US Navy will apologize for the 1882 obliteration of a Tlingit village in Alaska

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: AP

Updated 12:02 AM EDT, October 26, 2024


ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Shells fell on the Alaska Native village as winter approached, and then sailors landed and burned what was left of homes, food caches and canoes. Conditions grew so dire in the following months that elders sacrificed their own lives to spare food for surviving children.

It was Oct. 26, 1882, in Angoon, a Tlingit village of about 420 people in the southeastern Alaska panhandle. Now, 142 years later, the perpetrator of the bombardment — the U.S. Navy — is set to say it is sorry.

Rear Adm. Mark Sucato, the commander of the Navy’s northwest region, will issue the apology during a ceremony on Saturday, the anniversary of the atrocity. While the rebuilt Angoon received $90,000 in a settlement with the Department of Interior in 1973, village leaders have for decades sought an apology as well, beginning each yearly remembrance by asking three times, “Is there anyone here from the Navy to apologize?”

“You can imagine the generations of people that have died since 1882 that have wondered what had happened, why it happened, and wanted an apology of some sort, because in our minds, we didn’t do anything wrong,” said Daniel Johnson Jr., a tribal head in Angoon.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/navy-1882-tlingit-village-alaska-bombing-apology-b7da179eb05bd30afa373f9fc093305e

[Clouds Passing]

1. Joe Biden is doing honorable acts of atonement. I am so proud to call him Mr President.

And Deb Haaland, so proud of her! Truly amazing woman!

[GB_RN]

2. But, But...

“Apologizin’ is weakness! The world is laughin’ at Bi-dun. The world is laughin’ at us! Make ‘Murica Grate Ah-gin!” - Every MAGAt ever

100% pure, unadulterated snark and 😁🖖

[Clouds Passing]

11. A real apology is what real strength is.

Refusing to apologize IS weakness

[Botany]

9. Best President of my lifetime

I have never seen any non Native American work harder to try to do the
right things for the original Americans. I hope President Harris* keeps
Deb Haaland on as Sec. of Interior. (If she wants to.)


*

[Bayard]

3. The circumstances were a misunderstanding,

And the results, horrifying. Well worth reading the article.

Thanks for posting.

[riversedge]

4. Great to see this.

[Martin68]

5. Better late than never. It doesn't not undo the harm done, but acknowledging it tells the Tingit people

they are seen and heard, and they matter.

[LisaM]

8. I think it sets a precedent, too.

It might - note I say might - give the current military or other government institutions some introspection on how their actions might be viewed in 150 years.

[malthaussen]

6. "Hey, 150 years ago we blew you people up. Sorry about that."

On the "it's better than nothing" scale, this rates pretty low. But then, it took 150 years to get around to it, so it must have been very difficult.

-- Mal

[paleotn]

7. Let us know when you invent a way back machine...

so we can all go back and make this not happen.

What's done is done. We've done what we could to atone for the sins of our fathers, fathers fathers. Short of burning down the whole goddamn country in repentance, I'm not sure what the hell more you want.

[Whatthe_Firetruck]

10. This apolgy...

Was a nice start.

Would you have rather they did nothing?