The Trouble with Pocahontas/Connor Kenway and Cosplay.
Halloween isn’t the only time that I see people dressing up as Native Americans. No, I’m not talking about various sports team events, or Coachella. I’m talking about Conventions.
It irks me and I silently judge when I see a Pocahontas or Sexy Fem. Connors (Assassin’s Creed 3) . Yes you look beautiful, and yes you may have put tons of hours into your beautiful cosplay, and that is amazing and I commend you for it, but that’s the thing. To you, it’s a cosplay,a costume, one you wear for a couple hours until you decide to take it off. To me, that’s my culture, and I just can’t take my “costume” off.
Do you really understand how problematic Disney’s Pocahontas is? Yes, they did get Native actress Irene Bedard to voice her and they did some research, and they did visit the Pamunkey Reservation, and the animation was beautiful and it break some boundaries, but despite all this….she still remains a stereotype.Look at her clothes, take away the name “Pocahontas” and tell me, what do you see. I see, just another generic Native costume that we see year after year in Halloween stores.
Now Fem.Connors, I don’t really have a problem with, the ones I DO is the ones who feel they need to…sex it up. I’m all for sexy cosplay, do you boo, but just because you can, doesn’t mean you should. In this case, sexy Connors irks me, because it’s just that it reinforces the sexualization of Native Women. Which statistics have shown, that Native Women are at the highest rate of any ethnicity to be sexually assaulted, raped, or murdered. You can still be a gorgeous, bomb ass Fem.Connor, without showing the boobs (which I’m sure are lovely) and a bare midriff (Lovely as well), that reinforces stereotypes. (Seriously, you can! I’ve seen some amazing Fem.Connors!!) Yes, you look beautiful, you look gorgeous, hot, sexy whatever it maybe….You’re still portraying a character that is Native American, and by applying rule 63 to Connor, and making it sexy, using obvious Native motifs, your “costume” is no different than the Pocahottie costume on the rack in the Spirit Halloween store, except for the fact it’s made better. p.s. to the Connor cosplayer I saw a few years ago at Otakon, who wore a stereotypical Headdress with it. Fuck you.
