History Main / CryingIndian

[[folder:Film]]

[[folder:Live Action Television]]
* In one ''Series/{{Friends}}'' episode, the characters are stranded at a rest stop. Chandler throws his empty pack of cigarettes on the ground. When scolded, he replies, "I thought maybe if I littered, that crying Indian might come along and save us."
* From ''[[Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000 MST3K]]'''s infamous take on ''Film/{{Mitchell}}'', there is a scene where Mitchell dumps what seems to be two ashtrays worth of cigarette butts on the ground.
-->'''Crow:''' Somewhere, an Indian is crying.

[[folder: Western Animation]]
* In the ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' episode [[Recap/FuturamaS3E10WhereTheBuggaloRoam "Where the Buggalo Roam"]], which takes place on Mars, there is a scene where Zapp throws an empty Slurm can on the ground and one of the Martians ([[SpaceJews who are portrayed as stereotypical Native Americans]]) sheds a tear. Leela sees this and notes "they have so much respect for the land", but it's immediately subverted when the Martian picks up the can and says sadly: "[[TheLostLenore Cynthia used to drink Slurm."]]
* Parodied in the ''WesternAnimation/{{ParadisePD}}'' episode "Parent Trap". Dusty, who believes he's part Native American after taking a DNA test, takes a Thanksgiving Day parade hostage (in full [[BraidsBeadsAndBuckskins traditional garb]]). After being arrested by Gina, a passerby tosses a [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodSandwich cheeseburger with a single bite taken from it]] at his feet. A [[SingleTear single tear]] rolls down Dusty's face before he blubbers out, "I could have eaten the rest of that cheeseburger."

(''the camera pans over to the landfill in Springfield's previous location, the first Native American screams'')\\

[[/folder]]

-->"''The smokestack spitting black soot into the sooty sky / The load

* Parodied on ''WesternAnimation/{{TheSimpsons}}'' after Homer's stint as Sanitation Commissioner fails miserably. After bankrupting the Sanitation Department with things like concierge garbagemen, fancy uniforms for them (complete with epaulettes), and shiny new garbage trucks, and the garbagemen threatening a strike, Homer offers a deal with nearby towns (like Shelbyville) to dump their trash in Springfield. This works for a while, until the combination of Springfield's trash and everyone else's trash ends up spewing out of sewers and sinkholes, and turns the town into a landfill. The "solution" to ''this'' problem is to jack up all the buildings in town and move them a few miles away. A Native American sees the trash left behind and sheds a tear. His companion warns him not to turn around, but he does anyway, and screams in horror.

* Parodied on ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' after Homer's stint as Sanitation Commissioner fails miserably. After bankrupting the Sanitation Department with things like concierge garbagemen, fancy uniforms for them (complete with epaulettes), and shiny new garbage trucks, and the garbagemen threatening a strike, Homer offers a deal with nearby towns (like Shelbyville) to dump their trash in Springfield. This works for a while, until the combination of Springfield's trash and everyone else's trash ends up spewing out of sewers and sinkholes, and turns the town into a landfill. The "solution" to ''this'' problem is to jack up all the buildings in town and move them a few miles away. A Native American sees the trash left behind and sheds a tear. His companion warns him not to turn around, but he does anyway, and screams in horror.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' episode [[Recap/FuturamaS3E10WhereTheBuggaloRoam "Where the Buggalo Roam"]], which takes place on Mars, there is a scene where Zapp throws an empty Slurm can on the ground and one of the Martians ([[SpaceJews who are portrayed as stereotypical Native Americans]]) sheds a tear. Subverted since the Martian cries not because of the litter, but because "[[TheLostLenore Cynthia used to drink Slurm."]]

* In the ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' episode [[Recap/FuturamaS3E10WhereTheBuggaloRoam "Where the Buggalo Roam"]], there is a scene where Zapp throws an empty Slurm can on the ground and one of the Martians ([[SpaceJews who are portrayed as stereotypical Native Americans]]) sheds a tear. Subverted since the Martian cries not because of the litter, but because "[[TheLostLenore Cynthia used to drink Slurm."]]

[[folder Western Animation]]

-->"''The smokestack spitting black soot into the sooty sky / The load

->''"Somewhere, an Indian is crying."''

-->"''The smokestack spitting black soot into the sooty sky / The load on the road brings a tear to the Indian's eye''"
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Stand-Up Comedy]]
* Creator/DaveChappelle recounts the story of his meeting with an American Indian man. Dave then proceeded to invoke this trope in order to prove he was who he said he was.
-->"Are you an Indian?" "Yes. Yes, I am Indian." But I still didn't believe him. I had to test him to be sure, this is fucked up, but I had a gum wrapper in my pocket. So, I balled that shit up, and threw it on the floor. ...And a SingleTear came out his eye, I said, "Oh, shit!"
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
* In ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'', there's a taunka (imagine an anthropomorphic bison) in a village in the Borean Tundra named Iron Eyes. His quest text includes describing a "single tear" running down his face. The quest he gives? Cleaning up the debris gnomes have left scattered around the geyser fields.
* In ''VideoGame/StrongBadsCoolGameForAttractivePeople Episode 3: Baddest of the Bands'', Strong Bad gets to shed a single tear at the sight of a pond full of dead fish. (Of course, this being [[JerkAss Strong Bad]], he's the perpetrator of the incident.)
** "Oh, [[SandInMyEyes must've got bleach in my eye]]."
* Creator/TelltaleGames have done this before, in ''VideoGame/SamAndMaxFreelancePolice'':
-->'''Pedro:''' Hey! You can't throw garbage into the time vortex!\\
'''Max:''' Yeah, Sam! Somewhere a time-travelling Native American is crying.
* ''VideoGame/SouthParkTheStickOfTruth'' uses it as a profanity filter in the Australian release where censorship had them replace several scenes with a text window describing the offensive material in graphic detail next to a picture of a crying koala.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Webcomics]]
* ''Webcomic/BobAndGeorge''. Megaman throws away a projectile, and Tomahawk Man sheds a single tear. Then Tomahawk Man goes to pick it up, and it turns out to be the one weapon he's weak against, so it kills him.
** Interestingly enough, WordOfGod says the original plan was to have the camera cut back to Megaman after Tomahawk shed the tear, but not explicitly showing his defeat might've created plotholes later. (Given that the second game parody had a Robot Master return after his death ''wasn't'' shown on-camera, and fans had taken to assuming HesJustHiding in cases where a death was not explicitly shown, this was probably a wise move.)
* Used in an [[http://thisishistorictimes.com/2010/02/bus-route-of-tears/ editorial cartoon]] by Terrence Nowicki Jr., crying at a littered Tea Party flyer with [[RougeAnglesOfSatin "ITS ARE COUNTRY - AN WE WANT IT BACK"]] on it.
* [[http://www.youdamnkid.com/d/20040929.html Referred to]] in ''Webcomic/YouDamnKid''.
* ''Webcomic/TheNonAdventuresOfWonderella'': [[http://nonadventures.com/2008/11/15/diamonds-are-whatever/ "Diamonds are WHATEVER."]] Wonderella defeats some villains by causing their KillSat to "harmlessly" fire into the ocean. She declares the day is saved. The final panel shows all the ocean creatures--killed by the laser--washing ashore. In the foreground, an Indian sheds a single tear.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Original]]
* WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic sheds a tear when he watches ''WesternAnimation/TomAndJerry'' singing and dancing about how they are best friends in TheMovie.
* Parodied by the WCW fansite ''DDT Digest'' - rather then star ratings, bad matches were rated in crying Indians. The later years of the federation saw a lot of crying Indians in the recap.
* Somebody in the ''Franchise/HarryPotter'' fandom compared the "Harmonians" to the Trail of Tears, so someone on [=FandomWank=] made an icon of the crying Indian looking at Ron/Hermione.
* The WebAnimation/ZeroPunctuation review of ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}}'' has a visual sting of a deer crying when he talks about the landscape being littered with gravel.
* The Earth Day special of ''[[Creator/MarvelComics Marvel Super Heroes]]-What The?!'' has ComicBook/BlackPanther shed a tear after the wind blows a candy wrapper into [[{{Comicbook/PetAvengers}} Zabu]]'s face.
* Referenced in the Website/{{Cracked}} article [[http://www.cracked.com/article_17501_5-celebrity-careers-launched-by-ethnic-makeovers_p2.html 5 Celebrity Careers Launched By Ethnic Makeovers,]] which points out that "Iron Eyes Cody" who famously played the crying Indian wasn't even native american in the slightest.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* Directly parodied in the 200th episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', "Trash of the Titans," in which, as Springfield moves five miles away to a new location, a Duff beer can is discarded at the foot of an Indian. The Indian stares at the litter, then at the camera, and sheds a tear. Another Indian comes up from behind him and warns, "Do yourself a favor: Don't turn around." The camera pans to Springfield's former location, [[TrashOfTheTitans now covered with all the trash Homer buried underground.]] The first Indian screams, and the second one lectures, "I ''told'' you not to turn around."
* ''WesternAnimation/TheCritic'': When Duke tries to make "Savvy Indian Chewing Tobacco" a sponsor, complete with an Indian on the set, Jay rips up his contract and throws the pieces at the Indian's feet, making him shed a tear.
* Subverted in ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}''. A native Martian sheds a tear at a can of Slurm which was carelessly discarded by [[FakeUltimateHero Zapp Branigan]]. Leela thinks the native Martian is crying over how wasteful Zapp is; turns out he's crying because someone he knew named Cynthia used to drink Slurm.
* Ceviche from ''WesternAnimation/{{Chowder}}'' has done this multiple times. While these were most likely not a direct parody, it's still worth mentioning.
* Parodied in ''WesternAnimation/MoralOrel'' with the mascot of Diorama Elementary. The mascot is called "The Vanishing American" and is a stereotypical Indian chief with a teardrop painted on his cheek.
* In a {{flashback}} to the Arizona episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'', Elisa's grandfather sheds a single tear when his son (Elisa's father) leaves the tribe to go to New York.
* ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'': In "The Arrow Head", Bill cries a single tear when comparing the government taking Hank's land to the government taking the Indians' land. [[HypocriticalHumor Right before he finishes his beer can and tosses it to the ground]].
* Parodied in a ''WesternAnimation/HarveyBirdmanAttorneyAtLaw'' episode by [[WesternAnimation/{{Superfriends}} Apache Chief]].
* In the ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb'' episode "Isabella and the Temple of Sap", a hippie guru sheds a single tear as he relates how the maraca-nut trees the Fireside Girls are looking for were harvested to the brink of extinction.
* Parodied in the ''WesternAnimation/PepperAnn'' episode "Dances With Ignorance," in order to show Pepper's [[{{Stereotype}} cluelessness]] about that part of her own heritage.
* In a ''WesternAnimation/PinkyAndTheBrain'' episode where they try to pass themselves off as an endangered species, a propaganda ad is shown with Brain looking over the city of Pittsburgh and shedding a tear.
[[/folder]]

----

* ''VideoGame/SouthParkTheStickOfTruth'' uses it as a profanity filter in the Australian release where censorship had them replace several scenes with a text window describing the offensive material in graphic etail next to a picture of a crying koala.

* Somebody in the ''Franchise/HarryPotter'' fandom compared the "Harmonians" to the Trail of Tears, so someone on FandomWank made an icon of the crying Indian looking at Ron/Hermione.

* VideoGame/SouthParkTheStickOfTruth uses it as a ProfanityFilter in the Australian release where censorship had them replace several scenes with a text window describing the offensive material in graphic etail next to a picture of a crying koala.

* ''Webcomic/TheNonAdventuresOfWonderella'': [[http://nonadventures.com/2008/11/15/diamonds-are-whatever/ "Diamonds are WHATEVER"]]. Wonderella defeats some villains by causing their KillSat to "harmlessly" fire into the ocean. She declares the day is saved. The final panel shows all the ocean creatures--killed by the laser--washing ashore. In the foreground, an Indian sheds a single tear.

* Referenced in the Website/{{Cracked}} article [[http://www.cracked.com/article_17501_5-celebrity-careers-launched-by-ethnic-makeovers_p2.html 5 Celebrity Careers Launched By Ethnic Makeovers]], which points out that "Iron Eyes Cody" who famously played the crying Indian wasn't even native american in the slightest.

* In ''Film/WaynesWorld2'', Jim Morrison's Naked Indian Friend sheds tears on seeing the scattered trash left over from Waynestock. He cheers up, though, when he sees Wayne and Garth picking up the mess.

* Also parodied by VH-1 during an ad for a [[TheSeventies 1970's tribute week]] several years ago, with the Indian played by [[GoodTimes Jimmie Walker]].

* Mocked in ''Series/MarriedWithChildren''. Al wants nothing to do with a Keep Chicago Green movement until he realizes that he's been put in a car pool with some beautiful young girls. Now he wants to make sure that keeps up, so he makes Keep Chicago Green commercials. At the end of one, he takes a fake tear out of his pocket and sticks it on his cheek

* The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ENHYYdtdU0 crying Steelers fan]] would like you to keep {{Pittsburgh}} clean.

* In ''VideoGame/StrongBadsCoolGameForAttractivePeople Episode 3: Baddest of the Bands'', Strong Bad gets to shed a single tear at the sight of a pond full of dead fish. (Of course, this being Strong Bad, he's the perpetrator of the incident.)

* Parodied in a ''WesternAnimation/HarveyBirdmanAttorneyAtLaw'' episode by Apache Chief.

* The live-action film version of DudleyDoright references the weird career of Iron Eyes Cody, the Sicilian-American "Indian" who appeared in the commercial. In the movie, there is an entire "rarely-studied tribe of South Brooklyn Indians, the Canarsie Kumquats". They are quite obviously Italian-Americans pretending to be a Canadian First Nations tribe.

* The Earth Day special of ''[[MarvelComics Marvel Super Heroes]]-What The?!'' has ComicBook/BlackPanther shed a tear after the wind blows a candy wrapper into [[{{Comicbook/PetAvengers}} Zabu]]'s face.

* In ''WaynesWorld 2'', Jim Morrison's Naked Indian Friend sheds tears on seeing the scattered trash left over from Waynestock. He cheers up, though, when he sees Wayne and Garth picking up the mess.

-->''Somewhere, an Indian is crying.''