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{{Short description|American missionary}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2020}}
{{Infobox person
| name = John Allen Chau
| image = John Allen Chau.jpg
| birth_date = {{birth date|1991|12|18|mf=y}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Christian Martyr: John Allen Chau |url=https://www.covenantjourney.org/details/john-allen-chau |publisher=Covenant Journey |date=November 21, 2018|access-date=2020-04-24}}</ref>
| birth_place = [[Scottsboro, Alabama|Scottsboro]], [[Alabama]], U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2018|11|17|1991|12|08|mf=y}}
| death_place = [[North Sentinel Island]], [[Andaman and Nicobar Islands]], India
| burial_place = North Sentinel Island
| nationality = American
| education = [[Oral Roberts University]]<ref>{{cite web |last1=Gettleman |first1=Jeffrey |author-link1=Jeffrey Gettleman|last2=Kumar|first2=Hari |last3=Schultz|first3=Kai |title=A Man's Last Letter Before Being Killed on a Forbidden Island |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/23/world/asia/andaman-missionary-john-chau.html |work=The New York Times |date=November 23, 2018|access-date=2020-04-24}}</ref>
| occupation = [[Christian missionary]]
}}
'''John Allen Chau''' (December 18, 1991 – November 17, 2018) was an American Evangelical Christian [[missionary]] who was killed by the [[Sentinelese]], a self-isolated [[uncontacted people]], after illegally traveling to [[North Sentinel Island]] in an attempt to convert the tribe to [[Christianity]].<ref name="Sasikumar2019"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/22/asia/north-sentinel-island-john-allen-chau-diary-intl/index.html|title='You guys might think I'm crazy': Diary of US 'missionary' reveals last days in remote island|first=Euan |last=McKirdy|publisher=CNN|date=November 22, 2018|access-date=2020-03-24}}</ref>

== Early life ==
John Allen Chau was born on December 18, 1991, in [[Scottsboro, Alabama|Scottsboro]], [[Alabama]], the third and youngest child of Lynda Adams-Chau, an organizer for [[Chi Alpha (Christian Fellowship)|Chi Alpha]], and Patrick Chau, a [[Chinese-American]] [[psychiatrist]] who left China during the [[Cultural Revolution]].<ref name="Perry">{{Cite web|last=Perry|first=Alex|date=July 24, 2019|title=The Last Days of John Allen Chau|url=https://www.outsideonline.com/2400030/john-allen-chau-life-death-north-sentinel|access-date=2020-03-24|website=[[Outside (magazine)|Outside]]}}</ref>

Throughout his childhood, Chau loved camping, hiking and travelling, and excelled at various club, charity, and other extracurricular activities. He admired numerous explorers and missionaries including [[David Livingstone]] and [[Bruce Olson]]. He later attended [[Oral Roberts University]] in [[Oklahoma]]. Prior to 2018, Chau participated in missionary trips to Mexico, South Africa and [[Kurdistan Region|Iraqi Kurdistan]]. He first traveled to the [[Andaman Islands]] in 2015 and 2016 as part of his missionary trips, but did not visit [[North Sentinel Island]].<ref name="Conroy">{{Cite web|last=Conroy|first=J. Oliver|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/feb/03/john-chau-christian-missionary-death-sentinelese|title=The life and death of John Chau, the man who tried to convert his killers|work=The Guardian|date=February 3, 2019|access-date=2020-07-01}}</ref>

==Contact with Sentinelese and death==
In 2017, Chau participated in boot camp missionary training by the [[Kansas City, Missouri|Kansas City]]-based evangelical organization All Nations.<ref name="NewsComAu" /> According to a report by ''[[The New York Times]]'', the training included navigating a mock native village populated by missionary staff members who pretended to be hostile natives, wielding fake spears.<ref name="Gettleman">{{Cite web|last=Gettleman|first=Jeffrey |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/30/world/asia/john-chau-andaman-missionary.html|title=John Chau Aced Missionary Boot Camp. Reality Proved a Harsher Test.|work=The New York Times|date=November 30, 2018|access-date=2020-06-30}}</ref> During that year he reportedly expressed his interest in converting the Sentinelese.

In October 2018, Chau traveled to and established his residence at [[Port Blair]], capital of the [[Andaman and Nicobar Islands]], where he prepared an initial contact kit including picture cards for communication, gifts for Sentinelese people, medical equipment, and other necessities.<ref name="Conroy" /> In August 2018, the Indian Home Ministry had removed 29 inhabited islands in Andaman and Nicobar from the [[Restricted Area Permit]] (RAP) regime, in an attempt to promote tourism.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Restricted Area Permit eased for foreigners visiting 29 Andaman and Nicobar Islands - GKToday |url=https://www.gktoday.in/topic/restricted-area-permit-eased-foreigners-visiting-29-andaman-nicobar-islands/ |access-date=2022-06-05 |website=www.gktoday.in}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=NCST to Visit A&N Islands from 4th to 6th December, 2018 to Investigate and Monitor the issue of US National Feared Killed by Protected Tribes |url=https://pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetail.aspx?PRID=1554140 |access-date=2022-06-05 |website=pib.gov.in}}</ref> However, visiting North Sentinel Island without government permission remained illegal under the Andaman and Nicobar Islands (Protection of Aboriginal Tribes) Regulation, 1956.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Protecting the Sentinelese |url=https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/protecting-the-sentinelese |access-date=2022-06-05 |website=Drishti IAS |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Ministry of Tribal Affairs - Primitive Tribals in Hilly/Forest Areas |url=https://pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetail.aspx?PRID=1594553 |access-date=2022-06-05 |website=pib.gov.in}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://abcnews.go.com/International/john-allen-chau-detailed-efforts-convert-islanders-christianity/story?id=59401238|title=John Allen Chau detailed efforts to convert islanders to Christianity in final diary entries: 'You guys might think I'm crazy'|last1=Osborne|first1=Mark |last2=Joglekar|first2=Rahul |publisher=ABC News|date=November 26, 2018|access-date=2020-03-24}}</ref>

In November, Chau embarked on an expedition to North Sentinel Island, which he considered to be "[[Satan]]'s last stronghold on Earth",<ref>{{Cite web|last=Gjelten|first=Tom|title=Killing Of American Missionary Ignites Debate Over How To Evangelize|url=https://www.npr.org/2018/11/27/671285330/killing-of-american-missionary-ignites-debate-over-how-to-evangelize|access-date=2020-07-16|website=NPR.org|language=en}}</ref> with the aim of contacting and living among the Sentinelese.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://wonderingeagle.wordpress.com/2018/12/08/john-allen-chau-is-no-jim-elliot-the-story-of-john-chau-illustrates-the-dangers-of-indoctrination-in-evangelical-culture-and-being-naive/|title=John Allen Chau is No Jim Elliot. The Story of John Chau Illustrates the Dangers of Indoctrination in Evangelical Culture and Being Naïve|last=Bonner|first=David |date=December 8, 2018|website=Wondering Eagle|access-date=2020-03-24|via=WordPress}}</ref><ref name="NewsComAu">{{Cite web|url=https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/incidents/police-faceoff-with-sentinelese-tribe-as-they-struggle-to-recover-slain-missionarys-body/news-story/a88d3780059939a5e11ebcfb556327ac|title=Police face off with Sentinelese tribe as they struggle to recover slain missionary's body|date=November 26, 2018|website=News.com.au|access-date=2020-03-24}}</ref> In preparation for the trip, he was vaccinated and quarantined,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2018/november-web-only/all-nations-john-allen-chau-north-sentinel-island.html|title=What John Allen Chau's Missions Agency Wants You to Know|website=Christianity Today|date=November 28, 2018|access-date=2020-03-24}}</ref> and also undertook medical and linguistic training.<ref name="Stetzer">{{Cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2018/11/28/slain-missionary-john-chau-prepared-much-more-than-we-thought-his-case-is-still-quandary-us-missionaries/|title=Slain missionary John Chau prepared much more than we thought, but are missionaries still fools?|last=Stetzer|first=Ed|author-link=Ed Stetzer|website=The Washington Post|date=November 28, 2018|access-date=2020-03-24}}</ref> Chau then paid two fishermen {{INR|25000}} (US$335.47) to take him close to the island.<ref name="ndtv">{{Cite web|last=Banerjie|first=Monideepa |url=https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/us-tourist-john-chau-paid-fishermen-rs-25-000-for-fatal-trip-to-sentinelese-island-1951387|title=American Paid Fishermen Rs. 25,000 For Fatal Trip To Andamans|publisher=NDTV|date=November 22, 2018|access-date=2020-03-24}}</ref> The fishermen were later arrested.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nypost.com/2018/11/23/cops-arrest-suspects-believed-to-help-us-missionary-on-fatal-trip/|title=Cops arrest suspects believed to help US missionary on fatal trip|last=Eustachewich|first=Lia|date=November 23, 2018|website=New York Post|access-date=2020-03-24}}</ref>

Chau expressed a clear desire to convert the tribe and was aware of the legal and mortal risks he was taking his efforts, writing in his diary, "Lord, is this island Satan's last stronghold where none have heard or even had the chance to hear your name?", "The eternal lives of this tribe is at hand", and "I think it's worthwhile to declare [[Jesus]] to these people. Please do not be angry at them or at God if I get killed...Don't retrieve my body."<ref name="NDTV_Satan">{{cite news|url=https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/fear-and-faith-inside-the-last-days-of-an-us-man-john-allen-chau-killed-by-remote-tribe-1952049|title="Satan's Last Stronghold...?" US Man Wrote Before Death on Andaman Island|last=Slater|first=Joanna|date=23 November 2018|access-date=27 November 2018|publisher=NDTV|archive-date=27 November 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181127044142/https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/fear-and-faith-inside-the-last-days-of-an-us-man-john-allen-chau-killed-by-remote-tribe-1952049|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="cnn">{{Cite news|url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/25/asia/missionary-john-chau-north-sentinel-island-sentinelese/index.html|title=Indian authorities struggle to retrieve US missionary feared killed on remote island|last=Chavez|first=Nicole|date=25 November 2018|work=CNN|access-date=25 November 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181125131356/https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/25/asia/missionary-john-chau-north-sentinel-island-sentinelese/index.html|archive-date=25 November 2018|url-status=live|language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":1" />

On November 15, Chau attempted his first visit in a fishing boat, which took him about {{convert|500|–|700|m|ft|abbr=off}} from shore.<ref name=ndtv/> The fishermen warned Chau not to go farther, but he [[canoe]]d toward shore with a waterproof Bible. As he approached, he attempted to communicate with the islanders<ref name="Wapo21NovGod">{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2018/11/21/american-believed-dead-after-encounter-with-remote-indian-tribe-hostile-outsiders/|title='God, I don't want to die,' U.S. missionary wrote before he was killed by remote tribe on Indian island|last=Slater|first=Joanna|date=21 November 2018|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|access-date=22 November 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181121184510/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2018/11/21/american-believed-dead-after-encounter-with-remote-indian-tribe-hostile-outsiders/|archive-date=21 November 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> and to offer gifts, but he retreated after facing hostile responses.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.firstpost.com/india/us-tourist-killed-by-tribe-in-andaman-and-nicobars-north-sentinel-island-seven-arrested-in-connection-with-murder-5590841.html|title=US tourist killed by tribe in Andaman and Nicobar's North Sentinel Island, seven arrested in connection with murder |last= Firstpost Staff|website=www.firstpost.com|date=21 November 2018 |access-date=22 November 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181122005834/https://www.firstpost.com/india/us-tourist-killed-by-tribe-in-andaman-and-nicobars-north-sentinel-island-seven-arrested-in-connection-with-murder-5590841.html|archive-date=22 November 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="nytimes">{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/23/world/asia/andaman-missionary-john-chau.html |title=A Man's Last Letter Before Being Killed on a Forbidden Island |author=Jeffrey Gettleman |author2=Hari Kumar |author3=Kai Schultz |date=23 November 2018 |work=[[The New York Times]] |access-date=26 November 2018 |archive-date=26 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181126181038/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/23/world/asia/andaman-missionary-john-chau.html |url-status=live }}</ref> On another visit, Chau recorded that the islanders reacted to him with a mixture of amusement, bewilderment and hostility. He attempted to sing worship songs to them, and spoke to them in [[Xhosa language|Xhosa]], after which they often fell silent. Other attempts to communicate ended with them bursting into laughter.<ref name="nytimes" /> Chau stated they communicated with "lots of high pitched sounds" and gestures.<ref name="spokesman">{{cite news|first1=Joanna|last1=Slater|first2=Annie|last2=Gowen|url=http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2018/nov/23/fear-and-faith-inside-the-last-days-of-an-american/|title=Fear and faith: Inside the last days of an American missionary died on tribe's remote Indian Ocean island|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=23 November 2018|access-date=26 November 2018|archive-date=25 November 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181125210606/http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2018/nov/23/fear-and-faith-inside-the-last-days-of-an-american/|url-status=live}}</ref> Eventually, according to Chau's last letter, when he tried to hand over fish and gifts, a boy shot a metal-headed arrow that pierced the Bible he was holding in front of his chest, after which he retreated again.

On his final visit, on November 17, Chau instructed the fishermen to leave without him.<ref name="scmp">{{Cite news|url=https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/2174420/why-are-they-so-angry-us-man-john-allen-chau-killed-remote|title=US man killed by remote tribe was trying to spread Christianity|last=Reuters|work=South China Morning Post|access-date=24 November 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181123175329/https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/2174420/why-are-they-so-angry-us-man-john-allen-chau-killed-remote|archive-date=23 November 2018|url-status=live|language=en}}</ref> The fishermen later saw the islanders dragging Chau's body, and the next day they saw his body on the shore.<ref name=ndtv/>

==Aftermath==
Upon learning about Chau's death, the fishermen returned to Port Blair and gave Chau's diary to his friend, also a Christian preacher, residing in the capital city.<ref name="ndtv"/> He informed Chau's family in the U.S., who contacted the [[Consulate General of the United States, Chennai|American consulate]] in [[Chennai]] for assistance.<ref name="ndtv"/> The Andaman government was notified on November 19.<ref name="ndtv"/> On November 21, the Director General of Police issued a statement on the restrictions on public access to the North Sentinel Island.<ref name="ndtv"/>

Despite efforts by Indian authorities, which involved a tense encounter with the tribe, Chau's body was not recovered.<ref name="NewsComAu" /> Indian officials made several attempts to recover the body but eventually abandoned those efforts. An anthropologist involved in the case told ''[[The Guardian]]'' that the risk of a dangerous clash between investigators and the islanders was too great to justify any further attempts.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/nov/28/india-body-john-allen-chau-missionary-killed-by-sentinelese-tribe|title=India has no plans to recover body of US missionary killed by tribe|last1=Safi|first1=Michael |last2=Giles |first2=Denis |work=[[The Guardian]]|date=November 28, 2018|access-date=2020-04-24}}</ref> A murder case was opened following his death.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-46345231|title=John Allen Chau: 'Incredibly dangerous' to retrieve body from North Sentinel|work=[[BBC News]]|date=November 26, 2018|access-date=2020-06-15}}</ref>

Chau was criticized by [[Survival International]] among others for visiting the island despite the possibility of introducing [[pathogen|pathogens]] to the native Sentinelese, to whom it could have been deadly since it was likely that the natives had not been previously exposed to diseases from outside the island.<ref name="Perry"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/john-allen-chau-was-brave-he-was-also-reckless/2018/11/27/ddb9200c-f1b0-11e8-99c2-cfca6fcf610c_story.html|title=John Allen Chau was brave. He was also reckless.|newspaper=The Washington Post|last1=Elonai|first1=Maisha|date=November 28, 2018|access-date=March 28, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.survivalinternational.org/news/12031|title=Survival International statement on killing of American man John Allen Chau by Sentinelese tribe, Andaman Islands|publisher=Survival International|date=November 21, 2018|access-date=March 28, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Missionary claims that John Chau did not pose a threat to the Sentinelese - Survival responds |url=https://www.survivalinternational.org/news/12042 |website=www.survivalinternational.org |publisher=Survival International |access-date=5 May 2020 |language=en}}</ref> All Nations, the evangelical organization that trained Chau, was criticized on social media for describing Chau as a martyr while expressing condolences for Chau's death. Chau's father also blamed his son's death on the missionary community for inculcating an extreme Christian vision within Chau.<ref name="Conroy" />

In response to Chau's death, M. Sasikumar of the [[Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies]], questioned the legal charge of murder and what he perceived as a romanticized version of the incident in the media. He wrote that the incident should instead serve as a warning that the "eyes-only" policy with regard to the Sentinelese needs to be more strictly enforced, and include the local fishermen in order to prevent a repetition.<ref name=Sasikumar2019>{{cite journal | last=Sasikumar| first=M. | year=2019| title=The Sentinelese of North Sentinel Island: A Reappraisal of Tribal Scenario in an Andaman Island in the Context of Killing of an American Preacher| journal=Journal of the Anthropological Survey of India| volume=68| issue=1| pages=56–69| DOI=10.1177/2277436X19844882| doi-access=free}}</ref>

Michael Schönhuth, Professor for Cultural Anthropology at the [[University of Trier]], Germany, found the media response to Chau's killing of cultural interest. He wrote that the narratives that emerged were part of a larger discussion regarding the proper relationship between the modern world and the remaining isolated indigenous peoples. Schönhuth wrote that the online presence of the Evangelical missionaries whose numbers had grown over the preceding twenty years, and in which Chau was an active participant, presented a narrative in which they were bringing civilization to a primitive people, and that the likelihood of missionaries being killed was not a deterrent, but an affirmation of the need for the "uncontacted people" to be rescued from a savage existence. Schönhuth faulted the media for playing into this narrative, ignoring the history of exploitation of the people in the region, which presented an alternative narrative in which the killing of Chau was self-defense. Schönhuth suggested that the media hype must be reinterpreted to allow for such alternatives to be understood.<ref>{{cite journal| last=Schönhuth| first=M.| year=2019| title=Dead missionaries, wild Sentinelese: An anthropological review of a global media event| journal=Anthropology Today| volume=35| issue=4| pages=3-6| DOI=10.1111/1467-8322.12514| doi-access=free}}</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Chau, John Allen}}
[[Category:1991 births]]
[[Category:2018 deaths]]
[[Category:American people murdered abroad]]
[[Category:American people of Chinese descent]]
[[Category:American Protestant missionaries]]
[[Category:Christians from Alabama]]
[[Category:Christians from Washington (state)]]
[[Category:Oral Roberts University alumni]]
[[Category:People from Vancouver, Washington]]
[[Category:People murdered in India]]
[[Category:People from Scottsboro, Alabama]]

John Allen Chau - Revision history

UpdateBot at 14:55, 30 June 2022