I read What is America? A Short History of the New World Order, a book by Ronald Wright, over 10 years ago. I recently found this book on my bookshelf; it was one of about 20 books that I kept after getting rid of hundreds of books that used to line my shelves.
I remember it as a short, surprising, and powerful book that I learned a lot from. In fact, it’s full of dog-eared pages and my pencil underlines and notes in the margins. It dispelled two common stereotypes of Indigenous Americans (the author’s term). First, that Indigenous peoples have never over-hunted or over-consumed resources. Dispelling this myth doesn’t – in my opinion – negate the sacred relationship Indigenous peoples have with the land or their status as land- and water-keepers, but gives us a more nuanced, realistic, and pluralistic view of Indigenous peoples. It helps dispell a one-note stereotype. Second, that Indigenous peoples were highly nomadic and had simple social structures. He talks about the many complex, hierarchical, and agrarian peoples that lived in America before it was America. He also discusses how many settlers thought Indigenous peoples were just as smart and capable as anyone else, and the ways in which settlers and Indigenous peoples co-existed for a long time. The book subverts the idea that settlers instinctively thought Indigenous people were savage, and describes how the eradication of Indigenous peoples was actually a lot more purposeful and intentional – driven by greed for the land more than ignorance of Indigenous people’s humanity.
Here is a short review in The Walrus: https://thewalrus.ca/book-review-what-is-america/
Ronald Wright has also written A Short History of Progress, Stolen Continents, and Gold Eaters – all of which feature information about Indigenous peoples in North America.