They Called Us Brothers and We Believed Them
Item
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Title
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They Called Us Brothers and We Believed Them
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Date
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1970
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Description
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"The massacre of several hundred Sioux Indians by the United States Army at Wounded Knee Creek, South Dakota on December 29, 1890 was the last nail, driven in the coffin lid of the American Indian. Military historians have predictably reffered to this grisly game of murdering noncombatants, as the "Battle of Wounded Knee". In truth, this needless massacre, as with countless others, including My Lai [Viet Nam, March 16, 1968], points with mockery at the mythological codes of American military discipline, and the "gentlemanly conduct" of its officers. Too long too many Americans have emulated their military heros and accepted their solutions of blind destruction of cultures and religions. Congressional medals of Honor were awarded to twenty-three American soldiers, who took part in the one sided slaughter at Wounded Knee Creek. Eighty years have passed since this display of American barbarism, and still its total, devastating effect is reflected in the subhuman condition of the American Indian today. Wounded Knee was indeed a hollow victory for Americans in the "winning of the West". The only tragedy, which surpasses the American military solution at Wounded Knee, is the cold lack of concern towards the Indians' economic and social conditions, displayed by most black and white Americans today. This prevailing attitude of indofference towards the American Indian, his wife, and children reflects a social decadence to me, and can only result in an inevitable cultural crisis in our country." [Bruce Carter, 1970] On February 28, 1973, members of the American Indian Movement (AIM) began a 71 day occupation of the hamlet of Wounded Knee, South Dakota in a dispirit attemp to draw attention to the terrible conditions on the Pine Ridge Souix Reservation. This print is numbered 4/20.
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Black and white woodcut print of figure on knees bent over with hands cupping the head on the ground, their fingers show through their long hair.
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Source
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Allentown Art Museum
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Rights
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NO KNOWN COPYRIGHT (NKC)
AAM_004.jpg