No people, just Indians, in Little House

Educator Debbie Reese writes again about Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House on the Prairie. Someone wrote to Wilder requesting a change in the text and Wilder approved it.

Edit(s) to 1935 edition of LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE?

Here's the before:There the wild animals wandered and fed as though they were in a pasture that stretched much farther than a man could see, and there were no people. Only Indians lived there.And the after:There the wild animals wandered and fed as though they were in a pasture that stretched much farther than a man could see, and there were no settlers. Only Indians lived there.Comment:  Even "settlers" isn't quite right, since the Indians were already settled there. If Wilder wanted to distinguish between Indians and others, she should've written "white people."

It's great that Wilder and publisher agreed to make the change. It's ridiculous that Wilder wrote the line originally and no one noticed it for 20 years. It's a great example of the unconscious racism that pervades our culture.

For more on the subject, see The Best Indian Books.