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1871103 Responseshttp://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/native-americans-question-three/Native+Americans%3A+Question+Three2010-02-24+05%3A03%3A06Sam+Richards to Native Americans: Question Three
I think the whole Native American issue is a tough one because none of us in the class (and even people of Sam’s age for the matter) ever really have to think about it or confront it in our everyday lives. I know I have zero friends who call themselves Native Americans, and I have never really had to discuss the mass genocide that almost completely rid them of their homeland. Instead, we just go on with our life and live where we live and use what we use because it is there and available. I understand that some people don’t think they should feel bad or be blamed for what happened to Native Americans because they didn’t grow up here or their parents/ancestors came over from another country. But I don’t think Sam wants us to all just feel terrible and take blame but to actually try and learn and understand what happened when we came to this land and rid it of the native people. This is (in a way) worse than the Holocaust which in my mind has always been the most horrific and senseless acts ever committed by human beings: the systematic slaughtering of MILLIONS of people for no real purpose. The point I’m making is that we should think and learn about the Native American genocide because it was large-scale, inhumane, and most of all-real. Because Native Americans are now the minority in this country and, like other minority groups, are among the most poor, least educated people in the United States. And these are the people that owned this land before we came. I think a reason some people may not care about that is because they truly believe the Darwinism ideal (and to his credit, the kid that mentioned that in class was brave and shouldn’t get flak for bringing it up). To be clear, I am a bio major and I believe in evolution and survival of the fittest. Somehow, though, I can’t accept that as an excuse or answer to why our ancestors did what they did to the Native Americans. If someone with more firepower has the right to take over the others than this whole world would be a huge nuclear warzone and people would be eliminated every day. That is obviously not a good thing for anyone.
So, the problem exists when you get to the question of what the hell to do about it. Of course, the Native Americans have already been stripped of almost all material things and most of their land, but I also think in a way we have a chance to right at least some of our past wrongs. Many Native Americans live in poverty complete with alcohol problems, terrible education, and living conditions. We must recognize this and push to improve this matter. I am no politician, and I certainly don’t have the answers, but I think for sure this needs to be addressed at the federal level where more money and resources needs to be allocated for these people. More fertile land needs to be given to them, and more opportunities both in schools and in the workplace must be presented to help get them back on their feet and make a living. If we all just push the matter aside and act like it doesn’t matter (or we simply don’t care) eventually there will be no trace of native blood left in this country, and our virus-like takeover of the land will be fully and totally complete. And that I am sure most of us would agree, is a disgrace
I can definitely relate to what you've said in your post about Native Americans here. It's very difficult for students to comprehend what happened so many years ago, especially when it doesn't affect our daily lives, or lives in general to begin with. So many people are only concerned with themselves and the immediate people around them, and about their current situation. It's rare that people think about the consequences and results of their actions and the repercussion that they might have 20 years from now. I don't have any friends or even know anyone who calls themselves a Native American. And I agree that I don't think Sam necessarily wants us to feel guilty about the killings of thousands of Native Americans because that's not going to solve anything now. It's a chance for us to not make the same decisions and choices we made in the past and to learn from history. I agree that the government definitely needs to be involved in solving this problem. The rates of poverty, alcoholism, and abuse among other things are highest in the country on certain reservations and among Native American people. It's a problem that people probably have a hard time seeing how they can help individually.
I agree with everything in this post and I certainly feel the same way about Native Americans and our knowledge about them. I almost never think about Native Americans, I do not know any Native Americans and there are no reservations near me. My dad’s mother has always felt a connection to Native Americans. She goes to celebrations on reservations, reads books written by different tribe members, and knits hats and gloves for kids on reservations. Although I have always known this about her, I did not really ever fully understand why she did what she did. I have of course heard of the high suicide and alcoholic rates in reservations as well as the terrible conditions some of these people live in, and therefore I assumed she was giving to these Native American people because they were a group that was financially not well off. I was wrong about this and now it is beginning to make sense. She went to talk to the people, understand what they were feeling and why they had some of the societal problems they do, learn about their culture, and help them by providing clothing for the children, something she saw with her own eyes that was needed. She felt the hurt and realized what had been done to them, and she was doing what in her mind would help, like Sam said in class, you need to figure out what to do, for yourself. She was also trying to acknowledge the genocide by spreading her knowledge to my brother and I. For Christmas we would get dream catchers and books by Native Americans. I thought she was just interested in the culture, but now when I think back to the stories she told me, she was trying to teach me, make me aware.
The fact that we are all so unaware as Americans of the genocide that happened on our land is very upsetting to me. One thing that always caught my attention were cultures that schooled children in such a biased manner to brain wash the kids of that particular nation, so they grew up with lies that they thought were truths. I always went through my history classes and tried to find, to make sure, that we as members of the United States were learning the truth. Well here is the lie. It is so disturbing the more and more I think about it, how we were never taught what injustices were done to the Native Americans, what slaughters were committed. Such time is spent describing the horrors of the Holocaust, which of course was incredibly horrific, but why is there no famous movies and books written about the genocide on our own land. Why didn’t Brad Pitt choose that role? And then to top it all off, we mock the Native Americans by using them as our mascots.
I agree with this kid completely. Although everything Sam has sad is tragic and scary at the same time to think about it, it hasn’t struck home for a lot of people. I must say I am included in this group. I agree that this is so upsetting and I wish there was something I can do to help but what? I know that this is probably a stupid question to ask but at the same time this is a situation where I feel stuck. I have never personally gone to see these tribes so I can honestly say it hasn’t struck home for me. I really feel for these people and if I was told something to do to help them I would do it in a heartbeat. We have had clothing and food drives at our school for Native American tribes but I feel like this isn’t enough. I wish there was something I knew I could do to help but honestly no matter how long I sit down and think, how do we reach anyone when most people in America haven’t experienced firsthand the same thing as these Native Americans?
I think there is many different ways to view this topic really because there is no correct answer of what to do, but there really never is for anything. All people can do is try there best and hope things turn out alright. I agree that in the beginning I had a problem seeing how this affected me. There was so much wrong doing to the Native Americans but yet I do not know any. I have seen a couple from time to time but I have never had a conversation with one. After the lectures I really had to think about why I felt so detached from the problem. the lecture today did help put into perspective for me on how this hurts Native Americans but I was still unsure about whether it really mattered to me. I had a burst of realization before sitting down to write this. Basically I started to think about it in terms of other minorities. Other minority groups demanded their freedom and land. Not to mention other minority groups are intermixed with the majority daily. However, I feel like if we are willing to help out other minorities and correct are mistakes when it comes to slavery and such why can we not give back to the Native Americans? Are government makes policies all the time for minorities to get a better share of things so why not Native Americans? I realize it is not a very concrete idea but if we are willing to try and fix the wrongs we have committed on other minorities than maybe we should try to fix this problem as well. Than you have the how will you fix it? I honestly am not sure, but maybe it would help if the government started by apologizing to the tribes that remain. An apology would be a very small step, but it would at least show the Native Americans that America has realized the genocide that was caused. The steps that follow after that apology could go in many different ways. Maybe taking the time to go visit these people and talk to them would help. Maybe if we could hear what they have to say and than try to work something out with them that could also potentially work. Also we could set aside some nice parts of land for them, kind of like their own personal forest just for them. I am not sure how to stop them from feeling the way they feel but I did like the idea about giving them better education. Giving them better education would help them be more up to date in today's world. Also, maybe we should start discussing the genocide in class rooms before college.
Dude, I totally agree with you! Sitting in class the day of the Native American presentation, it felt like people just weren’t getting it. Some of the things Sam said really hit home, and struck a nerve deep within me. Even if you disagree with the notion that we are responsible for what has been done to these indigenous peoples, I don’t see how many of you were not touched or affected by Sam’s lecture. Like Sam said this was the biggest act of genocide in the world, and it happened right here in the United States. Everything America represents, freedom, equality, and purity, are tainted by the blood of Native Americans. This is their land. We came here pushed them aside and claimed this wild frontier as our own. Wherever you are right now, you are standing on “red land” as Sam called it. Native Americans died just so we can have a yard to play in. To top it all off, we continue to discriminate against these people, acting like they are the invaders. And when I say we discriminate, that means that we first have to acknowledge their existence.
I think most of us agreed on the fact that what happened to the Native Americans was beyond terrible. However, a discrepancy arose when the act of claiming responsibility was thrown out to the audience. Many of you could not see how the wrongs of our ancestors should have to be righted by this generation. After all, we weren’t the ones who did this, and after all these years what is that we could do to help fix these wrongdoings?
Like Sam said, I think a big step in the right direction would be to acknowledge the fact that the extermination and current conditions of Native Americans is a direct result of our actions as a whole, the United States of America. This generation may not have physically done harm to indigenous people, but our ancestors did, and any way you look at it that makes each and every American responsible for this mass genocide. The point is, regardless of who’s responsibility it is, that you should feel some need to repay these people for everything they have gone through. America was not built from scratch, but stolen from the true heirs of North America: Native Americans.
Even though we can’t undo the past, we can accept responsibility for our actions, and aim to never forget the true origins of the United States. It is a bloody past, but one that we must learn to accept and use to work towards finding a means of fixing relations with the indigenous people of this continent. The term “gilded,” meaning covered thinly in gold, has been used to describe America many times before, and I think the genocide of Native Americans is another fine example of this label. America may look dazzling on the outside, but deep down it is something truly ugly; something that needs to be painted regularly with a thin layer of “freedom, equality, and opportunities for all.”
The fact of the matter is that it is natural for the superior civilization to come out on top and conquer. Alright, it was the largest “genocide” in human history, and there were many wrongdoings as far as giving land, then taking it back, and relocating, etc. go, but it still did not happen by chance. The conquistadors and other European settlers were simply superior and more advanced. This caused them to defeat the Native Americans and take their land. It is the same as dominance in groups of animals. If a pack of wolves moves into new territory, and is strong enough to kill the wolves that currently live there, is that cruel? It may come across as cold hearted, but I am simply being a realist. There was demand for more land so European explorers found some. It was occupied already, so they fought for it. They won. As a population, the settlers were more advanced, and therefore better suited to survive. A TA made a comment saying that Darwinism was reproduction of the fittest, as opposed to survival of the fittest. Survival of the war led to reproduction of the dominant population, the population that won the war: the Americans. Killing is a part of nature. I understand that some will respond to that negatively, and claim that killing with guns is not natural. But, as a species capable of meta-cognitive reasoning, we as humans are bound to develop advanced weaponry. Although it was killing with guns, as opposed to claws, teeth, or whatever an animal may kill another animal with, all that happened was one colony of organisms took the territory of another colony of organisms. That being said, it is a problem that Native Americans today are part of a minority group that suffers from poverty, and something should be done about that. It is just that it does not make sense to be upset about Native Americans being killed for land, but not upset about anyone else dying over land. It is natural for animals (people included, as we are just really smart monkeys) to fight over land, and it should not be made into such a big deal. The only difference between human war and animal war is that since we are capable of language and coordination, our fights are bigger and longer than the battles of animals. Are we going to start proclaiming our sympathy toward all the animals in the world that are killed over territory? If you take a huge step back and really look at the course of humanity relative to the course of other animals, all that happened was one huge war over territory. The victors took the land. This, to me, makes perfect sense.
So technically a good explanation for all the Native Americans in this country would be "sorry you're in this situation, it's just survival of the fittest." You are comparing humans to a pack of wolves here and I have to completely disagree. You are saying superior beings, organisms, and civilizations naturally kill other people and take their possessions. So is it natural for a man to walk into another man's home, shoot him in cold blood, and claim his house? Is it natural of the US to nuke all third world countries and begin colonizing there? In your opinion, I guess this is completely normal. In my opinion, what happened to Native Americans is terrible. Do I feel blame for it? No I do not. I just think that it was tragic that the largest genocide happened for me to live here today, but we rationalize it because it happened so long ago or because of "survival of the fittest." The main point is that Americans need to be educated about what happened to Native Americans, and how they were practically forced into their extreme poverty today. More help and education should be given to these deprived people but no one wants to put any effort into this cause, including our government, which is completely unfair.
I think I'm more concerned by attitudes like this in the present day than by the act of genocide itself. Can you really believe that it didn't happen by chance and that the European settlers were "simply superior"? Since there was so much overpopulation in Europe (in comparison to what? how bad it is now?) then they should have come up with a way to control it without having to go and kick other people out of their lands. The issues is that Europeans thought they had every right to be superior to Native Americans, it's the treatment. Just because other animals do it doesn't make it right. We're blessed to have consciousness of thought so it should be part of our guilt to feel bad for killing people for the betterment of ourselves. I totally realize that we aren't any different from animals except that we use guns and words to fight. We have this ability to communicate but sometimes we may as well just be mute because it's not doing anyone an ounce of good.
I think I'm more concerned by attitudes like this in the present day than by the act of genocide itself. Can you really believe that it didn't happen by chance and that the European settlers were "simply superior"? Since there was so much overpopulation in Europe (in comparison to what? how bad it is now?) then they should have come up with a way to control it without having to go and kick other people out of their lands. The issues is that Europeans thought they had every right to be superior to Native Americans, it's the treatment. Just because other animals do it doesn't make it right. We're blessed to have consciousness of thought so it should be part of our guilt to feel bad for killing people for the betterment of ourselves. I totally realize that we aren't any different from animals except that we use guns and words to fight. We have this ability to communicate but sometimes we may as well just be mute because it's not doing anyone an ounce of good.
I decided to respond to question three regarding Native Americans because I found it extremely interesting and a great point. I know that the huge genocide that occurred when we came to this country is often forgotten about or put in the back of our minds. I can admit that I haven’t thought about it since learning a small amount about it in high school. Also what we learned in high school didn’t stress what a terrible thing our people did to the Native Americans nor show the huge affect it had on their population then and today. When I learned about it I looked at it in terms as history not something that had anything to do with me or a reason to look negatively at our nation. When we discussed the genocide in class and Sam stressed how it was the biggest genocide to date it really hit me just how big of an issue it was and is.
It also dumbfounded me to see how much Native Americans are now struggling. To see the amount of poverty they are in and that about 50% are unemployed is really upsetting. I don’t understand why the US isn’t doing more to help them and to in a way (even though we could never truly) make up for the harm we have done to them. We discussed in class how part of the reason there isn’t help for them or we don’t recognize them as true Americans is because that would mean we would have to credit for the terrible things we have done, and some people don’t want to do that. This question asks people to take credit for what has been done and asks why they don’t see how terrible the oppression of Native Americans is. I was really astonished by some of the comments made in class by students dismissing the subject and not seeing how big of a deal it really is. I understand in part because I know that I don’t know everything that happened or is happening and our ignorance helps us ignore this issue but when we are really shown the facts in class I hope it helps students realize this issue and see how our ancestors took part. This is why I enjoy this class so much because it brings up issues that in society we usually don’t think about or acknowledge to the extent we should and really makes me think more about society. Obviously our society has grown monumentally since this genocide but we also have so much more ground to cover. So many people live everyday completely oblivious to the discrimination and bigotry that takes place everyday, or the fact that people obviously are born with a predisposition that can and will affect their future and how successful they will be. There are so many things people really need to think about and try to live everyday with these things in mind.
I agree that people in our generation and maybe the one before that do not stop and think about what is going on with the Native American people and the hardships they have had to face. Although it is not directly our problem, we should still feel something about the fact that these people are being treated in humanely and forced to live in conditions that are unbearable. It was government policies that confined Native Americans to reservations, so why not let them know that it bothers us that it is the way it is. If enough people become involved through writing letters to politicians they will realize that our generation does not want to sit idle and accept what was done to the Native Americans. Policy change is one of the only ways I foresee there being any change in the treatment of this group of people and this is an easy way to let your voice be heard.
I think a lot of people seem unaffected and lack emotion towards the subject because a lot of people have a similar mentality to the student who posed a question before this one. Most people actively choose not care because for most of us we have not directly (or even our ancestors) participated in this massacre of millions of people. I think people refuse to image the development our country resting on the graves of millions of innocent people; “The Land of the Free” as the main player in the largest most extensive genocide does not sit well with people, especially the ignorant ones. I believe lack of empathy for Native Americans also correlates to our childhood. The first student was talking about the common biases portrayed within our education systems. In our most influential moments (in schools) we are bombarded by negative images of Native Americans. We are the “hero” with our pilgrim outfit and gun. Of course, then they are always portrayed as the “stick figure with a feather” (as the girl put it in the first podcast question). What we need to realize is that now that we are educated on the issue (from our soc 119 class lectures) it’s time for us to acknowledge the suffering of millions. Regardless, of whether or not your great great great uncle stole land from Native Americans, Sam is right we are still TODAY living on “Red Land”. So just because your ancestors or you yourself personally weren’t the people who participated in the genocide years ago, we are still allowing wrongs to be written against Native Americans by ignoring the injustices they face. It is also amazing to me that people who now know that there is still discrimination today could care less. Okay so we aren’t actively stealing their land today, but we are stealing other “American” privileges that majority of us enjoy such as a good education, treatment for illness (mental or physical), financial aid, etc. If you feel no sense of remorse, despite your role, maybe you should put yourself within their shoes. How different would your life be? Would you enjoy growing up in poverty and all the time knowing that there are other people within the world who don’t care because this continuation of poverty was committed by people who they have no relation? The images we were shown within class are disturbing. I’m not sure what role my family played within the genocide, but I am not ignorant enough to believe that absolutely none of my ancestors were involved. And if they weren’t involved at all, I am still hurt by this reality. It is a reality that should not be ignored. I am reminded of this horrible tragedy because I recognize that the majority of the land that I live on, play, or relax on is not mine. But, a stolen land of people that had their lives taken for it. It truly is an upsetting reality for me.
Sure, this is upsetting. It is a demonstration of the faulty characteristics of mankind, no doubt. OK. So we should all move to the reservation? Live the life we were “supposed” to live? Unlikely. Everyone gets teary eyed and emotional when they learn about the Holocaust, its natural. Some of us feel sympathy for the Jewish people, some of us can even feel empathy. But guilt? Not likely. The same is true for the events surrounding the Native Americans; am I, at 20 years old, supposed to feel guilty for something that happened in the latter portion of the 19th century? I think part of the reason for the over-abundance of questions is class is largely due to the wrongful implication from Sam that perhaps we should feel guilty. For the record, I do not feel guilty.
The video post asks, “what doesn’t upset you and how is this not upsetting?” In my case at least, this is not an accurate description. As I stated before, it is upsetting. The fact that such a large number of people died/were murdered on this land is disturbing. However, when comparing this event to say the Holocaust (40s) or the Cambodian genocide of the 70s, one must realize that there are a lot of years between these events. When taking into account the vast amount of time that has passed since the Native American murders, it is no wonder that it is hardly talked about and partially answers why people “care more” about these more recent events. Sam said it himself, no one likes history (or you’d have to be crazy to like history, whatever he said I don’t remember). It’s not that people actually don’t care or don’t feel sympathy, it’s that they have no relation to this event. I’m sure many people in the class have at some point in their life met someone that was a directly involved in WWII or some other major historical event involving mass murders. Clearly this is not the case for the Native American killings. It all boils down to the ability to relate to a topic, which as 21st century students, we aren’t physically capable of doing.
On a more edgy note, there is also the debate about the number of Native Americans killed and, more importantly, how they died. Before I get into this, I must first say, there is no doubt that the Europeans who crashed into this land killed many Native Americans. But what is of uncertainty is, besides the actual number killed, how many were actually murdered in comparison to the number who died from unfamiliar diseases brought by the European settlers. This uncertainty is part of the reason why many people are hesitant to even call these events genocide. It is quite conceivable that many of the Native Americans died from diseases that their bodies were not able to combat because of unfamiliarity. Sure many will say that the settlers still killed the Native Americans, but this is much different. It is also interesting that this is something that Sam never addressed. Once again, the length of time between today and these events makes it difficult to find the answers to these questions.
Okay, you bring up a lot of strong points here, but the fact that you do not feel guilty and cannot relate to the event does not justify anything. Listen to this, the way you relate to something or develop an emotional connection to something you are not directly tied to is by sitting down and really putting some thought into it. Just because your family or your distant relatives were not apart of an event like the genocide of Native Americans, or the Holocaust, etc., does not mean you are to be upset when someone says you should illicit an emotional response. I think you missed Sam's point here. It's not that you should feel guilty about what happened, you should just feel and realize what happened. To be honest, the only thing I agree with your unsentimental ass on is the fact that it was a very long time ago that the genocide of Native Americans happened, thus making it less of an issue with our generation.
Sam is really just trying to get us to think about this event, because he knows we do not. It's not like he's saying its any of our faults or that we owe an apology to any Native Americans. What he is trying to get at is that we should not forget that this land we live on is not necessarily our land. On that note, is it that we are not deserving of this land, or any land our family "owns". I am not sure. But they key strictly lies in understanding the beginning and where this all came from. We must understand that we stole this land from brothers and sisters and children and parents and aunts and uncles and grandparents just like the ones we have today. We ourselves did not steal this land, but indirectly, even if it was not our ancestors that did the stealing, received stolen goods from others.
It may not have been our direct actions, but indirectly we are still at fault for living here. Its kind of like that example from class about the black and white people helping each other out. What I mean is that we did not stand up for the Native Americans once we realized what HAD happened. Our ancestors could have given the land back, or not come here knowing that the previous European inhabitants stole this land.
Moreover, define edgy here son. The europeans brought the disease over, thus they indirectly killed more native americans because of it. So your saying that just because Jews died do to starvation in concentration camps, because they were not murdered by the SS soldiers, they should not be counted in the genocide. I think you should think before calling people out on something. Native Americans were still killed by European due to disease, thus it is included in Sam's numbers.
I definitely agree with the fact that this issue probably has not really hit home with many people. It happened so long ago, and people probably might just feel like they were not around so why should they feel guilty. I’m not saying that everyone should feel guilty about what happened with the Native Americans. I know for me this issue hasn’t even hit home and I don’t feel guilty. I understand that it was the largest genocide and I understand that the settlers came over here, killed the Native Americans, and took their land. I understand how rude it was to do this. Yet I can’t help but think that the Native Americans lost the battle. The Europeans came over fought the Native Americans and took over their land, and that’s all there is. That’s not to say the Europeans were superior or more advanced or smarter, they just won. I think maybe the remaining Native Americans that are in such bad shape on their land today could use help but there are also millions of people in the United State that could use help. Native Americans are not the only humans suffering. I think the whole situation kind of stinks. It’s kind of like being between a rock and a hard place. We can’t go back and change what happened; half of us probably wouldn’t be here today if we did. And there really isn’t much we can do. I think people should acknowledge it more. But at the same time, if people acknowledge the genocide what is that going to do? Is that just going to make all of it go away because we acknowledge that it happened? No it won’t. It was an awful time in history, but it is over with. I think now everyone should be focused on moving forward and helping others. It awful that Native Americans are struggling so much and something should be done to help them, but something should be done to help all of the people struggling. The question is though what can be done? I couldn’t even begin to come up with an idea of how to help Native Americans. I do not think I’m being completely oblivious to what happened with the Native Americans and all of the genocide. I remember learning about it in high school and I thought it was the worst thing ever. But at the same time, what am I supposed to do about it? Its not like we can give them their land back and apologize. I think instead maybe we should strive to make peace with them. Who knows, maybe by acknowledging what happened both parties can move forward instead of constantly having all of the hatred and denial about the past.
I agree with the fact that the issue hasn't hit home for many people, as I am one of those people that it hasn't really affected. Sure, I know the genocide was bad and unfair and shouldn't have happened, but I believe that there are other more prominent things such as slavery and LGBT issues that I should be more concerned about. This may be rude and hurtful to some people, but the genocide of the Indians is one of the last things on my mind for a number of reasons.
For one, neither I or my parents or grandparents or even great grandparents were involved in the genocide. I know this because neither I nor my parents lived through the genocide, my grandparents and great grandparents lived most of their lives in Italy and Morocco so it would be very doubtful that they were involved. Therefore I have no past history with this horrible event, and nothing in my family blood can be traced back to this disgraceful act. However, it is much more likely that my grandparents or great grandparents were involved in some sort of discrimination against African Americans back in their day, and could have been involved in slavery. That's why I would feel a lot stronger about that issue then this. In regards to the LGBT issues, I am currently living through what might one day be considered the heyday of the era, and my parents also have contact with it. I have met gay people and more invested in them then Native Americans. I have yet to meet an Native Americans.
I also believe it has to do with education on the topic. A lot more people are informed with LGBT issues through local news, and slavery with history classes and textbooks. The only time I ever remember studying about Native Americans was middle school, talking about Navajos and Iroquois and teepees and Pocahontas. I am entering the final year of my teens and still am not informed about these issues, and with all the other things I have going on, I'm not sure that I could fit in learning about a whole peoples history and plight.
However, besides my personal reasons I believe the main reason that people don't really care is that it is not a forefront issue. Society has many problems already for itself ranging from war in the world, to the down economy, to world hunger, to natural disasters, and already dealing with a new up and coming people who are fighting their own fight.(LGBT) Does society really need to bring back something that happened so long ago and make it an issue as well? Genocide is not occurring any longer as far as I'm informed, and Native Americans that are still living in the U.S. are facing problems just as everyone else is.
That’s a really great question actually. I think it comes down to how we were brought up as a society and how we were educated. I don’t really recall being heavily taught about the Native American genocide but I do recall being taught about the Native Americans in generally. I feel like the school systems in the United States don’t really educate children about the wrongdoings that we have done as a nation just the fact that they simply put down their weapons and gave us this land. It reminds me of the tone and words of the song “Don’t Drink the Water.” The song basically tells the story of how Native Americans were conquered and how we also retell it as a nation. Point in case I think that the idea that Native Americans were conquered was “supposed to happen” and that somehow is just ok with most of us.
I can definitely see how this issue doesn’t hit base with a lot of students. In today’s generation of college students, it’s hard to feel the shockwaves of the tragedies of the original American’s. There’s too much history and too much has happened in our own affairs since the time that this massive genocide took place. It’s almost like looking through a clouded mirror. You can see something resembling shapes on the other side, but the details are very vague and the overall picture has little effect on your outlook as a whole. You tend to just forget that it exists and move on in your life. I also think that the American government tends to maybe not be fully ashamed of this bloody history, but wants to more or less forget it ever happened. When it’s not really being taught in the school systems, the ignorance and the numb feeling gets passed on to future generations.
When I was in elementary school, I remember learning about the pilgrims and the first Europeans to inhabit our land. I remember learning about the first Thanksgiving and reading storybooks that had pictures of white men and Native Americans sitting peacefully around the dinner table, passing each other corn and admiring a succulent turkey side by side. I highly doubt that there was any scene such as this one in our nation’s history. We’re fed lies from a young age, and it’s eye opening to hear this movement as, as Sam Richards puts it, the one of the largest genocides that had ever occurred.
However, the true heart of the matter, in my personal opinion, as to why this isn’t hitting home for a lot of students, is because ironically, the Native Americans feel kind of alien to us. Yes, they were here way before we were, but their practices, culture, language, society, governing system, and ways of life are completely different from our own. It’s hard to feel something when little known is about them except for the negatives, like substance abuse and poverty, and when they’re extremely hard to relate to. Yes, the genocide of the Native Americans had nothing to do with the hands of our generation, but that doesn’t mean that we should feel detached from the situation. We’re residing and profiting off of their land, and the only reason why I feel something for this situation is because I try to put myself in their shoes.
I would hate it if a foreign group of people who I have never seen or heard of before came from an alien world and destroyed my home and my livelihood. Honestly, the situation is completely horrible and unjust. More people of America should take the time and educate themselves about the real hardships and tribulations of the Native Americans, and maybe our generation can take the first steps in rebuilding that bridge.
I think most people ultimately really only worry about themselves. It is not a bad thing but human nature. Also hearing about it strikes home for some people to a certain degree, but if you actually lived next to a Native American tribe, talked to a Native American, or were transferred back in time and saw it it would strike home to a much larger degree. An example I use is cancer. Everyone knows cancer is awful and destroys the lives of all different types of people. However no textbook in the world can explain the horrors of cancer until it claims the life of someone very close to you. This is the same way. We feel so disconnected from this genocide. Many people in the United States today feel they have no connection to this genocide or slavery because they themselves did not commit it. Also with no few Native Americans alive today with so few rights and such large cultural barriers we realize this problem is almost unfixable.
A counterpoint to this would be slavery in the American South in the 1860s. Slavery was so imbedded in American culture and the American economy equality of African Americans seemed almost as impossible as native Americans regaining all rights today. However, selfless people and strong voices from the African-American population helped turn around a hopeless cause. I really think although I wish it could happen Native Americans will eventually die out and we will forget about them, because a solution to this problem seems so extreme and unachievable. However blacks in the 1860s problem felt the same way about slavery and we have made leaps and bounds since then.
I think even if this problem hit home to someone the best thing they could really do about it is acknowledge it and tell others about it at this point. The fact that the United States does not acknowledge this genocide prevents anything being done about it. It is like any problem the first step is admit you have a problem. I feel I have done my part in acknowledging this genocide and spreading the word to friends and family.
However most of us have never even interacted with a Native American. Some have never even seen one. This genocide could seem like a story to some because we are so disconnected with it. So the first step is Sam telling us about it. The next step is acknowledging the problem. And if word of mouth does not do it for you, visiting a Native American tribe or seeing the discrimination is probably what most people need. I know for me reading something in a textbook and experiencing it are two completely different things.
I feel that the genocide that was committed against the Native Americans was absolutely a terrible thing and it does hit home for me. While I was never a part of either, obviously considering my age, I have many family members and many extended family friends that either fought, or were in some way a part of the Holocaust. In regards to the Holocaust though, I am of Jewish decent, which almost automatically makes that genocide hit home with me. Not only does that fact that I am Jewish make the Holocaust resonate with me personally, but in general, people may feel more of an association with the Holocaust because is still somewhat in our distant past. I think the reason people may have trouble relating to, or even feeling bad for the Native Americans and the genocide that was committed against them is because it may be hard for them to feel something personally towards it or feel connected to it because it is so far in our history’s past. While I do not feel this way, the Holocaust was a world war, and while the Jewish population was the main target, many more people and many groups were discriminated against and killed. I think the lack of personal connection and historical distance are the two main reasons for the disinterest and low levels of shame connected with the Native American genocide.
The information regarding the genocide and the current conditions that these groups and tribes live in has never been presented to me and examples have never been shown to me in the way that Sam Richards has done for the class. To be honest, before this I was never really taught of what exactly is still going on today. I had learned that Columbus came to this “empty” land and claimed it as his own, but in reality pushed out the Native Americans, but that is pretty much the extent of what I knew. I think something in the education system needs to change to try and get our country to make a push in the right direction. I understand when people say, we shouldn’t be responsible and take the blame for what our ancestors did, and for some maybe that is true, but even if that is true, why don’t we feel the need to help our fellow human beings? After the Holocaust happened, the Jewish population was given land. If people were to take responsibility for what happened, we may not be able to distribute land right away, but at least the way that the Native Americans are living in now could be fixed up and they would not have to live in such poverty stricken conditions.
I think the biggest thing I think stops people from feeling any particular way about some of the heavy things we learn about in class is that people are distancing themselves whether they are aware of it or not. We’ve gone over some troubling information, and for some reason or another a lot of people choose not to care. I think they imagine that these problems are too far removed form them or that they might not even exist. I sometimes catch myself doing this, and occasionally have to remind myself that these issues do in fact affect me and my life, directly or indirectly, and whether I like it or not.
I definitely agree with this post – it basically relates back to the quote that ‘ignorance is bliss’. With such a serious situation though, it is so hard to think how some people can choose to be ignorant about it. Of course a lot of people do not think anything of it because they did not have a first-hand part in the problem, but I just feel like nobody knows enough about it to give it any thought. Therefore, the more that I think about it though, I think it has a lot more to do with the fact that so many people are not well informed enough and completely uneducated when it comes to the whole situation. I feel that nobody is really aware of what happened, when in reality it should be on everyone’s radar. Therefore, I think the quote should be more along the lines of ‘education is bliss’.
In my whole opinion I feel like I have split feelings on this subject. One side of me wants to think that I should have nothing to do with this, because I do not even think my ancestry goes back far enough to have taken advantage of Native American land, and even if it had, that was my ancestors and not me. On the other hand I feel that we must still consider the fact that no matter if our ancestors had taken part in this or not, we cannot just let an entire race in our country wither to peices.
I feel that at times in class Sam chooses to point the finger a bit too much. Sometimes it seems as if he wants to say that it is OUR fault these people are living like this and OUR fault that we do not recognize it. People need to realize (and make a difference to the fact) that whether you have heard about this through the media or another source, or you have not heard of it at all, it still isn't fully our fault. It is not as if we are at fault because we didn't go out and go beyond ourselves to start some sort of relief and support group for these people. Now, if the act of helping out Native American tribes was as popular as say, supporting cancer research, I'm sure many more people would support it because they would actually know about it.
Now although all of us are not at fault, when we are informed we must understand that we should consider even making the smallest attempt at making a change. For example, did the kid who posted this video that was 'so worried" about letting this hit home with him, even look into helping out these tribes? Did he go on Google and research support groups for these tribes, or ways to help them out? I'm going to guess no, so in essence, he is just as 'wrong" as the rest of us.
We must realize however, that there is still a group of people out there that are starving, full of addiction, and depressed. These people need help, and so far the government has done nothing to help them. However, If I might ask one question. Why haven't these people tried to leave there reservations (Ok I'm aware that its YOUR land and you rightfully own it, but that shit isn't working out to well for you right now). In the past century African Americans have been able to move their way up in society's food chain, and there is no reason that Native Americans can't do the same thing.
I do think that we should have some iniciative to help these people, and lend them a hand. However, at some point don't they need to take this upon themselves?
In my opinion i believe that all this we are learning is in fact very upsetting. I feel that it isn't hitting home with a lot of people because they don't feel responsible for it happening. I think that a lot of people think about it while we are hearing, but then they just go back to their normal lives and don't really do anything about it. The fact that people took the native American's land is not really, at least in our generation, anyone fault. I do believe however, that we should all think about it and i guarantee in thinking about it we all feel some sort of way. I know that it upsets me in thinking what the Native Americans had to go through, but i don't necessarily feel responsible or guilty for living here. If it was up to me everything would have been fair and the horrible things would not have happened. I believe that a lot of people would agree with me as well. I don't think that saying it doesn't effect anyone in the class is right, because i do think that when we are in class we really do think about it and feel bad, but like i said before i think that most people are hearing it when they are in class, but then they are going about their lives and living "freely" in America. I also wanted to comment on the first question on Native Americans: The fact that children are born into thinking that Indians are little stick people with feathers coming from their head, and weapons is just plain sad. I know that if i was asked to draw an Indian i would probably do the same thing, and i know a lot of other people who would as well. It was what we were born into, and it doesn't help that we have movies that emphasize the socialization of Indians as well. I do believe it is necessary to educate children on what race and ethnicity are when they are children. I believe it will give children a better understanding and it will show that just because we look different doesn't mean we are less human than the other. This would then take away that socialization of Native Americans as being savages. It will broaden the childs thinking and will be better off for society in the long run, if they have the realistic understanding of what a Native American is. I think that it is a very important lesson that children should no, and not only children, but people who aren't fully educated as well. We learn a lot in this class that can be overwhelming and upsetting, we just need to look at the big picture and see what we can do to make the world a better place for EVERYONE to live.
To tell you the truth, I think people afraid to let themselves feel any real type of way about actions that make them look bad. Granted, out generation did not cause this problem, this injustice, or the general degradation of Native Americans that ensued, but we're not really doing much (if anything) to fix it. I feel like people take the attitude that if they weren't the ones that "broke" it, they shouldn't have to pay to fix it, but ignoring the problem and remaining ignorant to the massive genocide and wrongs that the Native American people have endured is despicable. It is absolutely contrary to the image that America portrays, which really angers me because it is so blatantly hypocritical. America creates this image for itself as the world police, the fixer of the broken, and the savior of the lost and helpless. But are they helping the poor and helpless in their own country? No they aren't, because they were the ones that put them in that situation in the first place. To acknowledge their hypocrisy would taint their image and credibility, and God forbid their reputation be sullied in the pursuit of actual justice.
As you can see, I am not one of those who remained ignorant to the severity of the harm caused to the Native American people. Before this week's classes I didn't really know anything about it, but after hearing what Sam had to say, it's absolutely appalling to me that anyone could ignore what happened. From my perspective, there is absolutely no way that anyone should leave a lecture of such powerful points without feeling some notion of "wow, something really is wrong here."
As counterarguments, I can see people saying that since they weren't directly the ones to eradicate the Natives they shouldn't have to pay the price for their ancestor's sins. Okay, but if that's the case, like Sam said, you'd also have to relinquish every other asset you ever acquired from someone else, and then where would you be? You'd be as disadvantaged as the Native Americans.
Second, people will probably say that after being wronged the Natives resigned and turned instead to drugs, alcohol, and unhealthy addictions. While I do agree that people must be responsible for their own actions, and that no one FORCES people into those lifestyles, with such grim, dismal prospects, it's much easier for them to fall prey to the escapes that drugs and alcohol provide. As most of us are privileged (or at least more privileged than those about whom we're speaking), it's hard to understand their mindset. Without being in such a situation, who are we to judge them?
To me, World Savior America needs to do some soul searching and heal the wounds of its own people before it does any more social work on the global stage.
I know I’m probably not the only one that is thinking this but, most of us really just don’t care. As bad as that sounds it’s the truth, what was done to the Native Americans has nothing to with us. I am actually feeling this right now as I am typing, thinking about how I am in a way sick of hearing about it and I don’t care. Which might be coming from the thought that was put in my head about we are all to blame. It’s making me want to distance myself as far as possible from any situations concerning Native Americans. Although another part of me does feel hurt for the Native American that have live in the horrible conditions that they do. If people would really get motivated enough I’m sure there would be a change in what is going on in the Native Americans reservations. Until people can take the focus off themselves and see what is happening in their own country nothing will be done.
I for one find it hard to talk about this at times because of how crazy it is. I know it was a different time back then, and the Drwinsim theory should be taken into account, but to look back it it now can make people feel uncomfortable. To talk about any "taboo" subject can make people uneasy. From slavery, to the holocaust, and many other things. Another thing is people might hear abou this and block it out mentally, and emotionally. I think if it is brought up more and more, people will have no choice than to think and talk and analyze the situation. Also, a lot of people just could not care less about what happened. I do not know why they would not, but they do not.
For me, the real issue isn’t about Sam’s point not being driven home. I fully understand that the situation in which these Native Americans are living is dire and tragic. And I also understand that is due to our ancestors and our government that they are living that way. The issue I have though, is when do Native Americans have to start shouldering some of the blame. Where does free will come into this deterministic-wrought argument?
Now I am not fully on either end of the spectrum when it comes to determinism versus free will. Nor do I believe that any logical person can be. To me, the best explanations for a specific situation come from a combination of the two. Although surroundings and resources play a major role in shaping who you are, who you become, and what you accomplish, I believe that having the will and the desire to push forward and strive for what you want plays an equally as important role.
Based on this, I have issues with taking all the blame for the ways Native Americans live today. Granted we took their land and we stuck them on reservations. But we did not take everything. We did not take their will to succeed. If they truly wanted to get off the reservation, I believe that the could. Instead of buying alcohol and drugs, they could save enough of their money to move off and get a real job.
Now I understand that the situation they are all in makes this idea hard to fathom. They have low incomes and low levels of education. But it’s not impossible. I truly believe that if you work hard enough you can achieve your goals. Regardless of level playing ground and other factors. They are only obstacles that need to be navigated. They are only walls if you let them prevent you from succeeding.
Another argument I’ve heard is that Native Americans do not want to move off the reservation because they do not want to lose their culture. I understand this concern, but just because you leave that doesn’t mean you can’t take your culture and your heritage with you. Italians in my neighborhood still celebrate their Italian family traditions even though they aren’t in Italy. It’s the same basic concept.
I know that it is a shame that their lands were taken from them and that they suffered great losses. But great people and cultures learn to adjust. I’m not saying that what was done will ever be justified because I don’t think it can be. Nothing gave my ancestors the right to kill you and take your home. But I also can’t justify the self pity. Move on and take your culture with you. Make amends and move towards a better life.
I think that this is a very interesting point. There are a lot of problems with people in our world not appreciating the things that we are given. We did steal our land from the Native Americans and that is a known fact, but honestly I don’t know what we are supposed to do about it. I do not think it is fair that these people are now at the bottom of the totem pole and I think that something should be done about this, what I don’t know. Also, I feel that there are indeed a lot of people who aren’t taking anything home from Sam’s lectures. I feel that this is because a lot of people have things already set in their minds and they are not willing to expand and open their minds to new things. In a lot of the classes I know that after Sam offends the people they basically shut down. I think that this is ridiculous because people need to be more open-minded to things that make them uncomfortable. This is the reason we have so many problems in our society because people aren’t willing to leave their comfort zone. I can say that I’m one of those people that takes into consideration what Sam has to say and I leave with my mind blown most of the time. I just don’t understand what we are supposed to do to fix most of the problems. There are a lot of the issues in this world and I realized that stealing land from the Native Americans was wrong but honestly what are we supposed to do, give it back to them? I don’t want to sound like a heartless bitch, but there are so many other things in this world that we need to worry about. I feel that something should be done so that the Native Americans are not the lowest ones in society, but besides that I feel like there isn’t much more we can do. No matter what we do in our society today things aren’t going to be perfect. There are way too many problems to be able to fix the world. We can make everything better just by appreciating what we have. The Native Americans were here first and then we stole their land. This isn’t fair to them at all. I feel that just the general idea of educating the world about the problems of our society is the first initial step. There are always going to be people in this world that don’t care about what is said and are focused on themselves. A lot of people in class don’t take anything away from the lectures because they simply don’t care and that is the entire story.
I don’t think that it is not upsetting to some people I do feel as though a lot of people, including myself, really don’t know what we can do about this issue. Today’s generation is not a direct cause of what is happening with Native Americans and I feel as though some look down on us because of what our past relatives did. We were not able to have any control over what happened. I do feel bad for the Native Americans and I am sorry for what my past relatives did. But I really am not sure what I can do as an individual to make this situation any better.
I agree completely with this post. I think it seems as though people aren't really caring or taking the point home with them because they just don't have any clue what to do about the situation. I personally feel like it's really hard to manage wanting to do something about the horrible situation the Native Americans have been put in versus the issue of "blame." I'll admit, I was actually completely ignorant to the true genocide that occurred here against the American Indians until we talked about it in class. I had no clue it was the largest genocide in human history?! And it's extremely frustrating to find all this out and to feel like there's nothing I can do about it…to just keep living the same everyday as when I didn't know about this mass killing and stealing of land. But at the same time, I think wanting to do something to help and fix the problem gets grouped in with taking the blame and admitting wrongs- which is not something I can do. I have never killed a Native American. I have never stolen their land. I've never enslaved them. And I don't think anyone in our generation should take the blame for something they weren't involved in, whether their ancestors were involved or not. We always preach that we're accountable for our OWN action alone, but when we're discussing tough issues between the races, everyone wants to group every person of the race together and hold them all accountable for the actions of other people of the same race. Why? I'm not a representative of my race, either the living or dead members and I don't want to take the blame for something they did. The only thing I have in common with the people who did what I am blamed for is skin color- I don't know them or anything about them. I have upmost respect for all people because we are all human beings and I don't look down on a single person on the basis of skin color. I don't see anyone as an inferior. And so I refuse to let myself feel guilty for the fact that white people killed Native Americans and white peole enslaved African Americans. These things are HORRIBLY wrong and its upsetting that they happened, but I didn't do it. When a parent commits murder, does anyone blame the murder on their child also? No, and it'd be ridiculous if they did! So why should we continue to blame people and be hostile toward them for things that their ancestors did long ago, or for a lot of us, for things that members of our race- not even related to us in any way did long ago? That being said though, I hope that knowing this genocide occurred does strike a nerve with everyone but its tragic. But again, I also wish that there was more outlets available for us to "do something" about it and try to help these people who have been treated so unfairly for way too long now.
I agree with this person completely. But it even goes further than people just not feeling bad about the genocide that the Native Americans endured. Even when I was in high school, I remember learning about the Trail of Tears, the pilgrims and the Indians, etc., but I don’t feel like I learned enough about it to remember it all, and to be honest I haven’t thought about it until last class. It wasn’t really stressed enough, or as much as other issues such as segregation and the race wars. I know so much more about the Civil Rights Act and Martin Luther King Jr. than anything about the Native Americans. Martin Luther King Jr. even has a holiday named after him, there is a whole Black History Month, Rosa Parks, there’s countless movies regarding race and segregation, the KKK- I mean it’s just crazy how much I know about that but I really know next to nothing about the Native Americans. And then I come to class and see what tribes’ lives are like now, and it blew my mind to see that. I feel bad for those people; they must feel like their culture is dead. And that’s very sad that it was taken away from them. But most people feel it’s easier just not to care because it has no direct effect on any of us. If I hadn’t been in this class, I probably never would have realized the hardships that the Native Americans are facing today. But really what can we do? We talk about it and spread knowledge just like that guy said in class. Try to make other people aware. I mean I can say I feel bad, because I do, but I know myself and it’s not like I’m going to get a bunch of my friends and move to a reservation. And that’s the way most people feel-helpless so it’s easier to just brush it off. Especially people like myself who hardly know anything about the Native Americans. But at least people know now. But it’s not like their going to get help like the people in Haiti are getting and the people in Iraq… because that’s just it. There’s bigger problems in the world- as sad it is to say that’s obviously how the government looks at it. They aren’t doing anything about it. If the government stepped in and videos like the one we saw in class got on the news, then other people would be intrigued and jump on the bandwagon. Because really everybody will do what everybody else is doing. But then again there’s no way of really knowing if that would get publicity. I’m happy that it was brought up in class and that more people are finding out about it.
I feel like this doesn't upset many people because it's not very often that a majority of society interacts with a Native American. That's not to say they're in some sort of hiding. I personally have never met someone who is a Native American. The slavery that took place down south is much more prominent because racism still exists, and we see it on the faces of many all over this country. It's visible to us because the skin color is clearly visible to us. With Native Americans, I have yet to hear someone's story about how they feel inferior or taken advantage of. Perhaps I've been subconsciously turning a blind eye because I never knew it really existed, but for the most part…it isn't talked about.
I think this issue is in fact very upsetting. But I think this is a great question and I see where you’re coming from. The class on Tuesday seemed very resistant to truly internalize the issues set forth by Sam about American Indians.
I think a lot of the problem is that we as Americans living in the 21st century feel very, very removed from the issue. Growing up, I learned a little bit about American Indian history and culture, but still to this day I have not learned about it to the extent that I have about African American or Hispanic history or culture. At least where I’m from in PA, we didn’t learn much about American Indians and had very little interaction with people from that background. Additionally, American Indian history was certainly never framed in such a negative way as to be considered genocide.
Since American Indian history has never been consistently framed in an oppressive, murderous light, it is not engrained in us to feel blame. SO many of the questions in class as well as in another video question on the blog is: “Why me? Why should I feel blame for something I didn’t do?”
I don’t think it’s upsetting to many people because we don’t know the details of it or the extent of it. I can’t speak for the entire educational system, but I would assume that in general we are not taught enough about the issue. Additionally, no social movement on behave of American Indians has been large enough to enter mainstream consciousness.
Another question I have going off of this is, why do we feel bad about American slavery of African Americans, and we acknowledge the wrongs of such a system, but we don’t treat the history of American Indians the same way? What is it about African American rights and their past that does enter our minds in a negative framework of wrongdoing, but that of American Indians does not?
I think Sam’s lecture had a bit of shock and awe to it. He only had one class period to work with and can’t teach us everything about the historic events that occurred with American Indians, so he was trying to get the point across of how horrific this issue really is.
And I do feel bad. What happened to the American Indians and to their land is truly horrific. And no matter whether you are a recent immigrant or if your family has been here for generations – or anything in between – all of us share in the fact that we did not partake in the events of genocide. None of us, in this generation, had anything to do with it. But we all additionally share in the fact that we live here now, on Red land. Our country, our generation continues to ignore the issues of American Indians. We cannot reverse history, but what we can do is start to learn more about the plights of American Indians, teach others, begin to acknowledge past wrongdoing, and hopefully create social change that brings this population up the a more equitable playing field in the US.
I tend to agree with what this guy has to say on virtually every level. It’s awesome that taking this class is exposing us to issues that wouldn’t normally come to our immediate attention, but what do most of us do after a lecture? The student body switches its mind off of what was said and focuses on the rest of the day; the problems, stresses, and obligations that await us, however significant or insignificant they may be. Sam Richards opens our mind and helps us attain an understanding, and then allows us to decide whether we want to take further actions to help prevent these situations. How we respond to observing these conditions of Native Americans is just a measure of personal reaction, similar to the action (or lack of) taken upon knowledge that most the things we own are made in some way by slavery.
The question was how do some people that listen to Sam’s lecture not become upset. I think that when being shown the poverty that modern Native Americans live in today, many people were upset. No one should have to live in those conditions, no matter what their race or ethnicity. I think the when Sam tried to show that we (white, black, and brown) people are at fault for their situation is when you saw most people lose that reaction.
I think a lot of the reactions were based on how you view history. History is happening all the time and it shapes all aspects of our lives. The more recent an event is, the more impact it will have on people. For example 9/11 and the War on Terror will have a much greater impact on my generation than WWII. What Sam has been asking us to do is internalize historical events that happened in this country two or three hundred years ago. Many times the people he is talking to have not even been in this country long, so why should they feel any guilt? For myself, I view history and what happened to the Native Americans in a more analytical way:
Wars throughout history have been fought for land. These battles have created the lines we now see on every map, of every country. Individuals who do not study history (and don’t believe what Sam says, white people DO study history!) have studied the characteristics of these wars. Unfortunately or fortunately depending on your views, we no longer see wars for the explicit purpose of acquiring land; and therefore must rely on historical studies to understand it. When these wars took place the winner receiving the conquered land assimilated what was left of the loosing group into their own society. For some reason this did not happen with the Native Americans. This situation was unique, and has brought with it its own unique problems. It is my understanding (feel free to correct me) that the reservations are considered not part of the United States. That Native American Tribes consider themselves sovereign through treaty. Nowhere in my memory has there been a sovereign group within the boundaries of another sovereign group.
I am not disputing that the Native Americans were almost wiped out (or as Sam likes to put it: genocide) and that it is a terrible thing that such a rich culture was destroyed. What I am disputing is this idea that we (the generations that have come after the wars were over) should feel guilty or be seen in the wrong. We did not sign this treaty that created nations with a nation as we see today; nor did we personally injure these Native Americans. I am not sure what could be done after so many generations, if this group could be brought into the larger society. I am sure that it would help improve many of the statistics Sam presented to us if that did happen.
We were presented with this issue of genocide and 'stolen' land from the Native Americans. However, I think for most of us perhaps it is a two fold thing as to why maybe it hasn't struck home as hard and the student who posed the question would have liked it to. First, I've never met a full blooded Native American. Yes you can feel extremely bad for them, but when you aren't even exposed to the people, let alone the poverty and degradation, it just feels like it is a world away. But it isn't. It's right here in America and I do feel like they are a forgotten people. I think that's the point that students should key into the most. Maybe you can't empathize with them completely because you've never had contact with them, and that's understandable. However, just taking a moment to realize that this is occurring on our land is the harshest part of the story.
I think this issue doesn’t affect people for a number of reasons, the main one being it wasn’t their fault. Why are we upset by something that we had nothing to do with? Yeah it sucks it happened to them, but we just move on like from any genocide that has happened. The difference is, this genocide was not presented to us in the way others have.
When you look on how WWII was explained in regards to what Germany did to the Jew’s, we felt bad for them and still do. It was presented to us in a way that makes us feel for what had happened, especially since the enemy was a different country. How is our history told though?
We don’t get taught America killed off Native American’s because we wanted the land, we were taught the Natives were stopping us from settling on land that was not owned by anyone. How to we react to that? We just think the Native’s were a bunch of jerks that deserved what happened to them because of how they treated us. It’s not until much later that we learn America wasn’t exactly the nicest of people as we claim ourselves to be.
But our slogan of “the land of opportunity” outweighs the genocide, I think at least, in our minds because had we helped the Natives instead of kill them, how would this country be today?
I personally don’t think it is a matter of people not caring about the Native Americans and their land, I think it is the lack of information people have about them. I mean if I were not taking this class I would never have known about this genocide going on today. Before this was brought to my knowledge this situation had no affect on my life, but now that I am aware of what is going on I feel the need to want to do something about it. If people are not aware of something they cannot have feelings about a situation and they certainly cannot do anything about it if they don’t even know what is going on. So, although I do think this Native American genocide is horrible and something should be done about it, I feel that this situation needs to be brought up to the public eye more than it is to make everyone aware of what is going on.
I agree with this post in terms of the actual awareness and education the average person has in regard to the Native American genocide. Before taking this class and seriously discussing some of these horrendous issues, the Native American genocide was something I learned about in a history class as a part of a chapter on early American history. We can all agree that a historical event such as this is frowned upon by Americans today and gets a little bit of sympathy for the short amount of time it is being taught. However, there is no real education beyond that point in schools, and certainly not enough movement among people today to conjure up some sort of group against the Native American genocide. A combination of both of these factors leads to the most obvious- no action at all. In my opinion, the root of this issue of ignorance lies within the lack of a proper common knowledge. Without education, there is a loss of any potential power to make a difference.
I think people today are more concerned about themselves. They are more concerned with what is going on today in his/her life or his/her future. It could be the fact that people feel that they are not directly involved in this genocide. I don’t think that people don’t care about the history of the Native Americans but I think people don’t know much about it. There aren’t any spear-headed campaigns or classes teaching younger children/young adults about the history of how the United States came about.
To be honest, most people won’t lose any sleep over this issue. I think media has done a great job hiding the issues of the Native Americans and made it the “past.” They make it seem that it’s not a problem now but how the white man came to power. When people put events in the past, no one really looks at the event as seriously as it were to be the in the present. I personally never really thought about Native Americans and I never questioned why I didn’t run into them more often. I feel like I almost forgot the race in general until Thanksgiving rolled around. Even then, I had a distorted view on what Native Americans were.
I remember a white male student explaining about the genocide of Native Americans was more of a “survival of the fittest.” In order for our nation to be a democracy, we had to get to take over the land of others. We had to take their land so we can advance in our lives. The whole question of “What happens to the Native Americans?” doesn’t come in effect. They call the United States “the land of the free.” Well, the land wasn’t really free without stepping on other people.
There isn’t much light shed on their issue. The Native Americans are now forced to live in poverty-stricken reservations that seem to revolve around self-destructive behavior. The Native American women have a higher risk of getting sexually abused and the men are more prone to become alcoholics or commit suicide according to the poles among other race ethnicities. They have suffered for so long but it seems like our society just brushes them off. If I really look into what really happened, I do feel bad. I feel bad about what they been through and how they are treated now. But I’m not going to look at the issue from the past but try to look at the issue in a sense of what we can do about it.
I think in order to understand them more; we could educate others by having more historical classes for younger students and High School students. They should use the public school district to their advantage and get their story out. Native Americans are trapped in a situation where they feel that they will be in poverty forever. This reminds me of the movie “District 9.” What happen were aliens landed in the USA and the US felt that they wanted to help these creatures. They piled these creatures in a “reservation” where they were barricaded and had houses made of cardboard and such. They mistreated them and try to destroy their way to get home. I feel like these Native Americans have no home to go.
I am not sure that I agree that people are not “taking it home”. Let’s face it…Sam likes to generalize, but in a way, he almost has to. When he says that no one thinks of Native Americans or acknowledges the harms done to them in the past, he must know that this is not true of everyone. However, he cannot go to all 800 people sitting in the room and ask how educated they are on the topic. Going back to your video question, I can only speak for myself. I have heard people talk about feeling guilty walking out of class. I think this is ridiculous. Although Sam presents his opinions in an interrogating fashion, why should I feel any remorse for what happened long ago to the Native Americans? I have zero regret, because I had nothing to do with it. Do I think the genocide that occurred is awful? Absolutely. I wish it never happened. And to some extent, I think people should feel that way. If that is what you were addressing, I cannot answer why people do not feel bad for the situation. Because it is upsetting. But the fact remains that I am my own person living my own life. I wish more people did recognize the struggle of the Native Americans. But to hear some of the things presented in class or especially muttered by students near me about feeling guilty because we have never experienced anything like that is, to me, preposterous. I think the best thing that can be done is for one to just take a minute and think about what happened in the past. Enlighten yourself about the genocide. Offer sympathy if you feel like you must. But to walk out of class and downright feel depressed? Why would you do that unless you had anything to personally feel regret about? My words may seem strong, and some may misconstrue what I am trying to say, but I feel strongly about this. It is the same reason why I listen to everything Sam has to say, while also trying to let some of the Socialist blame game jargon go in one ear and out the other. His presentation is too interrogative sometimes; that is why people responded with the questions as they did. They may be misunderstanding him to some extent, but I feel like the poster of this video maybe misunderstands him as well. It is not that the genocide doesn’t affect me. It is definitely not that it doesn’t upset me. It is simply that I can offer nothing my deepest sympathies (not empathy because I haven’t experienced it myself) and acknowledge the grave wrongs that were committed in the past.
Out of sight, out of mind. People today think and assume they are so far removed from what happened to Native Americans that they don’t seem to think that it affects them. Combine that with the mentality that “we won fair and square” and there you go. In a materialistic society filled with televisions, video games, iPods, cell phones, etc. it is so easy to think that there are more important things to worry about or to think about. Who really wants to think about HOW we really got here or what we had to do to establish ourselves on this land? I think that’s the real danger of it all.
I think the main reason why it does not hit home with the majority of people is due to unfamiliarity. There was never a great amount of importance and significance placed on the genocide of the Native Americans in the multiple history classes that I took during my years from elementary school to high school. Many of the history books and lectures focus on the great things that America had to accomplish to become the great nation we currently are. The negative aspects that occurred over the duration of our nation’s history are often left out or vaguely touched upon. Native American history takes a back seat to America’s issues of slavery and the civil rights movement. I think this is because America has made huge strides towards abolishing slavery, so our country essentially righted our wrongdoings. This is not the same with the Native Americans because in my mind it seems as though it is becoming less and less of an issue. This might also be a result of not living in an area where Native Americans are more prevalent. I also personally do not know anyone that refers to themselves as a Native American. Maybe if I had a friend that was Native American I would understand the issue in greater detail and it would hit home.
Information on Native American history, despite the trail of tears, really just was not in any of the textbooks or lectures in any of my history classes growing up. Everything that happened to the Native Americans is obviously upsetting, but it doesn’t affect me that much because I didn’t experience it first hand and I honestly just really have not learned that much about it. Everyone knows generally what happened, but not to what extent and the gruesome actions and details. We simply were not educated on the issue; I know if we had developed a base of Native American history during elementary school it would affect me much more on a personal level.
When I was in third grade we went on a field trip to some sort of a reenactment or reservation of the Lenape Indians. It was actually pretty interesting because they broke down many different aspects of their culture. They talked about their song and dance, clothing, hunting, and the different foods they ate. In instances like this I feel like Native Americans place so much importance on educating and explain their culture to Americans. I think this would be the perfect time to display what actually happened to their tribe. They could educate children on certain things that are not learned in school at all. I just felt that this would be the opportunity for them to express the horrendous and terrible acts that their people endured rather than explaining their culture. I think the genocide is so much more important and doesn’t get the exposure it deserves.
After being in that class and listening to the lecture, I have a hard time believing that it didn't affect people. I think the problem is that people, including myself, just don't know what we can do. To be honest, I knew that the majority of Native Americans were on the poorer side, but I didn't know it was this bad. So the question shouldn't be, "why don't people in this class care", because I'm sure they do. It should be, Why is our government allowing this to happen? I know it may be harsh to say, but back when Europe was coming into what we now call the United States, I can see why they did what they did to the Native Americans. I'm not saying I agree with what they did, but it was different times. Survival of the fittest played a much larger role in governments than it does today. They discovered new land, and when they found people living on it, they fought to take it over. It was just the way things were back then. We can't go back and change the past, but why not try to change something that is wrong in our country today?
We have news reporters go into towns like Pine Ridge, South Dakota and report the tragedies that are occurring there, yet that's the furthest they go with it. They make a story, for what? Their ratings for that week. How can our government see things happen like this, and just let it continue? I know our ancestors just pushed the Native Americans out of their way, but we are living in different times. And I know our country always comes through and is able to raise money when disasters happen around the world. Why can't we help the very people living within our borders? And now, with our economy the way it is. It would be even harder to get the government to do something because everyone is concerned with their own well-being. People are getting laid off left and right and our government is having a hard enough time fixing that problem. If someone walked into congress and said that we need to give aid to the Native Americans, they would probably laugh. It's just a shame that our country, since WWII has been portrayed as this perfect and superior place. When behind all the main stream bullshit, if you look closely, things are happening that really hinders the American reputation.
I think we all know this should upset us, but some find it hard to actually truly get upset about it. One of the main reasons for this is probably because so little of us actually come in contact with Native Americans. The vast majority the country has no reservations and I for one have come met very few. I’m not saying this is a good reason, but I think it helps explain why they are so forgotten. We don’t see Native American injustices as much as other minorities’ simply because we aren’t surrounded by them. There is no doubt that more focus should be put on them and their struggles and just because their problems seem so far away from ours, doesn’t mean it doesn’t affect us.
I think there are two ways to respond to this question. The first is on a general level, my thinking as to why the general public doesn’t seem to care all that much, and the second is on a person level, why I myself am guilty of forgetting the genocide committed against Native Americans and the utter poverty that most live in today. So first off, in terms of generally, the fact of the matter is that we just really aren’t confronted with it. Native Americans, due in large part to genocide and to white people pushing them off of their own land, are a very small minority in today’s society and in today’s world. We go to Penn State, a campus with over 40,000 people, and maybe I’m not looking hard enough but I honestly can’t remember the last time I saw someone who was Native American (at least to my own eyes and my own perceptions). If something doesn’t directly affect us, if we’re not confronted by it full in the face, then it’s incredibly difficult to care because we are just all guilty of simply forgetfulness. Some people, on the other hand, are from a different class all together. Some people are not only guilty of ignorance and obliviousness, but some people are fully aware and believe that it’s just “evolution,” that is the way things have happened and that there is nothing wrong with it—so these people are obviously not upset or affected because they believe it is the right state of things. On a more personal level, I sincerely wish that this problem affected me more, but I’m not sure how to make that happen. It’s hard, when I get wrapped up in the daily grind of things, of going to classes, studying for exams, going to the gym, hanging out with my roommates, or whatever, to remember how lucky I am and to realize that across this country there are many people, in this case Native Americans, living in utter poverty and struggling to get by each consecutive day. The problem is awareness. But how do we fix that? How can we make people care, make people more upset? That’s the million dollar question. In class this past week I was appalled at the facts and figures Sam gave us about the genocide and now current living conditions of Native Americans. But then I left class, and by the next day the thought had left my mind and I had forgotten. Awareness needs to be raised in order for things to change in society because we can’t expect people to want to help anyone else if they don’t even know about the problems in the first place. This class is one way to at least get people thinking. It’s a class of roughly 700 people, and out of those 700 only a handful will care enough to go further, to try to help. But that handful is a few more than there were 3 days ago—and that’s a start. In order for people to care they first have to know, and that, in my opinion, is the root of the problem.
In terms of people not being as affected by the issues of genocide and unfair inequalities as it seems they should be, I think it has a lot to do with people simply becoming numb to tragic issues. Every day in the news there is something new and worse going on and it seems that we simply jump from issue to issue feeling bad but not actually taking the full time to digest it and reflect upon what should be and what can be done. Another reason people seem to becoming more apathetic to many issues is that it is hard to relate to someone you don’t know or have never seen and don’t know where they are from. When something happens in another part of the country, another part of the world, or in past history people can’t as easily relate. However I think that when you know or meet someone who is dealing with a particular struggle you are more likely to want to do something about it. A lot of the times I think that people need a face to relate a problem or see a distinct good and bad guy. With issues such as what happened to the Native American tribes when Europeans colonized America people are less likely to focus on possible wrongdoings because this is now the United States of America which many consider to be a great country in terms of opportunity and rights given to citizens. It is easy to ignore an ugly beginning when ultimately the outcome is an overall good thing. Also with the issue of taking land or stealing land I wonder when in history brute force went from the more successful group of people taking what they could get versus violent people selfishly taking what doesn’t belong to them. Now of course if we see peoples conquering other peoples and taking their land we find it to be unjust (as the British settlers did to the indigenous Americans). However way back in history such as the times of the Romans, the Roman Empire wasn’t considered an evil unjust society but the most successful and innovative. I think it is more complex then we make it seem when third world countries act like others acted in previous parts of history. We simply make them out to be pure evil when they are not actually evil but stuck in a system where that is allowed. It is human nature to take what you can get. Nothing about sociology is strictly defined and it’s always changing. When it comes to many problems and questions that are raised there is no right or wrong answer but mostly gray. Whatever society decides is ultimately how we evaluate but I think it’s important to remember that not everyone is on the same exact page and maybe the best solution is to get as many people on the same page as possible.
White man’s guilt. When Pilgrims came to this “New World” to seek freedom from religious persecution they did not expect (very naively) to have to encounter or deal with a native population. At that time, the natives were viewed as unequal based on the color of their skin, lack of clothing, and even the fact that they were not monotheistic. Therefore, the native population was treated as such, unequal. It is incredibly easy for us (400 years later) to look back at the original settlers and think “how could they do such a horrible thing? How could they treat other human beings so poorly?” The fact is, at that time the notion of equality was completely foreign to them, even though they had been the victims of persecution themselves.
For 300 years the mistreatment of native Americans went on and as natives were treated more humanely in many instances white men justified their removal by saying that since the natives had no system of ownership then they had no “right” to the land and thus, could be kicked off. Hindsight being 20/20 this was all wrong and disturbing, but ultimately, had nothing to do with the generation that is sitting in Sam’s class. I personally had ancestors that were treated like slaves and I don’t hold any animosity toward Americans who came before my immigrant ancestors.
I don’t mean to compare the land stealing and genocide of native Americans to the hard times of Irish immigrants but I do want to make the point that as horrible as those things were for the natives, I had absolutely nothing to do with it and should not be made to feel guilty or in some way responsible. That being said, I think Sam’s larger point is very valid. The genocide and land stealing that did occur has an effect on these people today whether we like it or not, but in my mind the solution to those people’s problems are not just the white man’s or all Americans in general. Native Americans need to step up to the plate also.
I live 10 minutes from an Indian Reservation in upstate New York (Onondoga) and have seen first hand the discrepancies in income, education, and potential. On that reservation most native Americans choose to educate their children in the traditional ways of their ancestors up until the child would enter middle school and sometimes until high school. I completely accept this tradition and think it is valuable to native American culture, however, it is a choice. Upon entering middle school the kids that came from the reservation have a limited, if any, proficiency in the English language. They are extremely far behind in conventional education when they enter school and this follows them through high school.
I played lacrosse with and against kids that came from the reservation. Four of these players were all Americans and theoretically would have been able to attend the college of their choice to play lacrosse. None of them made it past community college, however, because they could not meet the minimum requirement on the SAT. Is the fact that they could not go to school because they had bad grades my fault as an American? Is it their fault for not working hard in middle school and high school? Or is it the choice of the parents who valued the maintenance of tradition above giving their children the best chance to assimilate into American culture and opportunity? I don’t know the answer but these are sides to the argument that I don’t think that people in class have an opportunity to see when all Sam shows is genocide, income levels, and other disparities.
A large part of the reason for the poverty that Native Americans experience is due to the fact that not many people are aware of the lifestyles many of them tend to lead. And for the people that are aware, it's most likely that they are rarely reminded of this fact. I personally do not know one person that would identify his or her self as Native American or American Indian. Part of that reason seems to me that many Native Americans fall under extreme categories. I hear a lot about Native Americans being very poor and leading tough lives centered around drug and alcohol abuse and different kinds of violence, and I also hear about Native Americans that own casinos and are very wealthy thus leading good lives. I come from a middle class home, and that's how most of my area is. There certainly are not many Native Americans in my town, if any at at all. Because of that I was not really aware of the strife that these people experience. I'm currently 21 years old and up until this point in my life, I have never been told that I am to blame for the Native Americans losing their land many years ago. I can see why is tough for people to cope with the fact that they may be to blame. But then i question it again and say, am I really to blame at all for being born and living my life. Yes it is awful what poor Native Americans have to experience. But I haven't knowingly done anything to harm Native Americans. I am not sure what i could do to help them. I don't exactly lead a lavish lifestyle. By no means am I poor, but I do have to work for what I have. I have to work to pay for my own schooling. I don't know exactly what I can do in the already busy life, and I don't know of any reasonable items I even have to give Native Americans. Obviously It's not like we can just give them back their land at this point. What do we do for them? If they want an apology, well i would gladly say sorry just to appease the situation. But deep down you can't really be sorry for something that you don't feel blame for.
I can see how you don’t feel blame for this but you should at least feel a shred of responsibility. I am fine with you not feeling responsible for taking their land but you are playing a part today. When you stated you would apologize just to appease the situation a chill ran down my spine. Just saying sorry to say sorry means absolutely nothing. In fact, it is the opposite of saying sorry. “Appeasing” the situation achieves nothing. What these people need is an apology of grandiose proportions, one the likes of which can only be compared to the Australian government apologizing to the Aborigines. The responsibility of yours is to apologize and to feel that apology in every bone in your body.
It is of no question to me that we as Americans have done many things wrong in the past. I think the genocide of Native Americans is at the top of the list in regards to our civilization basically kicking people out of their own land and even murdering them in cold blood. I don't think that people are not necessarily "taking it home" but rather people or our generation is good at blaming other people for their faults. Because the people of our generation were not the actual Americans that killed the Native Americans and made them move to reservations, they basically just shove it in their back pocket and think it's not their fault and shouldn't be blamed for it. I agree with Sam that the most important thing for us to do is to accept the fact that we have done something wrong. When the victims of this genocide see that the people whom have committed the act are simply saying that it is not their fault and they are just being compensated for the blood and tears that they have shed with things like casinos and black gold basically is just not good enough for them. The fact that we as Americans have turned these helpless people into bitter turmoil between drugs, suicide, and poverty is the important subject. I believe that the government should set standards for the people that are going through these hard times and try and help them. With all the money that we just raised for the natural disaster in Haiti it shows that we can help people who are struggling and have no help for them. I don't see what the difference is between helping people in Haiti and raising money and giving government funds to the Native Americans that are in need. Just like I stated earlier, the people of my generation simply believe that they did not do anything wrong. This can be said just as well for the Native Americans that are struggling in poverty and drug abuse today because they and their parents and grandparents were not given the same opportunity that we were given. The fact of the matter is that the numbers do not lie. The statistics that were shown in class of Native Americans simply shows that they are in need of help. I think that it definitely hit home to me when I learned the actual statistics of turmoil that these indigenous people are going through. Although I believe nothing is going to happen until we admit that we made a mistake and take the proper steps to fix it. I will once again go back to my point on helping the people of Haiti. Our country is proud and didn’t think twice about helping Haiti when they were in desperate need for help. Even with our country being in an economic depression we still have the funds available to help people that basically lost EVERYTHING because of something that wasn’t their fault. I hope more people believe the same way that I do that we need to help these people before the genocide wipes them out completely and there is nothing else we can do. I think we need to help them while we still can before it is too late, hopefully it already isn’t.
this a great point and i dont think a lot of people are taking it seriously because we know nothing about it. Slavery was slammed in our faces for so long in the last century that we know about that and we know what we did and its talked about, so there was action taken. it really is just theres not knowledge about it, so what we dont know personally never happened to us, so how can we do something? and even when we knownow, there just a small percent so, it still doesnt gets talked about because theres only a select time sthat a group of people are going to know about this, so it never gets brought up.
I like your style combackid. My first memories of learning about slavery were in fifth grade but I am sure I had at least some education in it before that. I can recall my first lesson on Native Americans. In third grade we made beef jerky. Somewhat appalling now that I look back on it. I was painted a picture of people who roamed the earth enjoying beef jerky and then vanishing. I learned that we got along together for thanksgiving and loved each other. We all learned at a young age that the holocaust was a tragedy of epic proportions. But it was the Germans who committed it. America could never do something like that. How wrong I was. How wrong we were. It wasn’t until I took an interest in their culture that I truly learned what happened. We need to slam it in our children’s faces just the same as slavery. With knowledge comes power.
I completely agree with this post. I also agree with the comment above this one where some people don't realize what's really going on because they haven't experienced or learned about what some of these people's lifestyles are like. I don't know if this relates or not but four years ago I went on vacation with my family to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic and as soon as we got off the plane something just hit me just from observing the differences and I took notice of how those people live such a different life than we do here in America. It was just an extreme because we got in a van provided by the airport to drive us to our hotel, and the area we traveled to get there was just so… different and rather poor. First of all, this guy drove about 45 mph ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE ROAD, blowin' stop signs and just driving like a maniac, but had a sense of humor about it when he noticed we weren't used to that kind of stuff. And as we drove along the sights were just amazing and indifferent. There were many people just on the side of the street who lived in little shacks or didn't have a home. I felt a little insecure about it but once we arrived it was a little different in a sense where I felt more safe but everything around me was just completely new. It just made me think that you don't really know what other cultures or Native American's lives consist of. We should care. It's definitely something that shouldn't be ignored. When Sam brought up the scenario of slaves making the pieces to our phones I just got this feeling. And it goes back to what we talked about today in our discussion group about how people can take things for granite so easily. I just think that it's important for people to have knowledge of other cultures so that we are able to see the reasoning behind situations so we can act upon the decision of agreeing or disagreeing in a legitimate sense.
I completely agree with you. I think that people here the information and they take it in but they are detached from it. This kind of thing can be taken quite a few different ways and everyone has a different reaction. I have to personally say that yeah, I do feel bad for the Native Americans but there is nothing I can do now to take it back. To be quite honest, my people weren't even apart of this. I am black and my ancestors were slave, they had no choice, they were forced over here and so therefore I get some kind of out. Nonetheless, I still do feel bad that they have horrible living conditions and here I am getting prepared for State Patties Day. But as I said before, there is nothing we can really do now. This happened hundreds of years ago. That is why I think some people do not feel bad about the living conditions of some of the Native Americas.
I think the reason people don’t seem to take this topic about Native Americans home and seem not to be affected by it is because we are not expose to it enough. I know for me I don’t see a lot of Native Americans related things in my daily routines so the only time I think about the Native Americans is when Sam talks about it. Also I am a business major so really the only class I am expose to the Native Americans is Soc 119 and this is only this semester, last semester I did not have any classes where we talk about them. Before this semester, the last time I learned about Native Americans was freshman year in high school and I am a sophomore now so that is about six years ago. I think this is true not just with the topic of Native Americans but also with a lot of other topics, we would talk about them in class, but as soon as we walk out the door, we remember other things we have to do and we sort of forget what happened in class. For me I know whenever we talk about something intense in class I would feel like I need to do something about the topic but once I walk out the door and my friend texts me to go to dinner or I need to go to a meeting I just forget, even if I do remember for that day, I would forget the next day. I don’t think it’s that people don’t feel upset about this topic or don’t care; it’s just that we are not surrounded by it enough and we are not reminded of it every day to feel a personal connection to it. If it was all around us reminding us every day then maybe it would be different, maybe we will take it more personally and treat it as a problem in our lives. I feel like right now we only think about it when people talk about it but after that we will forget and move on with other problems that are obvious and surround us and remind us every day. Before looking at the statistic in class, I did not know that there was this much discrimination against Native Americans, I never really thought about this problem because in my every-day life, nothing really reminds me of it. In history class in high school, we learned that the Europeans came and started life in America which was then occupied by the Indians so they moved them out west. I knew the Europeans took their land but I didn’t know that discrimination still exists today against the Native Americans. I think it’s hard to fully understand something until you have experienced it first hand or know someone close who has experienced it. I think most people would do what they can to help the situation it’s just that they are not reminded of it enough to take actions.
To start, it is sad that there is and was genocide going on with the Native Americans. And it is not necessarily right that our ancestors took their land. I do have to agree that people aren’t really getting the take home message. I think this is partly because we live in Pennsylvania and there aren’t really any reserves around here to see what they go through. There aren’t even any nearby to visit. It is hard to understand and be empathetic when we haven’t got the full picture and effect. It is kind of like the saying that actions speak louder than words. So until we see it for ourselves, I don’t believe anyone will see the true take home message. I will admit that I, myself, don’t really get it either. I mean I have had history class every year since I was in elementary school and learned about the Native Americans. The teachers taught us about their culture, and when they came in contact with the pilgrims and so forth. Then as we got older we learned about all the wars and the trail of tears. So I guess in a way, it seems as those Native Americans were just a part of the past and not the present. It appears as if all of hate and unequal rights have been resolved. Personally, I thought that we were on equal terms with them and it never crossed my mind that the information I understood to be correct, was not correct. We aren’t really educated on Native Americans anymore. I think part of the reason is that it still goes back to the fact that we aren’t near the reservations to realize how they are still treated.
And I know as Sam mentioned in class, just because you don’t see it doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen, and I concur. But the point is that we don’t see it, so how can we truly be sympathetic if we don’t exactly understand? I think it would be more of a take home message if we could relate to it. I am sure that lot stuff goes down that we aren’t aware of. It makes me feel bad that they have a harder time than any of us doing things such as applying for a loan or job. However, I do not feel responsible for taking their land. I personally am not aware of any of my ancestors doing this since my family moved here right after World War II. It is more of the race and inequality issue that gets to me than how they became in the position they are in. It is not right in any sense but I am not really sure what we could do about it. I guess perhaps they would have to stand up for the government to grant more rights and get their equality back.
I think the whole Native American issue is a tough one because none of us in the class (and even people of Sam’s age for the matter) ever really have to think about it or confront it in our everyday lives. I know I have zero friends who call themselves Native Americans, and I have never really had to discuss the mass genocide that almost completely rid them of their homeland. Instead, we just go on with our life and live where we live and use what we use because it is there and available. I understand that some people don’t think they should feel bad or be blamed for what happened to Native Americans because they didn’t grow up here or their parents/ancestors came over from another country. But I don’t think Sam wants us to all just feel terrible and take blame but to actually try and learn and understand what happened when we came to this land and rid it of the native people. This is (in a way) worse than the Holocaust which in my mind has always been the most horrific and senseless acts ever committed by human beings: the systematic slaughtering of MILLIONS of people for no real purpose. The point I’m making is that we should think and learn about the Native American genocide because it was large-scale, inhumane, and most of all-real. Because Native Americans are now the minority in this country and, like other minority groups, are among the most poor, least educated people in the United States. And these are the people that owned this land before we came. I think a reason some people may not care about that is because they truly believe the Darwinism ideal (and to his credit, the kid that mentioned that in class was brave and shouldn’t get flak for bringing it up). To be clear, I am a bio major and I believe in evolution and survival of the fittest. Somehow, though, I can’t accept that as an excuse or answer to why our ancestors did what they did to the Native Americans. If someone with more firepower has the right to take over the others than this whole world would be a huge nuclear warzone and people would be eliminated every day. That is obviously not a good thing for anyone.
So, the problem exists when you get to the question of what the hell to do about it. Of course, the Native Americans have already been stripped of almost all material things and most of their land, but I also think in a way we have a chance to right at least some of our past wrongs. Many Native Americans live in poverty complete with alcohol problems, terrible education, and living conditions. We must recognize this and push to improve this matter. I am no politician, and I certainly don’t have the answers, but I think for sure this needs to be addressed at the federal level where more money and resources needs to be allocated for these people. More fertile land needs to be given to them, and more opportunities both in schools and in the workplace must be presented to help get them back on their feet and make a living. If we all just push the matter aside and act like it doesn’t matter (or we simply don’t care) eventually there will be no trace of native blood left in this country, and our virus-like takeover of the land will be fully and totally complete. And that I am sure most of us would agree, is a disgrace
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PamBeesley Reply:
February 26th, 2010 at 1:32 am
I can definitely relate to what you've said in your post about Native Americans here. It's very difficult for students to comprehend what happened so many years ago, especially when it doesn't affect our daily lives, or lives in general to begin with. So many people are only concerned with themselves and the immediate people around them, and about their current situation. It's rare that people think about the consequences and results of their actions and the repercussion that they might have 20 years from now. I don't have any friends or even know anyone who calls themselves a Native American. And I agree that I don't think Sam necessarily wants us to feel guilty about the killings of thousands of Native Americans because that's not going to solve anything now. It's a chance for us to not make the same decisions and choices we made in the past and to learn from history. I agree that the government definitely needs to be involved in solving this problem. The rates of poverty, alcoholism, and abuse among other things are highest in the country on certain reservations and among Native American people. It's a problem that people probably have a hard time seeing how they can help individually.
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dabusiness Reply:
February 26th, 2010 at 6:21 pm
I agree with everything in this post and I certainly feel the same way about Native Americans and our knowledge about them. I almost never think about Native Americans, I do not know any Native Americans and there are no reservations near me. My dad’s mother has always felt a connection to Native Americans. She goes to celebrations on reservations, reads books written by different tribe members, and knits hats and gloves for kids on reservations. Although I have always known this about her, I did not really ever fully understand why she did what she did. I have of course heard of the high suicide and alcoholic rates in reservations as well as the terrible conditions some of these people live in, and therefore I assumed she was giving to these Native American people because they were a group that was financially not well off. I was wrong about this and now it is beginning to make sense. She went to talk to the people, understand what they were feeling and why they had some of the societal problems they do, learn about their culture, and help them by providing clothing for the children, something she saw with her own eyes that was needed. She felt the hurt and realized what had been done to them, and she was doing what in her mind would help, like Sam said in class, you need to figure out what to do, for yourself. She was also trying to acknowledge the genocide by spreading her knowledge to my brother and I. For Christmas we would get dream catchers and books by Native Americans. I thought she was just interested in the culture, but now when I think back to the stories she told me, she was trying to teach me, make me aware.
The fact that we are all so unaware as Americans of the genocide that happened on our land is very upsetting to me. One thing that always caught my attention were cultures that schooled children in such a biased manner to brain wash the kids of that particular nation, so they grew up with lies that they thought were truths. I always went through my history classes and tried to find, to make sure, that we as members of the United States were learning the truth. Well here is the lie. It is so disturbing the more and more I think about it, how we were never taught what injustices were done to the Native Americans, what slaughters were committed. Such time is spent describing the horrors of the Holocaust, which of course was incredibly horrific, but why is there no famous movies and books written about the genocide on our own land. Why didn’t Brad Pitt choose that role? And then to top it all off, we mock the Native Americans by using them as our mascots.
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I agree with this kid completely. Although everything Sam has sad is tragic and scary at the same time to think about it, it hasn’t struck home for a lot of people. I must say I am included in this group. I agree that this is so upsetting and I wish there was something I can do to help but what? I know that this is probably a stupid question to ask but at the same time this is a situation where I feel stuck. I have never personally gone to see these tribes so I can honestly say it hasn’t struck home for me. I really feel for these people and if I was told something to do to help them I would do it in a heartbeat. We have had clothing and food drives at our school for Native American tribes but I feel like this isn’t enough. I wish there was something I knew I could do to help but honestly no matter how long I sit down and think, how do we reach anyone when most people in America haven’t experienced firsthand the same thing as these Native Americans?
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blopdyke Reply:
February 26th, 2010 at 12:32 am
I think there is many different ways to view this topic really because there is no correct answer of what to do, but there really never is for anything. All people can do is try there best and hope things turn out alright. I agree that in the beginning I had a problem seeing how this affected me. There was so much wrong doing to the Native Americans but yet I do not know any. I have seen a couple from time to time but I have never had a conversation with one. After the lectures I really had to think about why I felt so detached from the problem. the lecture today did help put into perspective for me on how this hurts Native Americans but I was still unsure about whether it really mattered to me. I had a burst of realization before sitting down to write this. Basically I started to think about it in terms of other minorities. Other minority groups demanded their freedom and land. Not to mention other minority groups are intermixed with the majority daily. However, I feel like if we are willing to help out other minorities and correct are mistakes when it comes to slavery and such why can we not give back to the Native Americans? Are government makes policies all the time for minorities to get a better share of things so why not Native Americans? I realize it is not a very concrete idea but if we are willing to try and fix the wrongs we have committed on other minorities than maybe we should try to fix this problem as well. Than you have the how will you fix it? I honestly am not sure, but maybe it would help if the government started by apologizing to the tribes that remain. An apology would be a very small step, but it would at least show the Native Americans that America has realized the genocide that was caused. The steps that follow after that apology could go in many different ways. Maybe taking the time to go visit these people and talk to them would help. Maybe if we could hear what they have to say and than try to work something out with them that could also potentially work. Also we could set aside some nice parts of land for them, kind of like their own personal forest just for them. I am not sure how to stop them from feeling the way they feel but I did like the idea about giving them better education. Giving them better education would help them be more up to date in today's world. Also, maybe we should start discussing the genocide in class rooms before college.
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sosaxydjl13 Reply:
February 26th, 2010 at 5:38 am
Dude, I totally agree with you! Sitting in class the day of the Native American presentation, it felt like people just weren’t getting it. Some of the things Sam said really hit home, and struck a nerve deep within me. Even if you disagree with the notion that we are responsible for what has been done to these indigenous peoples, I don’t see how many of you were not touched or affected by Sam’s lecture. Like Sam said this was the biggest act of genocide in the world, and it happened right here in the United States. Everything America represents, freedom, equality, and purity, are tainted by the blood of Native Americans. This is their land. We came here pushed them aside and claimed this wild frontier as our own. Wherever you are right now, you are standing on “red land” as Sam called it. Native Americans died just so we can have a yard to play in. To top it all off, we continue to discriminate against these people, acting like they are the invaders. And when I say we discriminate, that means that we first have to acknowledge their existence.
I think most of us agreed on the fact that what happened to the Native Americans was beyond terrible. However, a discrepancy arose when the act of claiming responsibility was thrown out to the audience. Many of you could not see how the wrongs of our ancestors should have to be righted by this generation. After all, we weren’t the ones who did this, and after all these years what is that we could do to help fix these wrongdoings?
Like Sam said, I think a big step in the right direction would be to acknowledge the fact that the extermination and current conditions of Native Americans is a direct result of our actions as a whole, the United States of America. This generation may not have physically done harm to indigenous people, but our ancestors did, and any way you look at it that makes each and every American responsible for this mass genocide. The point is, regardless of who’s responsibility it is, that you should feel some need to repay these people for everything they have gone through. America was not built from scratch, but stolen from the true heirs of North America: Native Americans.
Even though we can’t undo the past, we can accept responsibility for our actions, and aim to never forget the true origins of the United States. It is a bloody past, but one that we must learn to accept and use to work towards finding a means of fixing relations with the indigenous people of this continent. The term “gilded,” meaning covered thinly in gold, has been used to describe America many times before, and I think the genocide of Native Americans is another fine example of this label. America may look dazzling on the outside, but deep down it is something truly ugly; something that needs to be painted regularly with a thin layer of “freedom, equality, and opportunities for all.”
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The fact of the matter is that it is natural for the superior civilization to come out on top and conquer. Alright, it was the largest “genocide” in human history, and there were many wrongdoings as far as giving land, then taking it back, and relocating, etc. go, but it still did not happen by chance. The conquistadors and other European settlers were simply superior and more advanced. This caused them to defeat the Native Americans and take their land. It is the same as dominance in groups of animals. If a pack of wolves moves into new territory, and is strong enough to kill the wolves that currently live there, is that cruel? It may come across as cold hearted, but I am simply being a realist. There was demand for more land so European explorers found some. It was occupied already, so they fought for it. They won. As a population, the settlers were more advanced, and therefore better suited to survive. A TA made a comment saying that Darwinism was reproduction of the fittest, as opposed to survival of the fittest. Survival of the war led to reproduction of the dominant population, the population that won the war: the Americans. Killing is a part of nature. I understand that some will respond to that negatively, and claim that killing with guns is not natural. But, as a species capable of meta-cognitive reasoning, we as humans are bound to develop advanced weaponry. Although it was killing with guns, as opposed to claws, teeth, or whatever an animal may kill another animal with, all that happened was one colony of organisms took the territory of another colony of organisms. That being said, it is a problem that Native Americans today are part of a minority group that suffers from poverty, and something should be done about that. It is just that it does not make sense to be upset about Native Americans being killed for land, but not upset about anyone else dying over land. It is natural for animals (people included, as we are just really smart monkeys) to fight over land, and it should not be made into such a big deal. The only difference between human war and animal war is that since we are capable of language and coordination, our fights are bigger and longer than the battles of animals. Are we going to start proclaiming our sympathy toward all the animals in the world that are killed over territory? If you take a huge step back and really look at the course of humanity relative to the course of other animals, all that happened was one huge war over territory. The victors took the land. This, to me, makes perfect sense.
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McLovin8293 Reply:
February 25th, 2010 at 8:18 am
So technically a good explanation for all the Native Americans in this country would be "sorry you're in this situation, it's just survival of the fittest." You are comparing humans to a pack of wolves here and I have to completely disagree. You are saying superior beings, organisms, and civilizations naturally kill other people and take their possessions. So is it natural for a man to walk into another man's home, shoot him in cold blood, and claim his house? Is it natural of the US to nuke all third world countries and begin colonizing there? In your opinion, I guess this is completely normal. In my opinion, what happened to Native Americans is terrible. Do I feel blame for it? No I do not. I just think that it was tragic that the largest genocide happened for me to live here today, but we rationalize it because it happened so long ago or because of "survival of the fittest." The main point is that Americans need to be educated about what happened to Native Americans, and how they were practically forced into their extreme poverty today. More help and education should be given to these deprived people but no one wants to put any effort into this cause, including our government, which is completely unfair.
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arw5141 Reply:
February 26th, 2010 at 10:08 pm
I think I'm more concerned by attitudes like this in the present day than by the act of genocide itself. Can you really believe that it didn't happen by chance and that the European settlers were "simply superior"? Since there was so much overpopulation in Europe (in comparison to what? how bad it is now?) then they should have come up with a way to control it without having to go and kick other people out of their lands. The issues is that Europeans thought they had every right to be superior to Native Americans, it's the treatment. Just because other animals do it doesn't make it right. We're blessed to have consciousness of thought so it should be part of our guilt to feel bad for killing people for the betterment of ourselves. I totally realize that we aren't any different from animals except that we use guns and words to fight. We have this ability to communicate but sometimes we may as well just be mute because it's not doing anyone an ounce of good.
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arw5141 Reply:
February 26th, 2010 at 10:08 pm
I think I'm more concerned by attitudes like this in the present day than by the act of genocide itself. Can you really believe that it didn't happen by chance and that the European settlers were "simply superior"? Since there was so much overpopulation in Europe (in comparison to what? how bad it is now?) then they should have come up with a way to control it without having to go and kick other people out of their lands. The issues is that Europeans thought they had every right to be superior to Native Americans, it's the treatment. Just because other animals do it doesn't make it right. We're blessed to have consciousness of thought so it should be part of our guilt to feel bad for killing people for the betterment of ourselves. I totally realize that we aren't any different from animals except that we use guns and words to fight. We have this ability to communicate but sometimes we may as well just be mute because it's not doing anyone an ounce of good.
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I decided to respond to question three regarding Native Americans because I found it extremely interesting and a great point. I know that the huge genocide that occurred when we came to this country is often forgotten about or put in the back of our minds. I can admit that I haven’t thought about it since learning a small amount about it in high school. Also what we learned in high school didn’t stress what a terrible thing our people did to the Native Americans nor show the huge affect it had on their population then and today. When I learned about it I looked at it in terms as history not something that had anything to do with me or a reason to look negatively at our nation. When we discussed the genocide in class and Sam stressed how it was the biggest genocide to date it really hit me just how big of an issue it was and is.
It also dumbfounded me to see how much Native Americans are now struggling. To see the amount of poverty they are in and that about 50% are unemployed is really upsetting. I don’t understand why the US isn’t doing more to help them and to in a way (even though we could never truly) make up for the harm we have done to them. We discussed in class how part of the reason there isn’t help for them or we don’t recognize them as true Americans is because that would mean we would have to credit for the terrible things we have done, and some people don’t want to do that. This question asks people to take credit for what has been done and asks why they don’t see how terrible the oppression of Native Americans is. I was really astonished by some of the comments made in class by students dismissing the subject and not seeing how big of a deal it really is. I understand in part because I know that I don’t know everything that happened or is happening and our ignorance helps us ignore this issue but when we are really shown the facts in class I hope it helps students realize this issue and see how our ancestors took part. This is why I enjoy this class so much because it brings up issues that in society we usually don’t think about or acknowledge to the extent we should and really makes me think more about society. Obviously our society has grown monumentally since this genocide but we also have so much more ground to cover. So many people live everyday completely oblivious to the discrimination and bigotry that takes place everyday, or the fact that people obviously are born with a predisposition that can and will affect their future and how successful they will be. There are so many things people really need to think about and try to live everyday with these things in mind.
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I agree that people in our generation and maybe the one before that do not stop and think about what is going on with the Native American people and the hardships they have had to face. Although it is not directly our problem, we should still feel something about the fact that these people are being treated in humanely and forced to live in conditions that are unbearable. It was government policies that confined Native Americans to reservations, so why not let them know that it bothers us that it is the way it is. If enough people become involved through writing letters to politicians they will realize that our generation does not want to sit idle and accept what was done to the Native Americans. Policy change is one of the only ways I foresee there being any change in the treatment of this group of people and this is an easy way to let your voice be heard.
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I think a lot of people seem unaffected and lack emotion towards the subject because a lot of people have a similar mentality to the student who posed a question before this one. Most people actively choose not care because for most of us we have not directly (or even our ancestors) participated in this massacre of millions of people. I think people refuse to image the development our country resting on the graves of millions of innocent people; “The Land of the Free” as the main player in the largest most extensive genocide does not sit well with people, especially the ignorant ones. I believe lack of empathy for Native Americans also correlates to our childhood. The first student was talking about the common biases portrayed within our education systems. In our most influential moments (in schools) we are bombarded by negative images of Native Americans. We are the “hero” with our pilgrim outfit and gun. Of course, then they are always portrayed as the “stick figure with a feather” (as the girl put it in the first podcast question). What we need to realize is that now that we are educated on the issue (from our soc 119 class lectures) it’s time for us to acknowledge the suffering of millions. Regardless, of whether or not your great great great uncle stole land from Native Americans, Sam is right we are still TODAY living on “Red Land”. So just because your ancestors or you yourself personally weren’t the people who participated in the genocide years ago, we are still allowing wrongs to be written against Native Americans by ignoring the injustices they face. It is also amazing to me that people who now know that there is still discrimination today could care less. Okay so we aren’t actively stealing their land today, but we are stealing other “American” privileges that majority of us enjoy such as a good education, treatment for illness (mental or physical), financial aid, etc. If you feel no sense of remorse, despite your role, maybe you should put yourself within their shoes. How different would your life be? Would you enjoy growing up in poverty and all the time knowing that there are other people within the world who don’t care because this continuation of poverty was committed by people who they have no relation? The images we were shown within class are disturbing. I’m not sure what role my family played within the genocide, but I am not ignorant enough to believe that absolutely none of my ancestors were involved. And if they weren’t involved at all, I am still hurt by this reality. It is a reality that should not be ignored. I am reminded of this horrible tragedy because I recognize that the majority of the land that I live on, play, or relax on is not mine. But, a stolen land of people that had their lives taken for it. It truly is an upsetting reality for me.
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Sure, this is upsetting. It is a demonstration of the faulty characteristics of mankind, no doubt. OK. So we should all move to the reservation? Live the life we were “supposed” to live? Unlikely. Everyone gets teary eyed and emotional when they learn about the Holocaust, its natural. Some of us feel sympathy for the Jewish people, some of us can even feel empathy. But guilt? Not likely. The same is true for the events surrounding the Native Americans; am I, at 20 years old, supposed to feel guilty for something that happened in the latter portion of the 19th century? I think part of the reason for the over-abundance of questions is class is largely due to the wrongful implication from Sam that perhaps we should feel guilty. For the record, I do not feel guilty.
The video post asks, “what doesn’t upset you and how is this not upsetting?” In my case at least, this is not an accurate description. As I stated before, it is upsetting. The fact that such a large number of people died/were murdered on this land is disturbing. However, when comparing this event to say the Holocaust (40s) or the Cambodian genocide of the 70s, one must realize that there are a lot of years between these events. When taking into account the vast amount of time that has passed since the Native American murders, it is no wonder that it is hardly talked about and partially answers why people “care more” about these more recent events. Sam said it himself, no one likes history (or you’d have to be crazy to like history, whatever he said I don’t remember). It’s not that people actually don’t care or don’t feel sympathy, it’s that they have no relation to this event. I’m sure many people in the class have at some point in their life met someone that was a directly involved in WWII or some other major historical event involving mass murders. Clearly this is not the case for the Native American killings. It all boils down to the ability to relate to a topic, which as 21st century students, we aren’t physically capable of doing.
On a more edgy note, there is also the debate about the number of Native Americans killed and, more importantly, how they died. Before I get into this, I must first say, there is no doubt that the Europeans who crashed into this land killed many Native Americans. But what is of uncertainty is, besides the actual number killed, how many were actually murdered in comparison to the number who died from unfamiliar diseases brought by the European settlers. This uncertainty is part of the reason why many people are hesitant to even call these events genocide. It is quite conceivable that many of the Native Americans died from diseases that their bodies were not able to combat because of unfamiliarity. Sure many will say that the settlers still killed the Native Americans, but this is much different. It is also interesting that this is something that Sam never addressed. Once again, the length of time between today and these events makes it difficult to find the answers to these questions.
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OldGreg8 Reply:
February 27th, 2010 at 1:00 am
Okay, you bring up a lot of strong points here, but the fact that you do not feel guilty and cannot relate to the event does not justify anything. Listen to this, the way you relate to something or develop an emotional connection to something you are not directly tied to is by sitting down and really putting some thought into it. Just because your family or your distant relatives were not apart of an event like the genocide of Native Americans, or the Holocaust, etc., does not mean you are to be upset when someone says you should illicit an emotional response. I think you missed Sam's point here. It's not that you should feel guilty about what happened, you should just feel and realize what happened. To be honest, the only thing I agree with your unsentimental ass on is the fact that it was a very long time ago that the genocide of Native Americans happened, thus making it less of an issue with our generation.
Sam is really just trying to get us to think about this event, because he knows we do not. It's not like he's saying its any of our faults or that we owe an apology to any Native Americans. What he is trying to get at is that we should not forget that this land we live on is not necessarily our land. On that note, is it that we are not deserving of this land, or any land our family "owns". I am not sure. But they key strictly lies in understanding the beginning and where this all came from. We must understand that we stole this land from brothers and sisters and children and parents and aunts and uncles and grandparents just like the ones we have today. We ourselves did not steal this land, but indirectly, even if it was not our ancestors that did the stealing, received stolen goods from others.
It may not have been our direct actions, but indirectly we are still at fault for living here. Its kind of like that example from class about the black and white people helping each other out. What I mean is that we did not stand up for the Native Americans once we realized what HAD happened. Our ancestors could have given the land back, or not come here knowing that the previous European inhabitants stole this land.
Moreover, define edgy here son. The europeans brought the disease over, thus they indirectly killed more native americans because of it. So your saying that just because Jews died do to starvation in concentration camps, because they were not murdered by the SS soldiers, they should not be counted in the genocide. I think you should think before calling people out on something. Native Americans were still killed by European due to disease, thus it is included in Sam's numbers.
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I definitely agree with the fact that this issue probably has not really hit home with many people. It happened so long ago, and people probably might just feel like they were not around so why should they feel guilty. I’m not saying that everyone should feel guilty about what happened with the Native Americans. I know for me this issue hasn’t even hit home and I don’t feel guilty. I understand that it was the largest genocide and I understand that the settlers came over here, killed the Native Americans, and took their land. I understand how rude it was to do this. Yet I can’t help but think that the Native Americans lost the battle. The Europeans came over fought the Native Americans and took over their land, and that’s all there is. That’s not to say the Europeans were superior or more advanced or smarter, they just won. I think maybe the remaining Native Americans that are in such bad shape on their land today could use help but there are also millions of people in the United State that could use help. Native Americans are not the only humans suffering. I think the whole situation kind of stinks. It’s kind of like being between a rock and a hard place. We can’t go back and change what happened; half of us probably wouldn’t be here today if we did. And there really isn’t much we can do. I think people should acknowledge it more. But at the same time, if people acknowledge the genocide what is that going to do? Is that just going to make all of it go away because we acknowledge that it happened? No it won’t. It was an awful time in history, but it is over with. I think now everyone should be focused on moving forward and helping others. It awful that Native Americans are struggling so much and something should be done to help them, but something should be done to help all of the people struggling. The question is though what can be done? I couldn’t even begin to come up with an idea of how to help Native Americans. I do not think I’m being completely oblivious to what happened with the Native Americans and all of the genocide. I remember learning about it in high school and I thought it was the worst thing ever. But at the same time, what am I supposed to do about it? Its not like we can give them their land back and apologize. I think instead maybe we should strive to make peace with them. Who knows, maybe by acknowledging what happened both parties can move forward instead of constantly having all of the hatred and denial about the past.
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I agree with the fact that the issue hasn't hit home for many people, as I am one of those people that it hasn't really affected. Sure, I know the genocide was bad and unfair and shouldn't have happened, but I believe that there are other more prominent things such as slavery and LGBT issues that I should be more concerned about. This may be rude and hurtful to some people, but the genocide of the Indians is one of the last things on my mind for a number of reasons.
For one, neither I or my parents or grandparents or even great grandparents were involved in the genocide. I know this because neither I nor my parents lived through the genocide, my grandparents and great grandparents lived most of their lives in Italy and Morocco so it would be very doubtful that they were involved. Therefore I have no past history with this horrible event, and nothing in my family blood can be traced back to this disgraceful act. However, it is much more likely that my grandparents or great grandparents were involved in some sort of discrimination against African Americans back in their day, and could have been involved in slavery. That's why I would feel a lot stronger about that issue then this. In regards to the LGBT issues, I am currently living through what might one day be considered the heyday of the era, and my parents also have contact with it. I have met gay people and more invested in them then Native Americans. I have yet to meet an Native Americans.
I also believe it has to do with education on the topic. A lot more people are informed with LGBT issues through local news, and slavery with history classes and textbooks. The only time I ever remember studying about Native Americans was middle school, talking about Navajos and Iroquois and teepees and Pocahontas. I am entering the final year of my teens and still am not informed about these issues, and with all the other things I have going on, I'm not sure that I could fit in learning about a whole peoples history and plight.
However, besides my personal reasons I believe the main reason that people don't really care is that it is not a forefront issue. Society has many problems already for itself ranging from war in the world, to the down economy, to world hunger, to natural disasters, and already dealing with a new up and coming people who are fighting their own fight.(LGBT) Does society really need to bring back something that happened so long ago and make it an issue as well? Genocide is not occurring any longer as far as I'm informed, and Native Americans that are still living in the U.S. are facing problems just as everyone else is.
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That’s a really great question actually. I think it comes down to how we were brought up as a society and how we were educated. I don’t really recall being heavily taught about the Native American genocide but I do recall being taught about the Native Americans in generally. I feel like the school systems in the United States don’t really educate children about the wrongdoings that we have done as a nation just the fact that they simply put down their weapons and gave us this land. It reminds me of the tone and words of the song “Don’t Drink the Water.” The song basically tells the story of how Native Americans were conquered and how we also retell it as a nation. Point in case I think that the idea that Native Americans were conquered was “supposed to happen” and that somehow is just ok with most of us.
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I can definitely see how this issue doesn’t hit base with a lot of students. In today’s generation of college students, it’s hard to feel the shockwaves of the tragedies of the original American’s. There’s too much history and too much has happened in our own affairs since the time that this massive genocide took place. It’s almost like looking through a clouded mirror. You can see something resembling shapes on the other side, but the details are very vague and the overall picture has little effect on your outlook as a whole. You tend to just forget that it exists and move on in your life. I also think that the American government tends to maybe not be fully ashamed of this bloody history, but wants to more or less forget it ever happened. When it’s not really being taught in the school systems, the ignorance and the numb feeling gets passed on to future generations.
When I was in elementary school, I remember learning about the pilgrims and the first Europeans to inhabit our land. I remember learning about the first Thanksgiving and reading storybooks that had pictures of white men and Native Americans sitting peacefully around the dinner table, passing each other corn and admiring a succulent turkey side by side. I highly doubt that there was any scene such as this one in our nation’s history. We’re fed lies from a young age, and it’s eye opening to hear this movement as, as Sam Richards puts it, the one of the largest genocides that had ever occurred.
However, the true heart of the matter, in my personal opinion, as to why this isn’t hitting home for a lot of students, is because ironically, the Native Americans feel kind of alien to us. Yes, they were here way before we were, but their practices, culture, language, society, governing system, and ways of life are completely different from our own. It’s hard to feel something when little known is about them except for the negatives, like substance abuse and poverty, and when they’re extremely hard to relate to. Yes, the genocide of the Native Americans had nothing to do with the hands of our generation, but that doesn’t mean that we should feel detached from the situation. We’re residing and profiting off of their land, and the only reason why I feel something for this situation is because I try to put myself in their shoes.
I would hate it if a foreign group of people who I have never seen or heard of before came from an alien world and destroyed my home and my livelihood. Honestly, the situation is completely horrible and unjust. More people of America should take the time and educate themselves about the real hardships and tribulations of the Native Americans, and maybe our generation can take the first steps in rebuilding that bridge.
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I think most people ultimately really only worry about themselves. It is not a bad thing but human nature. Also hearing about it strikes home for some people to a certain degree, but if you actually lived next to a Native American tribe, talked to a Native American, or were transferred back in time and saw it it would strike home to a much larger degree. An example I use is cancer. Everyone knows cancer is awful and destroys the lives of all different types of people. However no textbook in the world can explain the horrors of cancer until it claims the life of someone very close to you. This is the same way. We feel so disconnected from this genocide. Many people in the United States today feel they have no connection to this genocide or slavery because they themselves did not commit it. Also with no few Native Americans alive today with so few rights and such large cultural barriers we realize this problem is almost unfixable.
A counterpoint to this would be slavery in the American South in the 1860s. Slavery was so imbedded in American culture and the American economy equality of African Americans seemed almost as impossible as native Americans regaining all rights today. However, selfless people and strong voices from the African-American population helped turn around a hopeless cause. I really think although I wish it could happen Native Americans will eventually die out and we will forget about them, because a solution to this problem seems so extreme and unachievable. However blacks in the 1860s problem felt the same way about slavery and we have made leaps and bounds since then.
I think even if this problem hit home to someone the best thing they could really do about it is acknowledge it and tell others about it at this point. The fact that the United States does not acknowledge this genocide prevents anything being done about it. It is like any problem the first step is admit you have a problem. I feel I have done my part in acknowledging this genocide and spreading the word to friends and family.
However most of us have never even interacted with a Native American. Some have never even seen one. This genocide could seem like a story to some because we are so disconnected with it. So the first step is Sam telling us about it. The next step is acknowledging the problem. And if word of mouth does not do it for you, visiting a Native American tribe or seeing the discrimination is probably what most people need. I know for me reading something in a textbook and experiencing it are two completely different things.
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I feel that the genocide that was committed against the Native Americans was absolutely a terrible thing and it does hit home for me. While I was never a part of either, obviously considering my age, I have many family members and many extended family friends that either fought, or were in some way a part of the Holocaust. In regards to the Holocaust though, I am of Jewish decent, which almost automatically makes that genocide hit home with me. Not only does that fact that I am Jewish make the Holocaust resonate with me personally, but in general, people may feel more of an association with the Holocaust because is still somewhat in our distant past. I think the reason people may have trouble relating to, or even feeling bad for the Native Americans and the genocide that was committed against them is because it may be hard for them to feel something personally towards it or feel connected to it because it is so far in our history’s past. While I do not feel this way, the Holocaust was a world war, and while the Jewish population was the main target, many more people and many groups were discriminated against and killed. I think the lack of personal connection and historical distance are the two main reasons for the disinterest and low levels of shame connected with the Native American genocide.
The information regarding the genocide and the current conditions that these groups and tribes live in has never been presented to me and examples have never been shown to me in the way that Sam Richards has done for the class. To be honest, before this I was never really taught of what exactly is still going on today. I had learned that Columbus came to this “empty” land and claimed it as his own, but in reality pushed out the Native Americans, but that is pretty much the extent of what I knew. I think something in the education system needs to change to try and get our country to make a push in the right direction. I understand when people say, we shouldn’t be responsible and take the blame for what our ancestors did, and for some maybe that is true, but even if that is true, why don’t we feel the need to help our fellow human beings? After the Holocaust happened, the Jewish population was given land. If people were to take responsibility for what happened, we may not be able to distribute land right away, but at least the way that the Native Americans are living in now could be fixed up and they would not have to live in such poverty stricken conditions.
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I think the biggest thing I think stops people from feeling any particular way about some of the heavy things we learn about in class is that people are distancing themselves whether they are aware of it or not. We’ve gone over some troubling information, and for some reason or another a lot of people choose not to care. I think they imagine that these problems are too far removed form them or that they might not even exist. I sometimes catch myself doing this, and occasionally have to remind myself that these issues do in fact affect me and my life, directly or indirectly, and whether I like it or not.
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jmr5238 Reply:
February 26th, 2010 at 6:34 am
I definitely agree with this post – it basically relates back to the quote that ‘ignorance is bliss’. With such a serious situation though, it is so hard to think how some people can choose to be ignorant about it. Of course a lot of people do not think anything of it because they did not have a first-hand part in the problem, but I just feel like nobody knows enough about it to give it any thought. Therefore, the more that I think about it though, I think it has a lot more to do with the fact that so many people are not well informed enough and completely uneducated when it comes to the whole situation. I feel that nobody is really aware of what happened, when in reality it should be on everyone’s radar. Therefore, I think the quote should be more along the lines of ‘education is bliss’.
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In my whole opinion I feel like I have split feelings on this subject. One side of me wants to think that I should have nothing to do with this, because I do not even think my ancestry goes back far enough to have taken advantage of Native American land, and even if it had, that was my ancestors and not me. On the other hand I feel that we must still consider the fact that no matter if our ancestors had taken part in this or not, we cannot just let an entire race in our country wither to peices.
I feel that at times in class Sam chooses to point the finger a bit too much. Sometimes it seems as if he wants to say that it is OUR fault these people are living like this and OUR fault that we do not recognize it. People need to realize (and make a difference to the fact) that whether you have heard about this through the media or another source, or you have not heard of it at all, it still isn't fully our fault. It is not as if we are at fault because we didn't go out and go beyond ourselves to start some sort of relief and support group for these people. Now, if the act of helping out Native American tribes was as popular as say, supporting cancer research, I'm sure many more people would support it because they would actually know about it.
Now although all of us are not at fault, when we are informed we must understand that we should consider even making the smallest attempt at making a change. For example, did the kid who posted this video that was 'so worried" about letting this hit home with him, even look into helping out these tribes? Did he go on Google and research support groups for these tribes, or ways to help them out? I'm going to guess no, so in essence, he is just as 'wrong" as the rest of us.
We must realize however, that there is still a group of people out there that are starving, full of addiction, and depressed. These people need help, and so far the government has done nothing to help them. However, If I might ask one question. Why haven't these people tried to leave there reservations (Ok I'm aware that its YOUR land and you rightfully own it, but that shit isn't working out to well for you right now). In the past century African Americans have been able to move their way up in society's food chain, and there is no reason that Native Americans can't do the same thing.
I do think that we should have some iniciative to help these people, and lend them a hand. However, at some point don't they need to take this upon themselves?
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In my opinion i believe that all this we are learning is in fact very upsetting. I feel that it isn't hitting home with a lot of people because they don't feel responsible for it happening. I think that a lot of people think about it while we are hearing, but then they just go back to their normal lives and don't really do anything about it. The fact that people took the native American's land is not really, at least in our generation, anyone fault. I do believe however, that we should all think about it and i guarantee in thinking about it we all feel some sort of way. I know that it upsets me in thinking what the Native Americans had to go through, but i don't necessarily feel responsible or guilty for living here. If it was up to me everything would have been fair and the horrible things would not have happened. I believe that a lot of people would agree with me as well. I don't think that saying it doesn't effect anyone in the class is right, because i do think that when we are in class we really do think about it and feel bad, but like i said before i think that most people are hearing it when they are in class, but then they are going about their lives and living "freely" in America. I also wanted to comment on the first question on Native Americans: The fact that children are born into thinking that Indians are little stick people with feathers coming from their head, and weapons is just plain sad. I know that if i was asked to draw an Indian i would probably do the same thing, and i know a lot of other people who would as well. It was what we were born into, and it doesn't help that we have movies that emphasize the socialization of Indians as well. I do believe it is necessary to educate children on what race and ethnicity are when they are children. I believe it will give children a better understanding and it will show that just because we look different doesn't mean we are less human than the other. This would then take away that socialization of Native Americans as being savages. It will broaden the childs thinking and will be better off for society in the long run, if they have the realistic understanding of what a Native American is. I think that it is a very important lesson that children should no, and not only children, but people who aren't fully educated as well. We learn a lot in this class that can be overwhelming and upsetting, we just need to look at the big picture and see what we can do to make the world a better place for EVERYONE to live.
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To tell you the truth, I think people afraid to let themselves feel any real type of way about actions that make them look bad. Granted, out generation did not cause this problem, this injustice, or the general degradation of Native Americans that ensued, but we're not really doing much (if anything) to fix it. I feel like people take the attitude that if they weren't the ones that "broke" it, they shouldn't have to pay to fix it, but ignoring the problem and remaining ignorant to the massive genocide and wrongs that the Native American people have endured is despicable. It is absolutely contrary to the image that America portrays, which really angers me because it is so blatantly hypocritical. America creates this image for itself as the world police, the fixer of the broken, and the savior of the lost and helpless. But are they helping the poor and helpless in their own country? No they aren't, because they were the ones that put them in that situation in the first place. To acknowledge their hypocrisy would taint their image and credibility, and God forbid their reputation be sullied in the pursuit of actual justice.
As you can see, I am not one of those who remained ignorant to the severity of the harm caused to the Native American people. Before this week's classes I didn't really know anything about it, but after hearing what Sam had to say, it's absolutely appalling to me that anyone could ignore what happened. From my perspective, there is absolutely no way that anyone should leave a lecture of such powerful points without feeling some notion of "wow, something really is wrong here."
As counterarguments, I can see people saying that since they weren't directly the ones to eradicate the Natives they shouldn't have to pay the price for their ancestor's sins. Okay, but if that's the case, like Sam said, you'd also have to relinquish every other asset you ever acquired from someone else, and then where would you be? You'd be as disadvantaged as the Native Americans.
Second, people will probably say that after being wronged the Natives resigned and turned instead to drugs, alcohol, and unhealthy addictions. While I do agree that people must be responsible for their own actions, and that no one FORCES people into those lifestyles, with such grim, dismal prospects, it's much easier for them to fall prey to the escapes that drugs and alcohol provide. As most of us are privileged (or at least more privileged than those about whom we're speaking), it's hard to understand their mindset. Without being in such a situation, who are we to judge them?
To me, World Savior America needs to do some soul searching and heal the wounds of its own people before it does any more social work on the global stage.
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I know I’m probably not the only one that is thinking this but, most of us really just don’t care. As bad as that sounds it’s the truth, what was done to the Native Americans has nothing to with us. I am actually feeling this right now as I am typing, thinking about how I am in a way sick of hearing about it and I don’t care. Which might be coming from the thought that was put in my head about we are all to blame. It’s making me want to distance myself as far as possible from any situations concerning Native Americans. Although another part of me does feel hurt for the Native American that have live in the horrible conditions that they do. If people would really get motivated enough I’m sure there would be a change in what is going on in the Native Americans reservations. Until people can take the focus off themselves and see what is happening in their own country nothing will be done.
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I for one find it hard to talk about this at times because of how crazy it is. I know it was a different time back then, and the Drwinsim theory should be taken into account, but to look back it it now can make people feel uncomfortable. To talk about any "taboo" subject can make people uneasy. From slavery, to the holocaust, and many other things. Another thing is people might hear abou this and block it out mentally, and emotionally. I think if it is brought up more and more, people will have no choice than to think and talk and analyze the situation. Also, a lot of people just could not care less about what happened. I do not know why they would not, but they do not.
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For me, the real issue isn’t about Sam’s point not being driven home. I fully understand that the situation in which these Native Americans are living is dire and tragic. And I also understand that is due to our ancestors and our government that they are living that way. The issue I have though, is when do Native Americans have to start shouldering some of the blame. Where does free will come into this deterministic-wrought argument?
Now I am not fully on either end of the spectrum when it comes to determinism versus free will. Nor do I believe that any logical person can be. To me, the best explanations for a specific situation come from a combination of the two. Although surroundings and resources play a major role in shaping who you are, who you become, and what you accomplish, I believe that having the will and the desire to push forward and strive for what you want plays an equally as important role.
Based on this, I have issues with taking all the blame for the ways Native Americans live today. Granted we took their land and we stuck them on reservations. But we did not take everything. We did not take their will to succeed. If they truly wanted to get off the reservation, I believe that the could. Instead of buying alcohol and drugs, they could save enough of their money to move off and get a real job.
Now I understand that the situation they are all in makes this idea hard to fathom. They have low incomes and low levels of education. But it’s not impossible. I truly believe that if you work hard enough you can achieve your goals. Regardless of level playing ground and other factors. They are only obstacles that need to be navigated. They are only walls if you let them prevent you from succeeding.
Another argument I’ve heard is that Native Americans do not want to move off the reservation because they do not want to lose their culture. I understand this concern, but just because you leave that doesn’t mean you can’t take your culture and your heritage with you. Italians in my neighborhood still celebrate their Italian family traditions even though they aren’t in Italy. It’s the same basic concept.
I know that it is a shame that their lands were taken from them and that they suffered great losses. But great people and cultures learn to adjust. I’m not saying that what was done will ever be justified because I don’t think it can be. Nothing gave my ancestors the right to kill you and take your home. But I also can’t justify the self pity. Move on and take your culture with you. Make amends and move towards a better life.
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I think that this is a very interesting point. There are a lot of problems with people in our world not appreciating the things that we are given. We did steal our land from the Native Americans and that is a known fact, but honestly I don’t know what we are supposed to do about it. I do not think it is fair that these people are now at the bottom of the totem pole and I think that something should be done about this, what I don’t know. Also, I feel that there are indeed a lot of people who aren’t taking anything home from Sam’s lectures. I feel that this is because a lot of people have things already set in their minds and they are not willing to expand and open their minds to new things. In a lot of the classes I know that after Sam offends the people they basically shut down. I think that this is ridiculous because people need to be more open-minded to things that make them uncomfortable. This is the reason we have so many problems in our society because people aren’t willing to leave their comfort zone. I can say that I’m one of those people that takes into consideration what Sam has to say and I leave with my mind blown most of the time. I just don’t understand what we are supposed to do to fix most of the problems. There are a lot of the issues in this world and I realized that stealing land from the Native Americans was wrong but honestly what are we supposed to do, give it back to them? I don’t want to sound like a heartless bitch, but there are so many other things in this world that we need to worry about. I feel that something should be done so that the Native Americans are not the lowest ones in society, but besides that I feel like there isn’t much more we can do. No matter what we do in our society today things aren’t going to be perfect. There are way too many problems to be able to fix the world. We can make everything better just by appreciating what we have. The Native Americans were here first and then we stole their land. This isn’t fair to them at all. I feel that just the general idea of educating the world about the problems of our society is the first initial step. There are always going to be people in this world that don’t care about what is said and are focused on themselves. A lot of people in class don’t take anything away from the lectures because they simply don’t care and that is the entire story.
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I don’t think that it is not upsetting to some people I do feel as though a lot of people, including myself, really don’t know what we can do about this issue. Today’s generation is not a direct cause of what is happening with Native Americans and I feel as though some look down on us because of what our past relatives did. We were not able to have any control over what happened. I do feel bad for the Native Americans and I am sorry for what my past relatives did. But I really am not sure what I can do as an individual to make this situation any better.
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crm5184 Reply:
March 5th, 2010 at 4:46 am
I agree completely with this post. I think it seems as though people aren't really caring or taking the point home with them because they just don't have any clue what to do about the situation. I personally feel like it's really hard to manage wanting to do something about the horrible situation the Native Americans have been put in versus the issue of "blame." I'll admit, I was actually completely ignorant to the true genocide that occurred here against the American Indians until we talked about it in class. I had no clue it was the largest genocide in human history?! And it's extremely frustrating to find all this out and to feel like there's nothing I can do about it…to just keep living the same everyday as when I didn't know about this mass killing and stealing of land. But at the same time, I think wanting to do something to help and fix the problem gets grouped in with taking the blame and admitting wrongs- which is not something I can do. I have never killed a Native American. I have never stolen their land. I've never enslaved them. And I don't think anyone in our generation should take the blame for something they weren't involved in, whether their ancestors were involved or not. We always preach that we're accountable for our OWN action alone, but when we're discussing tough issues between the races, everyone wants to group every person of the race together and hold them all accountable for the actions of other people of the same race. Why? I'm not a representative of my race, either the living or dead members and I don't want to take the blame for something they did. The only thing I have in common with the people who did what I am blamed for is skin color- I don't know them or anything about them. I have upmost respect for all people because we are all human beings and I don't look down on a single person on the basis of skin color. I don't see anyone as an inferior. And so I refuse to let myself feel guilty for the fact that white people killed Native Americans and white peole enslaved African Americans. These things are HORRIBLY wrong and its upsetting that they happened, but I didn't do it. When a parent commits murder, does anyone blame the murder on their child also? No, and it'd be ridiculous if they did! So why should we continue to blame people and be hostile toward them for things that their ancestors did long ago, or for a lot of us, for things that members of our race- not even related to us in any way did long ago? That being said though, I hope that knowing this genocide occurred does strike a nerve with everyone but its tragic. But again, I also wish that there was more outlets available for us to "do something" about it and try to help these people who have been treated so unfairly for way too long now.
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I agree with this person completely. But it even goes further than people just not feeling bad about the genocide that the Native Americans endured. Even when I was in high school, I remember learning about the Trail of Tears, the pilgrims and the Indians, etc., but I don’t feel like I learned enough about it to remember it all, and to be honest I haven’t thought about it until last class. It wasn’t really stressed enough, or as much as other issues such as segregation and the race wars. I know so much more about the Civil Rights Act and Martin Luther King Jr. than anything about the Native Americans. Martin Luther King Jr. even has a holiday named after him, there is a whole Black History Month, Rosa Parks, there’s countless movies regarding race and segregation, the KKK- I mean it’s just crazy how much I know about that but I really know next to nothing about the Native Americans. And then I come to class and see what tribes’ lives are like now, and it blew my mind to see that. I feel bad for those people; they must feel like their culture is dead. And that’s very sad that it was taken away from them. But most people feel it’s easier just not to care because it has no direct effect on any of us. If I hadn’t been in this class, I probably never would have realized the hardships that the Native Americans are facing today. But really what can we do? We talk about it and spread knowledge just like that guy said in class. Try to make other people aware. I mean I can say I feel bad, because I do, but I know myself and it’s not like I’m going to get a bunch of my friends and move to a reservation. And that’s the way most people feel-helpless so it’s easier to just brush it off. Especially people like myself who hardly know anything about the Native Americans. But at least people know now. But it’s not like their going to get help like the people in Haiti are getting and the people in Iraq… because that’s just it. There’s bigger problems in the world- as sad it is to say that’s obviously how the government looks at it. They aren’t doing anything about it. If the government stepped in and videos like the one we saw in class got on the news, then other people would be intrigued and jump on the bandwagon. Because really everybody will do what everybody else is doing. But then again there’s no way of really knowing if that would get publicity. I’m happy that it was brought up in class and that more people are finding out about it.
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I feel like this doesn't upset many people because it's not very often that a majority of society interacts with a Native American. That's not to say they're in some sort of hiding. I personally have never met someone who is a Native American. The slavery that took place down south is much more prominent because racism still exists, and we see it on the faces of many all over this country. It's visible to us because the skin color is clearly visible to us. With Native Americans, I have yet to hear someone's story about how they feel inferior or taken advantage of. Perhaps I've been subconsciously turning a blind eye because I never knew it really existed, but for the most part…it isn't talked about.
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I think this issue is in fact very upsetting. But I think this is a great question and I see where you’re coming from. The class on Tuesday seemed very resistant to truly internalize the issues set forth by Sam about American Indians.
I think a lot of the problem is that we as Americans living in the 21st century feel very, very removed from the issue. Growing up, I learned a little bit about American Indian history and culture, but still to this day I have not learned about it to the extent that I have about African American or Hispanic history or culture. At least where I’m from in PA, we didn’t learn much about American Indians and had very little interaction with people from that background. Additionally, American Indian history was certainly never framed in such a negative way as to be considered genocide.
Since American Indian history has never been consistently framed in an oppressive, murderous light, it is not engrained in us to feel blame. SO many of the questions in class as well as in another video question on the blog is: “Why me? Why should I feel blame for something I didn’t do?”
I don’t think it’s upsetting to many people because we don’t know the details of it or the extent of it. I can’t speak for the entire educational system, but I would assume that in general we are not taught enough about the issue. Additionally, no social movement on behave of American Indians has been large enough to enter mainstream consciousness.
Another question I have going off of this is, why do we feel bad about American slavery of African Americans, and we acknowledge the wrongs of such a system, but we don’t treat the history of American Indians the same way? What is it about African American rights and their past that does enter our minds in a negative framework of wrongdoing, but that of American Indians does not?
I think Sam’s lecture had a bit of shock and awe to it. He only had one class period to work with and can’t teach us everything about the historic events that occurred with American Indians, so he was trying to get the point across of how horrific this issue really is.
And I do feel bad. What happened to the American Indians and to their land is truly horrific. And no matter whether you are a recent immigrant or if your family has been here for generations – or anything in between – all of us share in the fact that we did not partake in the events of genocide. None of us, in this generation, had anything to do with it. But we all additionally share in the fact that we live here now, on Red land. Our country, our generation continues to ignore the issues of American Indians. We cannot reverse history, but what we can do is start to learn more about the plights of American Indians, teach others, begin to acknowledge past wrongdoing, and hopefully create social change that brings this population up the a more equitable playing field in the US.
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I tend to agree with what this guy has to say on virtually every level. It’s awesome that taking this class is exposing us to issues that wouldn’t normally come to our immediate attention, but what do most of us do after a lecture? The student body switches its mind off of what was said and focuses on the rest of the day; the problems, stresses, and obligations that await us, however significant or insignificant they may be. Sam Richards opens our mind and helps us attain an understanding, and then allows us to decide whether we want to take further actions to help prevent these situations. How we respond to observing these conditions of Native Americans is just a measure of personal reaction, similar to the action (or lack of) taken upon knowledge that most the things we own are made in some way by slavery.
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The question was how do some people that listen to Sam’s lecture not become upset. I think that when being shown the poverty that modern Native Americans live in today, many people were upset. No one should have to live in those conditions, no matter what their race or ethnicity. I think the when Sam tried to show that we (white, black, and brown) people are at fault for their situation is when you saw most people lose that reaction.
I think a lot of the reactions were based on how you view history. History is happening all the time and it shapes all aspects of our lives. The more recent an event is, the more impact it will have on people. For example 9/11 and the War on Terror will have a much greater impact on my generation than WWII. What Sam has been asking us to do is internalize historical events that happened in this country two or three hundred years ago. Many times the people he is talking to have not even been in this country long, so why should they feel any guilt? For myself, I view history and what happened to the Native Americans in a more analytical way:
Wars throughout history have been fought for land. These battles have created the lines we now see on every map, of every country. Individuals who do not study history (and don’t believe what Sam says, white people DO study history!) have studied the characteristics of these wars. Unfortunately or fortunately depending on your views, we no longer see wars for the explicit purpose of acquiring land; and therefore must rely on historical studies to understand it. When these wars took place the winner receiving the conquered land assimilated what was left of the loosing group into their own society. For some reason this did not happen with the Native Americans. This situation was unique, and has brought with it its own unique problems. It is my understanding (feel free to correct me) that the reservations are considered not part of the United States. That Native American Tribes consider themselves sovereign through treaty. Nowhere in my memory has there been a sovereign group within the boundaries of another sovereign group.
I am not disputing that the Native Americans were almost wiped out (or as Sam likes to put it: genocide) and that it is a terrible thing that such a rich culture was destroyed. What I am disputing is this idea that we (the generations that have come after the wars were over) should feel guilty or be seen in the wrong. We did not sign this treaty that created nations with a nation as we see today; nor did we personally injure these Native Americans. I am not sure what could be done after so many generations, if this group could be brought into the larger society. I am sure that it would help improve many of the statistics Sam presented to us if that did happen.
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We were presented with this issue of genocide and 'stolen' land from the Native Americans. However, I think for most of us perhaps it is a two fold thing as to why maybe it hasn't struck home as hard and the student who posed the question would have liked it to. First, I've never met a full blooded Native American. Yes you can feel extremely bad for them, but when you aren't even exposed to the people, let alone the poverty and degradation, it just feels like it is a world away. But it isn't. It's right here in America and I do feel like they are a forgotten people. I think that's the point that students should key into the most. Maybe you can't empathize with them completely because you've never had contact with them, and that's understandable. However, just taking a moment to realize that this is occurring on our land is the harshest part of the story.
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I think this issue doesn’t affect people for a number of reasons, the main one being it wasn’t their fault. Why are we upset by something that we had nothing to do with? Yeah it sucks it happened to them, but we just move on like from any genocide that has happened. The difference is, this genocide was not presented to us in the way others have.
When you look on how WWII was explained in regards to what Germany did to the Jew’s, we felt bad for them and still do. It was presented to us in a way that makes us feel for what had happened, especially since the enemy was a different country. How is our history told though?
We don’t get taught America killed off Native American’s because we wanted the land, we were taught the Natives were stopping us from settling on land that was not owned by anyone. How to we react to that? We just think the Native’s were a bunch of jerks that deserved what happened to them because of how they treated us. It’s not until much later that we learn America wasn’t exactly the nicest of people as we claim ourselves to be.
But our slogan of “the land of opportunity” outweighs the genocide, I think at least, in our minds because had we helped the Natives instead of kill them, how would this country be today?
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I personally don’t think it is a matter of people not caring about the Native Americans and their land, I think it is the lack of information people have about them. I mean if I were not taking this class I would never have known about this genocide going on today. Before this was brought to my knowledge this situation had no affect on my life, but now that I am aware of what is going on I feel the need to want to do something about it. If people are not aware of something they cannot have feelings about a situation and they certainly cannot do anything about it if they don’t even know what is going on. So, although I do think this Native American genocide is horrible and something should be done about it, I feel that this situation needs to be brought up to the public eye more than it is to make everyone aware of what is going on.
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daw291 Reply:
February 25th, 2010 at 6:25 pm
I agree with this post in terms of the actual awareness and education the average person has in regard to the Native American genocide. Before taking this class and seriously discussing some of these horrendous issues, the Native American genocide was something I learned about in a history class as a part of a chapter on early American history. We can all agree that a historical event such as this is frowned upon by Americans today and gets a little bit of sympathy for the short amount of time it is being taught. However, there is no real education beyond that point in schools, and certainly not enough movement among people today to conjure up some sort of group against the Native American genocide. A combination of both of these factors leads to the most obvious- no action at all. In my opinion, the root of this issue of ignorance lies within the lack of a proper common knowledge. Without education, there is a loss of any potential power to make a difference.
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I think people today are more concerned about themselves. They are more concerned with what is going on today in his/her life or his/her future. It could be the fact that people feel that they are not directly involved in this genocide. I don’t think that people don’t care about the history of the Native Americans but I think people don’t know much about it. There aren’t any spear-headed campaigns or classes teaching younger children/young adults about the history of how the United States came about.
To be honest, most people won’t lose any sleep over this issue. I think media has done a great job hiding the issues of the Native Americans and made it the “past.” They make it seem that it’s not a problem now but how the white man came to power. When people put events in the past, no one really looks at the event as seriously as it were to be the in the present. I personally never really thought about Native Americans and I never questioned why I didn’t run into them more often. I feel like I almost forgot the race in general until Thanksgiving rolled around. Even then, I had a distorted view on what Native Americans were.
I remember a white male student explaining about the genocide of Native Americans was more of a “survival of the fittest.” In order for our nation to be a democracy, we had to get to take over the land of others. We had to take their land so we can advance in our lives. The whole question of “What happens to the Native Americans?” doesn’t come in effect. They call the United States “the land of the free.” Well, the land wasn’t really free without stepping on other people.
There isn’t much light shed on their issue. The Native Americans are now forced to live in poverty-stricken reservations that seem to revolve around self-destructive behavior. The Native American women have a higher risk of getting sexually abused and the men are more prone to become alcoholics or commit suicide according to the poles among other race ethnicities. They have suffered for so long but it seems like our society just brushes them off. If I really look into what really happened, I do feel bad. I feel bad about what they been through and how they are treated now. But I’m not going to look at the issue from the past but try to look at the issue in a sense of what we can do about it.
I think in order to understand them more; we could educate others by having more historical classes for younger students and High School students. They should use the public school district to their advantage and get their story out. Native Americans are trapped in a situation where they feel that they will be in poverty forever. This reminds me of the movie “District 9.” What happen were aliens landed in the USA and the US felt that they wanted to help these creatures. They piled these creatures in a “reservation” where they were barricaded and had houses made of cardboard and such. They mistreated them and try to destroy their way to get home. I feel like these Native Americans have no home to go.
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I am not sure that I agree that people are not “taking it home”. Let’s face it…Sam likes to generalize, but in a way, he almost has to. When he says that no one thinks of Native Americans or acknowledges the harms done to them in the past, he must know that this is not true of everyone. However, he cannot go to all 800 people sitting in the room and ask how educated they are on the topic. Going back to your video question, I can only speak for myself. I have heard people talk about feeling guilty walking out of class. I think this is ridiculous. Although Sam presents his opinions in an interrogating fashion, why should I feel any remorse for what happened long ago to the Native Americans? I have zero regret, because I had nothing to do with it. Do I think the genocide that occurred is awful? Absolutely. I wish it never happened. And to some extent, I think people should feel that way. If that is what you were addressing, I cannot answer why people do not feel bad for the situation. Because it is upsetting. But the fact remains that I am my own person living my own life. I wish more people did recognize the struggle of the Native Americans. But to hear some of the things presented in class or especially muttered by students near me about feeling guilty because we have never experienced anything like that is, to me, preposterous. I think the best thing that can be done is for one to just take a minute and think about what happened in the past. Enlighten yourself about the genocide. Offer sympathy if you feel like you must. But to walk out of class and downright feel depressed? Why would you do that unless you had anything to personally feel regret about? My words may seem strong, and some may misconstrue what I am trying to say, but I feel strongly about this. It is the same reason why I listen to everything Sam has to say, while also trying to let some of the Socialist blame game jargon go in one ear and out the other. His presentation is too interrogative sometimes; that is why people responded with the questions as they did. They may be misunderstanding him to some extent, but I feel like the poster of this video maybe misunderstands him as well. It is not that the genocide doesn’t affect me. It is definitely not that it doesn’t upset me. It is simply that I can offer nothing my deepest sympathies (not empathy because I haven’t experienced it myself) and acknowledge the grave wrongs that were committed in the past.
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Out of sight, out of mind. People today think and assume they are so far removed from what happened to Native Americans that they don’t seem to think that it affects them. Combine that with the mentality that “we won fair and square” and there you go. In a materialistic society filled with televisions, video games, iPods, cell phones, etc. it is so easy to think that there are more important things to worry about or to think about. Who really wants to think about HOW we really got here or what we had to do to establish ourselves on this land? I think that’s the real danger of it all.
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I think the main reason why it does not hit home with the majority of people is due to unfamiliarity. There was never a great amount of importance and significance placed on the genocide of the Native Americans in the multiple history classes that I took during my years from elementary school to high school. Many of the history books and lectures focus on the great things that America had to accomplish to become the great nation we currently are. The negative aspects that occurred over the duration of our nation’s history are often left out or vaguely touched upon. Native American history takes a back seat to America’s issues of slavery and the civil rights movement. I think this is because America has made huge strides towards abolishing slavery, so our country essentially righted our wrongdoings. This is not the same with the Native Americans because in my mind it seems as though it is becoming less and less of an issue. This might also be a result of not living in an area where Native Americans are more prevalent. I also personally do not know anyone that refers to themselves as a Native American. Maybe if I had a friend that was Native American I would understand the issue in greater detail and it would hit home.
Information on Native American history, despite the trail of tears, really just was not in any of the textbooks or lectures in any of my history classes growing up. Everything that happened to the Native Americans is obviously upsetting, but it doesn’t affect me that much because I didn’t experience it first hand and I honestly just really have not learned that much about it. Everyone knows generally what happened, but not to what extent and the gruesome actions and details. We simply were not educated on the issue; I know if we had developed a base of Native American history during elementary school it would affect me much more on a personal level.
When I was in third grade we went on a field trip to some sort of a reenactment or reservation of the Lenape Indians. It was actually pretty interesting because they broke down many different aspects of their culture. They talked about their song and dance, clothing, hunting, and the different foods they ate. In instances like this I feel like Native Americans place so much importance on educating and explain their culture to Americans. I think this would be the perfect time to display what actually happened to their tribe. They could educate children on certain things that are not learned in school at all. I just felt that this would be the opportunity for them to express the horrendous and terrible acts that their people endured rather than explaining their culture. I think the genocide is so much more important and doesn’t get the exposure it deserves.
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After being in that class and listening to the lecture, I have a hard time believing that it didn't affect people. I think the problem is that people, including myself, just don't know what we can do. To be honest, I knew that the majority of Native Americans were on the poorer side, but I didn't know it was this bad. So the question shouldn't be, "why don't people in this class care", because I'm sure they do. It should be, Why is our government allowing this to happen? I know it may be harsh to say, but back when Europe was coming into what we now call the United States, I can see why they did what they did to the Native Americans. I'm not saying I agree with what they did, but it was different times. Survival of the fittest played a much larger role in governments than it does today. They discovered new land, and when they found people living on it, they fought to take it over. It was just the way things were back then. We can't go back and change the past, but why not try to change something that is wrong in our country today?
We have news reporters go into towns like Pine Ridge, South Dakota and report the tragedies that are occurring there, yet that's the furthest they go with it. They make a story, for what? Their ratings for that week. How can our government see things happen like this, and just let it continue? I know our ancestors just pushed the Native Americans out of their way, but we are living in different times. And I know our country always comes through and is able to raise money when disasters happen around the world. Why can't we help the very people living within our borders? And now, with our economy the way it is. It would be even harder to get the government to do something because everyone is concerned with their own well-being. People are getting laid off left and right and our government is having a hard enough time fixing that problem. If someone walked into congress and said that we need to give aid to the Native Americans, they would probably laugh. It's just a shame that our country, since WWII has been portrayed as this perfect and superior place. When behind all the main stream bullshit, if you look closely, things are happening that really hinders the American reputation.
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I think we all know this should upset us, but some find it hard to actually truly get upset about it. One of the main reasons for this is probably because so little of us actually come in contact with Native Americans. The vast majority the country has no reservations and I for one have come met very few. I’m not saying this is a good reason, but I think it helps explain why they are so forgotten. We don’t see Native American injustices as much as other minorities’ simply because we aren’t surrounded by them. There is no doubt that more focus should be put on them and their struggles and just because their problems seem so far away from ours, doesn’t mean it doesn’t affect us.
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I think there are two ways to respond to this question. The first is on a general level, my thinking as to why the general public doesn’t seem to care all that much, and the second is on a person level, why I myself am guilty of forgetting the genocide committed against Native Americans and the utter poverty that most live in today. So first off, in terms of generally, the fact of the matter is that we just really aren’t confronted with it. Native Americans, due in large part to genocide and to white people pushing them off of their own land, are a very small minority in today’s society and in today’s world. We go to Penn State, a campus with over 40,000 people, and maybe I’m not looking hard enough but I honestly can’t remember the last time I saw someone who was Native American (at least to my own eyes and my own perceptions). If something doesn’t directly affect us, if we’re not confronted by it full in the face, then it’s incredibly difficult to care because we are just all guilty of simply forgetfulness. Some people, on the other hand, are from a different class all together. Some people are not only guilty of ignorance and obliviousness, but some people are fully aware and believe that it’s just “evolution,” that is the way things have happened and that there is nothing wrong with it—so these people are obviously not upset or affected because they believe it is the right state of things. On a more personal level, I sincerely wish that this problem affected me more, but I’m not sure how to make that happen. It’s hard, when I get wrapped up in the daily grind of things, of going to classes, studying for exams, going to the gym, hanging out with my roommates, or whatever, to remember how lucky I am and to realize that across this country there are many people, in this case Native Americans, living in utter poverty and struggling to get by each consecutive day. The problem is awareness. But how do we fix that? How can we make people care, make people more upset? That’s the million dollar question. In class this past week I was appalled at the facts and figures Sam gave us about the genocide and now current living conditions of Native Americans. But then I left class, and by the next day the thought had left my mind and I had forgotten. Awareness needs to be raised in order for things to change in society because we can’t expect people to want to help anyone else if they don’t even know about the problems in the first place. This class is one way to at least get people thinking. It’s a class of roughly 700 people, and out of those 700 only a handful will care enough to go further, to try to help. But that handful is a few more than there were 3 days ago—and that’s a start. In order for people to care they first have to know, and that, in my opinion, is the root of the problem.
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In terms of people not being as affected by the issues of genocide and unfair inequalities as it seems they should be, I think it has a lot to do with people simply becoming numb to tragic issues. Every day in the news there is something new and worse going on and it seems that we simply jump from issue to issue feeling bad but not actually taking the full time to digest it and reflect upon what should be and what can be done. Another reason people seem to becoming more apathetic to many issues is that it is hard to relate to someone you don’t know or have never seen and don’t know where they are from. When something happens in another part of the country, another part of the world, or in past history people can’t as easily relate. However I think that when you know or meet someone who is dealing with a particular struggle you are more likely to want to do something about it. A lot of the times I think that people need a face to relate a problem or see a distinct good and bad guy. With issues such as what happened to the Native American tribes when Europeans colonized America people are less likely to focus on possible wrongdoings because this is now the United States of America which many consider to be a great country in terms of opportunity and rights given to citizens. It is easy to ignore an ugly beginning when ultimately the outcome is an overall good thing. Also with the issue of taking land or stealing land I wonder when in history brute force went from the more successful group of people taking what they could get versus violent people selfishly taking what doesn’t belong to them. Now of course if we see peoples conquering other peoples and taking their land we find it to be unjust (as the British settlers did to the indigenous Americans). However way back in history such as the times of the Romans, the Roman Empire wasn’t considered an evil unjust society but the most successful and innovative. I think it is more complex then we make it seem when third world countries act like others acted in previous parts of history. We simply make them out to be pure evil when they are not actually evil but stuck in a system where that is allowed. It is human nature to take what you can get. Nothing about sociology is strictly defined and it’s always changing. When it comes to many problems and questions that are raised there is no right or wrong answer but mostly gray. Whatever society decides is ultimately how we evaluate but I think it’s important to remember that not everyone is on the same exact page and maybe the best solution is to get as many people on the same page as possible.
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White man’s guilt. When Pilgrims came to this “New World” to seek freedom from religious persecution they did not expect (very naively) to have to encounter or deal with a native population. At that time, the natives were viewed as unequal based on the color of their skin, lack of clothing, and even the fact that they were not monotheistic. Therefore, the native population was treated as such, unequal. It is incredibly easy for us (400 years later) to look back at the original settlers and think “how could they do such a horrible thing? How could they treat other human beings so poorly?” The fact is, at that time the notion of equality was completely foreign to them, even though they had been the victims of persecution themselves.
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For 300 years the mistreatment of native Americans went on and as natives were treated more humanely in many instances white men justified their removal by saying that since the natives had no system of ownership then they had no “right” to the land and thus, could be kicked off. Hindsight being 20/20 this was all wrong and disturbing, but ultimately, had nothing to do with the generation that is sitting in Sam’s class. I personally had ancestors that were treated like slaves and I don’t hold any animosity toward Americans who came before my immigrant ancestors.
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I don’t mean to compare the land stealing and genocide of native Americans to the hard times of Irish immigrants but I do want to make the point that as horrible as those things were for the natives, I had absolutely nothing to do with it and should not be made to feel guilty or in some way responsible. That being said, I think Sam’s larger point is very valid. The genocide and land stealing that did occur has an effect on these people today whether we like it or not, but in my mind the solution to those people’s problems are not just the white man’s or all Americans in general. Native Americans need to step up to the plate also.
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I live 10 minutes from an Indian Reservation in upstate New York (Onondoga) and have seen first hand the discrepancies in income, education, and potential. On that reservation most native Americans choose to educate their children in the traditional ways of their ancestors up until the child would enter middle school and sometimes until high school. I completely accept this tradition and think it is valuable to native American culture, however, it is a choice. Upon entering middle school the kids that came from the reservation have a limited, if any, proficiency in the English language. They are extremely far behind in conventional education when they enter school and this follows them through high school.
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I played lacrosse with and against kids that came from the reservation. Four of these players were all Americans and theoretically would have been able to attend the college of their choice to play lacrosse. None of them made it past community college, however, because they could not meet the minimum requirement on the SAT. Is the fact that they could not go to school because they had bad grades my fault as an American? Is it their fault for not working hard in middle school and high school? Or is it the choice of the parents who valued the maintenance of tradition above giving their children the best chance to assimilate into American culture and opportunity? I don’t know the answer but these are sides to the argument that I don’t think that people in class have an opportunity to see when all Sam shows is genocide, income levels, and other disparities.
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A large part of the reason for the poverty that Native Americans experience is due to the fact that not many people are aware of the lifestyles many of them tend to lead. And for the people that are aware, it's most likely that they are rarely reminded of this fact. I personally do not know one person that would identify his or her self as Native American or American Indian. Part of that reason seems to me that many Native Americans fall under extreme categories. I hear a lot about Native Americans being very poor and leading tough lives centered around drug and alcohol abuse and different kinds of violence, and I also hear about Native Americans that own casinos and are very wealthy thus leading good lives. I come from a middle class home, and that's how most of my area is. There certainly are not many Native Americans in my town, if any at at all. Because of that I was not really aware of the strife that these people experience. I'm currently 21 years old and up until this point in my life, I have never been told that I am to blame for the Native Americans losing their land many years ago. I can see why is tough for people to cope with the fact that they may be to blame. But then i question it again and say, am I really to blame at all for being born and living my life. Yes it is awful what poor Native Americans have to experience. But I haven't knowingly done anything to harm Native Americans. I am not sure what i could do to help them. I don't exactly lead a lavish lifestyle. By no means am I poor, but I do have to work for what I have. I have to work to pay for my own schooling. I don't know exactly what I can do in the already busy life, and I don't know of any reasonable items I even have to give Native Americans. Obviously It's not like we can just give them back their land at this point. What do we do for them? If they want an apology, well i would gladly say sorry just to appease the situation. But deep down you can't really be sorry for something that you don't feel blame for.
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BruceEtt Reply:
March 2nd, 2010 at 4:06 pm
I can see how you don’t feel blame for this but you should at least feel a shred of responsibility. I am fine with you not feeling responsible for taking their land but you are playing a part today. When you stated you would apologize just to appease the situation a chill ran down my spine. Just saying sorry to say sorry means absolutely nothing. In fact, it is the opposite of saying sorry. “Appeasing” the situation achieves nothing. What these people need is an apology of grandiose proportions, one the likes of which can only be compared to the Australian government apologizing to the Aborigines. The responsibility of yours is to apologize and to feel that apology in every bone in your body.
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It is of no question to me that we as Americans have done many things wrong in the past. I think the genocide of Native Americans is at the top of the list in regards to our civilization basically kicking people out of their own land and even murdering them in cold blood. I don't think that people are not necessarily "taking it home" but rather people or our generation is good at blaming other people for their faults. Because the people of our generation were not the actual Americans that killed the Native Americans and made them move to reservations, they basically just shove it in their back pocket and think it's not their fault and shouldn't be blamed for it. I agree with Sam that the most important thing for us to do is to accept the fact that we have done something wrong. When the victims of this genocide see that the people whom have committed the act are simply saying that it is not their fault and they are just being compensated for the blood and tears that they have shed with things like casinos and black gold basically is just not good enough for them. The fact that we as Americans have turned these helpless people into bitter turmoil between drugs, suicide, and poverty is the important subject. I believe that the government should set standards for the people that are going through these hard times and try and help them. With all the money that we just raised for the natural disaster in Haiti it shows that we can help people who are struggling and have no help for them. I don't see what the difference is between helping people in Haiti and raising money and giving government funds to the Native Americans that are in need. Just like I stated earlier, the people of my generation simply believe that they did not do anything wrong. This can be said just as well for the Native Americans that are struggling in poverty and drug abuse today because they and their parents and grandparents were not given the same opportunity that we were given. The fact of the matter is that the numbers do not lie. The statistics that were shown in class of Native Americans simply shows that they are in need of help. I think that it definitely hit home to me when I learned the actual statistics of turmoil that these indigenous people are going through. Although I believe nothing is going to happen until we admit that we made a mistake and take the proper steps to fix it. I will once again go back to my point on helping the people of Haiti. Our country is proud and didn’t think twice about helping Haiti when they were in desperate need for help. Even with our country being in an economic depression we still have the funds available to help people that basically lost EVERYTHING because of something that wasn’t their fault. I hope more people believe the same way that I do that we need to help these people before the genocide wipes them out completely and there is nothing else we can do. I think we need to help them while we still can before it is too late, hopefully it already isn’t.
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this a great point and i dont think a lot of people are taking it seriously because we know nothing about it. Slavery was slammed in our faces for so long in the last century that we know about that and we know what we did and its talked about, so there was action taken. it really is just theres not knowledge about it, so what we dont know personally never happened to us, so how can we do something? and even when we knownow, there just a small percent so, it still doesnt gets talked about because theres only a select time sthat a group of people are going to know about this, so it never gets brought up.
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BruceEtt Reply:
March 2nd, 2010 at 4:14 pm
I like your style combackid. My first memories of learning about slavery were in fifth grade but I am sure I had at least some education in it before that. I can recall my first lesson on Native Americans. In third grade we made beef jerky. Somewhat appalling now that I look back on it. I was painted a picture of people who roamed the earth enjoying beef jerky and then vanishing. I learned that we got along together for thanksgiving and loved each other. We all learned at a young age that the holocaust was a tragedy of epic proportions. But it was the Germans who committed it. America could never do something like that. How wrong I was. How wrong we were. It wasn’t until I took an interest in their culture that I truly learned what happened. We need to slam it in our children’s faces just the same as slavery. With knowledge comes power.
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I completely agree with this post. I also agree with the comment above this one where some people don't realize what's really going on because they haven't experienced or learned about what some of these people's lifestyles are like. I don't know if this relates or not but four years ago I went on vacation with my family to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic and as soon as we got off the plane something just hit me just from observing the differences and I took notice of how those people live such a different life than we do here in America. It was just an extreme because we got in a van provided by the airport to drive us to our hotel, and the area we traveled to get there was just so… different and rather poor. First of all, this guy drove about 45 mph ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE ROAD, blowin' stop signs and just driving like a maniac, but had a sense of humor about it when he noticed we weren't used to that kind of stuff. And as we drove along the sights were just amazing and indifferent. There were many people just on the side of the street who lived in little shacks or didn't have a home. I felt a little insecure about it but once we arrived it was a little different in a sense where I felt more safe but everything around me was just completely new. It just made me think that you don't really know what other cultures or Native American's lives consist of. We should care. It's definitely something that shouldn't be ignored. When Sam brought up the scenario of slaves making the pieces to our phones I just got this feeling. And it goes back to what we talked about today in our discussion group about how people can take things for granite so easily. I just think that it's important for people to have knowledge of other cultures so that we are able to see the reasoning behind situations so we can act upon the decision of agreeing or disagreeing in a legitimate sense.
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I completely agree with you. I think that people here the information and they take it in but they are detached from it. This kind of thing can be taken quite a few different ways and everyone has a different reaction. I have to personally say that yeah, I do feel bad for the Native Americans but there is nothing I can do now to take it back. To be quite honest, my people weren't even apart of this. I am black and my ancestors were slave, they had no choice, they were forced over here and so therefore I get some kind of out. Nonetheless, I still do feel bad that they have horrible living conditions and here I am getting prepared for State Patties Day. But as I said before, there is nothing we can really do now. This happened hundreds of years ago. That is why I think some people do not feel bad about the living conditions of some of the Native Americas.
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I think the reason people don’t seem to take this topic about Native Americans home and seem not to be affected by it is because we are not expose to it enough. I know for me I don’t see a lot of Native Americans related things in my daily routines so the only time I think about the Native Americans is when Sam talks about it. Also I am a business major so really the only class I am expose to the Native Americans is Soc 119 and this is only this semester, last semester I did not have any classes where we talk about them. Before this semester, the last time I learned about Native Americans was freshman year in high school and I am a sophomore now so that is about six years ago. I think this is true not just with the topic of Native Americans but also with a lot of other topics, we would talk about them in class, but as soon as we walk out the door, we remember other things we have to do and we sort of forget what happened in class. For me I know whenever we talk about something intense in class I would feel like I need to do something about the topic but once I walk out the door and my friend texts me to go to dinner or I need to go to a meeting I just forget, even if I do remember for that day, I would forget the next day. I don’t think it’s that people don’t feel upset about this topic or don’t care; it’s just that we are not surrounded by it enough and we are not reminded of it every day to feel a personal connection to it. If it was all around us reminding us every day then maybe it would be different, maybe we will take it more personally and treat it as a problem in our lives. I feel like right now we only think about it when people talk about it but after that we will forget and move on with other problems that are obvious and surround us and remind us every day. Before looking at the statistic in class, I did not know that there was this much discrimination against Native Americans, I never really thought about this problem because in my every-day life, nothing really reminds me of it. In history class in high school, we learned that the Europeans came and started life in America which was then occupied by the Indians so they moved them out west. I knew the Europeans took their land but I didn’t know that discrimination still exists today against the Native Americans. I think it’s hard to fully understand something until you have experienced it first hand or know someone close who has experienced it. I think most people would do what they can to help the situation it’s just that they are not reminded of it enough to take actions.
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To start, it is sad that there is and was genocide going on with the Native Americans. And it is not necessarily right that our ancestors took their land. I do have to agree that people aren’t really getting the take home message. I think this is partly because we live in Pennsylvania and there aren’t really any reserves around here to see what they go through. There aren’t even any nearby to visit. It is hard to understand and be empathetic when we haven’t got the full picture and effect. It is kind of like the saying that actions speak louder than words. So until we see it for ourselves, I don’t believe anyone will see the true take home message. I will admit that I, myself, don’t really get it either. I mean I have had history class every year since I was in elementary school and learned about the Native Americans. The teachers taught us about their culture, and when they came in contact with the pilgrims and so forth. Then as we got older we learned about all the wars and the trail of tears. So I guess in a way, it seems as those Native Americans were just a part of the past and not the present. It appears as if all of hate and unequal rights have been resolved. Personally, I thought that we were on equal terms with them and it never crossed my mind that the information I understood to be correct, was not correct. We aren’t really educated on Native Americans anymore. I think part of the reason is that it still goes back to the fact that we aren’t near the reservations to realize how they are still treated.
And I know as Sam mentioned in class, just because you don’t see it doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen, and I concur. But the point is that we don’t see it, so how can we truly be sympathetic if we don’t exactly understand? I think it would be more of a take home message if we could relate to it. I am sure that lot stuff goes down that we aren’t aware of. It makes me feel bad that they have a harder time than any of us doing things such as applying for a loan or job. However, I do not feel responsible for taking their land. I personally am not aware of any of my ancestors doing this since my family moved here right after World War II. It is more of the race and inequality issue that gets to me than how they became in the position they are in. It is not right in any sense but I am not really sure what we could do about it. I guess perhaps they would have to stand up for the government to grant more rights and get their equality back.
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