Posted on 11/24/2005 5:13:54 PM PST by lainie
ALCATRAZ ISLAND, United States (AFP) - A tribal chant rose from a thousands-strong prayer circle on Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay as Native Americans held a sunrise "Unthanksgiving Day" ceremony.
"What we call it is Unthanksgiving," Bear Lincoln of the Wailikie Tribe told AFP as he waved burning sage to purify the area and ward off evil spirits.
"It was the saddest day for us. It was a big mistake for us to help the Pilgrims survive that first winter. They betrayed us once they got their strength."
Traditional Thanksgiving feasting in the United States is a tribute to the meal the original European Pilgrims shared with the Native Americans who helped them survive in the new land.
An estimated 3,000 people packed onto ferries that set out from Fisherman's Wharf for Alcatraz in the pre-dawn darkness Thursday, according to organizers.
A bonfire blazed at the center of a prayer circle set up on a bluff beneath the Alcatraz lighthouse. And at the base of the rock wall leading up to the ruins of the former federal prison were a pair of Indian teepees.
"Ultimately, this is their land," said Irma Pinedo, a Mexico City native who was among the Aztec dancers taking part in the ceremony. "For us, no turkey today."
Turkey, which nearly became the national bird in the United States instead of the eagle, is the main course at traditional Thanksgiving dinners.
"I take my children to this every year because I want them to understand there is another side to the story," said 41-year-old Erin Alexander, who added that the event has grown significantly since she began attending 12 years ago.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.netscape.cnn.com ...
No he claims they went from America to the Pacific. You can't go the other way. I have read his books and have seen the studies you talk about. My guess is that they are both right.
I am not whining but it sounds like you are. I speak facts, if you don't agree fine, but to resort to name calling is childish don't you think?
Legally speaking it would be difficult to determine exactly which Indians "owned" which land, as property rights and a governing body to divide keep track of them was, I gather, virtually unknown at the time. That doesn't make it right, and of course deliberately introducing diseases to the Indians was demonic. But settlers simply landing on the continental United States and setting up shope was not in and of itself a bad thing. It is also important to remember that many missionaries and evangelist were sent to the Indians by Christian denominations.
Modern methods of tacking have totally displaced ancient (neoloithic) methods, so it's a common presumption that neolithic sailers could not sail "against the wind".
It would be surprising if the lanteen sail didn't arrive in the Americas at the same time as the bow and arrow (circa 800 AD) (in the same boat).
Europeans had all sorts of inherited resistance to a wide variety of animal borne diseases. I can only guess why ~ maybe letting the pigs live in the hut with momma and kids led to that. Then there's the gang who are immune to cholera ~ it comes in handy when you have to drink water out of a ditch.
Good point.......human migration to the Americas was most probably through the Bering Straits. I am skeptical about the sea route theories because later Amerindian tribes do not appear to have the necessary technology.
Additionally, they were not a trading people. If they were, we would see more evidence of trade between the South American and North American tribes. Intercontinental trade (and by extension, travel) appears to have existed only in the "old world."
Indian aggression against European settlers is never discussed. Ever. I've never heard of the attack you describe.
Didn't you watch Brave Heart?
Other than leaving out that he survived because he was elsewhere for several years, what are you disputing? After he'd been kidnapped, an epidemic wiped out his village (Patuxet?), and the few remaining moved out to meld in with other tribes, abandoning the village and immediate area. After being redeemed by priests, he eventually ended up back in the area of his village, and when the Pilgrims arrived he acted as a liaison.
Conquest is good ~ it provides a broader gene pool and that is of value to our species, if not to any particular individual.
Australia was probably populated by people crossing over from SE Asia through a land brisge during low-tide. After all, we know sea levels keep fluctuating pver time.
Again, if the Australian Aborgines used boats, why/how did they lose such a powerful technology? After all, these people were still living in the stone age when Jayavarma was building the architectural masterpieces in Cambodia and Indonesia, which were only a few miles away by boat.
Read, "The Last Scalp Dance". It is not about that incident but it will give you an idea of why the Indians in the west were hated.
Still, the absence of an observation of a particular element of sailing technology does not mean it did not exist in the area.
No I haven't. I probably should watch it sometime.
Thanks!
There are also substantial finds of South American culture in Mississippian sites.
You have to read more ~ there's lots of stuff that's gone on right under your nose.
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