Nuwuvi : a southern Paiute history

Introduction

INTRODUCTION Since the arrival of the white man, Native American children have been taught the ways and accomplishments of the newcomers. Schools have presented our past from a foreign point of view. This formal education practically insured the indoctrination or the failure of our young. Our people have learned of "their" discoveries in our land, "their" heroes in our wars, and "their" victories over our people. Though several historians have displayed a sensitivity for Indian life and culture, many have seen our reality from a distant vantage point. We have heard our beloved lands called "harsh," and our existence termed "savage." It is no wonder that their education has not had a positive effect on our lives. In their eyes, we have nothing in our past to be proud of. This history, the first in a series of four dealing with native Nevadans, will present the past of southern Nevada from the Nuwuvi point of view. Our elders have preserved much of the past by telling and retelling the events which have shaped our lives. No history can attain complete objectivity; it can only present a point of view, a particular way to talk and think about the events of the past. All events have more than one interpretation. This is ours.