To the editor:
Attached is a letter written on July 8, 1783, by General George Washington, commander in chief of the forces of the United States of America. For those who struggle with cursive, it reads:
Whereas our Brothers, the Mahhekennuk Tribe of Indians have signified to us their intention of removing from their present settlement near Stockbridge to the Oneida Country, and are desirous of carrying with them some Testimony of their attachment to the United States during the late War.
We therefore have thought proper, by these presents to make known, That during the whole of the War the aforesaid Mahhekennuk Tribe of Indians have remained firmly attached to us and have fought and bled by our side — that we consider them as our friends & brothers, and as a Peace is now established between all the Towns who were at War we do recommend it to all the different Tribes of Indians as well as all other persons inhabiting the Western Country — not to molest them in any manner whatever but to consider them as friends & subjects to the United States of America.
Given under my hand and Seal
Head Quarters in the
State of New York the 8th day of July 1783
George Washington
This letter was written just five years after the Battle of Kingsbridge, where dozens of Native Americans, many of them Mohicans, were slaughtered by the British during the Revolutionary War.
In the Gettysburg Address, Abraham Lincoln described such sacrifice as the “last true measure of devotion,” giving your life for your country. Their sacrifice decimated the Mohican Community, and just a few years later, the tribe began its exodus from Stockbridge to points west.
How did the United States perform in honoring George Washington’s directive? Well, abysmally, to put it mildly. After the initial exodus, they were forcibly relocated multiple times before finally settling in northern Wisconsin in the 1850s.
It took 72 years before the United States made Native American veterans eligible for pensions via an Act of Congress, a full 72 years after the Revolutionary War.
The forcible removal of Mohican (and other Indigenous) children to white-run boarding schools in the 19th and 20th centuries had catastrophic effects on native languages and cultural survival. Federal policies made attendance at these schools compulsory, and parents who resisted often had their children physically taken.
Parents stopped teaching children their native language for fear they would be bullied in these schools. The result: One member of the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohicans told me there are fewer than 15 living tribal members who can speak the Mohican language fluently.
We do not have to imagine how these intergenerational wounds, dating back over two centuries, have created historical trauma. We can simply ask our Mohican friends and listen to their answers. This is how we gain perspective.
I was proud to successfully propose the Stockbridge Mohican Commission and to write the grants that will fund both the new Revolutionary Monument on the Stockbridge Town Green and the funding for the 250th anniversary celebration of our nation. Many of the tales of this time are truly inspirational, including this letter from George Washington. That said, I firmly believe we must embrace and understand all our history, including the inconvenient truths. That is how we show respect and understanding. Despite the heroic actions of these 18th-century patriots, this country did disastrous and lasting damage to their descendants. Let’s recognize that true reconciliation will only begin when we listen, understand, and empathize.
250 years is a long time, but it is never too late. After all, as the Declaration of Independence states, the goal of a “more perfect union” is just as relevant today as it was on July 4, 1776.
Patrick White
Stockbridge
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