Yes, let us never forget the First Nations of this continent, who were ruthlessly persecuted and slaughtered. Too bad we cannot restore their way of life. Let us hope we have learned our lesson just in case we encounter intelligent beings on other planets. Or that they have learned theirs–
Happy Thanksgiving to you too, TC, and to all here.
We owe so much to the first Americans – more than we could ever repay – but that's no excuse for failing to try. And, as deep as we have dug ourselves in, we had better start by LISTENING. We got into this mess in the first place by arbitrarily deciding we knew what was best for them better than they did. Let's not make it any worse.
For those of us of a certain age (OLD), we well remember the “Crying Indian” ad against litter and pollution, which finishes with this close-up of a tear down his cheek. It first aired on Earth Day back in 1971 and has been rated one of the “Fifty Best Ads EVER”.
The ad, which sought to combat pollution, was widely successful: It secured two Clio awards, incited a frenzy of community involvement, and helped reduce litter by 88% across 38 states. Its star performer, a man who went by the name “Iron Eyes Cody,” subsequently became the “face of Native Indians,” and was honored with a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame. Advertisers estimate that his face, plastered on billboards, posters, and magazine ads, has been viewed 14 billion times, easily making him the most recognizable Native American figure of the century.
Yes, let us never forget the First Nations of this continent, who were ruthlessly persecuted and slaughtered. Too bad we cannot restore their way of life. Let us hope we have learned our lesson just in case we encounter intelligent beings on other planets. Or that they have learned theirs–
Absolutely!!
I am thankful for the First Nations this day.
Thanks, TC.
I agree with all who have spoken here and will add this link expanding on that theme from Sojo:
https://sojo.net/articles/faith-action/thanksgiving-lament-and-story-we-tell
Excellent piece, too bad that we will never be able to completely erase the damage done to the First Nation by our ancestors.
Happy Thanksgiving to you too, TC, and to all here.
We owe so much to the first Americans – more than we could ever repay – but that's no excuse for failing to try. And, as deep as we have dug ourselves in, we had better start by LISTENING. We got into this mess in the first place by arbitrarily deciding we knew what was best for them better than they did. Let's not make it any worse.
Happy Thanksgiving to you, TomCat, and to all my American friends here who celebrate it.
I hope they all look to your example and are thankful to the First Nations on this special day.
I hope you had a good day and got good food. We all should be grateful to the First Nation. We should also treat their descendants better than we do.
A note on the picture:
For those of us of a certain age (OLD), we well remember the “Crying Indian” ad against litter and pollution, which finishes with this close-up of a tear down his cheek. It first aired on Earth Day back in 1971 and has been rated one of the “Fifty Best Ads EVER”.
http://priceonomics.com/the-true-story-of-the-crying-indian/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7OHG7tHrNM
Thanks for adding this extra history lesson Nameless!
Thanks all! Kufos to Freya and Nameless.
Thanksgiving is such a crock of BS! So sad to think of the many, MANY lives that were lost!!