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US History is full of interesting moments.
One of my favorites is that Geronimo, Quanah Parker, and 4 other tribal leaders rode in Teddy Roosevelt's 1905 inauguration with a contingent from the Carlisle Indian School, whose founding aim was to "kill the Indian and save the man."
One of my favorites is that Geronimo, Quanah Parker, and 4 other tribal leaders rode in Teddy Roosevelt's 1905 inauguration with a contingent from the Carlisle Indian School, whose founding aim was to "kill the Indian and save the man."
“Why did you select Geronimo to march in your parade, Mr. President? He is the greatest single-handed murderer in American history?” Roosevelt replied, “I wanted to give the people a good show.” https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/photos-who-were-the-six-indian-chiefs-in-teddy-roosevelts-inaugural-parade-1976255/
Carlisle Indian School and the entire removal movement in the US and Canada stands as a primary example of how devastating "good intentions" can be. White "liberals," thinking they were acting in our best interest, absolutely destroyed entire generations. https://theintercept.com/2018/09/25/carlisle-indian-industrial-school-indigenous-children-disappeared/
While the intention of "westernizing" Natives may have been worthy, ripping children from their homes combined with the disruption of family structures and parents norms birthed hundreds of thousands of broken adults and wildly dysfunctional families.
Geronimo himself was a fascinating figure and his story is complex and multi-dimensional. I'll do a thread about it someday, but here's a decent overview.
It should be noted that many traditional Natives considered him to be a brutal murderer, not a hero. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/geronimos-appeal-to-theodore-roosevelt-117859516/
It should be noted that many traditional Natives considered him to be a brutal murderer, not a hero. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/geronimos-appeal-to-theodore-roosevelt-117859516/
I don't stand in judgment because my frame of reference doesn't equip me to do so.
That said - it's my belief that these men who fought ferociously and lost everything - understood something about good and evil that most people today are too simple and inconsequential to grasp.
That said - it's my belief that these men who fought ferociously and lost everything - understood something about good and evil that most people today are too simple and inconsequential to grasp.
