Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca

"The inhabitants of all these parts go naked, except that the women cover some part of their persons with a wool that grows on trees, and damsels dress in deerskin."

De Vaca describes a bit of the customs of the Malhado tribe.

After reading the letters of Columbus, which seemed rather self-centered, it was refreshing to read de Vaca's accounts of the Native people he interacted with. Columbus doesn't provide much insight, if any, on the customs of the tribes, and if he did, it would likely be an unappealing misrepresentation. In Loewen, I read that Columbus does present them as intelligent and handsome, at first... but later as stupid savages. I don't recall reading the good part, though.

I'm repeating myself here, but I just can't believe how "in the dark" I've been all these years... and how SO MANY Americans are. It bothers me a little, that I never questioned the things I was learning. I wish I'd had a stronger mind to do so, and that I had influences around me that would've better challenged my thinking.

I always knew I liked to write... I always knew I liked to read... I never much liked History as a subject in school, but when it's presented to me in such a rich and effective (and true) manner as it is through American Literature, I'm absolutely fascinated by it! I've even decided to take a class called "War And Peace" next semester at SJSU, when in the past, I would've had no interest in any kind of "Political Science" class. It seems I'm finally growing up... just as America needs to do. I wonder if the country will ever have the educational revolution it needs in order to begin respecting the contributions of ALL cultures... and to begin telling the truth about our History.

I don't think Loewen mentions de Vaca, at least not in chapter 2, but he does explain so many things about Native Americans and their misrepresentation, along with the misrepresentation of all other cultures, and the glorifying of the white man, and Europeans. Loewen includes in his book the following quote by Samuel D. Marble, also found on this Facebook page:

"As subject for research, the possibility of African discovery of America has never been a tempting one for American historians. In a sense, we choose our own history, or more accurately, we select those vistas of history for our examinations which promise us the greatest satisfaction, and we have had little appetite to explore the possibility that our founding father was a black man."

Although the quote is in reference to blacks, it pretty much sums up the whole idea behind our falsely represented American History, and I hope this phenomenon will continue to change.