One can hear a distant drum beating as Native American culture faces an neverending onslaught upon their way of life.  It all begins in 1607 with the settlement of the Jamestown colony.  Listen closely, do you hear . . .

A distant beating drum . . .

 

Europeans sail to a pristine land

Fixated with ways of the Red Man

Ignoring these Native Americans

They push inland because they can

 

A distant beating drum . . .

 

Wealth and greed motivate the White Man

Appropriating riches found by his hands

Native Americans outnumber these men

Unaware of the many more to be sent

 

A distant beating drum . . .

 

Native Americans trade land for peace

Hoping the greed and violence will cease

A new American culture lusts for more

Their hunger for more continues to soar

 

A distant beating drum . . .

 

Slowly Native Americans sadly retreat

Heartbroken, their culture faces defeat

Maintaining their language and traditions

Now experiencing life with new conditions

 

Where has the silent beating drum gone?

Native American culture struggles to hold on to its footprint of life in today’s world.  In Maryland, the Choptank nation long ago assimilated into the European-based culture.  Out West, a system of reservations have failed to provide a stable way of life.  The lands set aside in Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, and Oklahoma have created a setting for poverty and a lack of sufficient opportunities for the Native people.

If you enjoyed reading this poem and hunger for more about Native American history and the life out West, feel free to check out these previously published poems.

• Final Battle
• Guardian of the Range