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When I was a little boy, two of the things that I loved most were western movies and playing Cowboys and Indians. Of course, in the western movies back then, the cowboys and American soldiers were always the "good guys." The Indians in the movies were great fighters who rode horses, shot arrows, painted their faces, and scalped their enemies. And they were almost always the "bad guys."
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Nowadays, we know that these old ideas about Native Americans, or "Indians" were mostly myths and legends-exciting stories made up for the movies.
First of all, there were many different kinds of Indians living in different parts of America hundreds of years ago. Among the Plains Indians was a great tribe called the Lakota, a powerful and extraordinary group of people. And one of the proudest of the Lakota was a young boy who was first named Slow, but who later became a great chief known as Sitting Bull, one of the greatest leaders in American history. Although Sitting Bull became famous as a warrior who fought against the United States, he was a leader who wanted what was best for his people and tried to preserve the Lakota way of life.
The Indians like Sitting Bull believed in many of the same ideas we think are important today. Being loyal, honest and brave. Taking care of your family. Taking care of the earth, the most precious thing to the Lakota. And mostly, Sitting Bull fought for the same ideas as George Washington did. He wanted his people to be free.
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