Sitka Tribe of Alaska has joined several other Southeast Alaska tribes — including Ketchikan Indian Community and Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska — in condemning a recent social media trend where users dance around Alaska Native totem poles, replicating a scene from a popular early-2000s rom-com.
“The Proposal” stars Sandra Bullock, Ryan Reynolds, and Betty White, and is set in Sitka. In a scene from the 2009 blockbuster hit, Bullock and White dance around a totem pole to the hip-hop song “Get Low” by Lil Jon.
Rob Allen, interim general manager at Sitka Tribe of Alaska, said while there have been instances of tourists doing this in the past, it seems more prominent this summer. He said the Tribe doesn’t approve of the “inappropriate behavior.”
“Totem poles are not objects. They have meaning,” Allen said. “They’re telling a story about who we are in this place. They’re not just something to mock or make fun of, and people are just not showing proper respect to that.”
In a Thursday press release, the Tribe said they support tourism as both an economic driver and as an opportunity to educate visitors about Sitka’s “vibrant, living culture,” but they expect visitors to “treat our people, our homelands, and our culture with respect.”
They also ask the visitor industry to strongly discourage the “misguided behavior.”
“Disrespect for totem poles, sacred sites, and other elements of our culture is unacceptable and undermines our trust in the industry that we have worked hard to establish,” Allen said. “We will continue to work with our partners to address acts of disrespect and protect our cultural heritage.”
The Sitka Tribe has its own tourism program. Allen said they’ve developed programs to help educate visitors about Lingít land, culture, and values.
“We’re not just showing you something that was in the past. This is who we are. We’re living it,” he said. “We’re here and we’re not preserving our culture. You preserve something that’s dead, and we’re not dead. This is a thriving culture and we want to share that with people and educate them that we are not preserving, we’re living. And that’s a very important part of the entire community of Sitka. This is our home, and this culture is very important to us and to this place and to who we are.”
Visit Sitka, the island’s visitor services program, also condemned the behavior in a social media post on Thursday. The organization is launching a Tourism Best Management Practices program on July 1 that sets a shared standard for Sitka’s tourism industry.
“Totem poles are not EVER props for social media content, viral trends, or entertainment. They are not relics of the past. They are part of living cultures that continue today,” the post said. “Taking photos can be a meaningful way to remember your time here, but please do so with respect. Do not climb on, touch, imitate, or interact with totem poles in ways that diminish their cultural significance or the people and communities they represent.”
