather Brandos Oscar she holds out her hand as if to push it away. She explains that Brando cannot accept the award because of the treatment of American Indians today by the film industry. The crowd interrupts her, half-applauding, half-booing. Excuse me, she says calmly, then continues: And on television and movie reruns, and also with recent happenings at Wounded Knee. At the time, Wounded Knee, in South Dakota, was the site of a month-long standoff between Native American activists and US authorities, sparked by the murder of a Lakota man. Littlefeather ends her speech begging that in the future, our hearts and our understandings will meet with love and generosity.
If you're an activist performing and taking money, you're a dishonest whore for speaking ill of it after the money is in your hand.