Meskipun terdampak secara tidak proporsional oleh COVID-19 dan merupakan salah satu populasi etnis terkecil di AS, penduduk asli Amerika telah membuat beberapa kemajuan yang signifikan tahun ini dalam meningkatkan suara mereka di media, kebijakan publik, dan komunitas mereka.
Bulan ini, saat kita merayakan Warisan Penduduk Asli Amerika dan kontribusi yang terus berlanjut dari penduduk asli Amerika dan penduduk asli Alaska, kita melihat beberapa tempat di mana penduduk asli Amerika memberikan pengaruh yang lebih besar, apa yang mereka pedulikan, dan bagaimana para pemasar dapat terhubung dengan lebih baik dengan populasi ini.
Politically active and well-informed, younger Native Americans ages 18-34 increased their news consumption in 2020 by 41% compared to last year. Using smartphones and social media, they harnessed the power of hashtags like #ChangeTheName, #NativeTikTok, #MMIW and #SomethingElse to advocate for greater visibility of their diverse cultures and accurate portrayals in media. Activists like 30-year-old Allie Young helped bring indigenous Navajo people to polls in record numbers with her โRide to the Pollsโ initiative. As a result, six indigenous people will be joining Congress next term. And where indigenous people have a stronger-than-average influence, such as in Arizona, they had the power to sway the electoral vote.
โThis rise in indigenous peopleโs political power and presence in the media is important for marketers and other non-politicians to tune into. The conversation around racial injustice, which kicked off with George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, has expanded to other ethnic groups like Native Americans who have also long faced discrimination and other injustices. Companies, brands, and politicians alike will continue to be called upon to take action,โ said Charlene Polite Corley, VP of Diverse Insights & Partnerships at Nielsen Media. โIn future elections, both presidential and local, we can expect to see Native Americans play a larger role in influencing the electorate in much the same way Hispanic, Black and Asian voters have in their communities. The question is, how can media be more inclusive of Native Americans to bring the stories of their communities to the forefront?โ
“The question is, how can media be more inclusive of Native Americans, to bring the stories of their communities to the forefront?โCHARLENE POLITE CORLEY, VP OF DIVERSE INSIGHTS & PARTNERSHIPS AT NIELSEN MEDIA
Saat pemasar meningkatkan pesan mereka selama musim liburan dan mulai merencanakan kampanye tahun 2021, penting untuk mengingat pengaruh penduduk asli Amerika yang terus meningkat, tantangan, dan kekhawatiran utama mereka, seperti perawatan kesehatan dan perubahan iklim. Untungnya, penyertaan budaya asli di media adalah ide yang diterima secara luas. Menurut IllumiNative Reclaiming Native Truth Project (RNT), hampir dua pertiga orang Amerika tertarik untuk mempelajari lebih lanjut tentang budaya asli dan ingin melihat lebih banyak inklusi penduduk asli Amerika dalam hiburan.
