New Orleans Unmasked

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New Orleans Unmasked	My Dad Before Columbus "Nah uh daddy. Black people weren't here first. The Indians were. My teacher at school told me that she read in a textbook somewhere that Columbus captured the Indians when he first came to America. He was here second, but the Indians were here first." "Katrina, Katrina, Katrina. Girl you don't know what you are talking about. Your teacher is just misguided like everybody else who doesn't know the truth. Did you know that someone black invented the stoplight?" "For real?" "Yeah, but they didn't get credit for it, obviously. So what makes you think your teacher is going to tell you that black people were here before Columbus? They probably think that they are going to mess up the sequence in the history books. Girl you have a lot to learn." Now, almost four years later, I find myself in an internship at the Army Corps of Engineers working with archaeologists, anthropologists, and biologists to learn more about archaeology, particularly in from an African American perspective. In this program Shannon Dyers and I go to the Corps every Wednesday and Thursday from 1:30 to 4:00. We also have to do written work and read books relating to the Corps and African Studies. A month or so into the program, it just so happens that I get a book titled They Came Before Columbus by Ivan Van Sertima. Is this Deja Vu'? My daddy always had strong beliefs when it came to black people, and I just thought he was saying his beliefs or opinion on the subject. But here is a man named Ivan Van Sertima on the same side as my daddy, just as if they were on a debate team; the only difference is Ivan Van Sertima had the guts to write about it. Is it possible that my dad may be right? Sure enough they got over here first. Who? The Africans of course, and you would never guess what they brought with them: some of the same stuff that archaeologists study to know what kind of people were here--cloth, feathers, shells, skins of tigers, golden ear pendants, smoking pipes, and exotic stones and shells. Just think, without the Africans who voyaged over here, New Orleans wouldn't have Mardi Gras Indians with feathers, older men wouldn't have pipes to smoke, and it would just be plain different if the Africans didn't come first. The way the Africans got over here seemed very odd to me, because it was planned. The waves of the ocean brought them here. In a way, I think that the Africans had some kind of knowledge or map stating that there was land there. If there wasn't a map, then I know that they kind of had an idea because of hearsay and even scientific observation. Van Sertima shows court records from West African kingdoms that shows their knowledge of the migratory patterns of birds and ocean currents--knowledge that led them to understand that lands existed far beyond the great bodies of waters on the shores of their kingdoms. Another amazing thing about Van Sertima that I love is the fact that he believes in proving people wrong. Everybody was saying that there was a need for an outrageous, huge ship with a lot of navigational systems and important technology. But there wasn't. Thor Heyerdal proved that. And court records and archaeological remains show small ships that used strong winds and ocean currents almost like a sling shot to take them from the African coast to what we now call South America. This book reminds me of my daddy so much, because my daddy was so intelligent. I didn't even realize it. Just imagine all of the other stuff we didn't even talk about it before he died. He might have known who really invented stuff. I miss him a lot, because after this incident of finding something that he said was true, I feel like he could have educated me in a way a history book couldn't have. When I think about it, he used to always tell me how much stuff he knew and how surprised I would be if he told me everything he knew. Oh well, I guess I'll never know now. --Katrina Thomas If you want to read more about SAC Family Stories, follow the links below. Equality Less Than Equal Revolutions Throughout the Years Pontchartrain Park 1955: One Womans Story My Louisiana A Place Her Feet Never Touched
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My Dad Before Columbus

"Nah uh daddy. Black people weren't here first. The Indians were. My teacher at school told me that she read in a textbook somewhere that Columbus captured the Indians when he first came to America. He was here second, but the Indians were here first."

"Katrina, Katrina, Katrina. Girl you don't know what you are talking about. Your teacher is just misguided like everybody else who doesn't know the truth. Did you know that someone black invented the stoplight?"

"For real?"

"Yeah, but they didn't get credit for it, obviously. So what makes you think your teacher is going to tell you that black people were here before Columbus? They probably think that they are going to mess up the sequence in the history books. Girl you have a lot to learn."

Now, almost four years later, I find myself in an internship at the Army Corps of Engineers working with archaeologists, anthropologists, and biologists to learn more about archaeology, particularly in from an African American perspective. In this program Shannon Dyers and I go to the Corps every Wednesday and Thursday from 1:30 to 4:00. We also have to do written work and read books relating to the Corps and African Studies.

A month or so into the program, it just so happens that I get a book titled They Came Before Columbus by Ivan Van Sertima. Is this Deja Vu'? My daddy always had strong beliefs when it came to black people, and I just thought he was saying his beliefs or opinion on the subject. But here is a man named Ivan Van Sertima on the same side as my daddy, just as if they were on a debate team; the only difference is Ivan Van Sertima had the guts to write about it. Is it possible that my dad may be right?

Sure enough they got over here first. Who? The Africans of course, and you would never guess what they brought with them: some of the same stuff that archaeologists study to know what kind of people were here--cloth, feathers, shells, skins of tigers, golden ear pendants, smoking pipes, and exotic stones and shells. Just think, without the Africans who voyaged over here, New Orleans wouldn't have Mardi Gras Indians with feathers, older men wouldn't have pipes to smoke, and it would just be plain different if the Africans didn't come first.

The way the Africans got over here seemed very odd to me, because it was planned. The waves of the ocean brought them here. In a way, I think that the Africans had some kind of knowledge or map stating that there was land there. If there wasn't a map, then I know that they kind of had an idea because of hearsay and even scientific observation. Van Sertima shows court records from West African kingdoms that shows their knowledge of the migratory patterns of birds and ocean currents--knowledge that led them to understand that lands existed far beyond the great bodies of waters on the shores of their kingdoms. Another amazing thing about Van Sertima that I love is the fact that he believes in proving people wrong. Everybody was saying that there was a need for an outrageous, huge ship with a lot of navigational systems and important technology. But there wasn't. Thor Heyerdal proved that. And court records and archaeological remains show small ships that used strong winds and ocean currents almost like a sling shot to take them from the African coast to what we now call South America.

This book reminds me of my daddy so much, because my daddy was so intelligent. I didn't even realize it. Just imagine all of the other stuff we didn't even talk about it before he died. He might have known who really invented stuff. I miss him a lot, because after this incident of finding something that he said was true, I feel like he could have educated me in a way a history book couldn't have. When I think about it, he used to always tell me how much stuff he knew and how surprised I would be if he told me everything he knew. Oh well, I guess I'll never know now.

--Katrina Thomas

If you want to read more about SAC Family Stories, follow the links below.

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Authored by Towana Pierre, SAC 2001.