Photo credit: Aly McKnight
There is a common myth among non-natives in the US and Canada that indigenous peoples do not pay taxes. Whether it’s sales tax, federal income tax, or even the cheerfully nicknamed “death tax” tax, it seems some people feel that the Aborigines are exempt from everything.
Not so. As a registered member of the Muscogee (Creek) and Cherokee tribes, I can assure you that Uncle Sam has my rent-free bank account number on his mind. And I’m on the hook for everything – federal, state, sales, property – whatever.
While the details of this assumption can get complicated (i.e., natives living on reservations do not pay U.S. state income tax like Texans, while natives living off the reservation do), the underlying implication of this myth is that natives do not pay theirs To pay “fair share” which is quite offensive and inaccurate given our history.
To add insult to injury, native women in the United States could argue that they are the ones who are not getting their fair share. Data shows they make about 60 cents for every dollar a non-Hispanic white male makes each year. That’s even less than the entire gender pay gap, which is 82 cents per dollar.
In fact, September 8, 2021 has been made Native American Equal Pay Day because today represents the number of days through 2021 it would take a Native American woman to earn what a non-Hispanic white male alone could earn In 2020.
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That’s right – more than a full year and eight months. As US Department of the Interior Senator Deb Haaland (Pueblo of Laguna) wrote, “It’s a statistic that impacts so many other issues, including access to health care, education, vocational training, and childcare.”
Because less money in the bank means less money for the essentials, let alone for the extras.
This is also not a problem reserved only for local women. The female BIPOC communities, including Black and Latinx, are no strangers to their own wage differentials, and many experts offer tips on how to negotiate salaries.
The story goes on
And although more local women are aspiring to higher education, unfortunately, according to the National Women’s Law Center, the biggest gaps can be seen on undergraduate and graduate degrees.
“Native women typically have to earn a master’s degree before they can earn more than white, non-Hispanic men with just an associate’s degree ($ 56,000 and $ 53,842, respectively),” the organization reports.
That adds up over the course of an income taxable career.
Show receipts
Indigenous women recently went to TikTok to share their feelings about indigenous people’s stereotypes about money. And these feelings are great.
TikToker Lily (Diné), aka @sheshortnbrown, jumped on the “questions I asked” trend by sharing some of the comments she says she is tired of hearing as a local woman – a Essence, “must be nice not to pay taxes. ”
“No, I do,” she replies. “[D]oh your favorite billionaires pay them? “
Shots fired.
It’s a fair point. Look at how many non-native multibillionaires – with a “b” – on this list dodged the income tax hike.
Another TikToker, @ sherry.mckay (Anishinaabe), shares how the myth is spreading to our First Nations families in Canada.
While showing off literal receipts, McKay shares how much sales tax she has paid.
“Stop saying that tribal peoples don’t pay taxes,” she says.
Meanwhile, Patricia Raylynn (Salish and Pend d’Oreille) shakes her head at the numerous indigenous stereotypes that are thrown in her path, including one asking if she can get free money from the government.
While there are so many myths trying to undermine indigenous communities, those that imply an undeserved financial gain are particularly insidious.
After all, if you lose an average of $ 977,720 over the course of a 40-year career, it will be rich to be accused of buying short the government that colonized your tribe.
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If you enjoyed reading this article, check out In The Know’s story about the financial expert who gives tips for women of color to bargain for more money.
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The post of Native American women shattering myths about money first appeared on In The Know.
