Intriguing how Lincoln had to answer congress. Times have changed.
Lincoln also narrowed the list of convicted men down from 307 men sentenced to death to only 38.
His address to the Senate on the executions stated the following
Anxious to not act with so much clemency as to encourage another outbreak on the one hand, nor with so much severity as to be real cruelty on the other, I caused a careful examination of the records of trials to be made, in view of first ordering the execution of such as had been proved guilty of violating females. Contrary to my expectations, only two of this class were found. I then directed a further examination, and a classification of all who were proven to have participated in massacres, as distinguished from participation in battles. This class numbered forty, and included the two convicted of female violation. One of the number is strongly recommended by the Commission which tried them for commutation to ten years’ imprisonment. I have ordered the other thirty-nine to be executed on Friday, the 19th instant."
Graciously killing only 38 men 🤩
… for the capital crime of defending their people against colonial genocidal aggression
Like, fuck executions in general, no life should be taken from another human except when they present an immediate unmitigated danger to others. Yes, including billionaires, let them work in labor camps. But this is just pathetically awful.
Fucking aye.
Settlers are often given a free pass to murder, rape, and steal indigenous peoples land. Whenever the victims fight back the law must suddenly be upheld. Very, very rarely does a white man ever hang for the same crime.
And agreed on the last part, once you’re not in a ‘war’ and have control you have the means to remove their wealth and power. Going much beyond that starts getting into mindless revenge.
Would you rather he allowed Sibley to hang all 307?
I’m fine with holding historical figures to account, but there’s zero doubt that if Lincoln hadn’t personally intervened, all the convicted men would have died.
The option you are not considering is that zero could have hanged. He did not have to stop at 269 spared from injustice.
In the middle of the Civil War? In a case where order had to be kept by 2000 troops at the execution because of the unrest caused by the massacres and rapes?
I think you’re allowing your ideals to cloud a rational appraisal of the facts.
I’m sorry my ideals don’t include tolerating a little genocide as a treat.
But seem to completely blind you to the fact that while Manifest Destiny and the treatment of the Native Americans was an abomination, individual cases of prosecution (say, for individuals conclusively found to have raped women and massacred civilians) were justified.
Were the civilians just supposed to allow themselves to be attacked?
To bring it back into the present day, ICE and the current fascist autocracy are a crime against mankind. Does this mean it would be acceptable to go kill a bunch of Republican civilians? If your resistance overflows the bounds of military conflict and hurts the innocent, you’re guilty.
Gee maybe if the civilians didn’t kick the Dakota off their land, none of that would have happened.
Does this mean it would be acceptable to go kill a bunch of Republican civilians?
I’m not going to answer that on .world.
A more apt example would be Hamas attacking Israel on the 7th. And I don’t condemn them.
