Two separate historical atrocities entwined, and two marginalized communities bonded through personal pain and mutual understanding. This is the story of the Trail of Tears (1830-1877) and the Potato Famine (1845-1849).
The United States Government passed a law in 1830 called “The Indian Removal Act”, whereby Native American tribes were forced out of their endemic homelands in Mississippi and Oklahoma to be relocated in designated Indian Territories. More than 60,000 Cherokee, Chickasaw, Seminole, Muscogee, and Choctaw natives (together with thousands of Black slaves) were forcibly taken by local and state militias to Little Rock (Arkansas). Many of them were killed and suffered extensively due to freezing conditions, floods, disease and famine, which is why a Choctaw Chief named their sorrowful trek the “Trail of Tears and Death“.
Not long after, the Irish were suffering a personal Hell of their own. The Great Potato Famine (aka. The Great Hunger) caused by a mass spread of diseased crops and an absent/negligent British government, reduced the population of Ireland by 25% due to starvation and forced international migration. The famine and its effects were felt for generations, and this event shaped the history of Ireland to this day. Having gone through similar circumstances, when the Choctaw peoples heard of what was going on overseas, it touched the very fibres of their being. They decided to donate $170 (equivalent to $5,000 today) in individual relief efforts to assist Ireland in its collective struggle. An act of pure compassion when the tribes themselves were still enduring scornful tyranny and relentless oppression.
Today, the utmost empathy and altruistic actions of the Choctaw is being recognised in the town of Midleton, Cork County. A 6-meter high monument called “Kindred Spirits”, designed by artist Alex Pentek has been unveiled. Eagle feathers reaching the sky in tandem comprise the symbolic sculpture located in Bailick Park, and a plaque commemorating Native American efforts during the Black ’47 (the worst year of hunger) represents “this great moment of compassion, strength, and unity”, according to Pentek.
The plaque, installed in Dublin’s Mansion House, reads: “Their humanity calls us to remember the millions of human beings throughout our world today who die of hunger and hunger-related illness in a world of plenty.”