First published at 20:49 UTC on January 20th, 2024.
In this new documentary, we will explore the real history behind the origins of the United States of America, whose colonists and settlers fought to conquer a wild land. It was the cradle of freedom, and the land of opportunity, but not everything a…
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In this new documentary, we will explore the real history behind the origins of the United States of America, whose colonists and settlers fought to conquer a wild land. It was the cradle of freedom, and the land of opportunity, but not everything about it reflects what we’ve read in history books. The country’s expansion had victims, namely, the Native peoples who had been living in these lands for thousands of years. Native Americans were deceived, cruelly massacred, murdered or displaced from their lands, and finally, confined to reservations – all factors that brought about their near-extinction.
The Creek, Seminole, Arapahos, Cheyenne, Apache, Comanche, Kiowa and Sioux, among others, were some of the peoples involved, and each had their own distinct culture, as well as lands that belonged to them. Despite the massacres they faced, they found support in governing authorities like Abraham Lincoln, and George Washington, and among members of the military, as in the case of General Custer, who headed the Seventh Cavalry. The General did not agree with the government, and its efforts to exterminate the natives, simply because it wanted to take over their lands.
The image of Custer that has reached us today, which paints him as an “Indian killer”, is inaccurate and completely distorted. In reality, Custer defended the rights of indigenous natives, and respected them, as historians have verified. On another note, what can we say about the few Native Americans who continue to survive today? Some fought in the world wars to help liberate Europe, whilst others battled alongside Francisco Villa in the Mexican Revolution. Furthermore, a number of Native American descendants are celebrities in today’s world.
Video by Alcyon Pleiades
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