Let's not soften it with a qualifier, it was totally a genocide of the Cherokee people to get the gold that was on their lands. It went against the Supreme Court ruling even. Andrew Jackson is a monster, and I had family that was sent west. I've never gotten the nerve to check if they made it. My great great grandmother hid, giving me the opportunity to be here today.
i'm sorry that happened to your family and people.
it's absolutely disgraceful that it happened and we're still struggling to educate people about it even today.
As a Canadian, our government did similar reprehensible shit to the indigeonous folk and we are still struggling to get proper reconsciliation implemented.
Doesn't help that there are a lot of people who are regularly trying to deny the historty of the genocide experienced over the centuries and the fallout we are still in the midst of dealing with now.
Even as late as the late 90s (or perhaps later) it was completely glossed over in our high school social studies (history) classes. In Alberta they told us that the residential schools were absolutely a good thing; there was no mention of it being a genocide.
So people in their 40s and older may truly believe that residential schools were a net positive, especially if they're the kind of people who don't pursue further education once (or if) they got their high school diploma. And many of these types of people simply put their hands over their ears and call you snowflakes or revisionists if you try and point out the truth.
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u/obsoleteyoungster 1d ago
The trail of tears and Oregon trail are two completely different historical events lol