It all went down in February 2012, or so they say. One Native tweeter told another to eat more fish heads, and pretty soon a contest erupted to see who could be the most Native. Or, if not the “Nativest,” at least “Nativer than you.” Hundreds, perhaps even thousands of #NativerThanYou tweets were sent, and the hashtag became a “trending topic” over a three-day period. We’re greatly indebted to the website NativerThanYou.wordpress.com for archiving the tweets and the origin story. We’ve preserved Twitter handles of the authors when known.
10 Ways I’m #NativerThanYou
10. I coached Jim Thorpe when he was on my rez peewee football team. #NativerThanYou
9. There’s a moose nose in my freezer. #NativerThanYou — @LisaMuswagon
8. I have to stand on top of my grandma’s sheep corral to get a signal on my cell phone. #NativerThanYou — @dvnpete
7. I opened a social studies textbook and saw a picture of my grandmother. #NativerThanYou
6. I vote at every tribal election for the candidate with the best free mutton stew. #NativerThanYou — @nativephotog
I will only use deodorant that matches my clan. NativerThanYou — m_melody
5. I use bear grease and maple syrup in all my sexual activities. #NativerThanYou — @the1491s
4. Buffalos want to use MY skull in their ceremonies. #NativerThanYou — @deejayndn
3. I know what a smack on the ass with a wet moccasin feels like. I was raised right. #NativerThanYou — @RMComedy
2. My pet dog is a wolf. #NativerThanYou
1. Keith Secola wrote a song about my car. #NativerThanYou — @Ostwelve
I will only use deodorant that matches my clan. NativerThanYou — m_melody