 on revenue streams and economic progress is just as effective as wholesale killing. Economic blight furthers the dependency and bleakness that ultimately leads to extinction. Occasionally, non-Natives get a fleeting glimpse of this in action—Diane Sawyer recently took TV viewers on a shocking tour of the deplorable conditions facing the Oglala Lakota Sioux on the Pine Ridge reservation. The general public expressed concern, albeit for a moment. Surprise and compassion flowed through the Facebook and Twitter worlds, but emotions were quickly squashed by apathy.
History does repeat itself, but sometimes in a veiled, and often sinister, way. When market share replaces land resources, overt termination takes on more covert forms. Native people understand this and see through the veil. Like the generations before us, we will continue to fight to survive and carry our people and cultures forward. The only request is that simple agreements finally be kept.
David Kimelberg is an enrolled citizen (Bear clan) of the Seneca Nation of Indians and is the CEO of Seneca Holdings, the Nation’s investment arm. His views are his own and not necessarily those of the Seneca Nation of Indians or Seneca Holdings.
You need to be logged in in order to post comments
Please use the log in option at the bottom of this page