The former vice president has become the Democratic front-runner with primary victories across the country. 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. In 1779, General George Washington suspended the colonial war against England and moved to extinguish the Haudenosaunee (Six Nations Iroquois) with his "Sullivan-Clinton Scorched Earth Campaign." Washington's soldiers were paid with land. 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.1Our Councillors and warriors are men, and can not be afraid; but their hearts are grieved with the fears of our women It was impossible for us to grant him this and we immediately refused. After all, the issues go back to 1779 when George Washington ordered the destruction of the Iroquois villages. Pero los indios iroqueses de la poca le dieron a Washington otro epteto no tan halagador: Conotocarious, o "Town Destroyer " . When our chiefs returned from the treaty of fort Stanwix, and laid before our Council what had been done there our Nation was surprized to hear, how great a Country you had compelled them to give up, to you, without paying us any thing for it.3 Every one said your hearts were yet swelled with resentment against us for what had happened during the war: but that one day you would reconsider it with more kindness. Phelps (17491809) was a Massachusetts merchant, politician, and large-scale land speculator. copy, MHi: Timothy Pickering Papers; It is translated as Town Taker, Burner of Towns When you gave us peace we called you father, because you promised to secure us in the possession of our Land. The name in its original language(s) has been An Arab stallion with a light grey . It may be very small in your ears, & we therefore entreat you to hearken with attention. First came genocide, than came cultural plunder or maybe it was the other way around. A Living New Deal Webinar. We have already said how we came to join against you. Newsletter The Onondagas, who were honoring the neutrality agreement, were not prepared for the attack. 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. In July 2020, Americans are once again divided, gathering in the streets and tearing down statues. "It actually crushed their military power." He told the council of the murder of the husband of his wifes sister by a white man four years earlier, the robbery of his company at Cat Fish (Washington, Pa.) while returning from the treaty at Fort Harmar in early 1789, and the murder of his nephew by a white man in the winter of 178990 (Pa. Archives, description begins Samuel Hazard et al., eds. All three had participated in the Iroquois campaigns during the Revolution; Cornplanter as a principal war chief and the others as head warriors. Bob Spiegelman has been a freelance author and film producer, screenwriter, project-developer, multimedia advisor, research director and story consultant on a growing array of film, museum and multimedia projects. "It was disastrous to the Iroquois," says Barbara Graymont, author of The Iroquois in the American Revolution. Sign up for email updates on the latest frieze talks, fairs and events. Join us for a free screening of TOWN DESTROYER - a new documentary about the furor over Victor Arnautoff's WPA murals at George Washington High School. 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. "Town Destroyer" is a translation of the name given to George Washington by the Iroquois nation after he demanded the total destruction of their settlement and crops in a 1779 attack against the tribe that was aligned with the British. He demanded it: He insisted on his demand and declared that he would have it all. (The Iroquois dubbed him Town Destroyer.) But some present-day students, parents, and observers found those depictions racially offensive, calling for the work to be removed or destroyed. Sun. 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. George Washington's favorite native fruit is ripe in the HFH orchard >> the pawpaw. How did we get here after 50 years, during which span a majority of Americans came to support abortion access? We were deceived but your people in teaching us to confide in that King, had helped to deceve us and wnow appeale to your hearts. Contact. But if Alan Snitow and Deborah Kaufman have their way, George Washington will also be remembered as the town destroyer. Thats the title of a new documentary that they have written, directed and produced about the controversial murals in San Francisco at George Washington High School. 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. We delivered up two men, accordingly. Longtime Bay Area documentarians Alan Snitow and Deborah Kaufman interview historians, artists, activists, and GWHS students to probe a fascinating microcosm of todays culture wars. 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. A Seneca leader named Tanacharison called Washington HandaganyasTown Destroyer.. Needless to say, those lamentable future occupiers of the White House are highly accommodating, providing perhaps the most egregious example of Twitlers lack of backbone on any issue save self-interesthe had always been publicly pro-choice, then began waffling, switching sides with a vengeance when it sank in that he needed the pro-life voters to win. tr. Sat. 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. Larger questions arose: Is arts purpose to provoke, or placate? description ends , 5:51426; Zagarri, David Humphreys Life of General Washington, description begins Rosemarie Zagarri, ed. Does this promise bind you? START or Stop: Do Nuclear Weapons Treaties Matter? Pennsylvania Archives. Few visitors to the museum had ever heard of the Sullivan Campaign, or knew that most of New York state was our original homeland. 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. If art (or history) is altered to blunt painful truths, isnt that dishonesty, whether coming from the political left or right? We will not join either side. Ryan Whites documentary about the data-gathering land rover that was only expected to function on Mars surface for about 90 days, yet wound up lasting a remarkable 15 years. es. Our writings were lodged in the hands of Street of Niagara, as we supposed him to be our friend; but when we saw Phelps consulting with Street, on every occasion, we doubted of his honesty towards us, and we have since heard, that he was to JOURNAL OF LIEUT. modern editorial content, are copyright The Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia. George Washington for sure had that nickname. In Town Destroyer, the filmmakers focus on the image of a dead Indian lying face down on the ground while settlers with guns stand close-by. If you thought you could now talk calmly about Victor Arnautoff and his art, Americans Indians and George Washington, think again. Every tax-deductible donation helps us grow to cover the issues that mean the most to our community. that assembled at them told us you were all brothers, the children of one great Father who regarded also the red people as his children. However, most ofBattlegroundsfocus is not on the headline-makers, but on those in the trenchesin particular, anti-abortion activists whove been working towards this moment for years, even decades. It is just to punish murder with death, but the Seneccas will not deliver up their people to men, who disregard the treaties of their own nation. The chiefs remained in Philadelphia until GW arrived in Philadelphia and Congress reconvened. Would You Pay to Live in Facebooks Metaverse? On 29 Oct. 1790 these chiefs appeared before the supreme executive council of Pennsylvania, seeking redress for a number of wrongs allegedly committed against the Seneca. Another local, Reid Davenport, is both director and star ofI Didnt See You Therealthough we do not, in fact, see him onscreen. In Wolf Nation, my 2019 exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, I marked the 240th anniversary of Washingtons ruthless invasion with an augmented reality version of this work. When last Spring they called on us to go to war to secure them a bed to lie upon, The Seneccas entreated them to be quiet until we had spoken to you: but on our way down we heard, your army had gone to the Country which those nations inhabit: and if they meet together the best blood on both sides will stain the ground. 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. He wants to remind Washington that Cornplanter understands that he is a powerful warrior and has defeated the Seneca in the past. We see groups of collegiate women who travel to a D.C. March for Life in January 2020 to save the babies. They demand equal rights for unborn humans, hoping not just that abortion will become illegal, but abortion will become unthinkable. Organizations like Students for Life of America and the Susan B. Anthony List are very well-organized, and there is no questioning the earnestness of their members. CODE OF CONDUCT, Workshop: In Our Own Words: Poetry on Film. Part of Colonial Williamsburg's "Prelude to Victory" weekend. Archives. Town Destroyer, also translated as Town Taker, Burner of Towns, or Devourer of Villages, was a nickname given to George Washington by Iroquois Indians. 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. 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. Many expressed distress at the revelation. Forty Indian villagesand a powerful indigenous nationwere razed on the orders of George Washington, Town Destroyer Versus the Iroquois Indians, By 1779, George Washington had already earned the famous moniker "Father of His Country." It has also been translated as "Town Taker", "Burner of Towns", "Devourer of Villages", or "he destroys the town". In 2019, he had a solo show at the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, USA. You have compelled us to do that which has made us ashamed. By August, the expedition was moving through Iroquois country, meeting almost no resistance. George Washington is a polarizing character in American Indian history. When the Ronald Reagan arrived to replace the George Washington in 2015 . While individual Iroquois tribes continued to launch raids over the next few years, the Revolutionary War broke the power of the Iroquois as a political unit. The British agent George Beckwith reported to Lord Dorchester from New York on the course of Streets mission, noting that The application of Mr. Street in behalf of the Indians of the Five Nations by means of Mr. Wadsworth has drawn a declaration from the President, expressive of his intentions to pay every attention to the Indians in general, and Mr. Street is assured by General Knox, that his business will be taken into immediate consideration. Beckwith subsequently reported, however, that Mr. What is role of the artist in reflecting America to itself? However, theres one thing almost everyone will agree on: After seeing the film, you will most likely be jonesing to see Arnautoffs magnum opus in person, because it looks quite stunning. What happens when it no longer reflects current societal views? 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. Nonetheless, the murals stirred little debate until the 1960s, when some Black students protested aspects they deemed offensive. According to historian George Bancroft, they were having a cordial visit and then the old chief, pointing to Washington, spoke the amazing prophecy. 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.. Summary: George Washington (1732-1799), nicknamed the "American Cincinnatus", was the 1st American President and served in office from 1789-1797. Just an hour long, Snitow and Kaufmans documentary offers a fascinating overview of a case that encapsulates many of the bitterest divisions of our era. Note: The annotations to this document, and any other Pawpaws. We are community supported journalism. SFist spoke to the duo . . 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. The saw marks are still visible on the fence scars as enduring as those that the American Revolution and its aftermath left on the Native nations of Turtle Island (North America). And he said also that it did not belong to us for that the great King had ceded the whole of it when you made peace with him. There are passionate arguments on both sides, and they are not as simply divided by racial, cultural, or political identification as youd think. The Onondaga and the Haudenosaunee saw the colonists growing and uniting to become a new government called the United States of America. It is interesting to see close-up the strategizing of such groups, including their straight-up asking citizens to be single-issue voters, even if they have to hold their noses in pulling the lever for last-minute ally Trump. 1788-89 United States presidential election [ edit] Washington is inaugurated as president of the United States in 1789. Do this and so long2 as the Land shall remain that beloved name shall live in the heart of every Senecca. It has also been translated as "Town Taker", "Burner of Towns", "Devourer of Villages . 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. Street presented a document listing the grievances of the Five Nations to Jeremiah Wadsworth, with the request that Wadsworth put it into GWs hands (Street to Wadsworth, 5 Aug. 1790, NNGL: Knox Papers). He had participated in an effort to suppress Indigenous peoples defending themselves in Virginia and Maryland. 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. Allegedly both George Washington and his Great Grandfather, John Washington shared an unusual nickname. nD. Early American Land Companies: Their Influence on Corporate Development. The supreme executive council of Pennsylvania had informed Cornplanter and the other Seneca chiefs on 30 Oct. 1790 that 48 Hills welcomes comments in the form of letters to the editor, which you can submithere. When Seymour Hersh Strained to Keep Up With CounterPunch, Nichole Stephens, Administrative Assistant. (Its twin sister robot, named Spirit, conked out pretty quickly by contrast.). 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. Elaborate reenactments of the robots experience via Industrial Light & Magic wizardry are accompanied by a treacly, heart-tugging orchestral score. His mural, "Life of Washington," is widely . America's love affair with mass murderers has a long history - whether it unfolds as empathizing with Ted Bundy or as the canonization of town destroyer George Washington as a founding father . Presented by the California Film Institute (CAFILM), the 45th Mill Valley Film Festival (MVFF45) runs October 6-16, 2022. Town Destroyer opens Fri/4 at the Roxie, with the filmmakers and special guests present at all shows. That did not happen, and in fact the murals fate (should they be removed? After all, the issue goes back to 1779 when Washington ordered the destruction of the Iroquois villages. Records Commission (NHPRC) is part of the National The first U.S. presidential election was held over a period of weeks from December 1788 to January 1789. Cynthia LowensBattlegroundoffers some insight on that score. The Game which the great Spirit sent into our Country for us to eat, is going from among us: We thought he intended we should till the ground as the white people do, and we talked to one another about it. It opens in area theaters Fri/4, then begins streaming on Amazon Prime Nov. 23. Main Image:Washington Square Park Arc, 2020. The Mohawks saw the colonial settlements in violation of the Proclamation Line and trespassers in their territory. This battle isnt over yet, but no one will blame you for feeling combat fatigue. Bay Guardian Archives American soldiers burned forty villages to the ground, and displaced thousands of Indians. description ends Colonial ser., 16:5018), as well as other grievances. 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. George Washington (1700s), also known as Hanadaguyus , had become famous as an Indian killer during the French and Indian War. The brutal 1778 Cherry Valley Massacre prompted a wide-ranging punitive expedition that broke Iroquois power. The National Historical Publications and 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. What Happens When Art Gets Competitive on Television? Our nation empowered John Livingston to let out a part of our lands on rent. According to its production company: "TOWN DESTROYER explores how to look at art and history at a time of polarized national debate over the power of images, racism, trauma, and what . US 2022, 55 min, Director: Alan Snitow, Deborah Kaufman, Is arts role to provoke or placate? Jimmy Carter is a Liberal Saint Now, Was a War Criminal Then. 9 ser., 138 vols. 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. "Town Destroyer" sheds new light on our first president. But we are free men, if any choose to fight for you, they may.. 48hills.org is the official publication of the non-profit San Francisco Progressive Media Center. 4.On John Livingstons role in the New York-Genesee Land Companys 999year lease with Cayuga, Oneida, and Seneca chiefs, see John Livingston MVFF is an acclaimed eleven-day cinema event celebrating the best in US . Great Tree was shot in the leg during his stay in Philahdelphia (Wallace, Death and Rebirth of the Seneca, description begins Anthony F. C. Wallace. 6.In addition to other alleged unpunished murders, this is undoubtedly a reference to the recent acquittal of Samuel Doyle by a Pennsylvania court for his reported role in the murder of a Seneca man (see Timothy Pickering to GW, 4 Dec. 1790, n.6). Filmmakers Alan Snitow and Deborah Kaufman . But the Iroquois Indians of the time bestowed on Washington another, not-so-flattering epithet: Conotocarious, or "Town Destroyer. If you want to leave all these Earthly woes behind, there is warm, fuzzy and interplanetary comfort to be found inGood Night Oppy. 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. It did not leave our 1st POTUS unblemished as a participant in both those officially sanctioned wrongs. Its time to reckon with a US founding father who waged genocidal warfare against Indigenous nations. 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). 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. But instead of trying them according to your Law, the lowest of your people took them from your magistrate, and put them immediately to death. description ends Colonial ser., 16:5078). The Then and Now project examines three case studies of dispossession: the After suffering for nearly two years from Iroquois raids on the Colonies' northern frontier, Washington and Congress decided to strike back. In his book, George Washington and Native Americans The name in its original language (s) has been given variously as Conotocarius, Conotocaurious, Caunotaucarius, Conotocarious, Hanodaganears, and Hanadahguyus. The name in its original language(s) has been given variously as Conotocarius, Conotocaurious, Caunotaucarius, Conotocarious, Hanodaganears, and Hanadahguyus. Snitow & Deborah Kaufman Executive Producer Peggy . 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. The surviving Onondaga were homeless; some began to rebuild; some headed west to find shelter with their brother nations the Cayuga and Seneca. light grey. Following the massacre of five chiefs who had come out to negotiate under a flag of truce to the colonizers, the Susquehannahs gave John Washington an Algonquian name that translated to "town taker" or "devourer of villages." Why does Cornplanter bring this up? copy, PHi: Gratz CollectionIndian Commissioners Papers. George "Town Destroyer" Washington Hulton Archive/Getty Images The first president holds the leftmost spot on the Mount Rushmore memorial carving, the center of the US one-dollar bill, and a controversial spot in the hearts of the indigenous people of America.