The Myth of Inevitable Extinction

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Benjamin: The myth of inevitable extinction is a way of naturalizing atrocity. One form of this myth is providential or theological, he says. That idea then leads to days of Thanksgiving after massacres in colonial Connecticut,. Benjamin: People came to talk about how to both ethically euthanized for one of the better word to euthanize original indigenous peoples of California.

In this extended interview, we speak with UCLA Associate Professor Benjamin Madley about his book, "An American Genocide: The United States and the California Indian Catastrophe," and discuss how newspapers, tracts, and paperbacks were an essential element in assisting and priming the public for the genocide of California's native population.

Prof. Madley's work was instrumental in our research for previous Citations Needed episodes - namely, "Episode 158: How Notions of 'Blight' and 'Barrenness' Were Created to Erase Indigenous Peoples" and "Episode 172: The Foundational Myth Machine - Indigenous Peoples of North America and Hollywood" - so we were thrilled to dig even deeper into his work on this special News Brief.