When Grandpa Fought the Indians, Part II (1934-5)

Duration: 46:57:00

Year Published: 19341935

Sound: silent

Description: Produced by the Austin Chamber of Commerce, this 1930s educational film travels around central Texas to highlight the region’s pioneer history. Members make stops in Lampasas, Giddings, Serbin, Llano, Fort Mason, Thorndale, San Gabriel, and Nashville, visiting historic sites and recounting early Anglo settlers’ confrontations with Indigenous tribes. The opening title card describes the film’s purpose as “enlightening Central Texans that they may be proud of their inheritance, and learn more of those historic places that surround them which are steeped in the sweat and blood of those pioneers.” The film consequently tells the story of Texas pioneers from the perspective of white settlers, casting the Indigenous people who originally lived on the land as uncivilized aggressors. Please note: This film also depicts the appropriation of Native American culture. The Texas Archive of the Moving Image does not condone this exploitative practice, but presents the film as it was originally created, because to do otherwise would be the same as to claim this behavior never existed. Cultural appropriation involves the adoption of elements of a minority culture by members of a dominant culture without consent. These elements are often trivialized or used outside of their original cultural context, resulting in the loss or distortion of their true meaning. In some instances, cultural appropriation is considered not only disrespectful and offensive but also a form of desecration. Feathered headdresses, for example, bear spiritual and ceremonial significance in Native American culture, with only certain tribal members earning the right to wear them.