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Homework for a virtual secular charter school in Georgia gave a prompt that encouraged students to talk about the removal of the Cherokee, an Indigenous tribe forcibly relicated to what is now Oklahoma.
The Keetoowah or Tsalagi—designated the Cherokee Nation by the federal government—is a sovereign tribal nation forced out of present-day Georgia to the area of what's now known as Tahlequah, Oklahoma.
It's estimated that 16,000 Cherokee were relocated along the Trail of Tears and roughly 4,000 died en route. Jennifer C. Martin posted the photo of the school assignment and it quickly went viral.
Martin said:
"My friend's kid's school in Georgia sent homework with this question."
The assignment read:
"Write a letter to President Andrew Jackson, from the perspective of an American settler."
"Explain why you think removing the Cherokee will help the United States prosper."
Martin told Native Viewpoint the photo comes from the Georgia Cyber Academy.
my friend's kid's school in Georgia sent homework with this questionpic.twitter.com/pSFhJ0Ucvz— Jennifer C. Martin (@Jennifer C. Martin) 1642645127
Just fyi this isn\u2019t some underfunded southern public school (though laws CRT are heading this way) it\u2019s a virtual charter secular school, which I\u2019m sure many parents are turning to bc of the pandemic. No more info outta respect for this fam\u2019s privacy— Jennifer C. Martin (@Jennifer C. Martin) 1642655884
Martin told Native Viewpoint:
"I think my friend shared it in our moms’ group because she was so shocked that she didn’t know how to answer and wanted advice as to what to do."
“I shared it publicly because I wanted people to know this is going on in state-funded schools, and how dangerous the anti-CRT (critical race theory) rhetoric and laws are, and what kind of lies it leads to when discussing history."
"I’m also a parent, and I would be horrified to learn my kids were getting assignments like that.”
Many tried to defend the teacher, saying it was necessary to teach "the other side," but commenters pushed back at that response with one commenting:
"I shudder to think how you'd teach about the Holocaust."
"Is a letter to Hitler supporting that genocide also appropriate?"
The question is leading, prioritizing "growth" and "prosperity" over human suffering, and asks the student to adopt the perspective of one group over another. 2/3 (got wordy)— Jeff Harrison (@Jeff Harrison) 1642684384
Friends, raise your kids in such a manner that you get a call from the principal regarding your child's response to a question such as this.— Rational Hatter (@Rational Hatter) 1642652112
It\u2019s so strange, tweeted something related, unknowingly last night. I hope some of the folks in these responses can change their lenses. My goodness.https://twitter.com/indigenia/status/1483995087419891715\u00a0\u2026— Dr. Twyla Baker (@Dr. Twyla Baker) 1642687996
Dr. Twyla Baker, of the Mandan-Hidatsa Nation, told Native Viewpoints this is not how empathy is taught:
“I think I can point to the entire tribal college movement as proof that there are myriad ways to teach history that doesn’t ask marginalized groups of students to play Devil’s Advocate' or justify genocide on behalf of oppressors."
“There are better ways to teach history that respect the voices and perspectives of everyone involved, and include multiple narratives, because history belongs to all of us. We need to actively dismantle the idea that only one narrative exists."
"Many, many scholars are doing it in classrooms across the country; to do otherwise is intellectually lazy, and disrespects our children, no matter their background.”
Look, I'm all for encouraging children (or anyone) to view things from perspectives they don't necessarily agree with. But this is.... Don't... Don't do this.— Kris Hill (@Kris Hill) 1642677645
Sadly not the first time they've literally whitewashed the bloody historypic.twitter.com/GJOaVSnQ26— John Hosie (@John Hosie) 1642684161
I should point out I live in Nashville, just a few miles from Jackson's estate. There are no monuments here for Dragging Canoe, the Cherokee leader who fought white domination of this region.— Theron Corse (@Theron Corse) 1642662401
I hope you remind your students that Native people are still living despite all the trauma and are doing our best to make the world a livable place for all.— Michael Brown (@Michael Brown) 1642656794
WTAF. This happened AFTER the Cherokee helped Jackson finally win one against Creeks at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend. Jackson never won another battle against my ancestors, plus his attempts to force them to surrender also failed.\n\nMy Muskogee reply to Georgia\u2019s curriculum:— CountryoverParty (@CountryoverParty) 1642646687
It was not extremely popular. Its vote in Congress was highly controversial and many spoke out against it, including Davy Crockett. Thanks to @MappingFL for the map. Please learn history first.pic.twitter.com/nUx4kP3z1Z— Anastasia | 1 Days Til Birthday! (@Anastasia | 1 Days Til Birthday!) 1642727689
It is more important to understand that this policy was not universally popular and had significant opposition so one can understand how tyrants do not need 100% support in able to enact genocide, but rather just enough to keep their enemies from acting.— Anastasia | 1 Days Til Birthday! (@Anastasia | 1 Days Til Birthday!) 1642727891
This is what \u201cboth sides\u201d gets us. People start validating atrocities.— Sandra Bucciero (@Sandra Bucciero) 1642684339
According to the Cherokee Nation website, their approximately 11,000 employees make a huge impact:
"Cherokee Nation and its subsidiaries are one of the largest employers in northeastern Oklahoma."
"The tribe had a more than $2.16 billion economic impact on the Oklahoma economy in fiscal year 2018."
The Georgia Cyber Academy has yet comment about the assignment.