Chapter 3

I’ve always believed that the Mayflower and the Pilgrims were the start of the United States; however, the possibility (or the truth, according to Loewen) that the Spanish were also a part of it surprised me as I had never heard of it. When Loewen mentioned mustangs, I knew that these were horses that the Spanish accidentally let loose into the wild, but I thought the appearance of the Spanish people in America was much later, maybe after the first English settlers had laid the ground for them. Columbus is a Spanish explorer who American textbooks idolize as the founder of the Americans, yet the Spanish settlers do not seem to receive similar treatment as Columbus, which is ironic and a little confusing to me. If textbooks are what Loewen describes as “Eurocentric”, wouldn’t they say that both Pilgrims and the Spanish were the first settlers of America? When I think of the United States, white people are who I imagine; however, the original settlers were the Native Indians. As Loewen mentioned in the Columbus chapter, it seems incorrect that we name the Pilgrims as the first settlers of America when Native Indians already lived there. Perhaps the nation called “United States” was established by the Pilgrims, but in terms of settlement, they cannot leave out the details about Native Indians. Perhaps from their perspectives, the Europeans landing in their land only brought misery: diseases were transmitted and the Natives’ contributions are scarcely commemorated in history textbooks. It makes me wonder how the Native Indians feel every year when the country they live in celebrates a holiday where their roles are ignored. Regarding the “start” of America, textbooks should present a shared history in which the Native Indians aided the Pilgrims in building the basis of this country. In my opinion, America seems to be proud of its multicultural aspect, and it is a little frightening to think that only one side the story is presented. If a Eurocentric image is what textbooks offer to students, I believe it would become more difficult for white students to respect other cultures and to cooperate with them.

Another surprise in this chapter was the disease that Loewen mentions. He claims that the disease brought into America by Europeans extinguished a large number of Native Indians. I had always thought that the Black Plague was the most devastating pandemic that caused a large number of deaths. When I learned about the Black Plague in grade eight, the word “unprecedented” presented itself in almost every source I read of it, but the number of deaths of the Native Indians who died from transmitted diseases raised a possibility that the Natives' disease may be the "unprecedented" one. Black Plague may be the most devastating disease that “people know”, but diseases of the Native Indians are factually the most devastating. One third versus 90~96% of the population being killed is a colossal difference in numbers. If the death tolls are true and if American textbooks are leaving out details about this, then they are concealing a big chunk of history from students. However, I also have some doubts upon the numbers that are presented in this chapter. Firstly, the estimated Native populations in textbooks vary too much that I cannot trust any of it, and if the number of the population varies so much, then it is hard to believe the percentage of Native Indian deaths from the plague.

Loewen says, “during the Civil War, when the Union needed all the patriotism that such an observance might muster, Abraham Lincoln proclaimed Thanksgiving a national holiday”. This reminded me of the former South Korean President Lee Myung-bak when he suddenly brought up the “Takeshima island” issue in an effort to bring the country together and to stay in office. Of course, this may not be true and he may have had other intentions; however, I believe that world leaders often use historical facts, decorate them according to their taste, and use them to “unite the nation”. Considering that, “Thanksgiving” may merely be an American symbol used as a tool to unite the nation every year.