A treaty is simply an agreement between two or more sovereign nations. When the European nations began their invasion of the Americas, they generally viewed Indian nations as sovereign entities and negotiated treaties with them. The concept of making treaties was not new to American Indian nations and Antone Minthorn, in an essay in As … Continued
Taken with permission When I wrote this, The Death & Vision of Moxtaveto (Black Kettle) Custer was pursuing the snow tracks of Dog Soldiers that would eventually lead to Black Kettle’s village on Thanksgiving Day in a cruel irony. The cruelest irony however, was that Black Kettle and his wife would be slain nearly four … Continued
The Korean War began on June 25, 1950 and ended on July 27, 1953. As with other twentieth century wars, American Indian men did not hesitate to enlist. Many men came from Native cultures which had traditionally emphasized a warrior tradition. For many young men the Korean War provided them with the opportunity to count … Continued
In 1884, the Ktunaxa (Kootenay, Kootenai, Kutenai) Indians in British Columbia were to receive a reserve on the St. Mary’s River. However, as the area’s ranching potential became known, investors pre-empted meadows traditional used by the Indians. Tensions between the Indians and the new settlers increased in 1886 when two Indians—Kapula and his unnamed partner—were … Continued
A treaty is simply an agreement between two or more sovereign nations. Following the Constitution, the United States recognized Indian nations as sovereign entities and thus negotiated treaties with them. In negotiating treaties with Indian nations, the Americans viewed the treaties, and the Indians themselves, as being temporary. Convinced that Indians were destined to vanish, … Continued
From the Native American perspective, the sixteenth century marked the beginning of the European invasion. The first Europeans to contact the Native nations were explorers, adventurers, soldiers, and missionaries who were seeking personal glory, gold, and souls for their god. The European myth of the Americas, often written in the form of histories, would later … Continued
During the nineteenth century there were many conflicts between Indian nations and the Americans (settlers, militia, miners, military) which are called “wars” by historians and others even though most were not formal wars from a military perspective. In general, the United States laid the foundation for these “wars” or conflicts in a number of ways, … Continued
Sealth was born about 1786. His father, Schweabe, was Suquamish and his mother, Scholitza, was Duwamish. As a young boy in 1792, he witnessed the arrival of the first Europeans: British Captain George Vancouver entered Puget Sound and traded with the Suquamish. Among the Salish-speaking tribes of the Northwest Coast, children often seek spiritual helpers … Continued
Two hundred years ago, in 1819, the United States was just beginning to embark on its expansionist policy known as Manifest Destiny. Under this policy, many non-Indian Americans felt that it was the divine destiny of the United States to expand and to spread American culture, language, and the Christian religion across the continent. In … Continued
Illegitimate Tr*ump, the first American — fascist — president, disapproves of removing Columbus statues. He stated, “We believe we should preserve our history, not tear it down.” Tr*ump, as usual, misses the point but adds, “Has to be stopped, it’s heritage.” Now, just because he’s a fascist imbecile, doesn’t mean he’s wrong about that “heritage.” … Continued
