Originally Posted by
David A. Rowe
So, you sound like every other young guy, Italian or not, that I've talked to before. Let me try to give you a viewpoint to consider:
Some of us live in the US and have family or friends with heritage from the native tribes here. Of course the history was ugly at times, but history always is both ugly and woefully inaccurate.
You say etymology counts, but what you're missing is that it's not a code to be enforced. Yes, European colonists and explorers mistook them for India Indians, but that's how things go. History, and specifically etymology, are full of such examples of incorrect, slang, borrowed terms/words, etc.
Some tribes care about using Native American over American Indian. Some probably want it to be spiteful or in the present age on the "correct" side. There are a lot of tribes that prefer American Indian, and they're likely still the majority.
What you're really missing, though, is that none of that matters. That it's not racist, bigoted, incorrect or uniformed. Even bald-faced, pure, hateful racism doesn't matter compared to the way you and the rest of society have been programmed to think and react to the whole game.
It is a game of power, and the weak-willed, weak-minded, limp-wristed, worm-tongued, viciously evil bastards want you to play it -- win or lose.
Stop. Caring. You can't change anyone else's mind about it, and certainly not THEM. You're young, and you're figuring out your rules for life, still. Just realize no one else HAS to play by YOURS and vice versa.
If I were you, and this is merely a suggestion... I'd take a couple of steps back and think on it for a while.