Beyoncé’s Buffalo Soldiers Shirt Sparks Backlash—But the History Between Black and Native Americans Isn’t So Simple
Beyoncé is facing criticism after wearing a Buffalo Soldiers-themed shirt during her Juneteenth performance in Paris, part of her Cowboy Carter tour. The back of the shirt, which is also displayed on her website, features text calling Native Americans, Mexican revolutionaries, and others “enemies of peace, order and settlement”—language many see as promoting anti-Indigenous rhetoric and glorifying American conquest.
Indigenous influencers and academics quickly condemned the shirt’s framing on social media. But while the backlash has been loud, the history of the Buffalo Soldiers—and their role in the American West—is far more layered than a T-shirt can tell.
The Buffalo Soldiers: Fighting for Survival in a Country That Enslaved Them
The Buffalo Soldiers were not volunteers of empire—they were mostly formerly enslaved men and freemen who joined the U.S. Army after the Civil War in pursuit of basic survival: food, shelter, and the elusive promise of freedom. Formed in 1866, these all-Black regiments fought in major U.S. wars through 1951 but were also used by the government to enforce its westward expansion.
Much of that expansion came at the expense of Native American tribes, and yes, the Buffalo Soldiers were sometimes involved in violent campaigns against Indigenous nations. But the context is crucial: these were Black men, barely removed from chattel slavery, working within a system that offered them few choices. Enlisting in the Army was a path out of bondage, poverty, and lynching—one of the only routes available to secure a livable wage, dignity, and some semblance of citizenship.
As Dr. Michelle Tovar of the Buffalo Soldiers National Museum in Houston explains, “We romanticize the Western frontier. But these men were trying to survive in a country that had enslaved them. It’s not about clean heroes and villains—it’s about power and who had none.”
Native and Black History: A Story of Both Alliance and Oppression
Some critics have positioned the Buffalo Soldiers’ actions as a betrayal of Native communities. But the relationship between African Americans and Native Americans has never been one-dimensional—it’s a story of both cooperation and conflict.
- Slavery & Ownership: Several Native tribes, particularly the Five Civilized Tribes (Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, and Seminole), adopted slavery and owned Black people. Some even fought for the Confederacy to protect those interests.
- Divisions During the Civil War: The Cherokee Nation, for example, was internally split—some supported the Union, others the Confederacy, often based on slaveholding interests.
- Discrimination After Emancipation: Even after the Civil War, some tribes continued to marginalize freedmen within their communities and passed laws to restrict their rights.
- Divide and Conquer: The U.S. government actively sowed division between the two groups. Policies like the Indian Removal Act and Fugitive Slave Act harmed both, but also kept them from forming strong, united resistance.
Yet despite these tensions, there was also deep cooperation:
- Mutual Resistance: In the early days of colonization, both groups resisted European settler violence. Some tribes, like the Seminoles, gave refuge to escaped slaves—forming the Black Seminoles.
- Seminole Wars & Maroons: Black Seminoles were key fighters during the Seminole Wars, fiercely resisting U.S. removal efforts. Maroon communities, formed by escaped slaves, often allied with nearby tribes to fend off colonists.
- Cultural Blending: In places like Spanish America and the Deep South, intermarriage, cultural exchange, and shared struggle led to bonds that were complex, enduring, and often erased from mainstream history.
“The history is layered,” said Dr. Michelle Tovar of the Buffalo Soldiers Museum. “To paint Native Americans as innocent victims and Black soldiers as willing tools of empire does both communities a disservice.”
Reclaiming the West—or Reinforcing Its Myths?
Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter project has been widely praised for reclaiming country music and cowboy iconography as Black American heritage. The Buffalo Soldiers represent a real piece of that legacy. As Johns Hopkins historian Tad Stoermer put it, “She’s well aware of the role these images play. This is the ‘Cowboy Carter’ tour—it’s all about layered narratives.”
But those narratives come with tension. Professor Alaina E. Roberts, who studies Black and Native American intersections, noted that while the Buffalo Soldiers symbolize Black presence in the American West, they were also used to further the U.S. empire’s violent expansion. “They weren’t just settling the West—they were part of genocide,” she said.
That’s the weight Beyoncé’s shirt carries—and why it’s sparking such intense reactions.
The Need for Honest, Nuanced History
The Buffalo Soldiers National Museum in Houston is now working to incorporate more of these complexities into its exhibits. “Only recently have we begun to show all sides of the story,” said director of exhibitions Cale Carter. “We can’t keep telling a one-dimensional narrative.”
Online, the backlash continues. Some fans demand an apology. Others, especially in the Black community, argue that history can’t be taught selectively or with erasure of how Indigenous communities have also been complicit in anti-Blackness. TikTok creator Chisom Okorafor said Beyoncé’s symbolism risks pushing the idea that “Black people, too, can profit from American empire.”
