These questions remind me of the conversation around colonialism and gentrification; we cannot all continue to be colonizers adrift on the land, displacing others from their homes.
I hope for and believe in a world where we all are attached to our homes because we are in relationship to the land and to our communities--because we have learned from the indigenous people trying to teach us how to have an ecological future.
I recommend reading Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer and The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein to learn more about these concepts.
Totally! I had the same thought reading those statements. After all, these *are * from a Western academic survey!...steeped in traditional Western values. Though, I do suspect Indigenous folks could just as easily relate to these statements.
I LOVED Braiding Sweetgrass. A must read for everyone. I'll check out The Color of Law. Another good one I read recently is Born in Blackness by Howard French. And another perspective changing book regarding colonialism and Indigenous knowledge is The Dawn of Everything - A New History of Humanity by David Graeber and David Wengrow.
I do my best to learn and raise awareness of Indigenous knowledge in a number of pieces I've written over the last couple years. Feel free to do some browsing. Here's one to start, but there are many. https://interplace.io/p/tributaries-of-intellect-in-a-river#details
I really appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts, Jack.
Feb 12, 2023·edited Feb 12, 2023Liked by Brad Weed
It can be difficult to craft policies that mitigate displacement without suppressing immigration. Not all immigrants are colonizers, or at least not all are gentry.
After the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, New York's Chinatown expanded into what was traditionally Little Italy. That might be more "white flight" than colonization, but an NPS article says that rents in Chinatown became some of the highest in the city.
I'm with you. Many, as you suggest, were not of privilege and were fleeing hardship and subordination. This was all amidst race debates centered on 'blood' lines and what constituted 'white'. Those of Asian and Southern European decent, including Italians, were of primary concern to those wishing for a 'pure' United States.
New York was no exception. The two-time governor of New York during these times, Horatio Seymour, once gave a speech at an anti-Chinese rally in New York City where he said, "Europeans do not overthrow our customs, religion, or civilization. They do not bring here any strange blood.”
I suspect there were many who wanted neither Italians nor Chinese settling in those neighborhoods!
I agree with you that not all immigrants seek domination or even colonization. We have long been a mobile species. I suppose it comes down to intent. There were many encroaching settlers who admire, respect, and eagerly live alongside Indigenous occupants of the land intent on living a peaceful, coexistent life. I find the story of Joseph Brant particularly interesting in this regard.
I include him in a larger story of the role cartography played in carving up new territories leading up to the 1800s. This offers examples of powerful colonizers, land barons, and politicians intent on domination, displacement, and eradication.
These questions remind me of the conversation around colonialism and gentrification; we cannot all continue to be colonizers adrift on the land, displacing others from their homes.
I hope for and believe in a world where we all are attached to our homes because we are in relationship to the land and to our communities--because we have learned from the indigenous people trying to teach us how to have an ecological future.
I recommend reading Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer and The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein to learn more about these concepts.
Totally! I had the same thought reading those statements. After all, these *are * from a Western academic survey!...steeped in traditional Western values. Though, I do suspect Indigenous folks could just as easily relate to these statements.
I'm fully aware of my place in our colonial history. One of my first pieces on Interplace was how my lineage is wrapped up in its origins. https://interplace.io/p/wasps-and-weeds-gone-wild
I LOVED Braiding Sweetgrass. A must read for everyone. I'll check out The Color of Law. Another good one I read recently is Born in Blackness by Howard French. And another perspective changing book regarding colonialism and Indigenous knowledge is The Dawn of Everything - A New History of Humanity by David Graeber and David Wengrow.
I do my best to learn and raise awareness of Indigenous knowledge in a number of pieces I've written over the last couple years. Feel free to do some browsing. Here's one to start, but there are many. https://interplace.io/p/tributaries-of-intellect-in-a-river#details
I really appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts, Jack.
It can be difficult to craft policies that mitigate displacement without suppressing immigration. Not all immigrants are colonizers, or at least not all are gentry.
After the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, New York's Chinatown expanded into what was traditionally Little Italy. That might be more "white flight" than colonization, but an NPS article says that rents in Chinatown became some of the highest in the city.
https://www.nps.gov/places/new-york-chinatown-and-little-italy-historic-district.htm
Thanks for the comment, Mike. And the link!
I'm with you. Many, as you suggest, were not of privilege and were fleeing hardship and subordination. This was all amidst race debates centered on 'blood' lines and what constituted 'white'. Those of Asian and Southern European decent, including Italians, were of primary concern to those wishing for a 'pure' United States.
New York was no exception. The two-time governor of New York during these times, Horatio Seymour, once gave a speech at an anti-Chinese rally in New York City where he said, "Europeans do not overthrow our customs, religion, or civilization. They do not bring here any strange blood.”
I suspect there were many who wanted neither Italians nor Chinese settling in those neighborhoods!
I agree with you that not all immigrants seek domination or even colonization. We have long been a mobile species. I suppose it comes down to intent. There were many encroaching settlers who admire, respect, and eagerly live alongside Indigenous occupants of the land intent on living a peaceful, coexistent life. I find the story of Joseph Brant particularly interesting in this regard.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Brant
I include him in a larger story of the role cartography played in carving up new territories leading up to the 1800s. This offers examples of powerful colonizers, land barons, and politicians intent on domination, displacement, and eradication.
https://interplace.io/p/guns-god-and-gold#details