I find it fascinating to think about where all those Native Americans ended up. Some went to reservations and passed down their heritage. Many, many more were absorbed into the cultures around them. Their traditions and culture either was lost in the dominant race or eventually forgotten. I figure this has been true throughout the centuries, no matter the culture.
It is unfortunate, in my opinion, as a Native American. I wish I remembered stories that my grandmother and great grandmother used to tell my sisters and I, when we were girls, about our heritage and the truth about our history as told from a Cherokee's point of view rather than what American children are taught in history books written by Americans. In college, for Anthropology, I took a Native American Studies course. We looked at how, after Westernization, a great many cultures lost their roots in their attempt to assimilate with the whites. So many Anthropological studies done on Native Americans and the Inuit are written by white men (ones who had little understanding, who were ethnocentric and biased and couldn't sympathize or change their ways of thinking and believing) the ones that aren't are written after the near loss and destruction of the cultures. Native Americans gave up their pagan beliefs for Christianity and changed their lifestyles to fit with the image. What is amazing to me is that people came to this country so that they could have the freedom to practice their beliefs openly and without persecution and in the process destroyed countless lives doing the very thing that was being done to them. ... I suppose that that does happen a lot. I suppose to avoid persecution people just change to fit the social norms. Of course there are those who would rather die for their beliefs rather than conform. There was a great deal of persecution for Christians (and Pagans a couple hundred years later) in Rome for centuries after the death of Christ until Constantine, but rather than flee or renounce their faith they stayed and continued to declare Jesus as Lord and many were tortured and killed for it. I suppose it's human nature to oppress and condemn and kill. And I guess it's also human nature for those on the receiving end of that brutality to either get over it or die... Yes we humans truly are the superior race
I am part Cherokee from my maternal grandmother. Her (very large) family was assimilated into the dominant culture, but they have retained their distinctive physical characteristics. They were the most individualistic bunch of people I've ever known. They scattered across the US from New Jersey to California and had occupations ranging from chicken farmers to parking lot owners to state troopers. In spite of this they had a lot of family coherence. I blame them for some of my own maverick tendencies (which almost drove my parents nuts).
Just to clarify... you blame your rebellious and disruptive tendencies on the fact that you have a bit of Cherokee blood in you...?
That's not what I said. Please don't resort to calumny because you don't agree with my religious beliefs. You are a valuable asset to this forum.
I apologize if I made you feel that way; I didn't mean to seem as if I were attacking you or your reputation. It's not my place to disagree with anyone's religion or beliefs. We all are entitled to have our own opinions about the world and our place in it. Religion, in my opinion, is not something to debate about; you have your beliefs and I have mine. If they don't line up with one another then it isn't because one is wrong and the other is right, it's because we've learned to believe in something different. So again, I apologize for making you feel that way, but it wasn't my intention. However, I did not put words into your mouth. Your post stated " I blame them for some of my own maverick tendencies ". Since your post was about your Native American relatives I assumed you were referring to them. If you weren't then obviously something was lost between us in translation; I believed you to be blaming your own bad habits on the fact that you have Native American blood and was offended by the accusation that having Native American ancestry causes one to behave in a disruptive and offensive way. I actually am Native American, father and mother are both Cherokee, and while we all have our own unique personalities, no one has ever accused me or my family to be disruptive or rude or anything of the sort. So to me, it wasn't an attack against your religion (which I don't know anyway), just me trying to point out the fact that you stated, whether you meant to or not, that you blame your Native American blood for your bad habits.
I have a cousin whose grandmother was a full-blooded Native American. I don't know which branch. We came across some photos of her a few months ago. Although I never recognized those characteristics in the grandmother when I was young, I see them so clearly now. My cousin is quite a beauty, but I don't see the Native American features in her face at all.
Maverick: an independent individual who does not go along with a group or party. I don't see what being individualistic has to do with "bad habits" or behaving "disruptively" or "offensively." Nonconformism in a child can be problematic for parents, but it is not indicative of bad behavior.
maverick: a person persuing rebellious, even potentially disruptive, policies or ideas. A rebel, cowboy; loose cannon. ... Once again, my point escapes you. Obviously we're going around in circles, as usual, so perhaps it would be best if we just agree to disagree.
