I Will Fight No More Forever

Following the publication of the surrender speech in Harper’s Weekly, Chief Joseph became one of the most widely recognized and respected Indigenous figures among white Americans. Of particular interest was the eloquence of the words and his reputation as a great orator, which confused and confounded the common narratives popularized by white writers and politicians regarding the intelligence and capabilities of Indigenous people. Pervasive and damaging stereotypes regarding Indigenous speakers as capable of only monosyllabic speech and possessing only childlike understandings of the world were directly challenged and overturned by Chief Joseph’s powerful words, which were circulated in respected national publications.

Though this speech overturned one stereotype, it was used by those in power in the media and Congress to reinforce another. Like Sitting Bull, Chief Joseph was used by white Americans as a living example of the thesis that Indigenous people could be “civilized,” a word that ignored the reality of the complex and functional Indigenous civilizations disrupted by federal policies and settlers. This stereotype grew in popularity as federal laws shifted toward forced assimilation. Chief Joseph’s popularity posed a double-edged sword as his surrender speech and status as an orator afforded him opportunities to address those in power on behalf of the remaining Wallowa band.