"Gracefully written . . . thoroughly researched . . . America is a
banquet prepared by the Indians--who were forgotten when it was time to
give thanks at the table."--St. Paul Pioneer-Express
"Well written, imagery-ridden . . . A tale of what was, what became,
and what is today regarding the Indian relation to the European
civilization that 'grafted' itself onto this 'ancient
stem'"--Minneapolis Star Tribune
In Indian Givers, anthropologist Jack Weatherford revealed how the
cultural, social, and political practices of the American Indians
transformed the world. In Native Roots, Weatherford focuses on the
vital role Indian civilizations have played in the making of the United
States.
Conventional American history holds that the white settlers of the New
World re-created the societies they had known in England, France, and
Spain. But, as Weatherford so brilliantly shows, Europeans in fact
grafted their civilizations onto the deep and nourishing roots of Native
American customs and beliefs. Beneath the glass-and-steel skyscrapers of
contemporary Manhattan lies an Indian fur-trading post. Behind the
tactics of modern guerrilla warfare are the lightning-fast maneuvers of
the Plains Indians. Our place names, our farming and hunting techniques,
our crafts, and the very blood that flows in our veins--all derive from
American Indians in ways that we consistently fail to see. In
Weatherford's words, "Without understanding Native Americans, we will
never know who we are today in America."
