Thread by @DarthSienna

So, I have thoughts as an #Indigenous person about the first two chapters of #TheBookOfBobaFett and I can't keep them in. I don't want to spoil people, so this is your warning to click away now. Another note: I am just one Anishinaabe woman and represent only myself. 1/

https://twitter.com/DarthSienna/status/1478792106852429829

I have long loved Tuskens, ever since KotOR. People who know me well know that I've long threatened to write Tusken fanfic. So when I say that I loved the humanization of the Tuskens in BoBF (and The Mando), know that it's from a long-standing Tusken fandom 2/

So first, the good:
* Tuskens are finally shown to have an actual culture and society and aren't reduced to the stereotype of the Ignoble Savage from old Westerns.
* The writers clearly took inspiration from real-life Indigenous cultures when breathing life into the Tuskens 3/

* The writers make you care for these Tuskens, especially the Kid, the Warrior, & the Chieftain. This should make the audience re-evaluate exactly WHO Anakin slaughtered like animals. I've seen too many in fandom speak of Tuskens the same way Anakin would: as mindless savages 4/

* Again, they're people and BoBF reflects this so far. This is so, so important because they're not fauna, they're the INDIGENOUS PEOPLE of Tatooine.
* Boba respects this Indigenous people and takes on their fight for their rights and their land. (Boba says #LandBack) 5/

* Boba's adoption and rebirth into the Tusken tribe is SO important for his character development, and his continued wearing of parts of his Tusken robes even as a crime lord shows this. This Boba found a new family, but that leads us to the critiques and fears I have 6/

Firstly, the Tuskens don't get a direct voice. Yes, they have their signs and their spoken word, but unlike Hutts/like Wookiees, they rarely get subtitles for their speech. Most of what they say is interpreted through an on-screen character for us. This means non-Tuskens can 7/

control and manipulate their narrative. Yes, I know the Tuskens are fictional, but this echoes some media featuring Indigenous peoples. Also, denying them a voice can further contribute to dehumanizing them. Again, they're fictional, but fictional stand-ins for real people. 8/

I know I'm not the only Indigenous person to identify with Tuskens.
Secondly, this is clearly inspired by captive narratives. I know many have blasted--rightfully--the take that Boba is a white saviour. He absolutely isn't. But Boba is a non-Tusken who has been adopted 9/

into the tribe and brings new technologies, techniques, and changes. He also becomes "Tuskenized." Comparisons to Dances With Wolves, I feel, really aren't out of place. This leads me directly to my third concern: fear that this is exactly how it'll play out 10/

No Tusken appears with Boba in the 5+ years post-Endor scenes in either The Mando or BoBF, but he still wears the robes and carried his gaffi stick in The Mando. This leads me to fear the tribe is dead, leaving Boba as a "last of the Tusken Tribe," so to speak. 11/

In Ch. 2, they describe their survival strategy as hiding, and Boba tells them they don't have to hide, they can fight. But in the volatile environment of Tatooine, fighting back can have a steep cost. I'm afraid that in the coming weeks we will watch Boba lead them to their 12/

deaths in battle. I hope not, but I fear the Tuskens are being humanized to emphasize the tragedy of the deaths. Again, always the trope of the dying Indigenes, sometimes literally passing the torch to non-Indigenous people.
Finally, it is awesome that Tem is an Indigenous 13/

Maori man and that he's had an influence clearly on the portrayal of the Tuskens, but we can't rely on just having an Indigenous actor or two in such a production. BoBF could really have benefited from Indigenous people in the writer's room. Again, Tuskens are fictional but 14/

the people they represent here and who identify with their struggles are very real and face the consequences of Indigenous stereotyping, misrepresentation, and lack of representation IRL. But we also need to recognize that Tem starring in this show is also representation. 15/15