# If the MAN took the Indians land, who'd they take it from? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [January 13, 2003, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-the-man-took-the-indians-land-whod-they-take-it-from/148341 "2003-01-13T18:57:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2003, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-the-man-took-the-indians-land-whod-they-take-it-from/148341/21 "2003-01-13T21:39:20Z")
The Indians were here first because they had reservations. ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2003, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-the-man-took-the-indians-land-whod-they-take-it-from/148341/22 "2003-01-13T21:45:04Z")
Ouch! That’s bad! ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2003, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-the-man-took-the-indians-land-whod-they-take-it-from/148341/23 "2003-01-13T21:52:55Z")
Well- going off on a slight tangent. There was certainly more than one wave of immigration. As people will be people, it is likely that “wave one” was “pushed” by “wave two” and so forth. It appears- at this point in time- that the “waves” came over a few thousand years, and were all from a related group of people. However, there is some evidence of much earlier arrivals, and possibly even immigration of (pre-Columbian) other populations. However, like I said- it doesn’t really matter does it? Just because one of the last waves were a different people altogether, and came 10000+ years after the first- does not make “Wave 2” which pushed “Wave one” out of the best hunting lands any more “moral” than the “White Man”. Or any less. If what we now think of as “wave one” actually arrived 50000 years after the first colonization of America by yet an earlier people- and of course “pushed them out”- this would not make “the white mans” “pushing” any more right… or wrong. It would be interesting from a paleotologists point of view, of course. But it wouldn’t change a “this is MY land- YOU are the invader” aspect. About the only time we can use the “we wuz here first” arguement is when the dudes using that were actually the population “pushed”. After that- it doesn’t really matter if it was your grandparents… or grandparents 100 times removed. ---
**Author:** ![Susanann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@Susanann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susanann)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2003, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-the-man-took-the-indians-land-whod-they-take-it-from/148341/24 "2003-01-13T22:19:13Z")
The indians continually stole land from each other. The Souix were originally from Canada in the 1700’s- not that long ago, they migrated as far west and south as the Dakotas, Montana, and Colorado by taking land away from other indians. The Cheyenne and Commanche took a lot of land away from other indians when they got the horse. The Blackfeet, Nez Pierce, and Crow continually fought over the same land in Idaho and Wyoming. American indians both stole, and had land stolen, from the Aztecs. The Apache stole every “thing” from everybody. No indian tribe considered ownership of any land, e.g. a lot to put a house or tipi on, to be an “individual” right. Simply put : the white man, stole “stolen property”. Of course, it doesnt make it right that the white man stole land from the indians, just because the indians stole it from someone else. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2003, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-the-man-took-the-indians-land-whod-they-take-it-from/148341/25 "2003-01-13T22:30:30Z")
I can’t believe Puma Claw and Jac aren’t in here screaming “Racism!” yet. They must be sick. ---
**Author:** ![EasyPhil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e47c2d/32.png) [@EasyPhil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EasyPhil)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2003, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-the-man-took-the-indians-land-whod-they-take-it-from/148341/26 "2003-01-13T23:44:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Sampiro \* > \*\*I can’t believe Puma Claw and Jac aren’t in here screaming “Racism!” yet. They must be sick. \*\* I would think that the people in question would make a note of the genocide that accompanied the land acquisition. ---
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2003, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-the-man-took-the-indians-land-whod-they-take-it-from/148341/27 "2003-01-14T01:00:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by EasyPhil \* > \*\*I would think that the people in question would make a note of the genocide that accompanied the land acquisition. \*\* Are you…are you suggesting that the people mentioned would _see another viewpoint in their argument?_ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-the-man-took-the-indians-land-whod-they-take-it-from/148341.md?page=1)