A Liberal Dose, November 24, 2022 "Let's Be Thankful to Native Americans"

 

A Liberal Dose

November 24, 2022

Troy D. Smith

“Let’s be thankful to Native Americans”

 

 

Happy Thanksgiving. I love this holiday -the chill in the air, the comforting traditional foods, the emphasis on family.

A lot of my Native American friends are not as fond of it, for obvious reasons, and I understand. Around this time of year I get contacted by radio stations across the state wanting me to speak, in my official capacity as a historian, about the origins of the holiday. I always try to explain the political nuances of the tense relationship between the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag Confederacy, but that always gets edited out so I can answer the question “Yeah, but did they have pie?” This is because most Americans only want to take a quick, surface look at history, and that only to reinforce their feel-good myths. American Indians do not exist to them except as artifacts frozen in amber.

But they DO exist, and are going strong. They are about 2% of the U.S. population. That may not sound like much, but it is slightly more than the number of Mormons, almost the number of Jewish people, and twice the number of Muslims.

They are not just part of our past, they are part of our present and our future. And we owe them a lot. We owe them for all the contributions their cultures have made to our own. We owe them for all the agreements our ancestors made with them, all the promises broken. We owe them for all the contributions they continue to make. Did you know that Native American Indians are, by proportion, the group with the highest volunteer military enlistment in every American war for the past century? I am thankful for Native America, today and every day. We all should be.

There are several ways to show that gratitude. One is by learning about their history and culture, and appreciating it. Another is by honoring them. There’s a caveat to that last one, though. If you choose to honor Native Americans -without asking them -in a way that most of them find offensive, you are not honoring them at all. It is not really about them, then, it is about you and what you want. For example, most every indigenous person I know is offended by their image being used as a sports mascot. Especially “redskin,” that one is the very worst. It is an insult equivalent to the n-word. Yet there are still schools in Tennessee that use it.

Another way to show gratitude to American Indians is by learning about their present-day concerns and issues, and doing our part to support them. Did you know that until the 1970s Native children were still being taken from their parents and sent to boarding schools where they were not allowed to practice their culture, and where many died, or to orphanages where they were adopted out against their parents’ wishes? Did you know Native Americans were not free to fully practice their traditional religions until the 1970s, or that many states prevented them from voting well into the 1960s? Did you know that indigenous women are far, far more likely to be abducted, raped, and/or murdered than women from any other group -primarily because tribal police have no authority over non-Natives who come onto the reservation and commit such crimes? Did you know the Supreme Court recently reversed two hundred years of precedent and gave the state of Oklahoma criminal jurisdiction over reservations, or that a case is working its way to the court that would reverse the 1970s law that ended the practice of taking Indian children away from their tribes and putting them up for adoption?

Native Americans are not our mascots, or our Halloween costumes. They are our brothers and sisters, our fellow citizens. We may not be personally responsible for what happened to them in the past -but we can stand with them in the present.

--Troy D. Smith, a White County native, is a novelist and a history professor at Tennessee Tech. His words do not necessarily represent TTU.

 You can find all previous entries in this weekly column HERE

A list of other historical essays that have appeared on this blog can be found HERE

Author's website: www.troyduanesmith.com

The author's historical lectures on youtube can be found HERE

A Liberal Dose, Nov. 17, 2022 "Taking a Deep Breath After the Midterms"

 

A Liberal Dose

November 17, 2022

Troy D. Smith

“Taking a deep breath after the midterms”

 

Well, that went better than I expected it to.

As of this writing (Sunday), Democrats held onto the Senate and may actually pick up a seat in a few weeks if Hershel Walker loses in Georgia; the ballyhooed “red wave” Republicans were predicting for the House fell through, and at this point it is not even guaranteed they will take it at all. It’s down to the wire, and if they do it will only be by a handful of seats.

Also at this point, my worst-case scenarios have not materialized. I was fearful that Trumpy, election-denying candidates would win secretary of state races in swing states, putting them in a position to overturn legitimate voting results in those states in 2024. I was fearful that election-deniers in general would sweep into power all over the place, taking us one major step closer to the collapse of democracy, which rests on the assumption people who lose elections will admit it and go home. Almost half of the roughly 300 election-deniers running for office lost -including all those swing-state secretary of state candidates. With a handful of exceptions (such as J.D. Vance in Ohio), almost every candidate Trump had strongly endorsed lost, leading some to believe that the public is getting tired of Donald J.

My other fear was that there would be a huge uptick in political violence after the election. That hasn’t materialized, but it’s only been five days. I hope it does not. As I have been saying on here, I feel like we’ve been sitting on an increasingly combustible tinder-box for the last seven years. So far it seems like most of the Republicans who lost actually admitted it and conceded -which has always been a fundamental aspect of American public life, but after a few years of Trump feels like the good old days from some distant, bygone era.

I’ve seen multiple headlines stating that GOP party leaders blame Trump, and people’s fatigue with him and his wacky supporters, for them having one of the worst midterm performances in decades. There is speculation they are finally willing to risk his displeasure by shifting their future support to a possible presidential candidate with less baggage, namely Ron DeSantis. Perhaps feeling threatened, Trump has been escalating his online attacks against (as he calls him) “Ron DeSanctimonious.” DeSantis is a mixed bag. On one hand, he is not as mentally unstable, volatile, and openly corrupt as Trump -he seems less likely to order a military coup or start a nuclear war if someone made fun of his hair. On the other hand, he has all the worst and most dangerous policy goals of Trump and might be more competent at achieving them.

Here’s my take, at least for now. Donald Trump has been prematurely declared politically dead a dozen times, and every time it has proven to be wishful thinking (on the part of progressives and mainstream conservatives alike). Nothing that has happened in the last week changes the fact that a solid 30% or so of the American public are hardcore Trumpers no matter what he says or does. There is something about him (judge for yourself what it is) that speaks to them in a way normal politicians do not, and I don’t see them shifting their allegiance because party leaders say they ought to.

I believe Trump will run for the nomination -to stay out of jail as much as anything -and win it. DeSantis will fall by the wayside as surely as Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio did. And, once that happens, a Democratic win is guaranteed -because there is another 70% of the American public, half of whom despise Trump and another chunk of whom are finally getting embarrassed by him or, at least, tired of his drama. And once he loses, we will be right back to “Big Steal” conspiracy theories.

--Troy D. Smith, a White County native, is a novelist and a history professor at Tennessee Tech. His words do not necessarily represent TTU.

 

You can find all previous entries in this weekly column HERE

A list of other historical essays that have appeared on this blog can be found HERE

Author's website: www.troyduanesmith.com

The author's historical lectures on youtube can be found HERE

 

Letter to Herald-Citizen on Mascot Issue- Nov. 16, 2022

 

A Liberal Dose, November 10, 2022 "Have We Reached Our Preston Brooks Moment?"

 

Note: this edition carries both my column from last week and this week's follow-up. HERE is a link to last week's column.

A Liberal Dose

November 10, 2022

Troy D. Smith

“Have We Reached Our Preston Brooks Moment?”

I am writing this before election day, but the election will have come and gone by the time it sees print. As I sit here on what to you was this past Sunday night, I can’t help but think that it is quite likely that the anger, and the violent rhetoric, which has me so worried will have increased -no matter who wins what, or who controls Congress. Last week I was outraged by the (very predictable to anyone paying attention) attempted murder of the House Speaker’s husband in their home. Little did I know what was coming -because, from some corners, it surprised even me.

I was not surprised that some conservatives (and Elon Musk, however we describe him) were repeating a totally fabricated story that Mr. Pelosi was attacked by a gay prostitute he had hired. I was not surprised that Donald Trump, Jr. tweeted a photo of a pair of underwear and a hammer, saying it was his Paul Pelosi Halloween costume. I wasn’t surprised that other people were posting similar bad jokes that minimized -and seemed to celebrate -the brutal assault of a senior citizen over politics, and more broadly made light of the very dangerous place Donald Trump has led us. I was surprised by some of the people who joined in. There is no minimizing, no successful false equivalency, of events like this and the attempted rebellion on January 6. My good friend John Gottlied, a couple of weeks ago, admitted that some Trump followers weren’t the most well-behaved, but that he had never heard of a conservative trying to kill a Supreme Court Justice. I assume he means the incident when people were protesting outside Kavanaugh’s house and one of them was found to have a gun in a case. They probably did have ill intent, and I condemn it. But I would point out that, A) conservatives have no current reason to be mad at the Supreme Court and B) a couple of thousand of them were too busy trying to kill the other two branches of government on live television. Many of whom also were armed.  It is not equal.

The jokes about Mr. Pelosi reminded me of an event that occurred on the floor of the Senate in 1856, during the lead-up to the Civil War. I, and many other historians, have used that incident to demonstrate that the country was on the dangerous path to war because they had stopped looking at each other as fellow Americans and human beings.

In brief, Massachusetts senator Charles Sumner (an abolitionist) had given a speech condemning the violence going on in “Bleeding Kansas” at that time between pro-and-anti-slavery citizens, as well as condemning slavery itself. I think he was totally correct. The problem was how he did it. He singled out SC senator Andrew Butler, who had recently had a stroke and whose speech was slurred, and essentially made fun of his stroke and made veiled references to his alleged raping of slave children. Butler’s cousin, Preston Brooks -who was in the House of Representatives -decided to challenge Sumner to a duel to protect his family’s honor. He was told that duels were for your social equals, so instead he beat Sumner almost to death with a cane while he was sitting at his desk on the Senate floor. He beat him until the cane broke.

Northerners claimed this as proof Southerners were brutal savages and could not be reasoned with. Southerners claimed it was proof Yankees deserved a good beating. From all over the South, people mailed Brooks new canes -one of them inscribed “good job.”

Political violence in Kansas led to more in the Capitol, with supporters of the perpetrator making it into a joke. It was all more kindling added to the pile, lacking only the final spark, which would be fanned by hatred.

I want to leave you with the words of Lincoln on his inauguration, when the flame had already started, and entreat us all to hear his words:

“The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.”

--Troy D. Smith, a White County native, is a novelist and a history professor at Tennessee Tech. His words do not necessarily represent TTU.

You can find all previous entries in this weekly column HERE

A list of other historical essays that have appeared on this blog can be found HERE

Author's website: www.troyduanesmith.com

The author's historical lectures on youtube can be found HERE

A Liberal Dose, Nov. 3 2022, "Political Violence Marches On, Unabated"

 

A Liberal Dose

November 3, 2022

Troy D. Smith

“Political Violence Marches on, Unabated”

 

This is the last edition before election day. It is, therefore, my final opportunity to fulfill my promise from a couple of weeks ago to talk about what makes these midterms so important. As is so often the case, reality stepped in to make my point for me.

Last week a man broke into the California home of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, armed with zip-ties, duct tape, a hammer, and a list of targets. She, and her security detail, were on the other side of the continent and only her 82-year-old husband Paul Pelosi was home. The assailant tried to tie up Mr. Pelosi, who had the presence of mind to call 911 and leave the line open, which probably saved his life. He was hospitalized with a skull fracture, and his attacker taken into custody. Throughout the attack, the intruder had yelled “Where’s Nancy?” and told police his plan had been to tie up Paul and wait for Nancy to return home. It was soon discovered that the attacker, whom I won’t name, was a Trump-supporting, QAnon believing, January 6 endorsing ultra-right-wing conservative. He had been posting about conspiracy theories like “Pizzagate” and “The Big Steal”, and denying the Holocaust. He claimed his goal had been to kidnap Nancy Pelosi and bust her kneecaps with the hammer, so when she was wheeled into Congress Democratic politicians would see that "their lies have consequences."

Almost immediately, Fox News hosts were attempting to perform sleight-of-hand (AKA misdirection) by proclaiming the attack was proof Democrats were letting crime spiral out of control. As if anyone believed this was a random crime. As if no one remembered the hundreds of people clamoring in the hallways of our Capitol calling out “where’s Nancy” or stating on-camera that they planned to murder her… and several other people. I have spent column after column here warning that the political violence stirred up by Trump and his far-right enablers would probably happen again. This is just one example of it. If the police had not arrived when they did, we would probably be discussing a murder.

Some people are going to say that this attacker was just deranged, that his mental problems were the sole cause of this incident (and would somehow find a way to blame Democrats for that). Well, maybe he is. But is he any more or less deranged than the thousands of ordinary Americans who assaulted those cops at the Capitol? Or the millions who spew violent, threatening rhetoric across social media? I doubt it very much.

Some, on the other side of the political aisle from me, will downplay far-right violence by mentioning crime statistics in Chicago, or pointing to the handful of incidents when Black Lives Matter protesters were involved in violence. To say there is violence or dangerous rhetoric on both sides is not an equivalency when 90% of it is on one side in particular. And is spurred on daily by the guy these folks idolize for some unfathomable reason.

For petesake, those folks tried to kill cops and members of Congress -in broad daylight, on live television.

So there’s an important issue for you, political violence. Another one: absolute disregard for the law.

That should come as no surprise. Trump has been disregarding the law his whole life. And what greater disregard could there be than trying to hold onto power by directing a violent coup attempt? This is the Frankenstein’s Monster that we have unleashed, and it threatens to suck all the oxygen out of democracy.

I said last week that recently I have had some causes for hope, and I have. Some people have told me they are tired of it all, and want to go back to two parties disagreeing but working together for the good of the country. I hope that can change the tide. But some of the folks saying it is all “both sides” need to take a clear, hard look at where most of it is actually coming from, and own up to it. And certainly, most of all, not reward it.

--Troy D. Smith, a White County native, is a novelist and a history professor at Tennessee Tech. His words do not necessarily represent TTU.

 

You can find all previous entries in this weekly column HERE

A list of other historical essays that have appeared on this blog can be found HERE

Author's website: www.troyduanesmith.com

The author's historical lectures on youtube can be found HERE

A Liberal Dose, Oct. 27, 2022 "Please Allow Me to (Re)Introduce Myself"

 

A Liberal Dose

October 27, 2022

Troy D. Smith

“Allow me to (re)introduce myself”

 

John Gottlied started his first column by introducing himself and telling about his background. It occurrs to me that I never did that, I just jumped right in with the arguing part back in February, 2021. I think I was assuming that a lot of people knew me already -but this is a bigger town that it used to be, so I probably shouldn’t make such assumptions. I’ll remedy that now.

First, though, I want to say a couple of words about John. I’ve known him since the sixth grade. In fact, that sixth grade class at Findlay also included (among many others) our current state senator Paul Bailey and his future wife Amy. Now, I disagree with both John and Paul politically a good 75% of the time. Okay, with Paul maybe it’s more like 85%. But I still respect them both enormously, think the world of them, and consider them to be good friends. I can say that about a lot of people in this town, and I think many among us have lost sight of that attitude. That said, I thought John was an ideal person to counterbalance my opinion on here… because he will not take it easy on me. He will give me heck, and do so in a way that forces me to think. And that will go both ways, to the ultimate benefit of us both (whether we eventually agree or not). And we probably won’t even call each other names or threaten to shoot each other. That’s what America is, and what it should be.

All right, then, here’s my story.

I was born in Sparta in 1968. My mom was born here, too; my dad moved here from Overton County when he was eight. My grandparents were all from Jackson or Overton County, where their families had all lived for a hundred years or more. My dad’s dad, Doyle Smith, Sr., worked as a farmer for decades for Sam Breeding and his son Bob. Before that he had been in prison twice, once for making moonshine and once for selling it. My mom’s paternal grandfather, Andrew Dennis, worked at Hunter’s Funeral Home when the hearses were horse-drawn.

I graduated from WCHS in 1986. I went into mission work for the next three years, part of it spent in South Florida and part in New York City, working with Haitian immigrants. I served in French-speaking congregations, building on the three years I studied French at WCHS (one of them informally) with the beloved and lamented Mrs. Sarah Jane Thurman. That time spent working to help immigrants was one of the most valuable experiences of my life. Meanwhile, I supported myself (and later my family) by janitorial work for over twenty years. In my twenties I started to take writing seriously, and eventually got published in various magazines and anthologies, then having my novels published. It didn’t go a long way toward paying the bills, though, so at age 32 I started college at Tennessee Tech as a double-major in English and history. From there I went to the University of Illinois, where I earned my master’s and Ph.D in history. I was lucky enough to get a job at my alma mater and move back to my home town.

That’s the abridged version. I am a product of these mountains and hollers, and love them deeply, as I love Sparta and Tennessee. I want only the best for everyone in them. I have a particular passion for the rights and needs of the people who grew up poor like I did. That passion extends to the Natives who were driven from here, to my black friends who also grew up here, to the immigrants (of every shade and religion) who have come here for a better life. To the gay and trans folks. To the recent arrivals.

And it extends to you.

--Troy D. Smith, a White County native, is a novelist and a history professor at Tennessee Tech. His words do not necessarily represent TTU.

You can find all previous entries in this weekly column HERE

A list of other historical essays that have appeared on this blog can be found HERE

Author's website: www.troyduanesmith.com

The author's historical lectures on youtube can be found HERE