On Native Land: Reflecting on Dartmouth’s Indigenous History
In The Dartmouth by Meghan Powers
Published on Oct. 30, 2020
“It’s a little bit like the Europeans create a board game and write the rules, and Indian people get to play but they can’t ever win,” Calloway said. “Acknowledging those injustices is of course the first step, but then what? … Is it that simple or is there some kind of bill that’s come due? Should there be some kind of compensation or some kind of way of restoring justice? And what would that look like?” As Calloway put it, “not only were injustices done, but some of us have benefited for generations from that injustice.”
On the other hand, Abenaki culture is still alive at and around Dartmouth. Fuentes described the myth of the “vanishing Indian,” which explores the dynamics of displacement. The land upon which Dartmouth sits was taken from the Abenaki people, but that doesn’t mean that the tribe vanished. Two hundred and fifty years later, Dartmouth is still around, and the people whose land it was built on are too.