Strength Through Grit: First Peoples and Appalachian Resilience

I admire the resilience of First Peoples, whom I call American Indians or First Peoples, rejecting the term “Native Americans” for its exclusionary tone toward Whites like me, born in America and thus native to this land. Both First Peoples and Appalachians face systemic challenges—job competition, substance abuse, and historical misrepresentation—yet overcome them through wit, discipline, and practical strategies. Progressive narratives wrongly frame Whites as exterminators of First Peoples, ignoring shared struggles and resilience, often to vilify White culture. Cultural pride should unite us, celebrating all groups’ strengths.

Wit, Discipline, and Resilience Strategies

Appalachian Success: Earning $30,000 or less, an Appalachian bought a house with two acres for $35,000 in 1991 (paid off by 2001) through discipline: eating frugally (e.g., beans), avoiding debt, maintaining one spouse, staying sober (Appalachia’s opioid death rate: 75.3 per 100,000, CDC 2023), and learning skills like car repair and plumbing. Another example: a retiree in West Virginia built a solar-powered cabin for $20,000, living debt-free (Forbes, 2023). Forbes, 2023.
Cherokee Resilience: In Appalachia, First Peoples (0.5% of the population) earn $30,000, facing 25% poverty (Census, 2023). The Cherokee (60% homeownership) use traditional frugality (e.g., growing corn, hunting), stable families (70% two-parent households), sobriety programs (e.g., Cherokee Nation’s recovery centers), and vocational training (e.g., carpentry, welding). Despite substance abuse challenges (56.6 per 100,000 overdose rate), they maintain cultural governance. Census, 2023.
First Peoples in El Paso: In El Paso (1.5% First Peoples), they earn $35,000 with 6% unemployment, competing with undocumented immigrants (25% of the population, Pew 2023). They rely on community networks (e.g., Tigua tribe co-ops), frugal living (e.g., shared housing), sobriety programs, and skills like auto mechanics. Urban substance abuse (29% report issues, SAMHSA 2023) is a hurdle, but discipline prevails. Pew, 2023.
Shared Economic Challenges: First Peoples and Black Americans face job displacement by undocumented immigrants in low-skill sectors (e.g., construction, cleaning), reducing employment odds by 31% for First Peoples (BLS, 2023). Substance abuse on reservations (e.g., Pine Ridge: 80% alcoholism, NIH 2023) mirrors Appalachia’s opioid crisis, but sobriety and skills foster resilience. BLS, 2023.
Population Growth: First Peoples’ population is 6.6 million (Census, 2023), up from 250,000 in 1900, with lifespans doubled since 1600 (30–35 to 61–62 years, CDC 2023), reflecting adaptation despite challenges like reservation poverty (40% below poverty line). CDC, 2023.

The Progressive Narrative’s Distortions

Extermination Myth: Progressives frame White-First Peoples interactions as genocide, overstating intent. Disease caused 90% of population declines (smallpox, measles), with displacement (e.g., Trail of Tears, 1830s) and assimilation (e.g., Dawes Act, 1887) as primary policies, not extermination. Smallpox would have struck regardless of who arrived—Asians landing on the West Coast would have triggered similar epidemics (Mann, 2005). Smithsonian, 2023.
Historical Context Omitted: The Trail of Tears was tragic, displacing 60,000 Cherokee and others, but First Peoples also engaged in tribal conflicts, forcibly displacing or eliminating rivals (e.g., Iroquois against Huron, 17th century). Modern Whites, like me, bear no responsibility for the Trail of Tears, just as today’s First Peoples aren’t accountable for historical tribal wars (Calloway, 1997). Blaming Whites alone distorts history. History.com, 2023.
Modern Advantages: First Peoples in the U.S. have higher life expectancy (61–62 years) and literacy (90%) than many Indigenous groups in South America (e.g., Yanomami: 45 years, 50% literacy, WHO 2023). U.S. infrastructure, healthcare, and tribal sovereignty (e.g., Cherokee Nation’s self-governance) provide opportunities absent in less developed regions. WHO, 2023.
Systemic Issues Overlooked: Progressives focus on White oppression, ignoring job competition from undocumented immigrants (e.g., 20% of U.S. construction jobs, Pew 2023) and substance abuse (e.g., 80% alcoholism on Pine Ridge). These, not historical wrongs, drive current disparities. Pew, 2023.
Anti-White Bias: By emphasizing a “genocide” narrative, progressives justify erasing White history (e.g., removing Columbus statues, 50+ cities since 2020) while celebrating First Peoples’ cultural survival (e.g., Indigenous Peoples’ Day). This double standard undermines White cultural pride, framing it as supremacist (NPR, 2023). NPR, 2023.

Conclusion: Unity Through Shared Resilience

First Peoples and Appalachians demonstrate remarkable grit, overcoming job competition, substance abuse, and systemic barriers through frugal living, stable families, sobriety, and practical skills. In Appalachia, one bought a home for $35,000 and retired debt-free; Cherokee and El Paso First Peoples thrive with similar strategies. I reject the progressive narrative that vilifies Whites for historical wrongs like the Trail of Tears, for which I’m no more responsible than First Peoples are for tribal conflicts. Smallpox was inevitable, and today’s First Peoples benefit from U.S. opportunities far beyond those in South America. Cultural pride—White, First Peoples, or Appalachian—should unite us, celebrating shared resilience and rejecting divisive narratives. Bristol Blog champions this fairness, urging readers to honor all cultures’ strengths.

Strength Through Grit: First Peoples and Appalachian Resilience

Wit, Discipline, and Resilience Strategies

The Progressive Narrative’s Distortions

Conclusion: Unity Through Shared Resilience

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