Native American Genocide

When colonization of the Americas began, the relationship with the settlers was good. Native people taught them: to farm to live off the land to survive the winters & how to heal themselves with Native Medicines

The settlers were invited to participate in sacred Ceremonies.

Native Americans taught the settlers to bathe for hygienic purposes Native Americans taught the settlers to bathe for hygienic purposes. At the time bathing was outlawed in many places in Europe!

“They ... brought us parrots and balls of cotton and spears and many other things, which they exchanged for the glass beads and hawks' bells. They willingly traded everything they owned... . They were well-built, with good bodies and handsome features.... They do not bear arms, and do not know them, for I showed them a sword, they took it by the edge and cut themselves out of ignorance. They have no iron. Their spears are made of cane... . They would make fine servants.... With fifty men we could subjugate them all and make them do whatever we want.”

Columbus and his men were welcomed by the Native people until they began to enslave them, making men, women, and children find gold with NO PAY. When the Native people resisted, they were killed. Columbus defended his actions by saying that the Native people were “simple-minded, barbaric, and godless.”

Desire for Land Invented a New Attitude toward Native American People Land The people were seen as Slaves No longer human Not worthy of compassion In the way of Manifest Destiny The land was seen as Free for the taking Rich with resources Property of Europe’s governments and religious leaders

Native American’s religious ceremonies were OUTLAWED.

PART II: Acts of CULTURAL GENOCIDE

WHAT IS GENOCIDE? The practice of extermination of nations and ethnic groups as carried out by invaders. (2) The destruction of the national pattern of the oppressed group; the other, the imposition of the national pattern of the oppressor. ~LEMKIN (3) Currently, "genocide" is commonly defined as "acts committed with intent to destroy in whole or in part a national, ethnical, racial or religious group."

Population Before… At the time of first European contact, North and South America was peopled by more than 90 million American Indians:

10 million in America; 30 million in Mexico; 11 million in Central America; 445,000 in the Caribbean islands; 30 million in the South American Andean region; and 9 million in the remainder of South America.

Population After Contact… In the mid and early 1800’s the population in the US was around half a million people. In 1970 833,333 Native people in the US. In 1990 the census stated 1,959,234 In the year 2000 census the Native American and Alaskan Native population was 2,475,956 (3 times the number in 1970).

There were over 700 tribes with their own cultures, religious beliefs, governments, and traditions. Each tribe may have had similarities, but they were in essence 700 different countries.

                                          today there are over 500 federally recognized Native American tribes in the United States.

WHAT HAPPENED TO NATIVE PEOPLE???? Famine Disease Forced Assimilation Warfare FORCED REMOVAL FROM THEIR HOMELANDS

In 1838 Congress passed the Indian removal act, which forced Native Americans off their HOMElands.- VIDEO Trail of tears- 15,000 Cherokee and other neighboring tribes were forced to move to Oklahoma. Many people died along the way of starvation and cold. 4,000 PEOPLE DIED ON THE NEW LAND BECAUSE THEY DID NOT KNOW HOW TO SURVIVE.

In 1975 alone, Indian Health Services permanently sterilized some 25,000 Native American women--many after being coerced, misinformed, or threatened. The population was drastically affected. On September 8, 2000, the head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) formally apologized for the agency's participation in the "ethnic cleansing" of Western tribes and the forced sterilization of Native women.

GERM WARFARE Native American people were given blankets contaminated with the deadly smallpox virus. It has been estimated that at least 300,000 were killed in this manner. Lord Jeffrey Amherst ordered that blankets infected with smallpox be distributed among enemy tribes, and the order was acted on. SMALLPOX

The American Holocaust The newcomers did not understand the different way that Native people lived. Out of their ignorance many violent acts were committed, permanently destroying many parts of Native American culture.

Apache children from Arizona shipped to Pennsylvania Boarding Schools Missionaries and government officials used boarding schools as methods to destroy the cultural identity of thousands of Native American people. Apache children from Arizona shipped to Pennsylvania

Boarding Schools-After Native people could not practice their own religion. They were forced to convert. Their hair was cut and traditional tribal clothing was taken away. They were not allowed to speak their own language, and were physically punished if they did not listen. They were taken far from their homes and families. The Apache students four months later.

Native children were forced to go to boarding school, and if they escaped, which many tried, bounties were often offered to return them.

Rationale Behind Boarding Schools- VIDEO “Kill the Indian, save the man.” Indian culture was inferior. Indian religion was inferior. “It is cheaper to Americanize the Indian than kill the Indian using the army.”

The separation between the children and their communities contributed the breakdown of the Native families and Native culture The children couldn’t speak their language, and therefore, often could not communicate with their parents, grandparents, and other community members when they finally returned home.

Tom Torlino (Navajo) as he appeared upon arrival to the Carlisle Indian School, October 21, 1882, & Tom later.

ADOPTION Native American children were at times taken from their homes and adopted into white families They often never even knew the were Native American IMAGINE THAT!

Native people waited over 400 years for basic RIGHTS Suffrage 1924 1970’s and 80’s- Repatriation Act was enforced to some extent 1977 the Indian Child Welfare Act was passed 1978 Freedom of Religion Act was passed

Eagle feather is to Native Americans (different feathers as well to many tribes) As crucifix is to Christians As Mecca is to Muslims As the Star of David is to Jewish people IN OTHER WORDS SACRED, HOLY, BLESSED

The Basic Indian Stereotypes By Joseph Riverwind (Creek/Seminole) Few of us lived in tipis, wore feather bonnets, or fought like "braves.“ We had no inherited royalty. We did not smoke a peace pipe. We did not whoop. We do not pound a drum or "chant" primitively. We do not have shamans. We do not worship nature. We do not all have spirit animals or funny "Indian names."

The Essential Facts About Indians Today By Terry Straus http://www.bluecorncomics.com/essntial.htm "Indian" is a legal and political status, not a race. Indians have essentially a dual-citizenship status. Tribes all have separate governments. Tribes all have their own tribal constitutions. Tribes are different from each other, but have some things in common because of their relationship to the federal government. Indians are contemporary people. Indians are very diverse, and more than half live in urban settings. Indians are not all rich because of casinos.

What is an Indian Reservation?- video Land managed by a Native American tribe under the United States Department of the Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs The US government owns the land Land cannot be sold Established when White Americans and American Indians signed treaties transfer of land; forcibly taken from the American Indians Native Americans have limited national sovereignty Laws on tribal lands may vary from the surrounding area Laws can permit legal casinos on reservations, which attract tourists. There are about 300 Indian reservations in the United States Not all of the country's 550-plus recognized tribes have a reservation — some tribes have more than one reservation, others have none.

Native American Issues Today Loss of cultural objects Loss of traditions through forced assimilation Poverty on reservations Connected to drug use and abuse Unemployment on and near reservations Choice between reservation and off-reservation life Racism: mascots, unequal treatment, etc..

Misinformation about Native American culture has been spread worldwide, which has lead to: “Playing Indian,” wearing regalia as costume Outlawing religious practices Using sacred symbols as mascots or putting them on products to sell. Destruction of sacred sites and graveyards Mocking

I really don’t like the fake cartoon and illustration in Indian books that are here in the school library. My name is Monica Spencer and my tribe is Navajo, Laguna, Kiaoni and Pueblo, all full blooded. It makes me mad when children make fun of my culture. It makes the kids think we do that when we don’t. When the children grow up I don’t want them to think that Indians put feathers in their hair and dance around the fire. We don’t do that. And I don’t think that it is right for the kids to look at the silly things they put in those silly books. One day I saw a kid running around with a feather in their hair and putting their hand to their mouths and making weird noises and I cried when that happened. So what I want you to do is put those books away and learn about our real history.

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