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"False Traditions, False Idols" (Part 1 of 3)
Part 2 | Part 3
Hidden Away, Out of Sight and Out of Mind
By Stephanie M. Schwartz,
Freelance Writer
Member, Native American Journalists Association
This is an article of facts about the lives of modern-day American Indians, a topic most mainstream American news organizations will not discuss. It is not a plea for charity. It is not a promotion for non-profit organizations. It is not aimed for pity. It is not even an effort to detail cause and effect. It is, however, an effort to dispel ignorance, a massive, pervasive, societal ignorance filled with illusions and caricatures which, ultimately, serve only to corrupt the intelligence and decent intent of the average mainstream citizen. Only through knowledge and understanding can solutions be found. But facts must be known first. Then, it is the reader's choice what to do with those facts. [More...]
Native Americans had lived throughout the continent for thousands of years before Europeans began exploring the “New World” in the 15th century.
Most scientists agree that the human history of North America began when the ancient ancestors of modern Native Americans made their way across a land bridge that once spanned the Bering Sea and connected northeastern Asia to North America. Scientists believe these people first migrated to the Americas more than 10,000 years ago, before the end of the last ice age. However, some Native Americans believe their ancestors originated in the Americas, citing gaps in the archaeological record and oral accounts of their origins that have been passed down through generations. [Source: MSN Encarta]
The European colonization of the Americas changed the lives and cultures of the Native Americans. In the 15th to 19th century, their populations were ravaged by displacement, disease, warfare with the Europeans, and enslavement.
The first Native American group encountered by Christopher Columbus in 1492, the 250,000 to 1,000,000 Island Arawaks (more properly called the Taino) of Haiti Quisqueya, Cubanacan (Cuba) and Boriquen Puerto Rico, were enslaved. It is said that only 500 survived by the year 1550, and the group was considered extinct before 1650. Yet DNA studies show that the genetic contribution of the Taino to that region continues, and the mitochondrial DNA studies of the Taino are said to show relationships to the Northern Indigenous Nations, such as Inuit (Eskimo) and others.
For more on Native Americans in the United States visit Wikipedia.
Beginning in 1492, Columbus’s voyages to the New World, as Europeans soon called the Americas, initiated the first waves of epidemics for Native Americans. The Taíno (also known as the Island Arawak) and the Island Carib of the Caribbean were the first Native Americans to be nearly exterminated by European contact.
As Spanish conquistadores (conquerors) explored the Americas, Native American communities suffered. In the American Southeast, many large, densely populated Indian villages soon disintegrated following Spanish contact. Their concentrated communities and the humid, temperate climates created ripe and deadly conditions for disease. Scholars estimate that nearly 90 percent of some pre-contact Southeastern populations were gone by 1600. Similar population declines occurred throughout the Northeast, along the St. Lawrence River, and in the mid-Atlantic and coastal regions. In the arid Southwest, Spanish diseases were not as traumatic as elsewhere. But, generally, as Europeans encountered native populations, death and disease ensued. [Source: MSN Encarta]
Spanish conquest and colonization of the Americas began with the arrival in America of Christopher Columbus in 1492. He had been searching for a new route to the Asian Indies and was convinced he had found it. Columbus was made governor of the new territories and made several more journeys across the Atlantic Ocean. He profited from the labor of native slaves, whom he forced to mine gold; he also attempted to sell some slaves to Spain. While generally regarded as an excellent navigator, he was a poor administrator and was stripped of the governorship in 1500.
European diseases (smallpox, influenza, measles and typhus) to which the native populations had no resistance, and cruel systems of forced labor (such as the infamous haciendas and mining industry's mita), decimated the American population. The diseases usually preceded the Spanish invaders, and the resulting population loss (between 30 and 90 percent in some cases) severely weakened the native civilizations' ability to resist the invaders.
After conquering an area, the colonists usually enslaved the native people, using them for forced labor. However disease continued to kill them off in large numbers, and so African slaves, who had already developed immunities to these diseases, were quickly brought in to replace them.
The Spaniards were committed to converting their American subjects to Christianity, often by force, and were quick to purge any native cultural practices that hindered this end. However, most initial attempts at this were only partially successful, as American groups simply blended Catholicism with their traditional beliefs. On the other hand, the Spaniards did not impose their language to the degree they did their religion, and the Catholic Church's evangelization in Quichua, Nahuatl, and Guarani actually contributed to the expansion of these American languages, equipping them with writing systems. Many native artworks were considered pagan idols and destroyed by Spanish explorers. This included the many gold and silver sculptures found in the Americas, which were melted down before transport to Europe. [Source: Wikipedia]
The most controversial question relating to the population history of American indigenous peoples is whether or not the natives of the Americas were the victims of genocide. After the Nazi-perpetrated Holocaust during World War II, genocide was defined (in part) as a crime "committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such." Does genocide apply to the experience of the indigenous peoples of the New World?
Some scholars believe that it does. Historian David Stannard has argued that "The destruction of the Indians of the Americas was, far and away, the most massive act of genocide in the history of the world." Like Ward Churchill, Stannard believes that the natives of the Americas were deliberately and systematically exterminated over the course of several centuries, and that the process continues to the present day. Stannard estimates that almost 100 million American indigenous people have been killed what he calls the American Holocaust.
For more on the Population History of American Indigenous Peoples visit Wikipedia.
At the time of Columbus' arrival there were probably roughly 1,500,000 Indians in what is now the continental United States, although estimates vary greatly. In order to assess the role and the impact of the American Indian upon the subsequent history of the United States in any meaningful way, one must understand the differentiating factors, such as those mentioned above. Generally speaking it may be said, however, that the American Indians as a whole exercised an important influence upon the white civilization transplanted from Europe to the New World. Indian foods and herbs, articles of manufacture, methods of raising some crops, war techniques, words, a rich folklore, and racial infusions are among the more obvious general contributions of the Indians to their European conquerors. The protracted and brutal westward-moving conflict caused by white expansionism and Indian resistance constitutes one of the most tragic chapters in the history of the United States. [Source: Encyclopædia Britannica]
During the years separating the failure of the Roanoke colony and the establishment in 1607 of the English settlement in Jamestown, English propagandists worked hard to convince the public that a colony in America would yield instant and easily exploitable wealth. Even men like the English geographer Richard Hakluyt were not certain that the Spanish colonization experience could or should be imitated but hoped nevertheless that the English colonies in the New World would prove to be a source of immediate commercial gain. There were, of course, other motives for colonization. Some hoped to discover the much-sought-after route to the Orient in North America. English imperialists thought it necessary to settle in the New World in order to limit Spanish expansion. Once it was proven that America was a suitable place for settlement, some Englishmen would travel to those particular colonies that promised to free them from religious persecution. There were also Englishmen, primarily of lower- and middle-class origin, who hoped the New World would provide them with increased economic opportunity in the form of free or inexpensive land. These last two motives, while they have been given considerable attention by historians, appear not to have been so much original motives for English colonization as they were shifts of attitude once colonization had begun. [Source: Encyclopædia Britannica]
Indian Removal Act (Trail of Tears) | Dawes Act | Indian Reorganization Act | Treaties | "Indian Wars"
from Wikipedia.
The Trail of Tears and the Forced Relocation of the Cherokee Nation
National Park Service's Teaching with Historic Places.
At the time of the first European contact, an estimated 2 million to 18 million people inhabited North America north of present-day Mexico. Much of the Native American population in the present-day United States was decimated by war, famine, and disease as non-Indians took over their lands. [Source: MSN Encarta]
Native American Name Controversy
Wikipedia
How do the nations of Native people refer to themselves?
Education: Facts & History
National Indian Education Association
Teaching Young Children About Native Americans
ERIC Digests
Resources for Teaching About Native Americans
The Smithsonian Institution
Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about Native Peoples
Native American Rights Fund
Answers to Frequently Asked Questions
Bureau of Indian Affairs [BIA Website]
Memo from Department of the Interior, Office of Indian Affairs (Feb. 24, 1923)
Indian Ancestry: What are the Benefits and Services Provided to American Indians & Alaska Natives
U.S. Department of the Interior
Interactive Museum of Native American History
Lost Worlds
Countering Prejudice against American Indians and Alaska Natives through Antibias Curriculum and Instruction
ERIC Digests
Indian 101 | Understanding the Native Perspective | Understanding White Privilege | The Importance of Native American Heritage Month
STAR (Students and Teachers Against Racism)
White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack
Peggy McIntosh
Indian Country Today The Nation's Leading American Indian News Source
Indianz.com Your Internet Resource
Native American Times Today's Independent Indian News
Reznet News News & Views by Native American Students
NativeWeb Resources for Indigenous Cultures Around the World
From Wikipedia: Crazy Horse | Tecumseh | Osceola | Wilma Mankiller | Leonard Peltier
A comprehensive list of biographies is available at Wikipedia.
List of Native American writers | actors | musicians | artists | politicians
In the 20th century, five American Indians have been among those soldiers to be distinguished by receiving the United States' highest military honor: the Medal of Honor. Given for military heroism "above and beyond the call of duty," these warriors exhibited extraordinary bravery in the face of the enemy and, in two cases, made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.
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Jack C. Montgomery. A Cherokee from Oklahoma, and a First Lieutenant with the 45th Infantry Division Thunderbirds. On 22 February 1944, near Padiglione, Italy, Montgomery's rifle platoon was under fire by three echelons of enemy forces, when he single-handedly attacked all three positions, taking prisoners in the process. As a result of his courage, Montgomery's actions demoralized the enemy and inspired his men to defeat the Axis troops. http://www.medalofhonor.com/JackMontgomery.htm |
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Ernest Childers. A Creek from Oklahoma, and a First Lieutenant with the 45th Infantry Division. Childers received the Medal of Honor for heroic action in 1943 when, up against machine gun fire, he and eight men charged the enemy. Although suffering a broken foot in the assault, Childers ordered covering fire and advanced up the hill, single-handedly killing two snipers, silencing two machine gun nests, and capturing an enemy mortar observer. http://www.medalofhonor.com/ErnestChilders.htm |
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Van Barfoot. A Choctaw from Mississippi, and a Second Lieutenant in the Thunderbirds. On 23 May 1944, during the breakout from Anzio to Rome, Barfoot knocked out two machine gun nests and captured 17 German soldiers. Later that same day, he repelled a German tank assault, destroyed a Nazi fieldpiece, and while returning to camp carried two wounded commanders to safety. http://www.medalofhonor.com/VanBarfoot.htm |
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Mitchell Red Cloud, Jr. A Winnebago from Wisconsin, and a Corporal in Company E., 19th Infantry Regiment in Korea. On 5 November 1950, Red Cloud was on a ridge guarding his company command post when he was surprised by Chinese communist forces. He sounded the alarm and stayed in his position firing his automatic rifle and point-blank to check the assault. This gave his company time to consolidate their defenses. After being severely wounded by enemy fire, he refused assistance and continued firing upon the enemy until he was fatally wounded. His heroic action prevented the enemy from overrunning his company's position and gained time for evacuation of the wounded. http://www.medalofhonor.com/MitchellRedCloud.htm |
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Charles George. A Cherokee from North Carolina, and Private First Class in Korea when he was killed on 30 November 1952. During battle, George threw himself on a grenade and smothered it with his body. In doing so, he sacrificed his own life but saved the lives of his comrades. For this brave and selfless act, George was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in 1954. http://www.medalofhonor.com/CharlesGeorge.htm |
Native American Participation in the United States Military
White Soldiers Awarded Medal of Honor for Killing Indians
Ira Hayes (Pima) is reaching up at the far left in this famous photograph from World War II.
The Indian Campaign Medal is a decoration of the United States Army which was first created in 1905. The medal was retroactively awarded to any soldier of the U.S. Army who had participated in military actions against Native American Indians between the years of 1790 to 1891.
In the mid-20th century, the Army declared the Indian Campaign Medal obsolete and began an effort, under pressure, to collect and destroy original and reproduced Indian Campaign Medals. This was due in large part to the unpopular notion that the Indian Campaign Medal represented an effort to subjugate an entire culture and its people. In the modern age, the Indian Campaign Medal is one of the most difficult antique decorations to locate.
For more information on the Indian Campaign Medal visit Wikipedia.
The Pequot War
The Pequot War in 1637 saw the elimination of the Pequot as a viable polity in present-day southern New England. An alliance of Massachusetts Bay and Plymouth colonies, along with their Native allies, the Narragansett, and Mohegan Indians either captured or killed hundreds of Pequot Indians. Hundreds more were captured and sold into slavery to the West Indies. Those that managed to evade death or capture and enslavement dispersed. Within a decade of the first genocidal war to take place in North America, less than one hundred Pequot Indians managed to return to their traditional lands. It would take the Pequot more than three and a half centuries to recapture their former political and economic power in their traditional homeland region along the Pequot (present-day Thames) and Mystic Rivers in what is now southeastern Connecticut. [Source: Wikipedia]
King Philip's War
King Philip's War, 1675–1676, was the end result of the English rapacity for land in present-day southern New England. The heavy-handed treatment of the Wampanoag and allied Native peoples by the English officials of Plymouth, Massachusetts Bay, Connecticut, and New Haven colonies led to one of the most disastrous wars in America’s history. At least one in ten persons--both Native and English--were wounded or killed. This, compared with the population of the time, was the most bloody war in American history. At its height, the war threatened to push the recently arrived English colonists back to the coast. As it was, it took years for English colonial towns and cities such as Boston to recover from the damage to fields and homes. For many Native peoples, recovery from the conflagration of King Philip's War continues more than three hundred years later. Its impact was that complete and wide-reaching. [Source: Wikipedia]
Gnadenhütten
The Gnadenhütten massacre on Friday, March 8, 1782 was a mass murder of ninety-six Christian Munsee American Indians, including sixty women and children, by American militia from Pennsylvania during the American Revolutionary War. The incident took place near Gnadenhütten.
In early March of 1782 a raiding party of 160 Pennsylvania militiamen under Lieutenant Colonel David Williamson rounded up the Christian Munsees and accused them of taking part in the ongoing raids into Pennsylvania. They truthfully denied the charges, but the Pennsylvanians held a council, and voted to kill them all anyway. Some militiamen opposed to this action withdrew from the area. The Munsees, informed of their fate, spent the night praying and singing hymns.
The next morning, March 8, the Christian Munsees were killed as they knelt, their skulls crushed with a mallet. In all, 28 men, 29 women, and 39 children were murdered and then scalped. The corpses were then heaped into the mission buildings, and the town was burned to the ground. The other abandoned Moravian towns were then burned as well. Two boys, one of whom had been scalped, survived to tell of the massacre. [Source: Wikipedia]
Sand Creek
On November 29, 1864, Colonel John M. Chivington led approximately 700 U.S. volunteer soldiers to a village of about 500 Cheyenne and Arapaho people camped along the banks of Big Sandy Creek in southeastern Colorado. Although the Cheyenne and Arapaho people believed they were under the protection of the U.S. Army, Chivington's troops attacked and killed about 150 people, mainly women, children, and the elderly. Ultimately, the massacre was condemned following three federal investigations. [Source: Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site]
Washita
The Battle of Washita River (or Battle of the Washita) occurred on November 27, 1868, when Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer’s 7th U.S. Cavalry attacked Black Kettle’s Cheyenne village on the Washita River (near present day Cheyenne, Oklahoma). The evidence used to depict the Battle of Washita is derived from Custer’s own account of the battle while the evidence used in describing the events prior to the battle revolves heavily around General Phillip Sheridan’s annual report of 1868. A recent book by historian Jerome Greene helps to show what happened there by using US and Native American accounts of the event. [Source: Wikipedia]
Wounded Knee
The Wounded Knee Massacre was the last major armed conflict between the Lakota Sioux and the United States, subsequently described as a "massacre" by General Nelson A. Miles in a letter to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs.
On December 29, 1890, five hundred troops of the U.S. 7th Cavalry, supported by four Hotchkiss guns (a lightweight rapid fire machine gun), surrounded an encampment of Minneconjou Lakota with orders to escort them back to the railroad for transport to Omaha, Nebraska. The commander of the 7th had been ordered to disarm the Lakota before proceeding. Different versions of what happened next exist, but historians commonly believe of how at the end of the disarmament, there was confusion that started the massacre. Quite possibly an accidental misfiring of a weapon being given up, or a scuffle. However, a gunshot rang out, and the unarmed Indians surrounded by the 7th Cavalry regiment were fired upon with extreme prejudice. The twenty-five troopers amongst the one hundred and fifty-three Sioux that were in the process of disarming them were also fired upon, and were killed in end result; including sixty-two women and small children. All 25 troopers were killed by friendly fire as their own men fired upon everyone. It was a massacre. Around one hundred and fifty Lakota fled the chaos, of which an unknown number are later believed to have died from exposure. [Source: Wikipedia]
BRITISH SCALP PROCLAMATION: 1756
"It's time to make things right. I call upon the Boston City Council to join me and remove this blemish from our city's records. Together, we'll send the message that hatred and discrimination have no place in Boston," Mayor Menino said. "Tolerance, equality, and respect - these are the attributes of our city. These are the qualities that give Boston its vitality, that make diversity our greatest strength."
Boston Mayor Thomas Menino - November 24, 2004
Hiding Genocide: The National Museum of The American Indian
Should we celebrate Lewis and Clark
Thanksgiving Through Indian Eyes
