Native Americans History

05/17/2026

I am poor and naked, but I am the chief of the nation. We do not want riches but we do want to train our children right. Riches would do us no good. We could not take them with us to the other world. We do not want riches. We want peace and love.”
– Red Cloud, Chief of the Oglala Lakota tribe.
Sources: Photograph taken by John K. Hillers, circa 1880 / Yale Collection of Western Americana, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut / Wikimedia Commons

05/16/2026

In 1944, Peter MacDonald was just a young Navajo radio operator.
He wasn’t carrying a weapon.
His power was in the words he spoke.
Words that no enemy could ever decode.
He served in Guam and China with the 6th Marine Division.
His mission: send vital battlefield messages in a secret code.
A code based entirely on the Navajo language — fast, complex, and unwritten.
The Japanese broke every code.
Except this one — invented by Native American soldiers.
They failed. Every single time.
Not one message sent in Navajo code was ever cracked.
And Navajo wasn’t the only language used.
Mohawk, Choctaw, Seminole, Pawnee, Iroquois —
A dozen Native dialects helped secure Allied victory in WWII.
Each one became a weapon.
Each speaker, a living encryption system.
Now almost 100 years old, Peter MacDonald is one of the last surviving Code Talkers.

05/15/2026

Native Encampment
In the mid-1600's the Ojibwa east of Lake Superior began to move westward, and by the late 1770's, Ojibwa settlements circled Lake Superior. One of these settlements was located on the Kaministikwia River. Eye-witness accounts of Fort William in the early 1800's usually mention a Native encampment east of the palisade. A painting dated 1805 shows clusters of dome-shaped wigwams huddled at the south-east corner of the Fort; illustrations from the Hudson's Bay Company period (after 1821) depict conical tepees and wigwams.
These habitations reflect the culture of a people continually adapting to their environment as they had for thousands of years. Ojibwa family groups moved through these woodlands around Lake Superior in a seasonal round that included fishing, hunting, and gathering, and trade gatherings with other Native groups. With the coming of the Europeans, many Ojibwa incorporated the demands of the fur trade: trapping fur-bearing animals, and more prolonged contact with trading posts to supply pelts and other services.
The Ojibwa inhabiting the western Lake Superior region were also known as the Saulteaux, or Chippewa, while to the north were the Cree. Probably both tribes were represented at Fort William during the Rendezvous when Natives from surrounding areas came to trade their furs and exchange their labour and produce for commodities available at the Indian Shop. While most Natives departed for their hunting grounds as summer ended, some stayed behind to participate in winter activities of the fort.
During the NWC period, there were probably about 150 Ojibwa living in the Kaministikwia district. A number of Ojibwa names appear quite regularly in the Fort William transaction records, probably the members of the Ojibwa community adjacent to the fort. It is probable that they based their operations at Fort William, but continued to undertake seasonal journeys and encampments for the purpose of harvesting maple sugar, wild rice, snaring rabbits, fishing, and hunting game. One of these expeditions might last weeks or even months, so the Ojibwa population at Fort William was constantly in flux.
In addition to their own activities, the Ojibwa at Fort William supported the operation of the post. Women worked in the kitchen and canoe sheds, as well as the farm, and received payment in the form of trade goods. Men might be engaged in hunting or fishing for the NWC, and any other service in labour or expertise that the company might require..
As producers, the Ojibwa were integral to the needs of the NWC at Fort William. The transaction records show the quantity of provisions and materials supplied to the post and its personnel: bark, wattap and spruce for canoe-building, snowshoes, moccasins, skins, maple sugar, berries, wild rice, and fresh game

05/14/2026

Incredible discovery! A 73-year-old man, Ernie LaPointe, has been confirmed as the great-grandson of the legendary Sitting Bull. Science supports his family history, revealing that the DNA of this iconic Lakota leader lives on in him and his three sisters. Ernie grew up burdened by his mother"s revelation, but his life was marked by a struggle with addiction.
A team of researchers, led by geneticist Eske Willerslev, used an innovative technique to analyze a lock of Sitting Bull"s hair and confirm his relationship. The results are overwhelming: Ernie LaPointe is, without a doubt, Sitting Bull"s great-grandson! This discovery highlights the importance of Indigenous heritage and how science can rescue forgotten stories. A historical connection that transcends time!

05/13/2026

Congratulations to Mo Brings Plenty on being named the first ever recipient of the Western Heritage New Horizon Award.
❤️Get tshirt here : https://wolfnatives.com/native-american-no
An enrolled Lakota from the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, Brings Plenty embodies the spirit of his ancestors who fought at Little Big Horn. His dedication to preserving culture and tradition, coupled with his diverse talents as an actor, horse stunt rider, and rancher, make him a deserving choice for this prestigious award.Brings Plenty's roots run deep in the Lakota community, carrying the legacy of his grandfathers who played a significant role in history. His traditional name, Ta Sunke Wospapi, reflects his connection to horses and the land, highlighting his profound respect for nature and his cultural heritage. Every step he takes is guided by the values and sacrifices of his family and ancestors, shaping his perspective on life and the world around him.
As an accomplished actor, Brings Plenty has captivated audiences with his performances in various film and television productions. From his role as Chief Thomas Rainwater’s enforcer in "Yellowstone" to his portrayal of historical figures like Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull, he has showcased the depth of his talent and the richness of Native American storytelling. His commitment to authentic representation and cultural accuracy has earned him praise and recognition in the industry.
Beyond his acting career, Brings Plenty is a dedicated rancher and horse stunt rider who cherishes his connection to the land and his heritage. He actively engages in giving back to his Lakota communities and Indian Country, striving to preserve cultural traditions and promote diversity. His belief in the goodness of humanity and his commitment to leaving a positive impact on the world reflect his genuine and compassionate character.

05/13/2026

05/10/2026

Obsidian eyes ...
Black eyes like obsidian, precious stone that even broken can cut.
Brown skin like the color of the land that saw me born, the one that after being plundered for 500 years does not lose its wealth and shine.
Long black hair like the night itself, when coyolchauki accompanies him in solitude and illuminates my walk in the dark,
my language, my culture, my customs and my beliefs,
The blood of my grandparents running through my veins.
Their knowledge, their wisdom, their respect and way of seeing life, that is what I am, the sum of all of them, the very legacy of their lives

05/08/2026

I am just a wanderer here on earth,
A wandering soul,
When my time is up,
I'll quietly return home.
My soul will be free,
Like the morning wind,
I watch as day gives way to night,
Those who can no longer be here with me,
I know they're waiting for me to come home.
See you on the other side,
We'll be together again, like we used to be,
When I fought all my battles here.
My Own Poem.

05/07/2026

Yes 🥰🥰

05/06/2026

Long before ships arrived, these lands were already home to thriving nations, cultures, and knowledge systems.

The word discovery ignores generations of life, language, and stewardship that existed here for thousands of years.

Honoring truth means teaching history from the beginning, not from convenience. 🪶📖

03/05/2026

When Black Elk stood above Wounded Knee in the snow of December 1890, he understood he was witnessing more than an ending—he was watching the deliberate erasure of a world he had been called to protect.
Born in 1863 into the Oglala Lakota, Black Elk received a vision as a child that would define his life. He saw horses dancing across the sky, thunder beings moving through clouds, and a sacred tree meant to shelter all peoples. The elders who heard his vision understood it as a calling. He would carry responsibility for his people through the darkness that was coming.
What came was the systematic dismantling of everything his vision had shown him.
At thirteen, Black Elk witnessed the aftermath of Little Bighorn, where Lakota and Cheyenne warriors defeated George Armstrong Custer's forces in 1876. The victory felt like vindication. It lasted mere months. Retaliation arrived with crushing force. Land was seized. Treaties signed in good faith were torn apart openly. Reservations became prisons dressed as protection.
By the late 1880s, desperation had taken root so deeply that many Lakota turned to the Ghost Dance—a spiritual movement promising renewal and the disappearance of the forces destroying them. U.S. authorities saw not prayer but rebellion. They responded with soldiers.
On December 29, 1890, at Wounded Knee Creek, those soldiers killed more than 250 Lakota men, women, and children. Black Elk was there. He carried the wounded through frozen ground. He lifted bodies that would never rise again. He watched snow turn red with blood and then fall silent under more snow, covering everything as if it had never happened.
Later, he would say that the nation's sacred hoop—the circle that held his people together—was broken there and scattered beyond repair.
But Black Elk did not break with it.
Survival demanded adaptation. He converted to Catholicism and worked as a catechist, teaching the faith of those who had conquered his people. Outsiders would later argue whether this was compromise or betrayal. Black Elk never saw it as either. He understood that survival sometimes requires speaking in the language of power while keeping the old language alive in quieter places.
In the 1930s, he shared his life with writer John G. Neihardt, and together they created Black Elk Speaks. The book brought Lakota worldview to millions, but it also filtered his words through a non-Native perspective. Parts were simplified. Some meanings were lost in translation. The world listened, but not always to what Black Elk actually said.
That tension lives in his legacy still.
Black Elk was not a prophet trying to predict the future or resurrect the past. He was a witness determined to document what was taken and what remained. He did not speak to preserve some imagined purity. He spoke to preserve memory itself—because he understood that stories carry weight when land and sovereignty have been stripped away.
Black Elk did not fail to save his world. That was never within any one person's power.
What he did was refuse to let its destruction be forgotten or distorted. His vision was never about reversing history. It was about ensuring that even in defeat, truth could survive and be transmitted forward.
When Black Elk said the sacred hoop was broken, he was not abandoning hope.
He was placing it carefully into the hands of anyone willing to remember what was done, who did it, and why forgetting would complete the work that violence had started. He understood that bearing witness is itself an act of resistance—and that the stories we refuse to let die become the seeds of what might still grow.