NATIVE AMERICAN GENOCIDE

Trail of Tears - 1830s

In a past blog I discussed the reparations owed to the African Americans in the USA. In this blog I want to focus on the indigenous people. What about them? Have you ever wondered? 

YEAH, WHAT ABOUT THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLE?

The reparations owed to Indigenous peoples in the United States would be astronomical - not just in money, but in land, resources, and justice. Unlike slavery, which was primarily about stolen labor, Indigenous people experienced both genocide and land theft on a massive scale. The U.S. government systematically removed Native communities from their ancestral lands, breaking treaties and forcing them onto reservations. Entire cultures were wiped out, and the economic, social, and spiritual damage continues today.

How Much Would Reparations Cost?

If we were to calculate Indigenous reparations based on stolen land alone, the numbers would be staggering:

1. Land Value – The entire U.S. was once Indigenous land. If we used today’s market value of that land, the total worth would be in the tens of trillions of dollars. For example, just a fraction of stolen land—the Black Hills in South Dakota—was valued at over $1 billion when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1980 that the government had stolen it illegally. But the Lakota people refused the money, insisting that the land should be returned back to them.

2. Economic Losses – Native tribes were forcibly removed from resource-rich lands and placed in poor, isolated regions. This meant generations of economic loss. If we calculated lost income, lost agricultural production, and lost natural resource profits (oil, timber, minerals, etc.), the reparations owed could exceed $100 trillion.

3. Broken Treaties – The U.S. government signed over 370 treaties with Native tribes. In them the government promised land, money, and services in exchange for peace. Almost all of these treaties were broken. If the U.S. paid back even a fraction of the value of those agreements, it would be in the trillions.

4. Forced Assimilation & Cultural Genocide – The U.S. and Canada ran boarding schools where Native children were taken from their families, stripped of their language and identity, and often abused. The long-term trauma from these policies is immeasurable.

What Would Real Reparations Look Like?

Since direct payment in cash would be impossible at this scale, meaningful reparations could include:

• Land Back – Returning federally controlled land to Native nations.

• Financial Compensation – Large-scale investment into Native communities.

• Sovereignty Rights – Strengthening Indigenous governance and control over their own lands.

• Cultural & Educational Support – Fully funding Indigenous schools, language programs, and historical education.

  
  

So, Why Haven’t They Paid?

Simple: Admitting the real cost of America’s foundation would shake the entire system. Indigenous reparations are ignored because acknowledging them would mean acknowledging that the U.S. was built on land theft, genocide, and broken promises. Just like with slavery, the government doesn’t want to admit the full weight of what was done, or pay the price to fix it.

Isn't it amazing how the country which proclaims and yells and screams about being number 1 in the world, the protector of democracy and freedom and property and law, is the same one baptized completely in each of these sins of theft, violence, racism, enslavement, misery, death, genocide, kidnapping, rape etc.

The list goes on and on.

What a sad country.

Thanks for reading. Abrazos.

Diego Rojas