Osama Bin Laden as Geronimo
Captain Sasha May 7th, 2011
When the US Navy seals launched the Operation Neptune Spear to kill Osama Bin Laden, the word ‘Geronimo’ was used as a codeword to mean Osama Bin Laden. Geronimo was a Native American chief of the Chiricahua Apache tribe who spent years fighting the US and Mexican armies, against the invasion of his homeland.
A short video on the Apache resistance against the invaders
During the 1800s, armies of the United States overran the Americas. They overthrew the natives from their houses, captured their land, burned down their villages, stripped them of their culture - with the same self righteousness that their decendants thump on their chests today. According to the notable English historian David Cesarani, the policies of the United States of America was responsible for the massacre of over 20 million Native Americans, outnumbering the Nazi Holocaust three times over. [Holocaust: Critical Concepts in Historical Studies] This has also been backed by an American historian, David Edward Stannard of Hawaii University in his book “American Holocaust: The Conquest of the New World“. Geronimo was the leader who fought against this barbarity until he was captured and imprisoned in 1886.
By linking a Native American hero to a stateless and radical mercenary like Osama Bin Laden, the people of United States are perhaps sending the message that natives are still an enemy - to be despised and hunted as terrorists.
More Information:
- Omaha World Herald -> Locals joing fight for Geronimo’s name
- Russia Today -> Linking Bin Laden to Geronimo stirs outrage
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