me when people add ignorant comments to posts about Natives:

someone: *doesnt look like their ethnicity* all of u freaks: hmmmm where are the pictures of your parents and great grandparents and siblings? and cousins and what’s ur full name what’d you put on the census in 2010? huh? why won’t u show us those to prove yourself

Little Wound, Chief of the Oglala, Native American Lakota Sioux, poses wrapped in a blanket and wearing moccasins next to a white man with a mustache - Morledge - 1890

me waiting for a native person to be a main character in a big movie

Brave Williams from New York is just 17 but is already 7ft 1 and growing

Towering over his teammates at 7ft 1in tall, 17-year-old Brave Williams is hoping his height can help propel him to sporting stardom.

The 400lb senior at Lake Shore High School in Angola, New York, is already a highly-regarded member of his high school basketball and American football teams.

And the youngster is now setting his sights on winning a much-coveted college athletic scholarship.

‘When I was five years old, I was like 5ft 3in.’

‘The teachers thought I was actually a second grader, so they put me in the wrong class for about an hour before they realised their mistake.’

‘I had to tell them that I was just starting school.’

However, Brave very nearly didn’t make it to even his first birthday - he had to be delivered via caesarian because the umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck.

'The doctors tried to pull me out three times before they were going to take more drastic measures. But as soon as my dad touched my mom’s forehead, I let go, and the doctors got me out,’ Brave told high school sports site MaxPreps.

'My dad instantly named me Brave because I needed a strong name.’

Specialists were concerned that he might be suffering from a form of gigantism known as Sotos syndrome, but tests done at three months and again at three years came back clear - much to the relief of his mother Angela.

She said: 'Every day he grew more and more, so that was when I got worried.

'To finally get the word that you have just got a tall kid was really relieving to say the least.’

Brave is now 7ft 1in tall - the same as Basketball Hall of Fame legend Shaquille O'Neal - but experts predict will be 7ft 5in by the time he stops growing, the same size as his great-great uncle.

Brave said: 'He made a pine tree look like a sapling. So, I think that’s where I got most of my height from.’

Born of African-American and Native American heritage, Brave lives on the Cattaraugus Reservation in the Seneca Nation of Indians.

The tall teen sleeps in a custom-made bed, although his feet still dangle off the end, and wears size 21 shoes.

While Brave’s size makes him killer on the court, it does also attract unwelcome attention in the form of stares and comments.

Mom Angela said: 'It was tough for me when my son turned five because then he had to go to school and I had to share him with the world.

'It was hard because he is sensitive and people stare, they look, they point.

'Now he’ll take the time to talk to everybody, people ask him the same questions over and over again - “How tall are you? Are you a wrestler? Are you this? Are you that?” And he just takes the time to respond, that’s his special gift.’

Brave is now determined to go on and become a pro athlete, but says he wants to go to college and complete his studies first - and would like to major in engineering.

And for 5ft 9in Angela, Brave’s stature is more than just an accident of genetics.

'I thought about my son being tall for a long time, and I think there is a reason why he’s so tall - because it gets him noticed and makes people listen to him,’ she added.

'But the rest is what matters, what really makes him special. I know he’s going to do big things.’

Source

Originals First - We are a people with a past, not a people of the past.

Megan Red Shirt-Shaw (via izanzanwin)

Get to know me...

1) Sexuality? 2) If you could meet anyone on this earth, who would it be? 3) Grab the book nearest to you, turn to page 23, give me line 17. 4) What do you think about most? 5) What does your latest text message from someone else say? 6) Do you sleep with or without clothes on? 7) What’s your strangest talent? 8) Girls…. (finish the sentence); Boys…. (finish the sentence) 9) Ever had a poem or song written about you? 10) When is the last time you played the air guitar? 11) Do you have any strange phobias? 12) Ever stuck a foreign object up your nose? 13) What’s your religion? 14) If you are outside, what are you most likely doing? 15) Do you prefer to be behind the camera or in front of it? 16) Simple but extremely complex. Favorite band? 17) What was the last lie you told? 18) Do you believe in karma? 19) What does your URL mean? 20) What is your greatest weakness; your greatest strength? 21) Who is your celebrity crush? 22) Have you ever gone skinny dipping? 23) How do you vent your anger? 24) Do you have a collection of anything? 25) Do you prefer talking on the phone or video chatting online? 26) Are you happy with the person you’ve become? 27) What’s a sound you hate; sound you love? 28) What’s your biggest “what if”? 29) Do you believe in ghosts? How about aliens? 30) Stick your right arm out; what do you touch first? Do the same with your left arm. 31) Smell the air. What do you smell? 32) What’s the worst place you have ever been to? 33) Choose East Coast or West Coast? 34) Most attractive singer of your opposite gender? 35) To you, what is the meaning of life? 36) Define Art. 37) Do you believe in luck? 38) What’s the weather like right now? 39) What time is it? 40) Do you drive? If so, have you ever crashed? 41) What was the last book you read? 42) Do you like the smell of gasoline? 43) Do you have any nicknames? 44) What was the last movie you saw? 45) What’s the worst injury you’ve ever had? 46) Have you ever caught a butterfly? 47) Do you have any obsessions right now? 48) What’s your sexual orientation? 49) Ever had a rumor spread about you? 50) Do you believe in magic? 51) Do you tend to hold grudges against people who have done you wrong? 52) What is your astrological sign? 53) Do you save money or spend it? 54) What’s the last thing you purchased? 55) Love or lust? 56) In a relationship? 57) How many relationships have you had? 58) Can you touch your nose with your tongue? 59) Where were you yesterday? 60) Is there anything pink within 10 feet of you? 61) Are you wearing socks right now? 62) What’s your favorite animal? 63) What is your secret weapon to get someone to like you? 64) Where is your best friend? 65) Spit or swallow?(; 66) What is your heritage? 67) What were you doing last night at 12 AM? 68) What do you think is Satan’s last name? 69) Be honest. Ever gotten yourself off? 70) Are you the kind of friend you would want to have as a friend? 71) You are walking down the street on your way to work. There is a dog drowning in the canal on the side of the street. Your boss has told you if you are late one more time you get fired. What do you do? 72) You are at the doctor’s office and she has just informed you that you have approximately one month to live. a) Do you tell anyone/everyone you are going to die? b) What do you do with your remaining days? c) Would you be afraid? 73) You can only have one of these things; trust or love. 74) What’s a song that always makes you happy when you hear it? 75) What are the last four digits in your cell phone number? 76) In your opinion, what makes a great relationship? 77) How can I win your heart? 78) Can insanity bring on more creativity? 79) What is the single best decision you have made in your life so far? 80) What size shoes do you wear? 81) What would you want to be written on your tombstone? 82) What is your favorite word? 83) Give me the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word; heart. 84) What is a saying you say a lot? 85) What’s the last song you listened to? 86) Basic question; what’s your favorite color/colors? 87) What is your current desktop picture? 88) If you could press a button and make anyone in the world instantaneously explode, who would it be? 89) What would be a question you’d be afraid to tell the truth on? 90) One night you wake up because you heard a noise. You turn on the light to find that you are surrounded by MUMMIES. The mummies aren’t really doing anything, they’re just standing around your bed. What do you do? 91) You accidentally eat some radioactive vegetables. They were good, and what’s even cooler is that they endow you with the super-power of your choice! What is that power? 92) You can re-live any point of time in your life. The time-span can only be a half-hour, though. What half-hour of your past would you like to experience again? 93) You can erase any horrible experience from your past. What will it be? 94) You have the opportunity to sleep with the music-celebrity of your choice. Who would it be? 95) You just got a free plane ticket to anywhere. You have to depart right now. Where are you gonna go? 96) Do you have any relatives in jail? 97) Have you ever thrown up in the car? 98) Ever been on a plane? 99) If the whole world were listening to you right now, what would you say? 

Send me a bunch of these im bored

beautiful things are happening

Life as an Native American girl

You know what’s sad? Always having to stay in the car because I am too damn scared to go in the store. I’m scared of their hateful and hurtful words. A young Native American girl, too fucking scared to go shopping You hear of “black lives matter” What about Native Americans? Oh yeah, they’re shoved onto these lands called reservations. This poor little prairie nigger surviving off of EBT and commodities scared of traveling. Scared of the harmful words of the white man. In the lakota culture, mitukaye oyasin, That means “we are all related” Whatever happened to that? I’m tired of being pushed aside I’m tired of being hurt by the white man I’m tired of seeing my oyate, my people suffer at the hands of the white man What do I have to do? Scream in the governments face? “Here I am fuckers, pay attention to my people, we are suffering!” From the battle of the little big horn To the wounded knee massacre Our people are still having to deal with that depression We shouldn’t have to. We don’t deserve that. We are indigenous people Native to the land We deserve much better Than this shit hole that we call home I was always taught to keep my mouth shut when it comes to racist remarks I want to break this silence I want to go in the store and not be afraid of what others have to say. I want to break free.

“Music is the best medicine.” Today, we honor hip-hop artivist Frank Waln of the Sicangu Lakota nation who uses his music to combat colonialism by raising awareness of issues impacting indigenous youth and communities, from teen suicides to the Keystone XL Pipeline.

Crazy Horse, Oglala Lakota, 1827 (via hellyeahtotalwarquotes)

Alternatives to ‘Sioux’

As you may know, the word ‘Sioux’ is considered to be a slur amongst members of the Oceti Sakowin. It is not our word for ourselves, but rather a name given to us by another nation and perpetuated by the Europeans / Euro-Americans.

You also may have noticed that our official tribe names often contain the word ‘Sioux’ (‘Oglala Lakota Sioux Tribe’ for example.) The reason for this is entirely legal. When our treaties were drafted, they were written as an agreement between the US Government and the ‘Sioux Nation.’ For this reason, we cannot fully abandon the name. However, when we’ve had opportunities, we’ve dropped the name in places we can (’Oglala Lakota County,’ for example, a name chosen by the rezidents.)

Simply put, members of the Oceti Sakowin generally don’t refer to themselves as ‘Sioux’ and, if we can’t change it legally, at least we can continue to assert our identity on our terms. So, if you choose to respect that, here’s a quick Oceti Sakowin education guide:

Oceti Sakowin (Seven Council Fires) 

Oceti Sakowin (encompasses all language dialects) is the simplest and broadest replacement for ‘Sioux.’ You can use this term if you aren’t aware of the specific language group to which ‘Sioux’ refers. Within the Oceti Sakowin are three main groups, which are further divided into seven subgroups:

Isanti Oyate (Santee — Dakota Dialect)

Wiciyela Oyate (Yankton/Yanktonais — Dakota Dialect ; commonly mislabeled as Nakota* Dialect)

Tinte Oyate (Tetons — Lakota Dialect)

Within the Tinte Ta Tunwan / Tintatunwan Oceti Sakown (#7), there are another seven subdivisions:

*modern terminology *In the past, the term Nakota has been applied to the Yankton, but this is a mistake. The Yankton speak Dakota. Nakota speakers are Assiniboine / Hohe and Stoney, who broke off from the Yankton at a time so long ago their language is now nearly unrecognizable to Lakota and Dakota speakers.

- Dr. Lucy Reifel (Lakota)

Portrait by her son, Charles Her Many Horses

Learn more about Native American women healers of today & America’s first Native doctor