I'm heading west to Bismarck today, and Billings, MT a day later. Billings is just sixty miles from the scene of the Battle of the Little Big Horn, where Custer lost his golden locks.
I hope to interview some Native Americans. Some of them lead tours authorized by the National Park Service.
My friend Bill said I could post this note for him:
ReplyDeleteMost of the early pioneers walked alongside their wagons and mule teams, i guess taking turns resting their sore butts from the bouncing wagon boards...and the oxen were slow travelers. So just contemplate walking the distance, as you ride in air-conditioned comfort...
Just some thoughts on the historians you will meet:
sometimes i might feel reluctant to discuss much Indian history with the descendants of native Americans. It is a sad history of treachery and deceit and i can only suppose that they may not be so magnaminous as to be forgiving....i sure would not be...it is a very similar situation as discussing slavery with African Americans.
I think that the history itself is fascinating and love the stories, but coming from my particular background there may be some dissent and disagreement. The disenfranchisement of so many from the "American Dream" for so long may have left some permanent bitterness in those you might meet. Wounded Knee was not that long ago.
And such a big part of the story of the settling of the west, the pioneers to all parts of this country, was the displacement of the native peoples. For them to be effectively displaced, they had to be disenfranchised from the "american dream." They could not participate...The Creeks had schools, churches, municipal governments in place when they were displaced in Georgia....
Many of them went to Oklahoma where they were promised to be left alone "until the sun shall fail to set." Later forced from their homes at the point of a bayonnet.
And our pioneer ancestors were accompanied by slaves in the wagons on their long walks.
Oklahoma was admitted as a state in 1902 (i think) and that was in my grand-mother's lifetime.
Norma-Diane Sawyer is doing a report on the Lakota tribe which is not far from the foothills of MT. Rushmore.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, the early settlers treatment of the Native Americans is a serious stain on our national conscience.
I look forward to hearing from you about how the American Dream is playing out on this section and the rest of your journey.
JC Servant - thanks for your comment. I spoke with a Native American today who is now the Commissioner of Indian Affairs for the State of North Dakota. I felt really guilty about what the Euro-Americans did to his people. Yes, it is a dark stain on our national conscience.
ReplyDeleteI learned today that there are Nakota, Lakota and Dakota branches of the Sioux Nation, all in the Midwest, meaning Minnesota, the Dakotas, a bit of northern Iowa, a bit of eastern Wyoming and Montana. It's a linguistic thing within the Sioux language.