Calling a Thing What It Is

Confronting the American Genocide of Indigenous Peoples

Abstract

This article examines the history of indigenous people through the lens of genocide theory. Following autobiographical reflections on settler colonialism and the practice of holding seminars on the theme of American genocides, the author explores the meaning of right remembering and making reparations in the context of American exceptionalism and white supremacy as represented in civil religion. Calling a thing what it is, according to Luther’s theology of the cross, involves not only righting the historical narrative based on the past but appreciating the resistance and resilience of indigenous people into the present. Gordon J. Straw was a major figure whose legacy challenges us in calling a thing what it is.