Horses had been hunted to extinction by early settlers of the Americas thousands of years before the Europeans arrived. The reintroduction of the horse by Europeans had an incredible impact on the American Indians. They utilized the horse for travel, hunting, and warfare.

Numerous conflicts occurred between native tribes and European settlers before the American Revolutionary War, and after the Revolution between indigenous people and the U.S. government. These conflicts have been named the American Indian Wars. 

In 1890 the last major battle between indigenous people in North America and U.S. soldiers occurred. It was called the Battle of Wounded Knee and occurred near the Wounded Knee Creek in South Dakota. Approximately three hundred Sioux were slaughtered.

In 1838 one of the most horrible events in American history occurred. This event was a forced relocation of thousands of indigenous people from their homelands to areas west of the Mississippi River. This march, named the “Trail of Tears”, resulted in the death of thousands of Native Americans from numerous tribes including the Cherokee, Seminole, Choctaw, and Chickasaw. Most of the deaths were the result of disease and exposure to the extremely cold weather.

Benjamin Franklin learned a lot about democracy by observing the Iroquois Indians. The Iroquois had a chief who ruled only as long as the tribes supported his decisions. The Iroquois were a union of several tribes that had in place limits to power held in place by checks and balances, one of the corner stones of democracy for the United States of America.

American Indians have appeared on many U.S. coins including the Buffalo nickel (Indian Head nickel) minted between 1913 and 1938 and more recently the Sacajawea dollar which features the famous Indian women who served as a guide on the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

Pura Fe´ talks about southeastern Indian music and the Native American Blues.

“With her voice soaring, foot stomping, this beautiful songbird transcends time and brings the message of our Ancestors who have sewn this beautiful seed, that makes powerful music”. -Taj Mahal

https://youtu.be/KtE2J3_4SwE?list=RDKtE2J3_4SwE

“Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. …All things are bound together. All things connect.”
– Chief Seattle

https://revolutionresource.org/2017/11/27/indigenous-wisdom/

We need a little blues power...