Is it just me or is the "Book of Mormon Stories" song a bit racist? It seems like it was written in a similar fashion to the Disney Peter Pan song "What Makes the Red Man Red".

I hear it and I want to sing "Polly-wally-Dum-Dum after every line.

For example:
Book of mormon stories that my teacher tells to me (Polly-wally-dum-dum)

Of course, the Laminates never really existed. However, this wonderfully racist piece of mormon songwriting justifies manifest destiny because the Laminates were simply not righteous enough to keep their land...."See! It is totally fair that they were decimated with diseases and killed off in wars with the white Americans! They didn't believe in Jesus so they deserved what happened! "

I'm sure the mormons have a similar view for the exmos...they are at the edge of their seats waiting for bad things to happen to us as well.

Do they still sing this song in primary? Why not follow up with a rousing chorus of "Zippidy-doo-da" as well?

The Native American Indians represent the Lamanites in Mormon teachings. So though the first didn't actually exist and are the product of folklore, Mormons view the Indians as having the curse next to Cain with their dark and loathsome skin, as an inferior race to the whiteys the Nephites. It is completely racist as the LDS teachings before 1978. The racism goes to the heart of some of the core doctrine on par with white manifest destiny of Smith's and Young's belief system.

That song we sang in Primary was an expression of their teachings.

The boys really loved singing it. I remember they could belt it out with gusto. It was modeled after an Indian tribal song.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/31/2015 08:02AM by amyjo.

"It was modeled after an Indian tribal song."

Since the Lamanites are Jews, shouldn't the song have been modeled after something Jewish? Say, something from "Fiddler On The Roof?" I can hear it now: "If I were a red man...diedel deedle deedle..."

Sounds like another BOM musical needs writing!!!

Randyj.... Fiddler on the Roof... I love it. dee dee deedule....

It fits !!!!!!!!It's so relevant.

+10000

No, it is not racist at all. Mormons don't teach racism or behave with any offense toward others.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WqeT_w4gGc

The music from the video sounds like 311..? Cool video!

That's what I thought too.

The rub from the song presuming you stuck around to read the lessons was that the Lamanites were wicked and cursed with the dark skin. The Nephites were the blessed and fair race because they followed Jehovah.

Which is all a crock, and a farce in the first place.

The song was first published in 1969. And a primary song. While the song itself does not sing about racism, and is contrary to church teachings on the origins of ancient Indians in the Americas, the Book of Mormon is very much into racist teachings and trumps anything the song purports to convey.

I consider the song to be a post cultural Revolution Era doctrinal brainwashing technique used on our young minds at that time to indoctrinate us into buying the church gospel wholesale. We were of tender age, and easily impressionable. So too were the songs they composed to appeal to youthful minds. The fact it's still used in church songbooks goes to its wide appeal, and artificial pinings.

I taught nursery class along with a Somoan/Hawaiian woman who loved to sing the song with the children. I couldn't stand the racist chant, hand motions, and stereotypical 'native' melody. This woman imagined (and still does imagine) that she was the most progressive, liberal-minded member of the church. She is hardcore democrat/liberal and supports radical Hawaiian independence movements, but somehow she couldn't see how racist the song was. Ironically, she also occasionally teaches cultural anthropology at a certain very small church school, but can't seem to see the endemic racism and xenophobia in her own church. Bizarre.

I heard a version once that started off with -

"Anti-Mormon stories that the ex-mo's told to meeeeeeeee. All about how Joseph Smith committed adulteryyyyy."

I don't remember the rest.

I live near two Indian reservations.

I can still remember a lot of sacrament talks and testimonies in the '80's where people would frequently use the term "drunken lamanite"

Perhaps they still do. I have not been in a mormon church for over 30 years.

praydude wrote:

Is it just me or is the "Book of Mormon Stories" song a bit racist? It seems like it was written in a similar fashion to the Disney Peter Pan song "What Makes the Red Man Red".
++++++++

No, praydude, it's not just you. That song has always sounded like Americans of the 20th century imagine "Indian" music sounds. And in my church music days, the kids shouted it out 20th as much gust as they sang "Popcorn Popping...."

Does anyone know if it's still sung? I've wanted to know!

You know why that crap's in the Book of Mormon?

It's not because Joseph Smith hated Indians. In fact, he thought they were his ticket to the big time. Their presence would guarantee the success of his religious/economic, political, and ultimately sexual empire.

The wicked, accursed Lamanites were included as a threat to the white Gentiles, pure and simple. They were the enforcers, much like Satan is the enforcer in today's church.

There is a new movie channel on cable (Comcast) that plays nothing but old westerns. My wife loves old westerns and we have been watching them for the past few days. We are always cringing when the big star (John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart) try to talk to "the Red Man" and they speak in this broken English that ALL the Native Americans speak..."How! Our wagon broken...you help?" The whole time the orchestra plays music that sounds like book of mormon stories. I swear this song is ripped off from these old westerns.

These old westerns are cringe-worthy BUT the BOM stories song is WORSE!! The song's message is that the Native Americans DESERVED it! They had to die and lose everything because they didn't live righteously. So...not only does the song have the stereotypical "Injun" melody it's message is that they deserved what they got.

To me this song is such a groaner. Wow.

Perhaps I'm even more embarrassed that I used to sing this song with such gusto.

I guess it shows how much I have changed over the years.

You're right praydude. That's the key. Some here remark how "non-racist" it is on its face. And yet it smacks of racism for even singling out the red skins as needing to clean up their act or they'd lose it all.

By the time the song had been written in '69, the Indian foster placement program was still going strong in the LDS region where I lived. And these foster kids, as their families, were getting indoctrinated with this crap like we were.

They were already stripped down to the reservations. Mostly living in poverty, and many without any formal education. Yeah, so they deserved what they got, in 1969 and thereafter? They got the shaft! The ones who have broken out from the reservations and made it or gone back to their reservations to lift up their people out of poverty - hasn't been because of what Mormonism has done for them. Or white America.

As if this wasn't bad enough, I looked through a downloaded Children's Hymns tonight. There was this one, new to me. It’s sung to the tune of "Ten Little Indians," and it indicates that right at the bottom of the page.

"The Books in the Book of Mormon"

(Brightly)

1.First and second books of Nephi,
Jacob, Enos, Jarom, Omni,
Words of Mormon, and Mosiah
In the Book of Mormon.

2.Alma, Helaman, Third, Fourth Nephi,
Mormon, Ether, and Moroni;
Learn the teachings of the prophets
In the Book of Mormon.

Words: Daphne Matthews, b. 1917; adapted. © 1978 IRI.
Music: “Ten Little Indians”; adapted.
2 Nephi 4:15
Articles of Faith 1:8

Singing the names of the books of the BOM is not racist, no matter what the tune is.

To Come on,

I'm sorry I put the lyrics in my post. I don't want anyone to be offended by my actions here. If you want, I'll take them out.

wondercat

The person who wrote that song is my step-grandmother. I am not proud.