"We Only Ask an Even Chance to Live as Other Men Live" - My Tribute to Chief Joseph

(Getty Images)

They called themselves Nimipu, the Real People of America. Hin-mah-too-yah-lat-kekt, popularly known as Chief Joseph or Young Joseph, was one of them. As a leader of Nez Perce, a Native American tribe, he led his people in an attempt to resist the takeover of their lands in the Oregon Territory by white settlers. He was a true Warrior and a person of Peace. He and his tribe fought several battles with the pursuing US Army and the 5th of October 1877 was the day of their final act of defiance. However, on this particular day a Peaceful Warrior was born and wisdom that followed: "We live, we die, and like the grass and trees, renew ourselves from the soft clods of the grave. Stones crumble and decay, faiths grow old and they are forgotten, but new beliefs are born. The faith of the villages is dust now (...) but it will grow again (...) like the trees. May serenity circle on silent wings and catch the whisper of the winds."

Chief Joseph never stopped fighting for land in the Wallowa Valley, and up to his death in 1904, the government kept reopening and reconsidering his claims. He became a true inspiration to all of us, the generations of civil rights and human rights activists. His forceful and powerful message of universal Liberty and Equality is still with us.

“Let me be a free man—free to travel, free to stop, free to work, free to trade where I choose, free to choose my own teachers, free to follow the religion of my fathers, free to think and talk and act for myself—and I will obey every law, or submit to the penalty.”

As human beings we must always stand up to reality that is unjust. And as argued by Chief Joseph " It does not require many words to speak the truth." Whether one considers that this is someone's "be or not to be" or a mirage depends on whether one considers that human beings have right to be free which are being violated or not. The latter, however, are mostly those whose unjust acts we have to stand up to. By doing so we need to remember that "darkness cannot drive out darkness" (ML King). Justice through violence could be justified in many situations. Nonetheless, to build a lasting peace, retaliation cannot supersede justice. What is justice? Creating a balanced system with a lasting peace is justice. And as flamingly shown by Chief Joseph, words are more powerful than weapons.

Always.

Bibliography:

DM Buerge, 'Chief Seattle and Chief Joseph: From Indians to Icons' (University of Washington, date not provided)<http://content.lib.washington.edu/aipnw/buerge2.html> accessed 22 November 2017.

Inspiration for the Spirit, Native American Wisdom (Inspiration for the Spirit, date not provided) <www.inspirationforthespirit.com/native-american-wisdom/> accessed 22 November 2017.

Note:

Please be advised, movie trailers or programmes used in this post are for a review purpose only, and their use is a classic example of commentary purpose, which is a well-established use under the Fair Use categories.