Historical Scholarship: On Intersectionality...

 The Intersectionality of Indigenous Americans and African Americans in                                                     the Colonial Period

The colonial era of American history from the early 1600s to the mid-1800s, was marked by complex and often fraught interactions between Indigenous Americans, African Americans, and European settlers. While these groups each had unique experiences, their challenges and their histories were intertwined in profound ways. The intersectionality of Indigenous Americans and African Americans during this period reflects their shared experiences of displacement, resistance, and survival in the face of colonial oppression.

The Shared Struggles of Displacement and Enslavement

Both Indigenous Americans and African Americans faced extreme challenges during westward expansion. Indigenous communities forced to migrate saw their lands taken, their cultures suppressed, and their populations decimated through violence, disease, and continuous forced relocation. For African Americans, the horrors of the transatlantic slave trade meant being torn from their homeland, shackled in forced labor, and treated as property rather than people. Though their experiences were different in form, both groups faced a colonial system built on exploitation. Native Americans' displacement from their resources and land and African Americans forced from their homelands to become labor in plantations were driven by similar economic motives: As colonial settlers sought control over land and resources to build wealth. These shared challenges often led to moments of solidarity and mutual support between the two ethnic groups. 

Alliances and Resistance

In the face of colonial violence, both Indigenous and African Americans resisted their oppressors in numerous ways. During the first century of colonialism, they labored settler plantations side by side. In the early colonial years, many enslaved Africans escaped their plantations and sought safety with Native communities. For example, in the southeastern United States, runaway slaves often sought sanctuary in the swamps and forests, where they could join groups like the Seminole Nation. Over time, the Seminoles and other Indigenous nations formed alliances with enslaved Africans, offering them protection and a space to build new lives.

Indigenous peoples also played a critical role in resistance movements against colonial expansion. In the early 1600s, the Powhatan Confederacy fought against the encroaching English settlers in Virginia. Similarly, the Wampanoag and their leader, King Philip, resisted English settlement in the 1670s. African Americans in the colonies were also actively involved in uprisings and revolts, such as the Stono Rebellion of 1739 in South Carolina, where enslaved Africans attempted to escape to Spanish Florida, seeking freedom among Native American groups. These alliances were not just about mutual survival; they also represented a form of cultural exchange and blending. African Americans and Indigenous Americans shared knowledge about agriculture, hunting, and the landscape. 

Cultural Intersections

The colonial experience for both African Americans and Indigenous Americans led to cultural exchanges that shaped both communities in many ways. The blending of African, Indigenous, and European cultures created hybrid identities and practices, particularly in the southern colonies. African American chattel and Indigenous people shared agricultural knowledge, and exchanged tools, techniques, and ideas for farming, hunting, and survival. Similarly, music, dance, and spiritual practices were also points of cultural convergence, leading to new forms of religious expression and music.

While the daily experiences of African Americans and Indigenous peoples were shaped by the dominance of European settler colonialism, their interactions during the colonial period offer insights into resilience, adaptation, and the shared fight for freedom. The syncretic cultural identities that arose from their intersections played a significant role in shaping the social fabric of colonial America, laying the groundwork for the diverse, ethnically and culturally amalgamated societies that would eventually emerge in the United States.

The Ongoing Legacy of Intersectionality

The colonial period was one of profound loss for both Indigenous Americans and African Americans. While their experiences of displacement, enslavement, and resistance were distinct in some ways, the overlap between these two communities reveals a shared history of survival, adaptation, and collaboration. The intersectionality of Indigenous and African American experiences during this period is a testament to the resilience of these peoples and the ongoing impact of colonialism on the fabric of American society. Understanding this history is essential not only for understanding the past but also for grappling with the legacies of colonialism that continue to shape the present and the cultural identities of the descendants of this phenomenon.

Sources

Irwin, Lee. “Freedom, Law, and Prophecy: A Brief History of Native American Religious Resistance.” American Indian Quarterly 21, no. 1.1997. p. 35–55. https://doi.org/10.2307/1185587.

Parker, Alan R. “The Historical Context of the U.S. Government’s Policies Regarding Indian People.” In Pathways to Indigenous Nation Sovereignty: A Chronicle of Federal Policy Developments, p.  1–12. Michigan State University Press, 2018. https://doi.org/10.14321/j.ctt1x07zjf.5.

Talbot, Steve. “Spiritual Genocide: The Denial of American Indian Religious Freedom, from Conquest to 1934.” Wicazo Sa Review 21, no. 2 (2006): 7–39. http://www.jstor.org/stable/4140266.

Zaferatos, Nicholas Christos, and BRIAN CLADOOSBY. “An Overview of Federal Indian Policy and the Evolution of the Tribal Political Community.” In Planning the American Indian Reservation: From Theory to Empowerment, p. 13–34. Syracuse University Press, 2015. http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1j1ns8h.8.

Zamir, Shamoon, Alexander B. Upshaw, and Edward S. Curtis. “Native Agency and the Making of ‘The North American Indian’: Alexander B. Upshaw and Edward S. Curtis.” American Indian Quarterly 31, no. 4. 2007. http://www.jstor.org/stable/30113979.