The highly informative webinair on the other side of the paywall featuring Jeff Fynn-Paul, a Lecturer in History at the University of Leiden, clearly shows that “The myth of New World genocide is a radical take on European colonialism based on systematic abuse and suppression of the historical record to score political points with modern social media audiences.
I relish articles like this that give us information as opposed to rhetorical pronouncements, and Flynn-Paul manages to give us almost a fact-per-sentence while still being immensely readable.
None of the New Left “scholars” and activists are willing to address the question of “what should have happened, instead,” so I was especially glad to see Flynn-Paul’s remarks near the end respecting “cultural genocide” (acculturation):
<< What, precisely, did anyone expect to do about this? And what happens when, as is logical, Amerindians wished to adopt many aspects of this new lifestyle, including horses, guns, iron tools, and alcohol? Who would have been able to stop them? Would it have been moral to do so? On the other hand, many sober critics have argued that the establishment of reservation systems in the US, Canada and elsewhere not only arrested declining Indian populations, but helped to salvage what remained of Native culture, after the inevitable conversion from hunting to modern economic modes. >>
There's a minor error in the article (likely attributable to the audio transcription): Louis and Clark should of course read Lewis and Clark.
I relish articles like this that give us information as opposed to rhetorical pronouncements, and Flynn-Paul manages to give us almost a fact-per-sentence while still being immensely readable.
None of the New Left “scholars” and activists are willing to address the question of “what should have happened, instead,” so I was especially glad to see Flynn-Paul’s remarks near the end respecting “cultural genocide” (acculturation):
<< What, precisely, did anyone expect to do about this? And what happens when, as is logical, Amerindians wished to adopt many aspects of this new lifestyle, including horses, guns, iron tools, and alcohol? Who would have been able to stop them? Would it have been moral to do so? On the other hand, many sober critics have argued that the establishment of reservation systems in the US, Canada and elsewhere not only arrested declining Indian populations, but helped to salvage what remained of Native culture, after the inevitable conversion from hunting to modern economic modes. >>
There's a minor error in the article (likely attributable to the audio transcription): Louis and Clark should of course read Lewis and Clark.
The Iroquois almost wiped out the Hurons.
Great article.
Aztecs built towers with skulls of victims of human sacrifice, including those of women and children.
Aztecs subjugated or exterminated neighbouring tribes.
Aztecs practiced cannibalism.
Yet schools teach Manichean view of
Aztecs good,
colonizers bad.
The only genocide is of historical balance.