Category: 02. February 18

Posted on

Native American Injustices, Political Figures and Social Media

Professor Sonja Thomas’ presentation was really powerful to listen to and it really opened my eyes to the issues that Native American people deal with throughout the United States. The most impactful part of this talk for me was that I truly had not heard a lot about many of these issues beforehand and I think that is shocking and alarming for multiple reasons. I think that shows that people are really isolated from the struggles of Native Americans and it is not regularly brought up in educational settings or discussions throughout primary school. I think this is alarming in itself but it is also a product of our new modern world and our ability to completely shut out many issues surrounding us and just go about our jobs without considering the impact of major political figures saying these racist and hateful things.

I think in general social media and technology are allowing these hateful things to be said more regularly in our contemporary age. The ability to publicly say or post anything online anonymously through the internet is something that allows people to be more hateful than they might ever be in person. This ability is making people more confident in their ability to do this and get away with it and makes them eventually more likely to say hateful things to people in person.

This of course directly relates to our current president and his language and usage of social media. He utilizes platforms such as Twitter to slander people regularly and has made multiple racist comments publicly on social media and in press conferences.

This was only part of the incredibly stimulating presentation from Professor Thomas, the part that was entirely new information to me and was really saddening to learn more about was the physical and sexual abuse that Native Americans experienced with Catholic schools on the reservation. This was devastating to learn more about especially as I consider also learning that Native Americans have a higher suicide rate. I will never be able to understand the hateful acts people are capable of committing and it is shocking and terrible that these things continue to occur in our modern age.

I think that for me this made me especially critical of the Catholic church because I personally have never been religious and most of my close family is also not religious. My mom was raised Catholic and most of her side of my family is Catholic but I was never very close with them as I was raised in Maine and they lived in Pennsylvania. In general though the few Catholic services I have been to have been very pleasant and have left me feeling good. However, when I hear about injustices such as those presented in this talk, and others such as those displayed in the movie Spotlight, it becomes questionable to me why this church has been able to get away with so many horrid social injustices for so long and yet maintain influence over so many individuals. Perhaps this is a stretch and a bit too critical, but this is definitely where my mind is drawn after learning so much from Professor Sonja Thomas.

Posted on

Native American Disrespect in United States

Professor Sonja Thomas’ presentation of Indians on the Reservation: Missionary Priests from India and Catholic Settler Colonialism was a very eye-opening lecture. In modern day news and classes, you don’t hear much about what goes on, on Indian reservations let alone the violence that is brought upon by the Catholic Church. But Professor Thomas was able to carefully articulate and force me to think about colonial history, Catholicism in rural Montana, and the migration of priests from India to this region. Which is why I looked more into the history of Native American abuse, Professor Thomas explained.

On May 4, 1493, the Papal Bull issued by Pope Alexander stated that any land inhabited by Christians was available to be “discovered”, claimed, and exploited by Christian rulers and declared that “the Catholic faith and the Christian religion be exalted and be everywhere increased and spread, that the health of souls be cared for and that barbarous nations be overthrown and brought to the faith itself. ” This Doctrine of Discovery set the framework that sanctioned the displacement and abuse of Native Americans, allowed treaty violations, and supported the United States in the disrespect and genocide of Native Americans. In the name of religious expansions, colonial settlers felt empowered enough to perpetuate violence against Native Americans. Throughout history, Native Americans have been disenfranchised and abused. With even more modern examples of the boys from the Covington Catholic school, who so confidently and openly disrespected Native Americans through heir racist and offensive statements. Native Americans have never been treated properly in the United States even till this day. Forced to endure constant beratement and abuse.

On July 5, 2018, Donald Trump gave a speech in Great Falls where he used the name “Pocahontas” as a way to express his displeasure of Senator Warren’s claims of being Indian. This type of racists and bigoted language that reduces a real cultural figure to a stereotype is often done to disparage American Indians. American Indians have the highest rate of suicide in Montana, and that is most likely linked to the negative effects this type of racism has on children academic and social development, self-esteem, and personal feelings of efficacy. Thankfully generations of Indian and non-Indian people have been working tirelessly to foster historical and cultural awareness in Montana and are not afraid to call out and denounce racially bigoted language such as Trump’s. The only way we can rectify past mistakes without acknowledging our past and working to make amends in the present.

In the questions part of the lecture, the idea of personal blind spots was brought up and solutions on how to combat them. I personally feel that I have a blind spot when it comes to the problems of Native Americans because it is so rarely brought up in mass media or even talked about in my personal circles. I feel like to overcome this, I should be more active to expand the topics and issues I am exposing myself to when it comes to issues in the United States, and reflect on how I can contribute to the fight even though I am not being directly hurt. But after explore more of the topics Professor Thomas introduced, I believe I have gained new insight on the topic.

Posted on

The Remanence of Imperialism in Catholicism

Sonja Thomas brought up a very interesting topic in the immigration of Catholic missionary priests from India to America, and specifically Montana. Thomas brought up the idea of Asian settler colonialism, or placing Asian immigrants in settings with Native Americans. Thomas also brought up how we view the difference between Missionaries and “Imported Priests”. How when a white priest travels to another country they are called a missionary, but the opposite is called an “imported priest”. This differentiation highlights the vestiges of imperialism that linger on today. I am interested in how the “imported priests” interacted with the Native Americans living on the reservation. Thomas said that in theory, the Asian settlers would stand in solidarity with the priests due to that common experience of displacement. It is interesting to see that these Indian priests bring white catholics back to India on tours of religious pilgrimage sites. All of these ideas gets me thinking about the influence of Catholicism throughout the world, and especially on places where white Catholic missionary priests first landed.

Growing up, my mother went to a private Catholic school in Mumbai, India. All over India, the most prestigious schools are these Catholic schools set up by the British. These schools scattered across India, even in areas where catholicism is not widely practiced are a constant reminder of the oppression imperialism brought and the Doctrine of Discovery which sanctions the disposition of indigenous peoples. In addition, this disparity in education between private and public schools in India reinforces the caste system, as people of a lower caste would not be able to afford private schooling.  My mom grew up in a Hindu household, but was forced to learn Catholicism and practice it in school. She attended mass, read the Bible, and interacted with clergy. Even when run by other Indian people, the schools impose catholicism and the echos of British imperialism onto their students.

The oppression that the British subjected Indians to is similar to the oppression that Americans subjected Native Americans to. Thomas talked about violence that Native Americans experienced with Catholic schools on the reservation. She mentioned the history of physical and sexual abuse, the separation of children from their families, and the erasure of Native American culture and replacing them with Catholic traditions. To this day these destructive practices take place on reservations. Historical trauma, according to Wikipedia, is “the cumulative emotional harm of an individual or generation caused by a traumatic experience or event.” Historical trauma is shared by Native Americans, Indians, and so many more who were once under rule by British imperialists.

The presence of the past is a double edged sword in this case. The existing catholic schools are a constant reminder and perpetrator of the destruction of indigenous peoples. On the other hand, they remind us of to acknowledge historical trauma that exists in these communities. It forces us to work to find solutions to this systemic oppression of native peoples.

Posted on

Another Ignorant Perspective

Dr. Thomas’s lecture largely focused on information about and interactions with Native American Reservations in Montana. This was especially relevant to me, as I am actually also from Montana. I can unfortunately confirm that not much has changed in the education system concerning education about the history of Native American mistreatment. This topic was often brushed over, sugar-coated, or only mentioned in passing while focus was given instead to the minors and missionaries who built the American towns, or Lewis and Clark. As a result of this, a new generation of school graduates, including myself, are coming towards these problems with only a vague awareness of them, and to make a solid grasp on the subject we have to learn about it on our own. Continue reading “Another Ignorant Perspective”