The Theft of Indigenous Lands: Breaking Down the History and Modern Misconceptions

 

When in history did it become acceptable to steal land from the Indigenous peoples of what is now the United States?  Or any other country, for that matter.  This question comes to me a lot when I'm listening or participating in discussions with people who argue, often without actually understanding the history, more often being willfully ignorant about it, that it was "right" for European colonizers to take Native lands.  Some even defend figures like Columbus, whose actions led to centuries of exploitation and displacement.  

One incident I think of a lot is when Columbus used a lunar eclipse in 1504 to manipulate the Indigenous Arawak people.  We aren't sure of their exact location, but it was near the Bahamas, possibly Jamaica.  Records, REAL historical records, show that Columbus and his crew, in need of supplies and couldn't find any (after the tribe he asked said no because they wouldn't survive the winter), told the Natives that he was god (or that *his* god) would darken the moon and kill them if they didn't give him and his crew their food.  When the eclipse happened, they gave it to them, not aware they were manipulated by Columbus's smarts and astronomical knowledge.  

Columbus' arrival in the Caribbean marked the beginning of exploitation, violence, and the dispossession of the indigenous tribes of North America.  Natives among the Powhatan tribes met the English settlers in the early 1600s.  

I have heard people say that the displacement of Native Americans by Europeans was no different from the Indigenous tribes warring over territory among themselves.  This view is historically misleading.  Yes, conflicts between Indigenous tribes occurred, as they do in any society (the war between Germania and Rome, for example); these were mostly regional disputes over resources or sovereignty.  They weren't attempts to completely eradicate a people, destroy their cultures, or remove them from their ancestral homelands.  (After hearing it that way, it makes you think of someone else who did the same thing to the Jews, don’t you think?).

European colonization was systematic and based on ideas like the "Doctrine of Discovery" and "Manifest Destiny." These claimed that white Christians had a divine right to take land and displace non-Christian, non-European peoples.  

East of the Mississippi River, many tribes, including the Eastern Band of Cherokees, Monacan, Iroquois, and Powhattan, had societies with large trade networks.  Though the conflict was there, many of these tribes lived in relative peace before the Europeans came.  The forced relocation of these tribes (such as the Cherokee on the Trail of Tears), which was authorized by the Indian Removal Act of 1830, is one example of how colonization forcibly displaced them and removed them from their homelands.  

For the Western Tribes, such as the Western Lakota and the Navajo, we must recognize that these nations were forced to leave their homes.  Vast territories they had claimed hundreds, if not thousands of years, before.  They were forced to walk the Trail of Tears, the Navajo Long Walk, or the Choctaw Removal. They were then given a VERY small part of the land to live off of, in a place where you can't grow anything, therefore becoming a part of the people who forced you to move.  You might be thinking, that today the Navajo Reservation is the largest in the US.  Sadly, it only covers a fraction of the land they once had.  That doesn't make it right.  The Lakota were promised specific territories through treaties like the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868, only for those agreements to be broken when the gold was discovered in the Black Hills.  This happened very often, with a large number of the treaties created and nullified, leaving tribes with limited access to the lands and resources that they used to use to sustain them.  This continues today, with many tribes still living on poor-quality land, a far cry from the wonderful, expansive, fertile territories they once owned.  

During the early 20th century, laws and polices were created (namely by Walter Plecker) that denied Native Americans the right to identify as Indigenous, Native, American, or Indian on official documents (like birth certificates).  Some families, including my own, were forced to register as "Black" or "Non-White" on their birth certificates due to this system.  It went so far as to make marriages between races (including other colors) illegal, outside of their racial categories.  

Some say the colonizers came to "bring Christ" to Indigenous peoples, thereby justifying the theft of land and cultural suppression as spiritual salvation.  However, this view totally ignores the many Native groups who already worshipped a Creator or Great Spirit.  While these tribes didn't know Jesus, they did have spiritual traditions based on reverence and morality.  Romans 1:20 tells us, "For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, both His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse." This suggests that people could have known God even without a formal doctrine. Would they have gone to heaven without knowledge of Jesus? No.  But to say that taking their land is justification for bringing Jesus to them is wrong.  If that was still the case (as many people TO THIS DAY literally defend!), why do we not do that now when we go to other countries to bring Jesus to the native tribes? 

Even in this day and age, harmful religious ideas still influence public attitudes toward Indigenous people and even other communities! I've seen this most in Christian groups, but other people say as well (and believe it), that people of certain races are spiritually inferior.  These beliefs often suggest that people with darker skin (because let's face it, that's really what it boils down to, anyone that isn't white), including Indigenous, cannot be "saved" unless led by white Christians.  This theology sometimes comes from the false doctrine known as the "curse of Ham", a misinterpretation of the biblical story of Noah's son that has been used to justify slavery and racial problems.  People have said to me that Africans are cursed and cannot be saved. If they are saved, it's only by white people sharing the gospel, but they will inevitably go back to their sinful ways and not "keep" salvation.  Beliefs like these are not only theologically wrong but also morally wrong.  The idea that salvation is linked to race, or that spiritual truth can only come from a specific race, is a distortion of Christianity's core teachings.  The Bible clearly states in Acts 17:26 that "From one man He made all the nations," and in Galatians 3:28 that "There is neither Jew nor Gentile...for you are all one in Christ Jesus." Indigenous peoples, like all people, are fully capable of spiritual understanding, connection with Christ, and faith, without need to abandon their culture, identity, and dignity.  If that were to be the case, it is only right to ask white people to do the same.  They need to realize they can't be saved unless through a superior being, that they are Gentile, same as everyone who isn't Jewish, and need to abandon their culture and identity to become one.  

It's very sad, but outsiders have often misrepresented or condemned Indigenous traditions as "evil" or "pagan".  Condemning them without even knowing the history and background of the people, or the reason for the tradition.  Ceremonial practices like drumming, dancing, and Regalia were, and sometimes still are, viewed as un-Christian and uncivilized.  In truth, these practices are important expressions of community and cultural heritage.  There are different drums and dances for every important occasion.  War, mourning, harvest, celebration, birth, and healing, just to name a few.  These were never meaningless rituals; they were living acts of prayer (cause yes, you can pray through dance.  Look at David, dancing through the streets singing songs of joy and thankfulness (2 Samuel 6:14)!  We can do the same thing, just as everyone can. Prayer isn't always being on your knees or with your eyes closed), storytelling, and thanksgiving.  They connected people to one another, to their ancestors, and to the Creator. 

It breaks my heart, and so many others, to see the outside pressure and generational suppression keep many Native people from continuing these traditions.  They have become so disconnected from our heritage, even to the heritage they were raised in, they no longer have a desire to even learn about their ancestry, let alone take part in an active, alive tribe.   In some cases, families even prevented their children from registering with their tribe!  This stops the learning, people knowing about their culture, and being a part of a wonderfully connected tribe.  The result of this is that entire generations have grown up without their language, practices, and cultural knowledge.  These losses are not just a part of history; they affect communities today.  Many traditions are at risk of being forgotten, and some already have been.  Languages (real quick on this topic: There is a common misconception that our original languages were lost.  The Monacan people historically spoke Lakota Siouan.   That language is still alive today.  It is not spoken by very many people because of the reasons stated below, but the initiative is being taken by the elders to offer classes and preserve this language for future generations.) that were spoken fluently less than 100 years ago, are now not even taught.  Ceremonies that are used to define community life are practiced by fewer and fewer people each year.  And yet, there are people who believe the Indigenous cultures should be left in the past because they are outdated or irrelevant, and we need to live in the present. But Indigenous peoples are not relics of history.  They are living, vibrant communities with wisdom, resilience, and important contributions to this nation we call America.  The prejudices that persist, while quieter than in our previous few generations, still impact communities, perceptions, and access to recognition.  We are not and should not be ashamed of who we are because society deems it wrong.  

This paper is by no means a hate on white people or people of any color.  I just want to shed some light on things I have heard a lot of in the past year.  God made us all, and we even believed and sang the song (Red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in his sight, Jesus loves the little children of the world) as children, but the older people get, the more prejudices happen.  So I am not hating on white people, not bitter towards what happened.  No one alive today was a cause of it.  But that doesn't mean racism doesn't still exist.  Not the racism that you see on the news or on social media, but the real stuff that people face often.  This is just a way for me to get some information out there to possibly help dispel some wrong, even hateful, ideals about people of color, specifically Native people.  

Proud of my Heritage, 

Soaring Hummingbird

Resources: Facebook post from Diane Shields - (the chief of the Monacan tribe)

Mann, C. C. (2005). 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus.

Miller, R. J. (2006). Native America, Discovered and Conquered: Thomas Jefferson, Lewis & Clark, and Manifest Destiny.

Perdue, T., & Green, M. D. (2007). The Cherokee Nation and the Trail of Tears.

Denetdale, J. N. (2007). Reclaiming Diné History: The Legacies of Navajo Chief Manuelito and Juanita.

Forbes, J. D. (1993). Africans and Native Americans: The Language of Race and the Evolution of Red-Black Peoples.

NASA Science (2009). Columbus and the Lunar Eclipse.