Happy Thursday, Nizhoni FB Family! Today I will honor the ancestors of the Wampanoag people for overcoming the atrocities that they endured alongside other tribes in the region. Many lives were taken as a result of settler aggression. However, we continue to thrive and persevere as Indigenous people. History wants us to believe that the Indian was a savage, illiterate, uncivilized animal. A history that was written by an organized, disciplined people, to expose us as an unorganized and undisciplined entity. Two distinctly different cultures met. One thought they must control life; the other believed life was to be enjoyed, because nature decreed it. Let us remember, the Indian is and was just as human as the white man. The Indian feels pain, gets hurt, and becomes defensive, has dreams, bears tragedy and failure, suffers from loneliness, needs to cry as well as laugh. He, too, is often misunderstood. -Wamsutta (Frank B.) James. As an Indigenous person I feel that I should not have to explain why I do not celebrate this day, however there are many people that remain in the dark where the true history lies regarding this American holiday. We as human beings would be better as a whole to recognize and give thanks to the everyday blessings in our lives rather than saving it for one day out of the year. The following speech was written by Wamsutta (Wampanoag) in 1970 and was rejected by the Pilgrims descendents during an anniversary celebration of the Pilgrim invasion. Wamsutta is also a descendent of our Wampanoag relatives who were among the first Indigenous people to experience the atrocities rooted in the dominant societys celebration of this holiday. uaine.org/wmsuta.htm To those who still choose to attach their thankfulness for their blessings to a day that history has proven to be an apocalyptic period for Indigenous people, I challenge you to spend one hour today researching the origin of this American holiday. At the end of the day, this is a settler holiday celebrating the beginning of the genocide of Indigenous people. It is important for us to know our history so that we may grow from it and make certain that history does not repeat itself. We now have 350 years of experience living amongst the white man. We can now speak his language. We can now think as a white man thinks. We can now compete with him for the top jobs. Were being heard; we are now being listened to. The important point is that along with these necessities of everyday living, we still have the spirit, we still have the unique culture, we still have the will and, most important of all, the determination to remain as Indians. We are determined, and our presence here this evening is living testimony that this is only the beginning of the American Indian... -Wamsutta (Wampanoag) Enjoy your time with family and be safe! Hozho,
Posted on: Thu, 28 Nov 2013 17:47:54 +0000
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