Foxwoods Casino February 16, 2011 Sarah Harvey

Reading this article really made me think about the unjust circumstances that were part of my Native American Tribes. There was large loss of land and with that land comes the loss of tradition and culture. Learning that the Pequots were the first to inhabit a Native reservation in the English Colonies. However, they were only given rocky and swampy areas of land and not very much of it at all, and it seemed to dwindle over the years from 3000 acres to a mere 300. Through this hardship the tribe rebuilt their cultural traditions based on their reserved land and the surroundings that they were allowed to live on. The tribe called themselves the fox people because they were very skilled at hunting and were considered warriors.

It is stated in the text that the Foxwoods Casino is supposedly representing the historical information and culture of the Pequots, and there is a giant warrior statue that can be found in the center of the mall area of the casino, however, it has also been admitted that all representation of Native American tribes in the Casino is the very stereotypical “Hollywood” Indian with feathers and tepees. Gambling is also a very large cultural tradition in many Native American tribes and is considered a very spiritual activity. However, the Casino has capitalized on the high-stakes Vegas style gambling. Of course instead of spirituality and culture it is now representing materialism and competition. Finally, it seems the tribe itself has sold out to an extent. Where they used to be founded on culture and tradition, now everyone can buy a souvenir or see the generalized images of what the Native American once was, and culture now can come with a price tag.

1. Is this survival or has the tribe sold out morally to the stereotypes of America
2. Could there be a way to create a more historical imagery of the tribe and its culture?
3. What target market is the casino focused on?