For the last few weeks, I have been watching the dynamic PBS series "We Shall Remain" which coveres 5 episodes of Native American History, beginning with the time of the European colonization. It covers their history from the words and documents of Native Americans who lived during these different periods. In the third episode, the documentary focuses on the Cherokee relocation experience, otherwise known as the infamous "Trail of Tears." The relocation of the Cherokee led to the deaths of a quarter of the 12,000 Cherokee residents who made the disastrous march to territory West of the Mississippi.
What made this event even more outrageous was that these Cherokee looked and acted no different than ordinary Americans of the time. They had adapted western culture, clothing, lifestyle and converted to Christianity. As they marched towards their new land, they sang Christian hymns eerily similar to the experiences of the African-American slaves. This was not merely a territory grab, it was an ethnic cleansing. It was truly a stain on American history and an affront the values we hold dear as Americans.
There is much we can apply from this experience to issues that exist today. What great injustices are a stain on our country today? What about the laws in Arizona that target Hispanic-looking residents? The payday lenders that take advantage of our low-income residents? The simple fact that our ethnic minorities have poverty rates that are double, triple those of white Americans? The poverty rate among our many rural Native American communities scattered across the United States?
These problems exist because we continue to make choices which affirm that exclusion and inequality are acceptable. We refuse to make tough decisions to right the wrongs that we have committed in the past. Instead of asking why these problems exist, we decide close our eyes to them and focus on our own lives instead.
We have an opportunity to stand now as One Community. We have an opportunity to make changes that benefit the well-being of all Americans. We have an opportunity to fight the injustices that plague all our communities.
Are you willing to make that stand?
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