Wow, I thought Morgan Griffith’s tribute in last week’s paper to the American Revolution came right out of an outdated history textbook. It’s great to be proud of our history that the immigrants who settled in North America did not want to be ruled by a monarch and courageously had an armed resistance to enable setting up a new government. Few will argue that these people fought bravely to break the power of a king. George Washington was clear when he was offered the chance to become king that he opposed setting up a monarchy in the newly freed colonies. We all should be grateful that we live with a national government of the people, with power shared amongst the judiciary, congressional and executive branches. Power sharing between the federal government and the state governments is also central to our shared heritage, as described in our constitution.
Griffith writes with pride about how a Virginia militia defeated the Shawnee at the Battle of Point Pleasant, which allowed further western expansion of the eastern colonies. Let’s think about this for a moment. The battle was fought over a land conflict – the Shawnee did not want settlers to expand into their homeland. The British Proclamation of 1763 had forbidden settlers to go beyond the Appalachians, but this restriction was largely ignored. So, the battle was between people wanting to keep their homes, and new settlers wanting to take over their lands. The new settlers were the illegal immigrants! Armed with superior weapons and carrying diseases, the army of the new settlers won – as they did throughout the territory eventually acquired by the United States.
Obviously, there is no going back, but is this kind of conflict something to celebrate? Does might make right? Do modern people believe that military strength equals right? We can look at many similar situations today. For just one example, if Russia’s military is strong enough to destroy the government of Ukraine, is that okay? Should the stronger force have a right to displace a weaker force?
Our national history is full of glory but also regretful things (supporting slavery is probably the most obvious). Stopping (as part of the Allied forces) the spread of fascism by defeating Germany and the other Axis forces is a proud and vitally important accomplishment. Was defeating the Confederacy and reuniting the United States equally important? However, as a nation we don’t celebrate the battle of Gettysburg and other battles of that war, instead we mourn and remember all Americans that were lost.
So – why is a member of Congress celebrating a battle that led to an expansion of immigrants while destroying most of the Native American population? Today, we are all Americans. We don’t celebrate victories over the confederate soldiers, why should we celebrate victories over the Native American soldiers defending their homes. Keep in mind too that the ancestors of the winners and losers of those battles are Americans today, equally deserving of the respect of our government and their Congressional representative.
