Settler Memory Research Paper

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Stephen Roberts Professor Bruyneel HSS2002-02 March 23 2024 Prompt: For the settler memory audio, I am happy to elaborate and explain in class, but for now, the question: What examples of “settler memory” can you think of, come up with? The History of Settler Memory in the United States Several notable examples of settler memory come to mind when thinking about the landscape of the United States. Arguably the most widely known example stems from the idea of the rugged and daring pioneer. Pioneers moving out west were portrayed to children as heroes, rather than those who were contributing to the violent displacement of Native American populations and depleting their resources. The utter fact that pioneers could blindly assume land for themselves, …show more content…
The second example is the Sand Creek massacre where the militia of the Colorado area slaughtered Native Americans to make space for white settlers. Not only were lives taken away from Native Americans with the emergence of white settlers, but countless examples in the documentary, “More Than a Word,” highlight the many dehumanizing aspects that whites have labeled natives. One of the speakers in the documentary mentions that in today’s world, Native Americans continue to be viewed from a stereotypical perspective as being “headdress caricatures living on the plains,”(More Than a Word) indicating the continuing, arguably growing mischaracterization of Native Americans as time passes. Not only does this unfortunate reality create a condescending landscape from whites to Native Americans, but the stereotypes associated with Native Americans listed above suggest that they are somehow ‘old-fashioned’ and do not play a significant role in society. However, that could not be further from the