Does Anyone Care About Native Americans?
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I’ve mentioned them occasionally and recently. The responses have generally been to deflect what I am saying by mentioning atrocities perpetrated by The British Empire. Very liberal of you I’m sure. Now look, I don’t claim to be entirely liberal. I’m not. Bits of me are – or, if you prefer, some of my thoughts and beliefs are liberal as some are left wing, some right wing and some so extreme I may have to move to Mars.
I have no interest what so ever in getting into a row about The British Empire or the Boston Tea Party or Buffalo Bill or anything else related to history, American or otherwise.
I do have a very big interest in your views on the native Americans and their place in your society.
My interest in them stems from a long and enduring enjoyment of a native American band called Redbone.
Back in the very early 1970’s a song called “The Witch Queen Of New Orleans” popped up in the British charts and I loved it. I found, quite by chance, the album of the same name in a record shop. Sometime later I found another album called “Potlatch” which contained their only other British hit “Maggie” – a much smaller hit than their first one and, unless any other songs bubbled around outside our top 40, possibly the only other hit in Britain they had.
Regardless, I loved their music and, unusually for a young teenager, I found I loved the album tracks as much if not more than their singles.
As a result I tried to find out about them – which was not an easy thing to do in the early 70’s unless they happened to live in Britain and, preferably, a hundred yards down the road from where you lived. As they were native American’s finding out about them – given that they were a ‘niche’ band was nigh on impossible.
Nevertheless I persevered primarily from information on their albums and wrote to the record label in America. Much to my surprise and several months later I received a response along with a signed photograph of Redbone.
It saddens me enormously that said signed photograph was long ago mislaid.
What did happen though, around this time, was my interest in native Americans grew to massive proportions.
All I knew about them up to this point is that John Wayne, primarily, tended to shoot them off their horses as they fired arrows at him. Occasionally they were portrayed as brave and honourable people but, more often than not, they were savages destined to meet a sticky end via Wayne or some other ‘western hero’.
I went to the local library and read up on them. I was shocked and horrified.
America was actually theirs. It didn’t belong to Clint Eastwood or Dustin Hoffman or Robert Redford it belonged to Crazy Horse and Geronimo and the Apache and the Shawnee and the Mohawk. I was amazed and, frankly, devastated.
I had for so long loved and admired America. The home of The X-Men and The Avengers and Magnum PI and Cannon and Garrisons Guerrillas and Bewitched but suddenly, as I read my way through various weighty tomes regarding the history of native Americans I realised that the country I adored almost as much as my own – possibly more than my own back then – was actually a country of people whose ancestors had stolen it from the original inhabitants.
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Not only had they stolen it – or, if you prefer, occupied it – they had subjugated the natural inhabitants to such an extent that the natural inhabitants no longer had any place worth having in their own country.
At that point I began to dislike immigration. Uncontrolled immigration clearly could ultimately result in your country no longer being your country. The majority would prevail and if the majority were immigrants then they would be in charge not you.
Simplistic? Yes of course it is but I was only 15 years sold so, to my 15 year old self it was obvious.
You know what? Simplistic it may be but, actually it is still obvious to me.
Too many immigrants dilute your country and if you allow so many in that they outnumber you then you’d better watch out or, one day, you’ll find your country isn’t yours anymore.
You are quite entitled to disagree of course. It’s my opinion and it is an opinion formed in a library after becoming interested in an American band called Redbone. I loved their music (still do) and as a result of loving their music I discovered that the world is actually quite a horrible place if you are unfortunate enough to not have the strength or numbers to protect what is yours by birthright.
Native Americans had neither the strength nor numbers and they lost their country to your ancestors.
Lol Vegas, Pat Vegas, Pete Last Walking Bear Depoe, Tony Bellamy, Arturo Perez, Butch Rillera, I salute you.
I salute you and all native Americans who deserve so much more than America is giving you or will ever give you. Their admittance of the wrongs done to you would be of little consequence. After all, they won’t give you your country back will they? Mind you, don’t blame them. They didn’t steal your land and your country. Their ancestors did so it isn’t their fault.
On the other hand, perhaps it would be a mark of honour for them if they could at least admit what their ancestors did to your people. Perhaps, in some small attempt to make amends they could even allow representatives of your people to actually have some position of authority in government?
Not a lot to ask for a subjugated people, subjugated and trampled upon by a supposed caring western democracy is it?
Perhaps it is. After all The British Empire did that too albeit long ago. The Americans are doing it to you now. Oops America? You’re doing it now? Either feel ashamed at least or, preferably, start righting the wrongs. You’ve had quite long enough.
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