European Colonization of the Americas

The European colonization of the Americas was disastrous to the indigenous people of the land. The superiority that the colonizers carried with their beliefs, culture and religion was one of the prime motivators in “saving” the indigenous people of the Americas. To the colonizers up to this point, western ideas were the only existing ones to their knowledge, and therefore the ideas they adopted and consequently the “correct” beliefs. They viewed the natives as uncivilized since their lifestyles differed from their own and took it among themselves to push their beliefs onto them in an effort to civilize them. In doing this, Europeans destroyed the indigenous culture, land, and families. In the essay “Stolen From Our Bodies” Qwo-Li Driskill argues that through the colonization of the Americans, European settlers essentially stole the natives from their homes as well as their own bodies.

Indigenous Women

Generally European colonization separated indigenous women from their homes through the physical targeting and murdering of their families and tribes. In the book, An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States, Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz references the bounties that were placed by the English government to not only kill the natives but use their scalps as a means of proof. Indigenous people were referenced as “inferior” and as evolving from apes whereas Europeans evolving from the Christian God making genocide an acceptable means to the European colonizers. Indigenous women were raped, “hunted”, ripped of their culture, and overall dehumanized from their bodies.

The Impact of Colonization Today

The history of colonization will continue to impact indigenous people as long as history other than that from the western point of view is continued to not be recognized. In the book, Bad Indians, Deborah Miranda mentions the chapter commonly taught in Californian 4th graders history about the mission system. Although it is important for students to learn about the history of the United States and particularly California, the story of the indigenous people is not unbiasedly being taught. Not only were the natives violently ripped of their land, but they have also been ripped of their story in history as the natives of in this case the “Californian” lands. “California” as after being renamed by the colonizers because these lands already had names and occupants. Their story is continuously not being taught to American school children because it is unfavorable to the stories of the colonizers, who also happen to be the roots of the beginning of the United States students are taught to look up to.

Resisting Colonization

Along with colonization, colonizers brought along the patriarchy and the binary gender system. In the podcast, “All My Relations” Malika states “we have a model of what it looks like to not live in a patriarchal society” in referencing being opposed to the beliefs of the general community of self-proclaimed feminists. She argues that feminists are fighting against the idea of patriarchy where it is being inevitably ingrained in society, whereas indigenous feminists are fighting against the colonization of western culture over their culture and as a result colonized patriarchy.

"Decolonization"

The term “decolonization” is used in the discussion of how to recompensate the indigenous people for their stolen lands and the genocide they have lived through. In the lecture, “Resilient Histories for Resilient Futures”, the speaker and professor, Dr. Cutcha Risling Baldy argues that the only correct solution would be to simply return the stolen lands to the indigenous people. Although the solution seems straightforward and logical in current times it is unlikely a solution like this would be considered because economically it is unfavorable to do the right thing. Baldy states, “there is a possibility in what this could look like, the process of decolonization, but until it starts being talked about and being envisioned it is never going to happen”. She is claiming that even though the grand solution of returning the land seems unattainable, while it is being considered it is a step in the right direction.

Personal Land Acknowledgement

The Kumeyaay people were one of the native tribes of California. They resided in the area I currently live in before the natives were violently stripped of their lands. This naturally means that the remaining individuals of the tribe have a personal connection to their stolen lands, if not by their ancestors living in the area for hundreds of years beforehand. It is important to recognize and be mindful of the land as once being of the Kumayaay because many are unaware of the land we are living on, and there is an added appreciation for the land because of this.

Growing up in Southern California, I myself was not aware that I even lived on once Indian lands, nonetheless the extent of the genocide the natives faced and now carry a larger appreciation to the land I live on. I am now committed to learning more about their culture and lifestyles and being open-minded in doing so. Also, I am committed to being mindful in maintaining the integrity of the land out of respect for the indigenous people. For example, Julie Watson states that building over “sacred burial sites” of the Kumeyaay people has led to a lawsuit and its members to defend the area, rightfully so. The land area resides between the now man-made border between the United States and Mexico, an area that President Trump wishes to build a border wall.