Rewriting Alaska History with the Word “Genocide"
In a broader historical approach, the project focuses on the history of the English-speaking Euroamerican settlers and their contact with the indigenous people in North America. In the early 1600s, the contact with the indigenous populations was mainly
peaceful. However, tensions escalated as the English settlers began to occupy the lands of Native Americans. The violence towards Natives even increased during the American Revolutionary War. From the 1820s to the end of the century, the westward expansion of the United States resulted in the forceful removal of indigenous populations from their traditional lands, which was legalized by the 1830 Indian Removal Act. After the Civil War, a federal effort to “integrate” indigenous populations into the Euroamerican society was launched, resulting in the oppression and disintegration of Native tribes. In the second half of the 20th century, the federal government granted its native populations more civil rights and acknowledged their tribes as independent nations. Despite this progress, issues of discrimination and exploitation of indigenous tribes remain prominent in today’s United States (Goldstein 1-2).
The main influence of English-speaking Euroamericans on Alaska Natives started in 1867 with the Alaska Purchase. The establishment of mission and boarding schools in the late 1800s as well as the introduction of segregated schooling in 1905 led to the suppression of Alaska Native cultures (Dauenhauer 37; Barnhardt). In addition to the cultural impact, gold rushers and pioneers limited the Alaska Natives’ access to hunting and fishing sites. After the end of the gold rush in 1910, their populations had shrunk considerably. Twenty-four years after Alaska had become a US territory in 1912, the Alaska Native Reorganization Act created reservations for Alaska Natives and allowed for village governments. During World War II, Alaska Native inhabitants of the Aleut islands were removed from their villages. They had to remain under poor conditions in camps in Southeast Alaska until the end of the war. Many of them died in the camps (Dennis et al 590-603). After Alaska became a state in 1959, laws helped Alaska Natives to more land and a more rights. Still, social, cultural and socio-economic issues caused by the Euroamerican settlers continue to affect the Alaska Native population until today (Roderick 68). At the AFN convention in 2018, Governor Bill Walker apologized for historical injustices against Alaska Natives.
The word genocide was first defined by the UN in the aftermath of the Holocaust as an “intentional destruction” of a group (Andreopolous 2). The way Wohlforth is using the word in the opinion article shows that some people are applying the term in different contexts. Whereas some people use the word in a broader context including the cultural or indirect destruction of a group, Wohlforth is still only applying the word in the sense of intentional and definite extermination: “Did American pioneers commit genocide? And I don't mean cultural genocide, but the intentional extermination of Native people?” (3). His language and the statements of other historians he includes indicate a reluctance to use the term in certain contexts.
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Marie Ries is a junior pursuing a Baccalaureate of Arts in both English and Journalism & Public Communications
