I observe that history is not merely repeated, but rather, continued. Contemporary perpetrators of racial crimes appear to study past crimes, learn from them, then learn how to perpetrate these crimes more affectively. I am an Indigenous woman, and an eye witness to the ongoing crimes perpetrated with governmental, corporate, and social complicity.
As of late, Senator John McCain proposed a give-away of 2,400 acres of San Carlos Apache land to an international mining company, whose CEO, Sam Walsh, maintains a partnership with Australia, Iran (at 15%), and China (at 10%). The illustrious Senator attached the NDAA, in order to pass this genocidal bill. I addressed this issue with Majority Leader Harry Reid, as well as with the main perpetrator himself, namely, John McCain. No response has been given.
Many have been protesting this land theft, and to these Relatives, I am grateful. However, while I received no response regarding this issue, Congressman Paul Gosar (R-AZ) made the ultimate racial faux pas by declaring that Native people (Indians) are "wards of the Federal Government." In other words, Native people can be abused by the Federal Government (i.e. Congress), with absolutely no accountability. This is essentially what Christopher Columbus wrote to the monarchy of Spain regarding the Taino People: "With just fifty men, I can conquer the entire island..."
The fact is that the Department of the Interior (DOI), via the Bureau of Indian affairs (BIA), states that the United States Government is the "trustee" of Native lands, not the lords thereof. Moreover, Mr. Gosar faces further embarrassment when Republican, and former U.S. attorney in Colorado, Troy Eid, commented that the language that defines core concepts of Indian law is old and often ethnically offensive. Moreover, regarding Gosar’s mindless “ward” comment, and in relations to the “language that defines core concepts of Indian law,” Mr. Eid said: “That’s just not appropriate. In the heated context of what this represents, it’s especially inappropriate to be resorting to what amounts to race baiting.”
Mr. McCain's attempted theft of Apache Sacred land is not a new development in American history. Land thefts of Indigenous lands are an ongoing injustice dating back to the days of colonialism. John McCain's current criminal action is, however, only the surface of a sea of heinous crimes continuously committed against Native peoples, not just in the continental United States, but also in Canada, as well as in the countries south of the American border.
Indigenous men are being murdered by law enforcement, community thugs, and more; Native women are being raped, murdered, and going missing without a trace; children are witnesses to murders, tribal corruption, suicides, and other tragedies, leaving them displaced, even within their own cultural environments - and they disappear, too... It has long been the official intention of those in power to eliminate any sign of Native existence by means ranging from mass murder, to boarding schools, where children were raped, tortured and more... just for speaking their Native languages. These facts are not to be found in what passes for history books in America.
There is not enough time, or space, to detail the many crimes being officially, and unofficially, perpetrated against the Native Peoples of what is called America. If asked about recent events, very few, if any, in mainstream American society know what is happening to us, on, and off, the reservations. It is not society's fault. Serial crimes are not committed for the purpose of public viewing.
We are told to "get over it - the past is the past", but what if it is not the past, but rather, a very real problem taking place right now, in the present, and right under the noses of the general public?
To quote one of the "founding fathers", Thomas Jefferson, "When injustice becomes law, resistance becomes duty." My hope is that, like others whose voices are heard, my people, too, will find justice.
All my Relations...
http://youtu.be/... Taina Amayi: In The Heart Of The Eagle