Do this and so long2 as the Land shall remain that beloved name shall live in the heart of every Senecca. In a letter written by tribal leaders in 1790, Washington is described as an unjust killer and referred to as the "Town Destroyer." Crops such as corn, beans, potatoes, pumpkins, squash, cucumbers, and melons grew in an abundance that astonished the invading soldiers. N MA F AU -K O N S g or W TI n. O a T C I fm SN ODU w-kau o PR nit. Like the statue of Christopher Columbus targeted in Boston last month, it was beheaded and the crown finials of its surrounding fence sawn off. It opens with audio from a closed-door meeting Trump, Steve Bannon and others held with leaders of the religious right forty days before the 2016 election. By Teka Lark (February 18, 2020) This week we're honoring George Washington or Conotocaurius (Town Destroyer) as the Iroquois called him, a man who enslaved 316 people and brought nine of them to the White House (Coard, Philadephia Tribune, 2018). It has also been translated as "Town Taker", "Burner of Towns", "Devourer of Villages", or "he destroys the town". this morning set of about Day Break on the same line of march and went about 6 Miles when we halted, Capt. Perhaps only in a city that loves its murals, some by Diego Rivera, and hates its murals, could murals painted in the 1930s under a New Deal art program, divide citizens from one another and stir up deeply seated passions. What the Commissioners had said about the land having been ceded to them at the peace our Chiefs considered only as intended to lessen the price, & they passed it by with very little notice; but since that time we have heard so much of the right to our lands which the King gave when you made peace with him that it is our earnest desire you will tell us what they mean. Jonah Raskin is the author of Beat Blues, San Francisco, 1955. White supremacy, grounded in the Doctrine of Discovery the absurd claim by European Christians and their American descendants that they were more entitled to our lands than we were was the rationale for dispossession. If you want to leave all these Earthly woes behind, there is warm, fuzzy and interplanetary comfort to be found inGood Night Oppy. As a Mohawk citizen of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy the oldest living democracy in the Western Hemisphere when I see statues of Washington, like the towering equestrian monument at the Virginia Capitol in Richmond, or the colossus in front of Federal Hall in New York, I see not only a founding father, but also a genocidal one. In fact, it dates back at least to 9 July 1776 when, after a public reading of the Declaration of Independence, a group of Continental soldiers and New Yorkers, calling themselves the Sons of Freedom, pulled down the equestrian statue of King George III on Bowling Green. In July 2020, Americans are once again divided, gathering in the streets and tearing down statues. He was the ingenious and cunning general who overcame the most extensive empire in the world to create a brand-new, "free" nation: the United States of America. Conotocaurius (Town Destroyer) was a nickname given to George Washington by Iroquois peoples in 1753. It was surrendered to you as the price of peace and we ought to have peace, and possession, of the little Land which you then left us. All three had participated in the Iroquois campaigns during the Revolution; Cornplanter as a principal war chief and the others as head warriors. Town Destroyer A high profile battle erupts over images of African American slaves and Native Americans in New Deal-era murals at a San Francisco high school. Washington referred to himself as "Conotocaurious" in a letter he wrote to Andrew Montour dated October 10, 1755, in which he tried to manipulate the Oneida to resettle on the Potomac: In 1779 during the American Revolutionary War, the Sullivan Expedition, under Washington's orders,[6] destroyed over 40 Iroquois villages in New York, partially in response to Iroquois participation in attacks on the Wyoming Valley in July 1778 and Cherry Valley in November 1778. If you thought you could now talk calmly about Victor Arnautoff and his art, Americans Indians and George Washington, think again. The name in its original language(s) has been given variously as Conotocarius, Conotocaurious, Caunotaucarius, Conotocarious, Hanodaganears, and Hanadahguyus. Battlegroundhas already had a brief run in theaters, but now is available for streaming on digital platforms including iTunes. The homeless traveled to Fort Niagara for safety and shelter but found none with the British there. receive for his endeavors to deceive us, a peice of land ten miles in width west of the Chenesco river, and near forty miles in length extending to lake Ontario; and the lines of this tract have been run accordingly tho no part of it is within the bounds which limit his purchase. George Washington (1700s), also known as Hanadaguyus , had become famous as an Indian killer during the French and Indian War. to GW, 15 Aug. 1789, note 1. The founder of the San Francisco Jewish Festival and its director for 13 years, Kaufman teamed up with Alan Snitow, the former news director at KPFA, to make Blacks and Jews in 1997, Secrets of Silicon Valley in 2001, and this year Town Destroyer which premiered at the Mill Valley Film Festival. After some days he proposed to run a line at a small distance Eastward of our western boundary which we also refused to agree to. Conotocaurious (Town Destroyer) was a nickname given to George Washington by Iroquois Native Americans in 1753. Wed. Nov. 9thBenefit forCalifornia Institute for Community, Arts & Nature Q & A with filmmakers + speakers TBA. Through its grants program, the NHPRC supports a wide range of activities to Part One: The one-time economic engine of the 'Harlem of the West' has become an environmental disaster areaand the city isn't taking it seriously. Newsletter He's the first and a reluctant first, at that . The political doesnt get any more personal than when it comes to abortion, and now thanks to an activist conservative Supreme Court, it appears the era of Roe v. Wadeand choicemay well be over. The documentary also provides a platform for experts about the representations and misrepresentations of Indians in American culture, including commercial advertisements and the names of military helicopters like Apache and Comanche to Barbie Dolls with feathers and beads. This battle isnt over yet, but no one will blame you for feeling combat fatigue. Astonished at what we heard from every quarter, with hearts akeing with compassion for our women and children, we were thus compelled to give up all our Country North of the line of Pensylvania, and East of the Chenesco river up to the forks, and East of a South line drawn from that fork to the Pensylvania line. should Doyle be convicted, there was little doubt of his being capitally punished (Pa. Archives, description begins Samuel Hazard et al., eds. Sign up for email updates on the latest frieze talks, fairs and events. It may be very small in your ears, & we therefore entreat you to hearken with attention. More decades passed before the issue flared up again, though this time it seemed the criticisms were coming less from individual students than outside organizations. In sentence 4 Cornplanter's reference to Washington as "the Town-destroyer" recalls a time during the American Revolution (1779) when he ordered the burning of Seneca villages. Bay Guardian Archives Courtesy: the artist and Peabody Essex Museum, In 1779, Washington launched a full-scale invasion of Iroquoia, our extensive homelands. The 77-minute film is entirely shot from his POV as a person navigating everyday life from a motorized wheelchair. In obeying him we did no more than you yourselves had lead us to promise. It is translated as Town Taker, Burner of Towns When the Ronald Reagan arrived to replace the George Washington in 2015 . George Washington is a polarizing character in American Indian history. Courtesy: JASON SZENES/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock. Paul Chaa, a curator at the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington D.C., calls romanticism a form of racism and observes that Americans have a secret obsession with Native Americans.One hundred years ago, D. H. Lawrence noted that white people aimed to extirpate Indians and then glorified them. The time has come to even reconsider towering figures like Washington, honoured for their roles in founding the US, yet profoundly implicated in its colossal and, tragically, ongoing ethical and humanitarian failings. In August and September, the Sullivan campaign resumed with multiple attacks against the Cayuga and Seneca Nations with the army again killing Haudenosaunee people and destroying their villages. In April 1754, en route to the Forks of the Ohio, Lieutenant George Washington sent a request for aid and counsel to Tanaghrison, an Ohio Iroquois leader who acted as an intermediary between Virginians and Ohio Indians. A dispute erupts at a San Francisco high school over Depression-era murals about the life of George Washington: slaveowner, military leader, land speculator, President, and a man Native leaders. If you find our videos helpful you can support us by buying something from amazon.https://www.amazon.com/?tag=wiki-audio-20Town Destroyer Conotocaurious (Tow. The Land we live on our Fathers received from God, and they transmitted it to us, for our Children and we cannot part with it. light grey. The exploration vehicle/device dubbed Opportunity was sent into space in 2003, landed on the Red Planet six months later, and sent a steady stream of photos and intel back to NASA long after. Derryveagh Evictions, and The nickname, Conotocaurius means Destroyer of Towns. Advertise He loves peace, and all that he had in store he has given to those who have been robbed by your people, lest they should plunder the innocent to repay themselves: the whole season which others employed in providing for their families, he has spent in his endeavors to preserve peace. TOWN DESTROYER happening at Walnut Creek Library - Contra Costa County, 1644 N. Broadway,Walnut Creek,CA,United States, Walnut Creek, United States on Fri Jan 13 2023 at 07:30 pm . Its minders at the Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena demonstrate a very paternal mindset, saying things like Theres energy in its veins, it needs to be given love, and otherwise viewing Oppy more like a genius dog than a technological tool. Separating the Red and Blue. 5.Samuel Street, reportedly born in New England, kept a store at Niagara. After suffering for nearly two years from Iroquois raids on the Colonies' northern frontier, Washington and Congress decided to strike back. They were men and when at peace had a right to live on the Earth. For this Land Phelps agreed to pay us Ten thousand dollars in hand and one thousand dollars a year for ever. Town Destroyer will shed new light on our first president. Cornplanter had intended to make the trip at an earlier date but had been delayed by the alarm among the Indians caused by the murder of two Seneca men on Pine Creek (see GW to Pickering, 4 Sept. 1790). Conotocaurious(Town Destroyer) was a nicknamegiven to George Washingtonby IroquoisNative Americansin 1753. It is quite an image, and one difficult to reconcile with the man known by many Indians as the "Town Destroyer," a name originally claimed by his great-grandfather for the fighting he did along the Potomac frontier in the 1670s, and which our Washington appears to have appropriated and used when it served his purposes. If the British took the . The Papers of George Washington, Confederation Series. At least thats the impression we get from this very slick package, which numbers Spielbergs production company among its makers and isnt so far in cuddly tone from hisE.T. But if Alan Snitow and Deborah Kaufman have their way, George Washington will also be remembered as "the town destroyer." That's the title of a new documentary that they have written,. Trump, who is running for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, announced a slate of futuristic new policies in a campaign video Friday. Upon this threat our Chiefs History first: in 1779, three years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence and in the thick of a violent revolution, Washington ordered the total destruction and devastation of Iroquois villages allied with King George. What Colour was Napoleons horse? And it is not the Six nations only, that reproach those Chiefs, with having given up that Country; the Chipaways and all the nations who lived on those lands westward, call to us & ask us brothers of 3.By the terms of the Second Treaty of Fort Stanwix, completed in October 1784, the Six Nations agreed to relinquish a small tract of land in western New York and all that part of Pennsylvania north and west of the Indian boundary established by the First Treaty of Fort Stanwix of 1768, an area including all of the land in Pennsylvania west of the Allegheny River. Jimmy Carter is a Liberal Saint Now, Was a War Criminal Then. description ends , 5:51426; Zagarri, David Humphreys Life of General Washington, description begins Rosemarie Zagarri, ed. Filmmakers Alan Snitow and Deborah Kaufman . The former vice president has become the Democratic front-runner with primary victories across the country. Phelps (17491809) was a Massachusetts merchant, politician, and large-scale land speculator. From George Washington to Major General John Sullivan, 31 May 1779, Simeon DeWitt Central NY Military Tract c.1792. Just an hour long, Snitow and Kaufman's documentary offers a fascinating overview of a case that encapsulates many of the bitterest divisions of our era. We know that you are strong and we have heard that you are wise; and we wait to hear your answer to what we have said that we may know that you are just. "[8][9], Last edited on 11 February 2023, at 23:33, George Washington: A Biographical Companion, From George Washington to Andrew Montour, 10 October 1755, From George Washington to Major General John Sullivan, 31 May 1779, "Madam Sacho: How One Iroquois Woman Survived the American Revolution", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Town_Destroyer&oldid=1138845464, This page was last edited on 11 February 2023, at 23:33. All rights reserved. The artist, Victor Arnautoff, was a Russian emigre whod studied under Diego Rivera, and whose work reflected both that masters visual style and leftist politics. 1788-89 United States presidential election [ edit] Washington is inaugurated as president of the United States in 1789. 4.On John Livingstons role in the New York-Genesee Land Companys 999year lease with Cayuga, Oneida, and Seneca chiefs, see John Livingston Thus he claimed the whole country North of Pensylvania and west of the Lands belonging to the Cayugas. Before you determine on a measure so unjust, look up to the God who made us, as well as you, we hope he will not permit you to destroy the whole of our nation. Theres just brief note of the flurry of drastic state rulings since then, and a tag re: Roes June overturn. held a Council and they agreed that no event of war could be worse than being driven with our wives & children from the only Country which we had any right to. Streets mission to New York probably contributed to GWs decision to send Timothy Pickering on a special mission to pacify the Seneca a few weeks later. Your commissioners when they drew the line which seperated the land then given up to you, from that which you agreed should remain to be ours did, most solemly promise, that we should be secured in the peaceable possession of the lands which we inhabited, East, & North, of that line. Sat. Is the blame all ours? The Proposed TikTok Ban Goes Too Far. JOURNAL OF LIEUT. On display since San Francisco's George Washington High School opened in 1936, it offers a view of the Founding Father both celebratory and critical, referencing his involvements in slavery and Native American genocide. Records Commission (NHPRC) is part of the National In mid-2019 the School Board threw gas on the firestorm by voting to destroy the works outright. The spring of 1780 saw the surviving Haudenosaunee forced to rebuild their lives with broken families and destroyed villages. At the time Cornplanter and the other Seneca presented their address to GW, Phelps was in Philadelphia negotiating with Robert Morris about selling the preemption rights to the residual four million acres of the Phelps-Gorham purchase. Years later, in 1790, the Seneca chief Cornplanter told President Washington: "When your army entered the country of the Six Nations, we called you Town Destroyer," a . Good luck with that: GWHS is seldom if ever open to the general public. Part of Colonial Williamsburg's "Prelude to Victory" weekend. Street has been informed by General Knox, that the President cannot interfere in the business of the five nations, committed to his agency; that if they are not satisfied with the behaviour of the New York Commissioners, they must apply to the Legislature which appointed them; in consequence of this answer Mr. Street intends to return to Niagara in a fortnight, and to petition the Legislature of this State at its next meeting (Dorchester to Grenville, 25 Sept. 1790, in Brymner, Report on Canadian Archives, 1890, description begins Douglas Brymner. Our counsellors and warriors are men, and cannot be afraid; but their hearts are grieved with the fears of our women and children, and desire that it may be buried so deep as to be heard no more.. The surviving Onondaga were homeless; some began to rebuild; some headed west to find shelter with their brother nations the Cayuga and Seneca. es. His great-grandson lived up to the name of Town Destroyer in his treatment of Indigenous nations both during and after the Revolutionary War (177583). This devastating history has been papered over with myth, in a familiar national narrative established by writers such as James Fenimore Cooper, whose father, like Washington, was a successful speculator in Native land. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. But your anger against us must by this time be cooled, and altho our Strength has not encreased nor your power become less we ask you to consider calmly were the terms dictated to us reasonable and just? His heart is in pain for them; but he percieves that the great God will try his firmness in doing what is right. Answer (1 of 4): The most famous nickname (really, more of an honorary title) associated with George Washington was The Father of His Country. You have compelled us to do that which has made us ashamed. Donald Trump recently condemned these actions in a speech delivered in front of his latest provocative backdrop, Mount Rushmore, in Lakota territory illegally seized by the US in the 1870s. Allegedly both George Washington and his Great Grandfather, John Washington shared an unusual nickname. It is an ideology that has been so thoroughly internalized that it has never prompted a national reckoning. "It actually crushed their military power." AI Chatbots are Even Scarier Than You Think, DeSantiss Educational Policies Come Right Out of the Fascist Playbook, Erase the Memory to Erase a People? Archives. A Living New Deal Webinar. It involved members of both the Susquehannah and the Piscataway, an Algonquian tribe that lived across the Potomac River from Mount Vernon. Nov. 5thBenefit forPrecita Eyes Muralists Q & A with filmmakers + Precita Eyes founder Susan Cervantes. Now Arnautoffs Works Progress Administration murals were being decried for depicting slavery and tribal genocide at all, something now criticized as triggering. are you determined to crush us? More info here. Roxie Theater: Town Destroyer November 4, 2022 @ 6:45 pm - 8:45 pm As one observer puts it, Nuance is sort of a quaint notion now.The Life of Washingtonwas intended as a teaching toolbut are only positive lessons allowed now, even when history itself was cruel and unfair? Philadelphia and Harrisburg, 18521949. The NASA scientists interviewed more than do their bit to anthropomorphise our heroine, particularly in choosing various golden oldies as Oppys (and their own) wake-up song, including the B-52s Roam, ABBAs SOS, plus Born to be Wild, Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go, etc. If art (or history) is altered to blunt painful truths, isnt that dishonesty, whether coming from the political left or right? When George Washington High Schooldesigned by architect Timothy Pfleuger, who also created the Castro and Paramount Theaters, among other landmarksopened in 1936, its hallways sported 13 impressive murals titledThe Life of Washington. In 2019, he had a solo show at the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, USA. Courtesy:JASON SZENES/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock. When he met with Washington 11 years after the devastating campaign, Chief Cornplanter, who headed the Seneca tribe of the Iroquois, stressed the durability of "Town Destroyer" as the commander in chief's nickname. What Happens When Art Gets Competitive on Television? When your army entered the Country of the Six Nations, we called you the Town-destroyer and to this day, when that name is heard, our women look behind them and turn pale, and our children cling close to the neck of their mothers.1 Our Councillors and warriors are men, and can not be afraid; but their hearts are grieved with the fears of our women & children, and desire, that it may be buried so deep, as to be heard no more. . They called us brothers and invited us to his protection. What they agreed to has bound our nation. Presented by the California Film Institute (CAFILM), the 45th Mill Valley Film Festival (MVFF45) runs October 6-16, 2022. That did not happen, and in fact the murals fate (should they be removed? 1790. In other accounts, Washington was given the nickname sometime after the 1779 Sullivan Expedition in the American Revolutionary War, which destroyed at least 40 Iroquois villages. Ottawa, 1891. description ends 15354). Our Chiefs had felt your power & were unable to contend against you and they therefore gave up that Country. 'Town Destroyer' contra los indios iroqueses Cuarenta aldeas indgenas, y una poderosa nacin indgena, fueron arrasadas por orden de George Washington Para 1779, George Washington ya se haba ganado el famoso apodo de "Padre de su pas". "I am well persuaded," John Sullivan, the leader of the venture, bragged to Congress afterward, "that, except one town situated near the Allegana, about 50 miles from the Chinessee, there is not a single town left in the country of the Five nations." Town Destroyer. Roxie Theater3117 16th St, San Francisco, CA 94103. https://www.roxie.com/ai1ec_event/town-destroyer/. The Onondaga and the Haudenosaunee saw the colonists growing and uniting to become a new government called the United States of America. As GW explained in an undated memorandum on David Humphreys draft biography of GW: It was on this occasion he was named by the half-King (as he was called) and the tribes of Nations with whom he treatedCaunotaucarius (in English) the Town taker; which name being registered in their Manner & communicated to other Nations of Indians, has been remembered by them ever since in all their transactions with him during the late war (Comments on David Humphreys Biography of George Washington, 178788, in Papers, Confederation Series description begins W. W. Abbot et al., eds. When you kindled your thirteen fires seperately, the wise men Longtime local nonfiction filmmaking team Alan Snitow and Deborah Kaufman (Blacks & Jews, Secrets of Silicon Valley, etc.) Commissioned in the late 1960s to create a mural at George Washington High School titled Multi-Ethnic Heritage, Crumpler honors Blacks and Indians. At fort Stanwix we agreed to deliver up those of our people, who should do you any wrong, that you might try them, and punish them according to your Law. To some, the brouhaha confirmed a stereotype of SF as the kingdom of liberal snowflakes who experience a meltdown at anything potentially troubling. facts, Our nation empowered John Livingston to let out a part of our lands on rent. Summary: George Washington (1732-1799), nicknamed the "American Cincinnatus", was the 1st American President and served in office from 1789-1797. Degrowth or Debunk: Do Degrowth proponents have a strategy? Philadelphia and Harrisburg, 18521949. The Speech of the Corn-planter, Half-town and the Great-Tree chiefs of the Senecca Nation. OK, Ill admit it: I am a wee bit allergic to just this sort of Science made cute exercise, in which actual Mars discoveries take a backseat to contrived, very human dramatics. What Recent Independent Cinema Closures Mean for Scotland, Bjrks Fossora Guides Listeners Through Jagged Heights, the musician tackles mourning and uses memory as a way to enrich lifes soil, The National Windrush Monument Is a Bittersweet Tribute to Courage, Sonia Boyces Performances Defy Easy Categorization, WochenKlausurs Language Schools for Refugees, How Topshops Business Model Cannibalized Youth Culture, How Open-Access Resources Can Support Disabled Artists. are back withTown Destroyer, which premiered at the Mill Valley Festival last month. JavaScript is disabled. They told us they must have the whole: That it was already ceded to them by the great King at the time of making peace with you, and was their own. Conotocaurius ( Town Destroyer, Seneca: Handaganyas) was a nickname given to George Washington by Iroquois peoples in 1753. Often it took the army days to completely destroy all of the longhouses, fields, orchards and food stores. We recollect that you did not promise to punish those who killed our people, and we now ask, Was it intended that your people should kill the Seneccas, and not only remain unpunished by you: but be protected by you against the next of kin?6. All Events This event has passed. He wants to remind Washington that Cornplanter understands that he is a powerful warrior and has defeated the Seneca in the past. When your army entered the country of the Six Nations, we called you Hanadagyas (Town Destroyer): and to this day when that name is heard our women look behind them and turn pale, and our children cling close to the necks of their mothers. Its time to reckon with a US founding father who waged genocidal warfare against Indigenous nations. It has also been translated as "Town Taker", "Burner of Towns", "Devourer of Villages . [1], Washington was given the name in 1753 by the Seneca leader Tanacharison. tr. oy. He told us he was sent by Congress to do this for us and we fear he has deceived us on the writing he obtained from us: For since the time of our giving that power, a man of the name of Phelps has come among us, and claimed our whole Country northward of the line of Pensylvania under purchase from that Livingston to whom he said he had paid twenty thousand dollars for it.4 He said also he had bought likewise from the Council of the thirteen fires, and paid them twenty thousand dollars more for the same. The Expedition you are appointed to command is to be directed against the hostile tribes of the Six Nations of Indians, with their associates and adherents. Art can make viewers uncomfortable. What the Senecca Nation promise they faithfully perform; and when you refused obedience to that King he ordered us to assist his beloved men in making you sober. These questions and many more were the subject of hot debate when Victor Arnautoffs thirteen-panel mural The Life of Washington became an object of local controversy, then a media firestorm. TOWN DESTROYER less than 1 minute read To the Irouqois, General George Washington was Ha-no-da-ga-nears, which means Town Destroyer, and this remained the name they gave to all Presidents of the United States. . . Nonetheless, the murals stirred little debate until the 1960s, when some Black students protested aspects they deemed offensive.