It is well understood that the Native Americans were cheated and robbed out of their land from the early American settlers. Although it is not something that people like to think about and so we tend not to focus much on it when mentioning American history. However for those Native Americans they cannot ignore the past as they must live with the consequences every day.
The Foxwood Casino is just one example of how the Native Americans are fighting to again have their own share in this new country. As mentioned at the beginning of the chapter the Indians are using a different kind of gaming than that of the past in order to survive. The Foxwood Casino has fast become a very lucrative business and the money that it brings in is vital to the people of the Pequot tribe. This new form of revenue is just another step in the ever changing culture and history of the Pequot tribe.
The Foxwood Casino may be an important part of the tribes livelihood but it may be feeding the stereotypes of Indians to those people that visit there. Besides the New England artifacts and trinkets they sell (which I find ironic) they also sell many Native American pieces. These Native American pieces are not necessarily even a fair representation of their past but rather an image of stereotype, of the “expected” American Indian was/is. By spreading the stereotype you would think that the Pequots are in turn destroying their past/culture, but the chapter claims that the people are holding onto this culture and that everything put into the Casino was calculated.
Even if the Pequots are holding onto their own culture and finding a revenue to help their people with everything from education to Health Care, that is not the image that many outsiders will take away from this. The image of the Pequots tribe is now almost directly associated with gambling as the Foxwood Casino is currently what they are most known for.
What Positive affects does the Foxwood Casino have on the Pequots and is that greater than the negative effects and stereotypes that come along with it?
Is there anything that the American government can do to reconcile the Native Americans for what has been taken from them?
How would you suggest profitable establishments like the Foxwood Casino best put their money to use?
You made good points throughout your essay, because affect each other’s lives, but also I agree that the American history doesn’t focus about how the Natives were treated. It is like when we talked about hidden history. It sounds funny when you talk about “American settlers” because they were actually European settlers. ;)
ReplyDeleteNow I think about it, the Walt Disney movie “Pocahontas” represents the stereotype of Native American that we have today.
I agree when you said people don’t see the picture behind the scenes. The casino really helps the tribe to “stay alive”. It is sad that people associate Native Americans with gambling.