A Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission panel spent a full day watching Lone Ranger episodes before deciding being called kemosabe did not demean a Mi'kmaq woman.
After its day of reruns and hearing several Mi'kmaq witnesses, the independent board of inquiry concluded the TV western treated native Americans in a "demeaning and disrespectful manner."
But, it said, the term "kemosabe" -- Tonto's word for his white friend the Lone Ranger -- did not really offend the Membertou, N.S., woman.
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"Tonto is the Lone Ranger's partner and friend. He is clean cut and well-groomed and, although he speaks a form of broken English, he is neither dumb nor stupid," Justice David Chipman of the appeal court writes in an Oct. 6 summary of the board's ruling.
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The Mi'kmaq witnesses who testified about the word's meaning were divided on whether it was offensive.
Mi'kmaq linguist Bernie Francis testified the word probably came from an Ojibwa or Potowatmi word meaning "sly-looking" or "sneaky."
Two other members of the Membertou band said they would be offended if called kemosabe.
Another man said it depended on the context, while an Eskasoni man said he didn't know what the word meant until he was asked to testify.
According to author Sherman Alexie, "kemosabe" is Apache for "idiot" (if I remember right the exact translation is something like "horse's ass"). As such, it seems to me that she had a legitimate complaint...
But if Tonto is calling the Lone Ranger an ass, wouldn't it be white Texas Rangers who should be offended?
" Hey OP, listen to my advice alright." -Tha General "No scientific discovery is named after its original discoverer." -Stigler's Law of Eponymy, discovered by Robert K. Merton MYT
There's actually a Gary Larson Far Side cartoon where the Lone Ranger looks up "kemosabe" in the dictionary and finds that it means something like "horse's rear-end."
A lot of linguists will back up the claim that "kemosabe" means "trusted scout" (also "Apache friend"), but Alexie begs to differ (and I've seen Alexie's translation corroborated by other Native Americans)...
Edited to add that I originally came by the "idiot" translation while in college, during my time studying Native American literature.
