Native American Heritage Month sheds needed light cultural erasure

Native American Heritage Month honors and celebrates the rich history and culture of the Indigenous population. But for many Native Americans, the month serves as a quiet reminder of their historical erasure, one that has carried over into the present day.

November was deemed National American Indian Heritage Month in 1992, just over 20 years ago. Despite this, the American education system often fails to acknowledge some parts of history, specifically the parts that aren’t reputable. What the education system tends to do is focus on the favorable side of things. Some schools still insist on covering Christopher Columbus and fail to adequately acknowledge the brutality he enacted. The anniversary of his arrival, a nationally celebrated holiday, “was the occasion for national and local celebrationsm,” says the U.S. Department of the Interior: Indian Affairs. “However, for Native people, it was an occasion they could neither fully embrace nor participate in.” 

If the approach to teaching the country’s history needs to remain “positive,” why can’t it instead be focused on the  accomplishments and heritage of these minorities? Why must it solely highlight the importance of white people? Years of ignorance may be shameful to face as a country, but it is vitally necessary to stop further damage from being done to a population who has faced nothing but attempted erasure.

When people think of the torment Indigenous people faced, they tend to think back to the late 1400s. While this was undoubtedly a time of horrific loss, systemic racism and trauma would continue well into the twentieth century. More than 523 government-funded, and often church-run, Indian Boarding schools existed across the US. By the mid-1920s, over 80 percent of Native American children were in the inhumane boarding school system. This young generation faced various forms of abuse and were forced to assimilate to follow the values of the Christian church. In order to take their children, parents were bribed, threatened, and punished.

Those in this system “suffered physical, sexual, cultural and spiritual abuse and neglect, and experienced treatment that in many cases constituted torture for speaking their Native languages. Many children never returned home and their fates have yet to be accounted for by the U.S. government,” according to The National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition. Not only were these children ripped from their families, but the government further attempted to erase the memories of these ill-fated children who wanted nothing more than to embrace their culture.

These traumatic events are widely unknown, and are a prime example of the erasure of Indigenous history. A more commonly known example that tackles erasure in a different form is the story of Thanksgiving. Rather than forgetting the events all together, America has typically chosen to glorify the events of what has been dubbed “the first Thanksgiving.” This has been described as a peaceful exchange and meal between the Europeans and Native Americans. However, this narrative leaves out the misery that Native Americans faced leading up to this unnecessarily highlighted feast.

It makes no sense that this event is seen as so important within American education, as it was only a drop of peace in a sea of Native hardship. Schools don’t tend to properly address the fact that Europeans colonized a whole group of people. Peace was clearly not their priority. As they said, “Kill the Indian, Save the Man” (The National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition).

 Despite misconceptions, the Indigenous populations that originally discovered America did not willingly give up their land to the Europeans. Often, they were helpless due to many reasons, one being disease. Upon arrival, Europeans carried with them the deadly smallpox disease unintentionally. However, they also intentionally rubbed infected pus on blankets that were later given to the Native Americans as “gifts.” Since the disease was entirely new to their population and their immune systems were not equipped to fight it, smallpox killed nearly 90 percent of the population. With such a low population, defense against European settlers would prove impossible. Forced out of their homeland, the Indigenous were confined to reservations. Although they were allowed to practice their own traditions and beliefs, they often struggled with issues such as malnutrition and poverty. 

As a whole, Native American Heritage Month is not addressed properly within the American education system, especially because textbooks and curriculums leave out critical information, erasing the importance of Native American culture and experiences. Schools should focus on acknowledging the mistreatment of these populations and should celebrate the culture that was assimilated in the wake of our country’s origin.

by Samreen Chahal

Published December 2nd, 2024

Oshkosh West Index Volume 121 Issue III