The US at 250: A Native Perspective is a new series from Your Call that exposes the real history behind America’s founding, from stolen lands to erased stories, centering the voices of the Indigenous peoples who’ve endured for centuries.
As the United States marks 250 years, the Trump administration is whitewashing history by embracing the Doctrine of Discovery, a 15th-century legal principle that authorized European explorers to claim lands already inhabited by Indigenous peoples, effectively erasing their sovereignty and laying the groundwork for the deaths of millions of Indigenous peoples through conquest, displacement, and disease.
During his 2026 State of the Union address, Donald Trump repeated a longstanding myth of frontier conquest, saying, “We carved paths through an an unforgiving wilderness, settled a boundless frontier, and tamed the beautiful but very, very dangerous wild west. From empty marshes and wide-open plains, we raised up the world's greatest cities.”
This frames US history as heroic conquest, erasing the experiences of those who lived on these lands long before settlers arrived. Our series pushes back on this longstanding narrative.
The US at 250 will center Native historians, storytellers, elders, and activists to tell the history and stories often left out of textbooks and media coverage. Our first guest, historian Ned Blackhawk, asks “How can a nation founded on the homelands of dispossessed Indigenous peoples be the world’s most exemplary democracy?”
We will discuss the truth behind the so-called founding of the United States and celebrate the strength and resilience of its first peoples.
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On Friday, Trump ordered warning signs installed outside of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History due in part to its depiction of Native American history. -
The Land Back movement is growing rapidly across the country. California has returned over 100,000 acres of land to Native tribes and plans to return at least 7.5 million more. -
Fire in the Mountains, a heavy metal festival dedicated to reducing suicides among Native American teens, will take place from July 23-26 on the Blackfeet Reservation. -
As the US marks 250 years of the Declaration of Independence, few know the founders’ grievances over Indian affairs shaped the document. -
Alongside educators from the California Indian Museum and Cultural Center, we discuss the history and activism of the state's over 100 distinct tribes. -
In her new podcast, First America, Rebecca Nagle uncovers how the founders’ treatment of Native nations – and their resistance – shaped the foundations of US democracy. -
On the Tending Our Roots podcast, Miigis Gonzalez and Jill Fish feature guests working toward the collective health, healing, and well being of Indigenous communities. -
In "Know We are Here: Voices of Native California Resistance," California Indian authors write about how Indigenous communities are resisting the legacies of genocide. -
Professor Kerri Malloy (Yurok/Karuk) will discuss federal and state policies that were designed to erase Indigenous history, culture, and sovereignty. -
Trump continues to whitewash the history of the US by embracing the Doctrine of Discovery ahead of this country's so-called 250th birthday. How are scholars responding?
