Great White Father

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Great White Father is a phrase used during the 19th century by some indigenous Americans to refer to the President of the United States. It was introduced to the indigenous Americans by representatives of the United States government invoking the President's authority over the natives.

Origins

The phrase is of uncertain origin, although it was widely used by natives in the American West during the Westward expansion era, such as the Sioux, during the 19th century. It was apparently a phrase used by representatives of the United States government when they met with Plains tribes and other native groups, in describing the authority of the President of the United States:
Representatives of the president in Washington, D.C. came with a message for the Indians who lived on the Plains, the land between the Rocky Mountains and the Mississippi River. They told the Indians that the president was their "Great White Father". Soldiers sent by the Indians' new "father" pushed the Plains Indians onto smaller and smaller pieces of land.[1]

The phrase went into widespread use among indigenous people. In 1870, during an interrogation by General E.S. Parker, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Chief Little Swan used the phrase "Great White Father" to refer to the President of the United States.[2]

J.M. Barrie used the phrase in his classic children's book, Peter Pan, when the "redskins" refer to Peter as the "Great White Father".[3]

Today

The phrase "Great White Father" is often used in a derisive sense today, to refer to the paternalism and hypocrisy of white European authority and discriminatory government policies used to exploit indigenous Americans.
...the Great White Father will not cure what ails my people, he cannot cure what ails us. He speaks volumes but doesn't keep his word. He still does not honor the treaty that bears my father's signature, the treaty to which your own father was a witness.[4]

Tecumseh's curse

Tecumseh's curse, according to legend, originated following the defeat of Tecumseh at the Battle of Tippecanoe in 1811, and his death during the Battle of the Thames in 1813, when his forces were defeated by General William Henry Harrison. Tenskwatawa invoked the curse, allegedly saying that if Harrison became the Great White Father in Washington, he would die in office. Tenskwatawa, according to legend, said
And when he dies, you will remember my brother Tecumseh's death. And after him, every Great Chief chosen every 20 years therafter will die. And when each one dies, let everyone remember the death of our people.[5]

Harrison did die in office while President, and every U.S. president elected at 20 year intervals died in office after Harrison, until the legendary curse was broken by Ronald Reagan, who survived his two terms as President.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Ferris, Jeri (1991). Native American Doctor: The Story of Susan LaFlesche Picotte. Twenty-First Century Books. p. 10. ISBN 9780876144435. 
  2. ↑ Athearn, Robert G. (1957). William Tecumseh Sherman and the Settlement of the West. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 286. ISBN 9780806127699. 
  3. ↑ Barrie, J.M. (2008). Peter Pan. ReadHowYouWant.com. p. 123. ISBN 9781427065469. 
  4. ↑ Evison, Jonathan (2011). West of Here. Algonquin Books. p. 94. ISBN 9781565129528. 
  5. ↑ Martinez, Susan B. (2007). The Psychic Life of Abraham Lincoln. Career Press. p. 246. ISBN 9781564149664. 
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