Voices of Freedom is a collection of documentary voices and written transcripts based on court cases, and obscure manifestos. The most significant theme discussed in the book is freedom in America, during the civil war. Voices of Freedom, therefore, through its various documents, seeks to give a record of the American civil right movement in the voices of those who were present. One of such documents making up the book is “Exchange between John Smith and Powhatan” in chapter two.
The exchange between Powhatan and John Smith occurred in Virginia, around January 1608; the accounts if the meeting were recorded by the later in 1624. John Smith was an English leader. Before he became involved with the English governance, Captain John Smith was a soldier and an adventurer. He was among the first Englishmen to settle in Virginia; they suffered from malnutrition, diseases and frequent attacks by Indians. It was during this catastrophic period that John Smith rose to power. Powhatan, on the other hand, was the leader of the Indians who inhabited America. He was the most influential leader in Virginia during the 1600s.
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The ‘Exchange’ was an attempt of exchange of goods between the two nations. Powhatan had initially provided the English with food provisions such as turkey, bread, and venison. The terms of the first deal they discussed, involved John Smith request for 40 baskets of corn and Powhatan, ask for weapons – guns and swords. John Smith clarified that he didn’t have any excess weapons to trade, Powhatan also insinuated that he didn’t have any corn to spare. This brought a dead-end to the first deal. John Smith narrates in his transcript that in all the following deals, Powhatan was more excited about offers that involved guns and words. The deal they finally agreed upon involved John Smith getting ten-quarter of corn, in exchange for a copper kettle. This exchange didn’t have any winners.
On top of ‘the exchange’ not satisfying the participants, it further brought suspicion between the two, which eventually resulted in the English/Indian conflict. John Smith grew suspicious of Powhatan’s enthusiasm for weaponry. He suspected the weapons might later be used against the English. Smith’s reluctance to trade away his weapons also made Powhatan uneasy and suspicious of the foreigners’ intentions. One of the goals of the exchange was to strike some friendship or understanding, which seemed almost impossible with the weapon situation. Another clue to the start of the English/Indian conflict was when Powhatan asked Smith about their intentions to leave Virginia. This implied beyond reasonable doubt that the Indians wanted the English gone. Smith’s choice to leave the question unanswered highly insinuated they didn’t have any plans of moving.
Powhatan made known his concerns about a potential attack by the colonists. He explained that the natives feared the English had come to conquer their land. John Smith guaranteed Powhatan that they wouldn’t use their weapons to attack the residents. Powhatan assured Smith of his friendship, trade, and provisions under the condition that Smith leaves behind his weapons. Smith also vowed his friendship as long as they received the promised provisions. Despite all the pledges, neither side held up its end of the bargain. The Exchange between John Smith and Powhatan didn’t result in a good relationship.
References
Hampton, H., Fayer, S., & Flynn, S. (1991). Voices of freedom: An oral history of the civil rights movement from the 1950s through the 1980s . Bantam.
