Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.0MB) | Embed
Of all the previous presidents to choose from, Donald Trump likes to align himself most with Andrew Jackson. He visited Jackson’s Hermitage in Tennessee and laid a wreath on his grave. For Native Americans, Jackson is forever associated with the Indian Removal Act and the Trail of Tears. His presidency also ended with a crippling economic depression. Since he’s back in the spotlight, we’ll take time to talk with historians about the full legacy of Andrew Jackson.
Guests:
Catherine Foreman Gray (citizen of Cherokee Nation) – history and preservation officer for Cherokee Nation
Erin Adams – director of education and interpretation at Andrew Jackson’s Hermitage
Break music: Going Back (song) Paula Nelson (artist) C.H.A.N.T. Cherokee Hope And New Traditions (album)
Is this one paragraph all there is to the article? Yes the treatment of American Natives under Jackson is a regrettable and dark time in our history. You know he was a democrat!
I think trump identifies more with Jackson’s populist movement and anti-establishment policies or maybe just the hair.
If there is a positive result in actions of that time it would be that a remnant of native cultures has been preserved, adding much to the wealth of America’s heritage. In other expansionist movements around the world, many cultures have been obliterated completely or totally absorbed and unrecognizable within new cultures, like the early Brits under western Europe invasions. Bitterness about the past only harms the embittered.