The Student Room Group

No, Elizabeth Warren isn't Native American!

Is anyone else following this insanely stupid story at the moment?

US Senator Elizabeth Warren (who is white) has been claiming that she is part Native American, even going so far as to say she is proud of that ancestry and has allegedly cited it on university records. Donald Trump, not believing her, mocked her for it, last year at a rally boasting he would hypothetically give her a million dollars to donate to charity if she would take a DNA test to prove she was an American Indian.

Well, the results are in. Warren recently released DNA test results "Hitting back" and "Confirming her Native American ancestry" according to mainstream media sources like CNN and ABC and some British papers. Laughably, however, the test only estimated she was between 1/64 and 1/1024 Native American, and the test had to use South American DNA as a stand-in. This woman is technically whiter than infamous white nationalist Richard Spencer. She actually has less Native American DNA than the average white person in the US, yet she has gone on record claiming to have Cherokee lineage and claimed her mother was discriminated against for being part native. She apparently has no significant Native American ancestry at all.

So it boggles my mind that comedians like Steven Colbert, Trevor Noah and co. and media outlets are now portraying this as a victory for Warren and mocking Trump for being 'wrong' and for 'reneging on a bet' when it was clearly Warren who shot herself in the foot. If you want an example of the media completely misrepresenting something and being unashamedly biased despite the facts being right there, this is it.

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Trump has this amazing ability to make opponents self-destruct. What did she really think she'd gain from this?
Reply 2
Americans sure do love their identity politics. Why should it matter who her ancestors were anyway? Trump's actions are pathetic and his opposition should not have risen to the bait.
I'm not following it as it's a complete non-story that only interests identity warrior millennials.
Reply 4
Original post by Dez
Americans sure do love their identity politics. Why should it matter who her ancestors were anyway? Trump's actions are pathetic and his opposition should not have risen to the bait.


Considering she has claimed native american heritage throughout her career and even claimed on TV her parents had to runaway because her mother was cherokee, I'd say she made it matter.

Quite a comedic self destruction of Pocahontas.

Ironically her ancestor might have been alive during Pocahontas' time :laugh:
(edited 5 years ago)
Trump said that if the dna test shows Native American ancestry he would give money to the charity of her choice. The dna test shows that she does indeed have Native American dna and yet he hasn’t donated. He’s either greedy, egotistic to the extent that he will not admit defeat or can’t afford to pay. I reckon it’s the first two. Trump never said that the tests had to show full Native American ancestry.
Original post by akbar0123
Trump said that if the dna test shows Native American ancestry he would give money to the charity of her choice. The dna test shows that she does indeed have Native American dna and yet he hasn’t donated. He’s either greedy, egotistic to the extent that he will not admit defeat or can’t afford to pay. I reckon it’s the first two. Trump never said that the tests had to show full Native American ancestry.


No, he said it would be on the condition she took the test and 'proved she was an [American] Indian.' Plus the bet was hypothetical and there was no actual agreement made between them. Elizabeth Warren has claimed to be part Cherokee and to have some kind of meaningful ancestry. The test showed she had no more Native American ancestry than the average white person. Her Native American 'ancestry' is wholly insignificant and, in the spirit of things, Trump was right.
Original post by Dandaman1
US Senator Elizabeth Warren (who is white) has been claiming that she is part Native American, even going so far as to say she is proud of that ancestry and has allegedly cited it on university records.


The University listed her as Native American, and she was Harverd Law School's first woman of colour.

Whether or not you believe her to be white, is that really relevant? Race is a social construct, just like gender is, so what harm is there in letting people choose their own heritage?
Reply 8
Original post by AngeryPenguin

Whether or not you believe her to be white, is that really relevant? Race is a social construct, just like gender is, so what harm is there in letting people choose their own heritage?


If I were white and I wanted to be black, could I just put on blackface makeup and claim myself as black?
Reply 9
Original post by akbar0123
Trump said that if the dna test shows Native American ancestry he would give money to the charity of her choice. The dna test shows that she does indeed have Native American dna and yet he hasn’t donated. He’s either greedy, egotistic to the extent that he will not admit defeat or can’t afford to pay. I reckon it’s the first two. Trump never said that the tests had to show full Native American ancestry.

What was the direct quote from Trump? I can find this:

I will give you a million dollars to your favorite charity, paid for by Trump, if you take the test and it shows you're an Indian


1 in 32 does not make you 'an Indian'. Same for claiming to be any specific demographic. True, the stipulations weren't specific, but that works both ways. Common sense says she's not Native American, science says she's not, and while Trump might indeed be excessively confident enough to claim someone has zero Native American DNA, he didn't in this case. Her best case 1 in 32 (and even this does not distinguish between North and South America) is only 2 generations closer than the average US citizen (estimates are at least 1%), and her worst case is more than 3 generations further. If she's 'an Indian' then so is pretty much everyone.
Does someone have the DNA paper?
anyway, 1/64 or 1/1024 is kind of a ridiculously small number to be claiming you are that race.
I mean, it's not like Obama could have claimed to be white, despite having at least 30-50% white DNA.
Original post by akbar0123
Trump said that if the dna test shows Native American ancestry he would give money to the charity of her choice. The dna test shows that she does indeed have Native American dna and yet he hasn’t donated. He’s either greedy, egotistic to the extent that he will not admit defeat or can’t afford to pay. I reckon it’s the first two. Trump never said that the tests had to show full Native American ancestry.


She is 1/1024th Indian.

So he should really write a cheque for $976
Original post by ThomH97
Her best case 1 in 32 (and even this does not distinguish between North and South America)


Her best case is 1/64th and her worst is 1/1024th.

She actually more latin than indian :laugh:
Original post by S-man10
Her best case is 1/64th and her worst is 1/1024th.

She actually more latin than indian :laugh:


1.6-0.098% Native American

White people (and all non-African people) have around 3% Neanderthal DNA.
Original post by AngeryPenguin
1.6-0.098% Native American

White people (and all non-African people) have around 3% Neanderthal DNA.


You should check the correction on the boston globe story :laugh:

So, am I black if I claim to be black if race is a social construct. Could I do that if I am white?
Reply 15
Original post by AngeryPenguin
1.6-0.098% Native American

White people (and all non-African people) have around 3% Neanderthal DNA.


We really must remember to use that fact to claim victim status at some point. Hybridised Neanderthal Lives Matter too!
Original post by Dez
Americans sure do love their identity politics. Why should it matter who her ancestors were anyway? Trump's actions are pathetic and his opposition should not have risen to the bait.


Allow me to sum up this story and the ensuing national “discourse”:

Elizabeth Warren, once: there are stories in my family history about some Native American heritage from five generations ago. It’s common for the area.

Alt-right eejits: yeah right, “Pocahontas”! Haw haw! More liberal lies!

gets actual DNA testing that proves her precisely right

Alt-right eejits again: yeah but it’s not very much! And why do you keep bringing it up anyway? Is it because we keep smearing and trolling you about it? Identity politics! Lies! Deep state!
She didn't say that either of her parents were full Native American. She said that 2 of her ancestors fell in love but couldn't marry. Warren believed that she was 6th or 7th generation Native American, and the test proves that this is likely true.

Trump should pay up to charity, but he probably isn't as rich as he claims to be. Also, when will those tax returns be released?
Original post by AngeryPenguin
Allow me to sum up this story and the ensuing national “discourse”:

Elizabeth Warren, once: there are stories in my family history about some Native American heritage from five generations ago. It’s common for the area.

Alt-right eejits: yeah right, “Pocahontas”! Haw haw! More liberal lies!

gets actual DNA testing that proves her precisely right

Alt-right eejits again: yeah but it’s not very much! And why do you keep bringing it up anyway? Is it because we keep smearing and trolling you about it? Identity politics! Lies! Deep state!


You should see the video below and make a correction. Yes it is a lie. Thanks.

The average american is more native indian than elizabeth warren. Just because my friend claims he had a great-great-great-great-great grand parent that was brown, does not make him someone of brown heritage. He is still white. DNA test could reveal something about me being native indian. I wouldn't call myself one.

Would you like me to give you the statement from the cherokee tribe that has rejected her claims? Actual people of colour who say she isn't who she claims to be?

Original post by Eunomia
She didn't say that either of her parents were full Native American. She said that 2 of her ancestors fell in love but couldn't marry. Warren believed that she was 6th or 7th generation Native American, and the test proves that this is likely true.

Trump should pay up to charity, but he probably isn't as rich as he claims to be. Also, when will those tax returns be released?


Here is elizabeth warren claiming her mother was part-cherokee. It wasn't her ancestor, it was her mother. Surely if her own mother was part cherokee, the DNA test would be stronger. Instead shes whiter than snow. Even the cherokee tribe rejected her. Would you like me to show you their statement?

If my ancestor was middle eastern, would that allow me to list myself or label myself as middle eastern? Absolutely not.

Trump should pay 1/1024th of a million. Thats a fair deal.

[video="youtube;SLI3SU33tIc"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLI3SU33tIc&feature=youtu.be[/video]
I guess she won at this particular edition of the oppression olympics.

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