Another thing which I will make short is the way that the Natives were put into this situation, in the third reading it said that the NAtives had told the Russians that they could use their lands, not own it, but that wasn't said. And when the russians sold it to the US it must have been incomprehensible to them that they now owned it.
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Early Alaska and the south eastern tribes
Not being from Alaska I never knew much about any of the history that the government had with the Natives when it first arrived. I found it very interesting that the Tlingits in South East Alaska were alot more violent then I had imagined. I have always imagined the natives of Alaska to not have much fight in them that maybe the rest of Native Americans in the lower 48 had. I guess I have always imagined them this way due to the history of Alaska that I have read about, which was usually focused on relations with the natives post-1800s. Of course the peacefulness of each tribe has to differ of course. Reading about the Tlingits really surprised me, I think that when the US army left Sitka to go fight in Idaho leaving the Tlingits in power must have really scared the American and Russian population that was left there, knowing that they had seriously changed their way of life.
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The Tlingit people have dominated wherever they have gone. Proof can also be found in the "Inland Tlingit" groups in Canada that have established themselves in the interior of the Yukon.
ReplyDeleteAccording to stories I heard as a child, and some different texts I have read, the Tlingits controlled all major trade routs with the interior Natives when trade first started.
They have had experience with "the white man" for a longer period of time than most of the other Natives. With experience comes knowledge of their ways and wisdom to their actions.
As they are a coastal group, they were capable of a more permanent lifestyle, and with a stable living condition, they were able to invest more time into other parts of life, other than survival. They were (and still are) able to create beautiful works of art, music, and food. They also had much time to invest in their societal laws.
It is the structure of their way of life that makes them appear to be violent. They had more knowledge and experience with outsiders, and therefore were able to stage a better fight against the "outsiders".
As a group who once controlled all trade in their area it is no surprise that they were blown away to learn that their land had been sold with out their consent.
I think that you can push and push a single person or an entire culture but once they feel like they've been pushed into a corner they will push back. In my history of Alaska class I took last semester I remember reading in a text about a group of Aleuts and Tlingits that made an uprising against Aleksander Baranov and successfully drove him out of Sitka and burned much of the Russian American Company. Baranov later won back control of Sitka, but I thought it was a a good example of Alaska Natives fighting back.
ReplyDeleteThe part that was interesting for me about the Tlingits was that they did not want to be part of the ANCSA law and because of that they have the only reservation in the state.
ReplyDeleteI don't know what I would do if someone knocked on my door one day and said "excuse me but I now own this house. If you'd like you can live in the yard out back." That must have been something like the Tlingits and other Native groups when the U.S. purchased the land from the Russians. Were there no people in Congress who thought maybe it would be a good idea to do a "title search" before buying the property?
The Tlingits and Haida are both good reading. I always thought it was interesting in the matriarchy system they had. If I remember correctly they were also known for taking slaves after they attacked villages.
ReplyDeleteKnowing that these tribes were successful seafarers makes me think that the ocean route was a likely avenue for the first natives in the lower 48. Has anyone heard of the Kennewick Man? The inland route is definately one route because of the archeology done in the northwest part of the state and the clovis relation in the southwest U.S. I also believe the Kennewick man and Aztec culture shows the ocean route is a sure thing.
I think the Native groups in Alaska had a lot of personal fight in them but even to this day they seem to not feel a sense of Unity with one another. I know a lot of groups argue over development and other issues and just cannot seem to come together. Not that it should be easy for them to do though, because our cultures are so different and where we see nation border lines they see small community lines that have the exact same amount of meaning to them. I have no clue about the Alaska Natives vs. the Russians though, diseases and large deaths always seems to be taking the fight out of them, and I don't think there were ever enough White people coming at one single time for the Natives to feel like they were being over run.
ReplyDeleteYes, it is true one would think that there would be more unity between tribes... but you must remember, before contact these tribes waged war-fare on each other, and stole people from other tribes as slaves.
ReplyDeleteIt is hard to work with an old enemy.
I have always found the Tlingits to be really interesting. They've been one of the Native Alaskan cultures I've been most inclined to learn about.
ReplyDeleteThey were warriors, and good ones at that.
I think things may have gone better for Native Alaskans, or at least put up more of a fight against westerners, if they had been able to work together more. But, as MJ said, it’s hard to work with an old enemy.
Western ideals upset the balance and harmony of life for all the natives. I'm sure there were other Native Alaskans that had fight in them, but the Tlingits acted out on the natural response to the situation, retaliation.
ReplyDeleteFirst things first. Because I am an English major, it irks me to no end when people write "alot" when they mean "a lot." You know, guys, the red zig-zags are there for a reason.
ReplyDeleteSorry about picking on you, Alex. It's a pet peeve. There's nothing I can do about it.
Now for you, Dan. I first read about the native uprising against the Russian American Company way back in sophomore year of high school. I recall my amusement at the tone of the piece better than the piece itself. Instead of describing the battle objectively, as you would expect from a history textbook, the author glorified the natives' defense of Sitka, praising their valor and fortitude in resisting the white conquerors.
I thought this tone was ridiculous. Murder is murder, regardless of the victim's ethnicity. A history textbook is no place for social propaganda. I felt that the author was trying to brainwash me, which was extremely annoying.
Although I might just be reacting against the blatant propaganda in my Alaska Studies class, sometimes I feel that we have overcompensated for past injustices against Native Americans.
[By the way, Tamara, the only reservation in Alaska, Metlakatla, was founded by a group of Tshimsians, not Tlingits.]
People tend to be more violent when they defend themselves.
ReplyDeleteI just have to say that the Tlingit has always been my favorite Native group. 100% for the name. Tlingit is so recognizable, and it seems to resonate spiritual intensity for me.
To me, Tlingit resembles the sound of a small metal bracelet, with trinkets clinging together, but amplified.
It sends chills down my spine.
The Tlingit like must of the tribes in Alaska were not violent people. Just hunters and gathers of the land for subsistence. But when anyone way of life is threaten the normal primal instinct is for one to defend themselves. If someone threaten your family would you not feel the right to defend them, protect them. Ohs! I use that word again.
ReplyDeleteThe Tlingit people have survived for generations because they are smart. Survival is a powerful motivator of change. If violence is the means by which survival must happen, then violence it will be. I believe that this is not unique to the Tlinguit people, but to anyone who feels they have been given no other choice to survive.
ReplyDelete