Nadine Dragan

IA 160
Winterim 2019
Position Paper
18 January 2019
The Portal Case
After reading this case article I learned about how much of a problem Native Americans
have towards the outside world. This case took place in Santa Fe, New Mexico; it was about the
museum and traditional Portal market of Indians. The museum's role is to stimulate and protect
authentic Indian crafts. This traditional Portal market of Native Americans is an important tourist
attraction; and the Portal policy is cultural, not racial discrimination. This particular case had
many lawsuits and appeals to the Human Rights Commission. It was filed by Paul and Sara
Livingston against the director of the Museum of New Mexico, George Ewing. They were
claiming that their constitutional rights were being violated, and the policy of the Museum of
New Mexico prohibits sales of arts and crafts of non-Indians. Saying that this violates the Human
Rights Act of New Mexico by discriminating against the excluded individuals based on race,
ancestry, or color. I take George Ewing and the Museum of New Mexico’s side because of the
history behind the traditional Portal market, the livelihood of local Native Americans of that area
in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and the cultural aspects that attract visitors and tourism to this local
area. Also, I will mention what I would do if I were mayor of Santa Fe. The Portal case was won
because of a technicality designed to assist the independent economic survival of Native
Americans.
It is appropriate to side with the Native Americans because of destinations like the
traditional Portal market attracts people from all backgrounds and when they come to visit.
Typically, they want to see a genuine representation of what the arts and crafts of true Native
Americans are and what each of those things mean to them as a people and culture throughout
history. The non-Indians at this place with their non-genuine Native American arts and crafts
wouldn't give the same experience or impression to visitors. I understand why people can get
offended and think that it is discrimination, but why would someone want to “pretend” they are
someone they aren’t? I think that is offensive and misrepresentation of that particular group. If I
was visiting this area for the first time and I had an interest in the Portal market, I would be

1
disappointed if there were non-Indian people acting as though they were Native Americans. It’s
almost like false advertising because that’s not how this traditional Portal market should be, not
letting marketers hook the consumer in and mislead them to think this is what they wanted.
From the pottery to the beading, to the baskets or the turquoise, this is a livelihood of
many Native Americans of the Santa Fe area. It is one part of the rich Native American culture
and society. They take pride in their work to create these intricate beading methods because they
have been doing this for many centuries. Since they have been creating this for many years, they
know the original way to create these genuine pieces of arts and crafts. This traditional Portal
market cannot be selling ingenuine Indian arts and crafts because that is what this destination is
known for and what attracts tourists to Santa Fe year after year.
For this particular story, the true authentic feeling that the Portal has in Santa Fe has
Native Americans present. That is the genuine feeling and creates that authentic ambiance for
tourists and people visiting the Portal. Some of the cultural traditions are their genuine arts and
crafts since they have passed them down from generation to generation. This makes their arts and
crafts valuable and it represents their livelihood. This makes it traditional by how culturally
significant these arts and crafts have been involved in their life and what it stands for in their
culture. Culture and history play key roles in this story because of how relevant it is to many of
today’s issues with many other cultural groups across the United States. This related to cultural
appropriation, cultural transmission, and cultural landscape. Specifically, this story’s history
plays a key role because it is a historical place and should have what the visitors and tourists
want to see and experience the Native Americans in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
A predominant concept I remember learning about is culture periphery. They are the
aspects of a culture that can be easily changed. It could be language, clothes, food, etc. It can
depict what is “loose” enough to change. Meaning these various elements are transformed, added
or subtracted, to adapt to the new environment. They do not represent the cultural identity;
however, they do indicate what is not very important in a group’s culture, by allowing such
changes. For example, in the Portal case, the Native Americans from Santa Fe have evolved over
time especially for this particular case. Some Native Americans have changed their way of life
completely, losing their language, traditional clothing, and food. But with culture periphery, they

2
are still able to keep their traditional culture and loosen it with the surrounding cultures. Like in
the Portal case, Native Americans work at the Portal market and sell their arts and crafts to
represent their livelihood, but they still have outside influences like the visitors and tourists that
come to the Portal and museum in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
If I were the new mayor of Santa Fe, I would promote more inclusivity between the
different cultural groups. Each of the groups could come together and through time they will
have a better understanding and become more knowledgeable about how each of their
livelihoods is different and similar in some sort of way. Being perceptive about other cultures
within Santa Fe will be the main concept I would focus on. In addition, I would promote more
cultural festivals in the city because that will attract people from similar and different cultures to
experience the ways of life other people live in Santa Fe. If the different cultures become more
comfortable with each other, then they will have more mutual respect for one another and an
understanding of their way of life. Also, being able to create that sort of relationship between
different cultures will have a positive impact on the community and the visitors as well. That
mutual friendship with each culture will pass through many new and upcoming generations.
Respect will be established because various cultures coming together in the multi-cultural city of
Santa Fe.
What I took away from this Portal case was how you brought up how the historical
significance matters a lot to Native Americans because it was once theirs and they should be able
to showcase their work and sell their products. This museum represents their culture and
traditions that have been passed down from generation to generation. In addition, having a
person of a different cultural background sell their goods next to the Indians they would be lying
to the tourists. Misleading people into thinking they are purchasing something genuine and it
turns out to be fallacious; that isn't something the tourists or visitors want when they go to the
Portal market. In the future, I believe that this sort of case will repeat again because there are still
many people who discriminate towards many cultural groups or beliefs to this day and it will
probably never go away.
Works Cited:
Evans-Pritchard, Deirdre. ​“The Portal Case: Authenticity, Tourism, Traditions, and the Law”.
Journal of American Folklore Society. 1987