The use of the Aboriginal folklore, including images and dances, by the corporate business or sports world advertising is unethical, even if it is meant to reflect the ethnic nature of the locale on which these businesses are based out of. Additionally, I believe that the indigenous people should also be recognized as the rightful owners of the property and receive financial compensation if they welcome the opportunity to share their intellectual property with corporations and sport teams.

1. Appropriation of indigenous property by corporations
and sport teams
BY MONIKA SOSNOWSKA
November 9, 2010
The use of the Aboriginal folklore, including
images and dances, by the corporate business or
sports world advertising is unethical, even if it is
meant to reflect the ethnic nature of the locale on
which these businesses are based out of.
Additionally, I believe that the indigenous
people should also be recognized as the rightful
owners of the property and receive financial
compensation if they welcome the opportunity to
share their intellectual property with
corporations and sport teams.
According to Dambiec (2005), folklore consists
of dances, artwork, literature and music.
Typically no known author exists to claim
folklore as their own (Saskatoon Public Schools'
Online Learning Centre, online). Providing traditional artwork in a logo of the Bella Coola
corporations and sport teams with access to this Heli Sports Company (online), by the prominent
entity, without the proper consultation from the display of the logo used in all company
rightful owners, may further expose it to those advertisements, online and in print. The
on a quest to yield monetary gain As observed conventional First Nations eagle image in the
by Brown (n.d.) in today’s highly technological logo is offensive to the Aboriginal people of
age, the threat to Aboriginal people does not Bella Coola, who are not accountable for the
necessarily come from deliberate abuse, but company and did not approve the usage of their
from a distribution of their cultural images and traditional artwork. This may also be deceiving
folklore; in some cases accurate and in others to the consumers, who are mislead to believe
completely distorted. that they are supporting the entrepreneurial
efforts of the Aboriginal people in British
An example of exploitation of cultural property Columbia, when in fact the company is actually
in British Columbia is the wrongful use of the owned and operated by a Swedish entrepreneur,
APPROPRIATION OF INDIGENOUS PROPERTY BY CORPORATIONS AND SPORT TEAMS 1

2. Peter Mattsson. The Bella Coola Heli Sports According to BBC (2009), the Maori tribes of
Company blatantly exploits the Aboriginal New Zealand provide a well-known case of
culture, land and people in hopes of attracting intellectual property being used by a team
clientele (First Nations Land Rights, online). without the permission of the rightful owners.
Since no law forbids the use of a particular style The Maori haka war dance was used by the
of art, the First Nations people of Bella Coola Kiwis, the national rugby team, prior to each
are not able to prevent the usage of their major game. The dance, created by chief Te
traditional images. Rauparaha, is the property of the Maori nations.
In spite of that, the haka war dance was
Another example can be found in non-
commercially exploited and televised without
Aboriginal websites in British Columbia. Prior
the tribes’ permission (BBC, 2009). In this case,
to the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics Games,
the team financially prospered while the Maori
the Internet was engulfed with a multitude of
tribe received neither acknowledgement of their
misleading First Nations websites. Eager to
property nor any financial reparation.
encourage big business during the Olympics, the
British Columbia government used images of In another case, the Maori tribes had to
Aboriginal people in advertising and in creation commence legal proceedings against Lego, the
of websites such as First Nations (www.first- Danish toy company, when Lego unlawfully
nations.com), while at the same time the true patented parts of the Maori culture in Bionicle,
account of the government’s past relations with the virtual game available on the Internet (BBC,
the indigenous residents was suppressed (First 2001). The plaintiffs won the litigations against
Nations Land Rights, online). both the Kiwis and Lego; however, these two
incidents clearly demonstrate what can occur
One needs to keep in mind that the traditional
when corporate businesses and sport teams gain
narratives, dances and artwork of indigenous
access to private intellectual property.
people pay homage to all living things, including
ancestors, animals and nature; all believed to be It is my belief that corporations and sport teams
interconnected (PBS, online). The dances can be are able to be inclusive and reflective of the
easily appropriated by sport teams as their ethnic nature of the locale they operate on
ownership is not clearly defined. In turn, the without extorting the indigenous culture. The
teams may incorporate these dances to unify Aboriginal communities should be provided
their fan base and create a “team identity,” with the option of which parts of their culture
where all enthusiasts associate a dance with the are to be shared with the rest of the public and
particular team and not their rightful owners. which parts should remain for the private usage
APPROPRIATION OF INDIGENOUS PROPERTY BY CORPORATIONS AND SPORT TEAMS 2

3. within their community. By supporting the References
Aboriginal people in this quest, we not only Bella Coola Heli Sports Company, Retrieved Septebmer
encourage the further growth of their culture, but 24, 2010, from http://www.bellacoolahelisports.com/
also initiate trust-building process between the Brown, M. (1998). Cultural Records in Question:
Information and Its Moral Dilemmas. Cultural Resource
corporations and the indigenous populace. Most Management National Park Service Vol. 21 (6)
importantly, we lend a hand in preventing the
Dambiec, D. (2005). Indigenous People’s Folklore and
commercial exploitation of the Aboriginal Copyright Law. Media Monitors. Retrieved September 24,
2010, from
culture. http://usa.mediamonitors.net/content/view/full/20295
Disinherited. (n.d.). First Nations: Land Rights and
Environmentalist in British Columbia. Retrieved September
Author Bio 24, 2010, from
http://www.firstnations.eu/indian_land/disinherited.htm
Monika Sosnowska, is a communications
professional specializing in public relations, Lego agrees to stop using Maori names.(2001). BBC.
Retrieved September 24, 2010, from
social media and marketing and the Founder and http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/1627209.stm
President of MSE Communications located in Many Voices. (n.d.). PBS.. Retrieved September 24, 2010,
from http://www.pbs.org/circleofstories/voices/index.html
Vancouver, BC. She is vastly experienced in
corporate development of social media policy New Zealand Maori win haka fight.(2009). BBC. Retrieved
September 24, 2010, from http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-
and media outreach plans that optimize the /2/hi/asia-pacific/7882775.stm
success of marketing campaigns. Ms.
Sosnowska, M. (2009). Untitled image of First Nations art.
Sosnowska studied Communication, Art and
Technology at Capilano University and Simon Using First Nations literature in the classroom. (2004).
Saskatoon Public Schools' Online Learning Centre.
Fraser University with an area of concentration Retrieved September 24, 2010, from
http://olc.spsd.sk.ca/DE/resources/firstnationsliterature/oral
in Political Economy & Policy and Media, tradition.html
Culture & Society. Monika is passionate about
photography and writing, with a primary focus
on social science, culture and urban issues.
APPROPRIATION OF INDIGENOUS PROPERTY BY CORPORATIONS AND SPORT TEAMS 3