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THE BELOVED LAND
Steve Scurry is turning himself into a local treasure with
his research, writing and speaking about the Creek Indians
who inhabited this land before Georgians took it away from
them. Steve is that rarity, a non-academic historian. Steve
loves the land, and the land has given him hints of those who
walked here leaving few traces. His love has driven him to fol
low those hints to the old, original documents that tell the
story of early Georgia, the story not included in our textbooks.
Steve presented his findings again Sunday night at Cine to a
big crowd, with enough time to take us along with the Creeks
as they sought a solution to the increasing pressure from the
land-hungry Georgians.
The Creeks called the Georgians "Virginians," because most
of them came from Virginia. My friend Dennis Waters, after
hearing Steve, called the Virginians "developers." The Creeks
held all land in common, and this land here along the Oconee
they called the "beloved land," a title of honor, their sacred
hunting grounds. The Georgians wanted to own it—the highest I
and best use, instead of a bunch of scraggly Indians keeping it i
to themselves. The Georgians tried to take it by force, but they
couldn't whip the Creeks, who repeatedly kicked their butts
in combat. Did you know that's why Georgia joined the new
union, d.b.a. The United States of America, the fourth state
to make that commitment? Can you imagine Georgia doing
anything that progressive? Yeah, we did it so we could get fed
eral troops in here to fight the
Indians for us. So, long story
short: the troops came in, and
we got the land.
The unsung story of the
Creeks tells us a lot about who
we were and who we are and
even who we might have been
if we had respected the land as
much as the Creeks did. Instead, we've got us a governor who's
a developer and a land dealer who just recently kept the State
of Georgia from buying the Oaky Woods in Middle Georgia, last
refuge of the black bears in that area. Turns out the governor's
friends wanted to buy that land, and, hey, it just happens to
adjoin land he owns, and they're going to put in a gigantic
subdivision, which will greatly escalate the value of the gover
nor's land, and the only good bear is a dead bear anyway. The
developers rule the Georgia legislature, and the ghosts of the
Creeks must surely be watching these Georgians.
No need to twist Steve's words for modern political pur
poses. He's writing about the past and holding up to us the
people who were the native Georgians before we got here, and
it's useless to ask "what if?" There is no "if." The early his
tory of our country is that we took the land from the Indians,
and while doing that we proclaimed our independence from
England based on the principle that all men are created equal
with certain inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit
of happiness. "All men" did not include Indian men, just as it
did not include the African men brought here.to work as slaves,
nor did it include women of any race, whose own struggle for
rights has gone on ever since.
The Creeks were demonized by the Georgia settlers who
pushed in to take the land and had to fight the "savages." So,
too, were the black slaves characterized. The stalwart women
who worked the land alongside the men while also bearing
their children and preparing their food were thought not capa
ble of thinking and acting for themselves.
Our present national politics is forcing us to confront anew
the role of African-Americans in our country and also our atti
tudes toward women. We're all racist, and we're all sexist, and
if we can't see that in ourselves, we can't begin to understand
how it colors our vision of other men and women. Whatever
the outcome, the presidential campaign will make us all more
aware of race and gender in our society and in our government.
Before it's all over, we may have to examine a lot of assump
tions about old white men, too.
Meanwhile, here's hoping Steve Scurry soon succeeds in
assembling all his research into a book that we can read and
re-read as a testament to those who lived with this land and
loved it as much as they loved life. Steve's vision helps us see
ourselves and reminds us forcefully of William Faulkner's admo
nition, "The past is not dead. In fact, it's not even past."
Pete McCommons editor@flagpole.com
The unsung story of
the Creeks tells us a
lot a bout who we were
and who we are...
THIS WEEK’S ISSUE:
NEWS & FEATURES
City Dope 5
Athens News and Views
Notes on the politics of race in Athens. Clarence Thomas coming to town, and Broun v. Fleming
Athens Rising 8
What’s Up in New Development
Updates on several projects, including new submittals on Ruth Street and next to the future rail-trail.
ENTERTA1
EINIT
Three Decades and Counting 10
The Athens Human Rights Rest Soldiers On
It's back again on College Square all weekend long
History Lives at the Hot Corner Celebration 11
This Year’s Edition Kicks Off the New Athens Heritage Project
What’s going down on the west end this weekend
COVER DESIGN by Kelly Ruberto
featuring a detail of a photograph by
Erik Patten on display at Clayton Street
Gallery.
iMiyso©
Earth 31
Slow, Steady and Heavy
The drone-doom pioneers of Earth finally make their Athens debut.
Pure ‘Lectricity 33
North Mississippi Allstars Still Got Plenty of Blues to Go Around
These Southern gents feel strongest about their original lineup.
MOVIE DOPE
MOVIE PICK
GIRLS ROCK!
EARTH
THE BAD PLUS
NORTH MISSISSIPPI ALLSTARS
MORNING STATE
LINER NOTES
RECORD REVIEWS
THREATS & PROMISES
COMICS
REALITY CHECK
CLASSIFIEDS
LETTERS
CITY DOPE
CITY PAGES
CAPITOL IMPACT
ATHENS RISING
HOMEBIRTH & MIDWIFERY
HUMAN RIGHTS FESTIVAL.
HOT CORNER FESTIVAL...
THE CALENDAR!
ART AROUND TOWN
DOWN THE LINE
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EDITOR l PUBLISHER Pete McCommons
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VOLUME 22
ISSUE NUMBER 17
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APRIL 30,2008 ■ FLAGP0LE.COM
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