Indians have been active and outspoken in their efforts to reverse stereotypical portrayals of them in mainstream cinema.
The National Film Committee and the American Indian Historical Society and Indian actors associations have fought for accurate representation of Indians.
Both Indian (marginalized) and mainstream populations are undermined by stereotypical portrayals of Indians.
Various mythologies of Indians (drunkard, cigar store owner, noble nomad, brutal savage, etc.) are alive and well in mainstream contemporary cinema.
Contemporary films show progress in portrayals of other minorities but Indians appear frozen in time from a review of contemporary films.
A Senate special subcommittee, as part of a study on Indian Education, interview people across the country and found a majority of Americans still view Indians in a derogatory and stereotypical manner.
A resolution of this issue will be fostered by providing accurate representations of Indians in mainstream media, especially those as pervasive as Hollywood cinema.
The Entertaining Anachronism: Indians In American Film is an essay by Gretchen Bataille and Charles L. P. Silet (YEAR) that covers the topic of Indian representations in American media, particularly cinema. The authors maintain ôA reassessment is now in order,ö by mainstream culture, Hollywood, and Indian communities as to whether or not stereotypical portrayals of Indians will continue to occur in future, (Bataille, & Silet, YEAR, p. 52).
Whether or not such a reassessment occurs successfully will depend on Indian communities and cinema and historical groups who support them challenging society and Hollywood to successfully change such images. Bataille & Silet (YEAR, p. 40) provide a historical account of horrific portrayals of Indians that ranged between some polarity of ônobleö or ôbloodthirsty and vicious.ö Despite India
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