Native Americans

The indigenous people of North America never founded a singular civilization; instead, the continent consisted of countless distinct tribes, cultures, and peoples. Native American generally refers to the original inhabitants of land owned by the United States and Canada.

There is little in the way of recorded history for most of these peoples, and most knowledge comes from spoken tradition. As the various groups were different, so were their interpretations of their origins though many have similar roots, dating from shortly after the Great Flood, caused in the Americas by Wisakedjak. The native Californians were made from the Earth-Maker's clay, as were the Creek people, formed by Esaugetuh Emissee. Many groups were created by the Great Spirit, known by many names - Wakan Tanka in Lakota, Yowa in Cherokee, Gitche Manitou in Algonquian, who also believed in "Little Spirits," simply called Manitou. Some, like the Navajo, simply sprouted from ears of corn.

During the early years of Native American history, humans co-existed with several intelligent animals. Badger, Great Rabbit, and Crow were vital figures in the formative years of the region. Spider-Woman is credited with the creation of mankind by many groups. The most prolific, however, were the tricksters. One of the best known is Raven, who helped feed the first humans, but also stole from native tribes, in one case, even stealing the sun. Coyote, a rival of Ravens, is still spoken of today for his many (alleged) achievements from the creation of man to the discovery of fire. Kokopelli, while not an animal, was a musical trickster, but also the master of childbirth and fertility. Some creatures were purely antagonistic such as the wendego and the apotamkin, man-eating demons that stalked the countryside. On the whole, however, the Native Americans lived in harmony with nature, not at war with it.

This all changed with the arrival of European settlers. The first contact with white settlers was in the 11th Century, as Viking explorers reached Canadian shores. However, no permanent colonies were established, as conflicts between the Native Americans and their foreign neighbors were common. It wasn't until 1492 and the arrival of Christopher Columbus on the island of Hispaniola that the true age of colonization began. The Spanish quickly and efficiently conquered the Caribbean, Mexico, and all regions to the south, and while English and French colonies quickly appeared on the Atlantic Coast.

Jamestown, the first English settlement on the continent, helped set the tone for future interactions between the two vastly different cultures. Pocahontas, the daughter of Powhatan, entered into a romantic tryst with Englishman John Smith, who had recently arrived to aid in construction of the colony under Governor John Ratcliffe. The two groups nearly decimated each other, both sides arming themselves for battle, after the accidental shooting of a Powhatan warrior and imprisonment of Smith. Pocahontas convinced her father to spare his life, literally moments before catastrophe, sparing both sides from a bloody conflict. She would later act as a diplomat between the Powhatan tribe and England, traveling from home in 1616.

Farther north, in New England, there was similar unease between with the Patuxet tribe and the pilgrim settlers. Some, such as Squanto, attempted to unite the two groups, but war seemed likely during the autumn, as food became scarce. However, such tension was dissolved by the disappearance of two children, Johnny Cooke and Little Bear; after their rescue, the celebratory feast held in their honor became known as the first Thanksgiving.

But such interaction became less common as time went on. By the mid-1700s, a concentrated effort by the English settlers had pushed the native population out of what would become the United States of America. The French settlers in Canada, however, formed a more symbiotic relationship with the Native Americans, and united against the British forces, the French and Indian War began soon after. Violence and atrocities were common on both sides, and neither was above involving civilians in the battle. Of particular interest are Cora and Alice Munro, who were escorted by a pair of Mohicans to their father, British army colonel George Munro. Chingachgook and his son Uncas, together, were the last of the Mohican tribe, and together with native-raised Hawkeye; better known as Natty Bumppo, who would later take part in the Bumppo-Black Expeditions attempted to guide the women and protect against a marauding Huron, Magua. Despite this, the elder sister was killed, leading to further distrust from the British and American forces, even against tribes loyal to the empire.

Natty Bumppo, however, would continue to act as a guide and frontiersman, fighting against other Huron enemies alongside his Mohican companions. While Chingachgook would eventually be killed, Bumppo would continue to aid those who request his help for many years, living well into his eighties and make contact with a wide variety of other native tribes. He would die, as he lived, among the Native Americans, passing away peacefully among a small group of Pawnee in 1806.

From the point of view of the natives, this period was a time of great upheaval. Countless chiefs, tribes, and entire ethnic groups simply disappeared. Some fought, while others conformed to the new Anglican powers. It was at this point that the later Hiawatha appeared. (There are two entirely different figures with the name Hiawatha in history; the later is often considered the more important of the two, and some postulate they were they same figure, an immortal spirit who appeared to different tribes.) The first Hiawatha was a Mohawk chief, from the pre-colonial period, who formed the Iroquois Confederation. Another Hiawatha appeared years later, to the Ojibwe people, becoming their last leader before the coming of the English in the 1700s. Most certainly of divine blood, this Hiawatha was a vocal proponent of integration, leaving his tribe in the hands of Christian missionaries before disappearing into the Great Lakes.

As the United States of America was formed, more and more tribes were displaced. This culminated with the Indian Removal Act of 1830. Modern Oklahoma was designated as an Indian Territory, uprooting tribes such as the Cherokee and Seminole and moving thousands of individuals across the nation in harsh conditions. Throughout this period, anti-American sentiment became the norm among displaced tribes, as fear crept into the regions still untouched. By the Civil War, America had pushed to the Great Plains and into forming the State fo Sequoyah, and would soon come into contact with the western tribes ; the Sioux, the Apache, and others like them.

Like always, some attempted to work with the natives, such as John J. Dunbar, a lieutenant in the US Army who integrated himself with the Sioux tribe and took the name *Dances with Wolves,* and the British aristocrat who would be known only as Horse. Further west, Alan Krandal became an active crimefighter in both the Apache and American communities. The outlaw, Josey Wales, would work with both Cherokee and Navajo in the antebellum period. Despite this, a harsh crackdown on the Plains tribes was coming, as Americans rushed to tame the frontier. The spark that started nearly fifteen years of warfare was the Battle of Little Bighorn, a battle between Sioux warriors and cavalry under General George A. Custer, where the American forces were decimated within minutes.

Symbolic of the period as a whole was the Cheyenne Autumn, where Cheyenne leaders Little Wolf and Dull Knife attempted to save their starving tribe by leading them north from Oklahoma to Wyoming in 1878. This act was treated as hostile by the US government and treated as such, a massacre was narrowly averted. On the other hand, the Sand Creek Massacre was just that, Colonel Iverson, in response to a raid on cavalry troops, slaughtered a village full of Cheyenne and Arapaho. This was a symbol of the era as a whole; some native tribes were willing to actively defy their new rulers to survive, while others were decimated for next to no reason.

In the American Southwest, the Apache united with the Navajo under Winnetou, who came to be known as the greatest native leader of his time. Along with his blood brother, Old Shatterhand (a German immigrant, Karl May), he fought against the US government, generally with small bands of guerilla fighters, and protected his native lands until his surrender in 1886. He died in 1909; Old Shatterhand, after writing his memoirs, passed away in 1912.

On the other hand, in the Pacific Northwest, many tribes would submit peacefully to the incoming settlers. Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce, after an attempted escape, delivered his famous speech, in which he vowed to "fight no more forever." The Quileute tribe, composed mostly of skin-walkers (Native Americans with the ability to transform into "spirit animals"), would eventually forsake the traditional reservation system, instead integrating into society while simultaneously forming an animalistic "pack" of wolf-men.

In 1890, the resistance on the Plains would be put down harshly at the Wounded Knee Massacre. Sitting Bull, famed for his role in the Battle of Little Bighorn, spoke to his followers of the Ghost Dance; a religious ritual that would restore the Great Plains to their pre-colonial status. It failed, as the assassination of Sitting Bull and subsequent massacre of his followers put an end to virtually all resistance.

For the next century, Native American groups would each take different stances to their status. Many would be content on reservations, attempting to move forward in their current state, while others allowed resentment of their oppressors to simmer. Alcoholism and depression became common among natives. However, a majority of groups modernized and integrated into society. Many individuals would leave their reservations and, through a variety of circumstances, become crimefighters. Apache Chief, a prominent member of the Superfriends, is commonly considered the pioneer of this movement, and others, such as American Eagle, Wyatt Wingfoot, and Thunderbird, would follow. Some remained on their reservations, but continued in their roles, as they had for centuries, such as the Korin Tribe.

However, those hoping for a more radical change would get their wish in the next century. In 2009, the Sovereign American Indian Movement would make its first offensive against the USA, seizing a nuclear launch facility in Montana. A few years later, the Native American Nations would be formed, and in 2016, under the command of Daniel Howling Coyote, would declare war on the United States. Native American shamans used their mystic abilites, regained with the Awakening of Magic, to quickly end what would be known as the "Great Ghost Dance War." Due to this sudden uprising, and other political upheavels in the era, the once-powerful nation collapsed, and various new nations were formed the Pueblo Corporate Council, the Sioux Nation, the Ute Nation, and various others across the United States and Canada. After over five hundred years of western superiority, the Native Americans had reclaimed their homeland, and in the years to come, would become major players in the struggle for the continent.