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Veterans At Standing Rock Formally Apologize To Native Elders For War and Genocide by U.S. Military
This is really a terrific article. I’d like
to express my gratitude to the blog administrator who posted this article and
commented about it.
It is a very noble action to apologize the
misconduct one’s country committed on behalf of humanity. And it is a far
nobler and great action to accept the sincere apology and forgive.
The last wonderful message in the second
video shows a harbinger of the start of earth rebirth.
December
8, 2016
Masatoshi
Takeshita
Note:
Shanti-phula has indicated some parts of
the following text in black boldface or in red letters.
Excerpt from a Japanese article: News on the Other Side of the World – December 7, 2016-
There have been a lot of developments on protest movement against construction of the pipeline in
North Dakota since the last article was posted. We
cannot feel optimistic about the situation. I’d like to sum up about it
some other time. At any rate, however, I’d like to
introduce a historic ceremony held in a small place below.
Veterans
At Standing Rock Formally Apologize To Native Elders For War and Genocide by
U.S. Military
Source:
Standing Rock protesters and water
protectors continue to stand against the proposed illegal Dakota Access
Pipeline in North Dakota, having encountered military style police with water
cannons, rubber bullets, tear gas, and tasers.
(Image: Police militarized to protect the interest of private business fight against protests)
They have gained even more support from the
thousands, as many as 2,000 were said to be there, of veterans who have
organized to join in protecting the Native American Land and the many people
there protesting.
Since arriving, the
veterans have had meetings with elders on expectations of behaviors of the
veterans while at the camps.
About a mile out from the main camp, Oceti
Sakowin/Seven Council Fires, the veterans gathered for a meeting with Wes Clark
Jr.
According to an article in Business
Insider, the two veterans who lead the organizing of
veterans to stand with Standing Rock, Michael A. Wood Jr., a Marine Corps
veteran and Wes Clark Jr., an Army vet. (Mr. Wesley Clark Jr is the son
of retired U.S. Army and former supreme commander at NATO Wesley Clark Sr.)
“This country is repressing our people,” says Michael A. Wood Jr., a Marine Corps veteran who recently retired
from the Baltimore police force to work toward reforming law enforcement. “If
we’re going to be heroes, if we’re really going to be those veterans that this
country praises, well, then we need to do the things
that we actually said we’re going to do when we
took the oath to defend the Constitution from enemies foreign and domestic,”
he asserted about his plans to go to Standing Rock.
Michael A. Wood Jr. feels similarly.
“First Americans have served in the Unites States Military, defending
the soil of our homelands, at a greater percentage than any other group of
Americans. There is no other people more deserving of veteran support,” he
said.
One of those things that
they felt was necessary to do was to offer a formal apology for the detrimental
historical misconduct towards Native Americans by the U.S. military.
Monday they got their chance to do just
that. Several
veterans took part in a prayer ceremony in which they asked for forgiveness
from the Native elders.
Clark says that the veterans presence at
Standing Rock is “about right and wrong and peace and love”.
(Scene of
protest activity)
The hundreds of veterans
in attendance took a knee before Arvol Looking Horse,
Leonard Crow Dog, Phyllis Young, Ivan Looking Horse and several other Natives of Turtle Island.
The veterans asked to be
forgiven for the war crimes committed toward the Indigenous people in the name
of the U.S. military. Forgiveness
was granted for the actions taken to dehumanize the Natives of this country,
and a step toward solidarity has been made.
“We stand together as one to defend indigenous rights and Mother
Earth. Our journey of solidarity has just begun.” said Redhawk
[References]
“Many of us, me particularly, are from the units
that have hurt you over the many years.
We came. We fought you.
We took your land.
We signed treaties that
we broke.
We stole minerals from your sacred hills.
We blasted the faces of our presidents onto
your sacred mountain.
When we took still more land and then we
took your children and then we tried to make your language and we tried to
eliminate your language that God gave you, and the Creator gave you.
We didn’t respect you, we
polluted your Earth, we’ve hurt you in so many ways but we’ve come to say that we are sorry.
We are at your service
and we beg for your forgiveness.”
Chief Leonard Crow Dog
offered forgiveness and urged for world peace:
“We do not own the land, the land owns us.”
(Comment)
Although the veterans are said to hold this
ceremony on behalf of the U.S. government, the ceremony is cannot be official because
they are retired military personnel. However, I think that native Americans and
veterans really understand the emptiness of “being official.”
This is a symbolic ceremony of apology but
the ceremony carries all the more depth because it is not superficial.
*****
[Comment of blog administrator]
I found this video several months ago. Mr.
Lawrence O’Donnel, an American political analyst, talks on major media MSNB
about the truth of the black history that native Americans have faced but
nobody have openly told.
We are able to hear such story on a U.S.
mass media affiliate channel. It seems that the times are undoubtedly changing.
“We Are All Come From The
One Great Spirit.
And This Precious Earth
Is Our Common Mother.
Let Us Walk In Harmony.”
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