Why I Won’t Call Myself “Indigenous” Instead of “Native American”

Unfortunately, the issues with “BIPOC” don’t end at the false equivalencies of struggles. I have always identified as Native American instead of “Indian” or “indigenous”, with “tribe” instead of “nation”. These are the names I grew up with on Native lands, the names my elders use. I believe it’s a personal choice for each of us, and I have no trouble navigating the differences in how we choose to name ourselves, but I do have a natural discomfort with “indigenous”. Maybe it just doesn’t flow or sit pretty on the tongue the way “Native” does, maybe it sounds pretentious to me. I shrug off those petty reasons though, because there are greater implications made by equating “indigenous”, or even specifically indigenous American, with Native American people. <a href="https://medium.com/@kihnindewa/why-i-wont-call-myself-indigenous-instead-of-native-american-557a21b95da8">Click Here</a>