Black Red Roots

The European colonization of the Americas decimated the populations and cultures of the Native Americans. In the 15th to 19th century, their populations were ravaged by displacement, disease, warfare with the Europeans, and enslavement.

The first Native American group encountered by Christopher Columbus in 1492, the 250,000 to 1,000,000 Island Arawaks (more properly called the Taino) of Haiti Quisqueya, Cubanacan (Cuba) and Boriquen Puerto Rico, were enslaved. It is said that only 500 survived by the year 1550, and the group was considered extinct before 1650. Yet DNA studies show that the genetic contribution of the Taino to that region continues, and the mitochondrial DNA studies of the Taino are said to show relationships to the Northern Indigenous Nations, such as Inuit (Eskimo) and others.

In the 15th century, Spaniards and other Europeans brought horses to the Americas. Some of these animals escaped and began to breed and increase their numbers in the wild. Ironically, the horse had originally evolved in the Americas, but the early American horses were game for early human hunters, and went extinct about 7,000 BC, just after the end of the last ice age. The re-introduction of the horse had a profound impact on Native American culture in the Great Plains of North America. This new mode of travel made it possible for some tribes to greatly expand their territories, exchange goods with neighboring tribes, and more easily capture game.

Ever wonder what Native American men and women wore for clothing, shoes, headwear, and other garments? You can see drawings of their clothing based on their tribe and region in which they lived in the United States. Below is an example and you can SEE MORE NATIVE AMERICAN CLOTHES AT: http://www.nativetech.org/clothing/regions/regions.html

BNAA pow wow 2010

The Black Native American Association is looking for donations to assist in the first "Honoring Our Legacy: Past, Present and Future" pow wow to be held at California State University East Bay-Hayward. The pow wow is scheduled for Saturday, September 18-19, 2010, with Grand Entry at 1:00 pm. A series of workshops will be held on Friday, September 17, at CSUEB

Thank you all in advance. Remember the BNAA pow wow on September 18, 2010.