American Neighbour

[Stu]

A question for American members on here. There's an elderly couple, Tony and Evelyn, who live in a farmhouse just on the edge of my village. They are well into their 80s but spritely and financially comfortable so far as I know. They had a new neighbour, Kim, ast year who rented a tiny house nearby. Kim is a woman in her late 30s and works at a museum about 25 miles away. She has an American accent and very dark skin and, when asked about her background, she says she is an Indian. I have seen her and she doesn't look anything like someone from India. Kim has taken it upon herself to take food she has prepared to her neighbours, Tony and Ev. This includes a stew she calls "Three Sisters" which is made with beef, sweetcorn, various beans. This is nothing like Indian food that I know. She also told Ev that her name, Kim, is "the Lakota word for butterfly". Last weekend, Ev baked some English scones and took them around to Kim's along with some clotted cream and strawberry jam - a traditional English dish. Kim was delighted, very grateful - but surprised. She said that Tony and Ev were "elders of our village" and it was her duty to look after them, not the other way around. I suspect a culture clash. Does anyone know if this is usual for people of Kim's heritage because, while her kindness is enormous, it seems a bit unusual to us Brits?

[Grok]

If her back ground is Lakota, then I believe "Indian" is short for "American Indian."

She sounds like a very kind person.

[stephanie53]

Sounds like KIm was raised to respect her elders, and look out for they're well being, bye checking in on them , and trying to comfort them when needed

[Grok]

Actress Amber Midthunder mentioned that her back ground is Lakota, when she was interviewed on YouTube regarding her role in Prey.

[Dust]

Some Native Americans actually prefer the term "Indian" or "American Indian" to "Native American."

This leads to the need to clarify which "Indians" you are talking about here in the US, sometimes with turns of phrase like "India Indians" or "dot" vs. "feather" Indians.

[FranTastic444]

Since living in the US, I've used the phrase Native American rather than Indian. Doing some research just now, it appears that people from that demographic group have differing opinions on what terminology they do and do not like. As an aside, I once saw an interview with a guy who objected to being called homosexual or gay - he much preferred fag / faggot or queer for some reason! Each to their own, I guess.

As well as the word Indian having different meanings between US and UK, the same can be said of the term Asian. In the UK, that typically means someone from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka. If you describe someone as Asian in the US, it generally is used to describe people with heritage linked to China, Japan, Korea etc.

[Jim]

As well as the word Indian having different meanings between US and UK, the same can be said of the term Asian. In the UK, that typically means someone from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka. If you describe someone as Asian in the US, it generally is used to describe people with heritage linked to China, Japan, Korea etc.

To many of us in the US, Asian describes anyone from Asia. The Asian food store in Peoria carries Turkish spice blends, Indian spices, Arabic items, and Chinese and Japanese foods. That seems appropriate here.

[Faldaguy]

She has an American accent and very dark skin and, when asked about her background, she says she is an Indian. I have seen her and she doesn't look anything like someone from India. Kim has taken it upon herself to take food she has prepared to her neighbours, She also told Ev that her name, Kim, is "the Lakota word for butterfly". Last weekend, Ev baked some English scones and took them around to Kim's along with some clotted cream and strawberry jam - a traditional English dish. Kim was delighted, very grateful - but surprised. She said that Tony and Ev were "elders of our village" and it was her duty to look after them, not the other way around. I suspect a culture clash. Does anyone know if this is usual for people of Kim's heritage because, while her kindness is enormous, it seems a bit unusual to us Brits?

Stu, "unusual to us Brits" and "a culture clash" -- a bit Provincial of ye Brits, don't you think? I hope her kindness becomes an awakening for a caring society in your neck of the woods. "Lakota" is indeed the key here for her heritage and only one example of so many places in the world where the practice of the youth ia to care for the elderly, and particularly in extended families, and to care for one another. It is somewhat more common where there is less separation of peoples due to poverty. Aristocracy tends to breed contempt, and carried to the extreme is the basis for much of the strife on this globe.