ARTICLES FOR ODDFEED
For centuries, the resilient Raramuri people have faced relentless exploitation. Today, their indomitable spirit persists despite new challenges: climate change and the menacing presence of drug cartels endanger their sacred homeland, but their resilience remains unyielding.
Shrunken Heads: How Morbid Curiosity Created a Market for Human Heads
Humans love macabre oddities that challenge their moral paradigms – especially if they can make a profit. Shrunken heads were so in-demand at the turn of the century that knock-offs were produced from monkeys, sloths, and even corpses from morgues. True shrunken heads, or tsantsas, are very rare ritual artifacts from the Jivaro people of modern-day Ecuador and Peru. ... Many museums are now re-thinking their own collections of shrunken heads for their role in perpetuating stereotypes about the Jivaro people.
The phrase ‘Indian giver,’ tragically ironic, arose from a cultural misunderstanding. It distorts Indigenous gifting customs, intended to forge bonds, into a divisive slur. This distorted perception exemplifies the profound tragedy of miscommunication and cultural misinterpretation.
