Everything You Want to Know About 'Indians'" Study Guide 1

What general terms are most appropriate for talking about Native America’s first people?

(In Canada) First Nations, First Nations People, (In America) Native American, Indigenous, American Indian

Band

A word termed by Colonial powers used to describe a group of Native Americans

Reservation

The lands that were reserved or set aside for various groups of Indians at treaty time

Tribe

A label for all people of the same shared cultural group A word used for each reservation’s government; Native “governments” (more than just a “group” of Native people)

Nation

Tribes are “nations,” meaning, they create laws, hold elections, administer funds

Powwow

Hundreds of thousands of definitions for this word Most scholars agree, however, that the word means “spiritual leader”

How many Indigenous people were in North and South America before contact?

Before they arrived, the East and West coasts were densely populated before contact with Europeans

The ice-free corridor,

A disproven theory that Native people got to present day America by crossing a land bridge and moving down

Clovis First model of human migration

An Archaeological site revealed human made tools that show humans were here 11,000 years ago

What disproves the ice corridor theory?

50 major archaeological sites point to human existence in the Americas prior to the ice corridor theory

What is now theorized to be the migration of Native Americans

Now, scientists believe that people came to the Americas either by land or by traveling along the Pacific Coast in boats long before the Clovis dates (11,000 years ago)

What do Natives say about their origins?

The Great Spirit, Many Native people from North America believe that humans were put on earth by the Great Spirit

Were Natives more violent than whites?

All humans have a violent past, There is no evidence that Native Americans were more warlike or more likely to hurt another inside their tribes, villages, and families.

What is the real story of Columbus?

Columbus did not go looking for America. He was trying to sail west and just did not know that the Americas were in between Europe and Asia when going in that direction.

Columbus went to what is now known as Haiti and the Dominican Republic. He left 39 Spanish sailors there and when he returned, these sailors were all dead, why was this?

These sailors had taken Indians in Haiti and DR and used them to get food, provide shelter and other manipulative ways. The Natives grew tired of this and killed the sailors.

What happened because of the Haitian and Dominican killing-of the 39 Spanish sailors?

The Spanish saw the killing of their sailors as unprovoked. Tens of thousands of Indians were killed.

How does Columbus' story differ from Columbus' Truth?

The version of events that we often teach our children is very different from what actually happened. This is starting to change: there are more and more revisions to curriculum and better resources available to those who teach it

Why does correcting a story such as Columbus' matter?

All human beings have dark chapters in their personal histories. And all nations have dark chapters in theirs. Nobody should be stuck in shame. However, it is important for all countries and all individuals to examine dark chapters in order to learn from them and prevent them from reoccurring

Why are some people trying to change Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples’ Day?

It is not about erasing Columbus from history. It is an effort to reframe our marking of history from the celebration of an important but controversial person who orchestrated genocide to the celebration of Indigenous people who survived that genocide.

What is true of the Thanksgiving story?

The NA’s did help the Pilgrims learn to hunt, fish, etc. and they did have a good relationship for a while.

What is false of the Thanksgiving story?

There is no evidence of a tribal- White harvest celebration during the first Pilgrim winter in America, in 1620-1621.The idea that the Pilgrims and the NA's relationship “was all peace, hugs, and good eating is just a myth”

Who was Ely Parker?

The Seneca chief who allied himself and his tribe with the union in a racially segregated unit. In spite of his loyalty to the American cause, the US government did not let him enlist his Seneca warriors as US soldiers, again simply because they were Native. Ulysses Grant asked Ely to become a military assistant.

Genocide

The systematic killing of all the people from a national, ethnic or religious group, or an attempt to do this.

Native Americans and slavery

Native Americans were slaves, but they were highly susceptible to diseases from by Europeans. Within a 100 years, Europeans began to rely more heavily on enslaved people brought from Africa because they were more resilient to disease and less likely to run away

Native Americans and Hair

For many NAs, hair is a symbol of spiritual health and strength. It is a visible symbol of that power and thus a source of great pride and even vanity

Fasting

Refraining from food and drink. To most NA's A fast is a search for a vision that will establish a relationship between the faster and the spiritual world.

Why participate in Fasting?

If a NA wants to learn his/her plan from the Great Spirit, they must fast to see that plan. BY giving up food and water, the person fasting becomes disconnected from the physical world and becomes more strongly bonded to the spiritual world.

'Indian cars', and misconceptions about poverty

Today in Indian country, there is an incorrectly but widely held view that to suffer in poverty is to be authentically Indian. Natives sometimes try to out-Indian one another.

American Community

For many Americans, living in this country has meant leaving “the motherland” (ex: Being Portuguese in America means your family left Portugal, Irish left Ireland, etc.

Native American Community

Native Americans have a stronger tether and bond to community, rather than geographical heritage

Homestead

Established for families that live on the reservation, but those families cannot own the land on which they live. The rights to homestead in a particular place are passed down through families. Almost all of the families on that reservation are living on plots of land that their parents, grandparents, great grandparents have lived on.

Is there one unified Native American Religion?

Because there is so much diversity in Indian country, there is no such thing as one ‘Indian religion.’

What common belief is shared amongst most NA settlements

The traditional tribal religions of all Native Americans revolve around the belief in a higher power -- a common creator for all

Why do NA's use tobacco for ceremonies?

Using tobacco during a ceremony is seen as bring a gift to a higher power.

Who can attend NA ceremonies?

Most of the time, anyone with a good heart can attend

If a person does not like what he or she hears in their Indian religion…

They are not obligated to follow and/or practice it

Benefits of interracial marriage

Different people from different backgrounds are brought together -- it is powerful and unifying.

Challenges of interracial marriage

People outside of the relationship can be rude and hurtful regarding the relationship.

Names assigned ancestrally

For tribes where ancestral connection is important, the giving of a name creates a strong and lifelong relationship between the person receiving it and an ancestor who has gone into the spiritual world.

Names assigned through fasting

Some name are giving through the fasting experience where the name is brought to the faster in a vision.

Names assigned in honor of someone else/Namesake

That creates a strong bond between the person named and the namesake

Sweat Lodge

A sweat lodge is a small, dome-shaped frame made out of tree saplings that is covered with bark, mats, blankets, or canvas. Rocks are heated in a fire outside the lodge and brought inside. Water is poured on the rocks similar to a sauna. While sweating in the sweat lodge, people smoke pipes, sprinkle medicine in the hot rocks, sing songs on hand drums and pray

What is a sweat lodge used for?

They are used to “purify people” in preparation for fasting

Code of Indian Offense

In 1883, the US commissioner of Indian Affairs created this code to make Native religious practices illegal.

American Indian Religious Freedom Act

The 1st amendment to the Constitution did not entirely help establish religious freedom for Native Americans, so this Act tried to do that. This law required all government agencies to eliminate interference with Natives’ free exercise of their religion.

Indians’ persecution today

This is still an issue today -- in 2008, Damien Bad Boy was told that his sweat lodge (on his private property) violated city codes. He went to court and “settled,” but still to this day, the city never changed its laws to allow for sweat lodge use.

What sports are most popular for Natives today?

Hockey Lacrosse