My grandmother (rip ) is from New Orleans ! She was a tall black Indian ! Beautiful features ! Tall ! Golden skin ! And beautiful hair !

I dont think the indians was totally killed off in North America just made to believe they are African Americans.Think about it why there are so many Hispanics .I live in Michigan WHERE ARE THE iNDIANS.They are still here just black Americans now.

My grandmother would always tell me stories on how they always prided them selves in their dance and costumes !!

excellent vid, thanx for sharing. I LOVE THE BLACK MARDI GRAS INDIANS!!!! some of the deepest, most profound spiritual experiences I have had in my life have been on Mardi Gras day, in the Treme, under the Claiborne bridge, etc. flowing like a river, all us people together, like the rythme of the heartbeat of the Earth, One People, crying up to the sky with Joy, NOTHING CAN KEEP OUR SPIRITS DOWN! Fully, the CELEBRATION OF BEING ALIVE! Thank you to everyone out there helping to keep this incredibly rich & unique tradition alive. I been away for 13 years & now we're moving back to New Orleans...feels like coming home :) LOVE

This is fantastic! What an amazing culture of art and music. We must treasure this as a great part of American history.

We out here

Thank you for this clip. It was very interesting and answered a lot of questions that I had about Black Indians in New Orleans.

Weren't there already black Indians before 1492? If these were really escaped African slaves why weren't they turned in for the bounty? Instead they were given their 160 acres just like the rest of the tribe. You never hear Native Americans saying anything about letting Black people come live with them nor marring and having children with them. Of course native Americans that are mostly white aren't going to like being called red.

My name is Tanesha Windom, I'm a dark complexion Indian I'm 41 years old, I've noticed people from the southern states have priority, I don't know what's going on

As a person born in NOLA and raised in Creole tradition, this is important. One of, if not the best, documentary on subject I have seen.

My Great-grandfather father was a full blooded Native American. with dual citizenship on the dawes roll. he married my great grandmother a French creole woman. My dad's grandfather was a full blood, whom is also on the dawes roll. I am enrolled in the Cherokee Nation. You never know. your great grandparents can full blooded, and most of the African DNA shows up. Africans and NATIVE Americans have same DNA. Africans and Natives have Similar ways of life. Africans had contact with Native Americans waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayy before Europeans even came into the mix. they won't teach you that in schools.

Thank You Very Much for sharing this. This is truly a celebration of life. Roots. .....

I love Mardi Gras.

beautiful diversity in america

African, Irish, Choctaw and Chickasaw is how my mom's family originated in the late 1700's. That native influence is there....absolutely! To the moors who say we were never in the slave trade....that we were always here? Sure....I would love to believe that but I'm just not that damn stupid. Life and the Universe offers many mysteries. That doesn't mean would should entertain each possibility without real proof.

The European is always lying about our story calling it history. It is well documented that the so called "black" Indian is the copper colored Indigenous Native American who was here over 50,000 years ago even before the Mongols invaded from North Asia about 35,000 thousand years ago.

I'm from New Orleans. I'm chief of a Mardi Gras Indian gang. We do not claim to be BLACK INDIANS. Let me explain. When the French where owners of Louisiana they had 10 rules. 1 was that Blacks was exempt from work on Sunday & holidays. The French was a lot more compassionate. Some slaves would hire themselves out for wages. Others would go to a plot of land right outside the city. At that time the French quarters. The plot of land is known today as Congo Square. They would play there music as they did in Africa. The Native Americans that stayed on the Louisiana land close to the city. Would attend these musical sessions. Some (creoles) free people of colour would even dress like the Indians. Its custom for some west Africans who where guest to dress like their host at that time (indians). The Indians learned to communicate with the slaves. This communication between the two eventually would lead to some really nasty slave revolts. Some lead by Native Americans. Although the revolts didn't last long. Some blacks used the opportunity to escape to the nearby swamp. Now with Haitian immigrant pouring into the city. Some escaped slaves and (creoles)free people of colour. Other slaves who made enough to buy their freedom. Started buying up houses in a area in the city called Tremé. The Tremé neighborhood is America FIRST & OLDEST BLACK OWNED neighborhood ever. The way we sew our suit is an African style of sewing and a African culture. Something we try very hard to keep alive. The first photos of the mardi gras indians was the year1880 the gang name was and still is called the Creole Wild West. What we do as Mardi Gras Indians is keep a Louisiania and African culture alive & give thanks to the Louisiana Native Americans that help out our ancestors at that time. By masking indian (dress like the host).

I bet you the average white person are quick to try and discredit this type of information like african people only came to America from slave boats,but Thats brainwashing for ya. The African man has been traveled all over this globe we call earth way before the white also google the OLMECS and the MOORS.

Thank you for this video so much.

Powerful information, history and culture. Give thanks!

Lovin this history!

N.O. baby!!!! Best city in this country! WHO DAT!!!

Thanks for posting this

Man this footage is fucking outstanding,(sorry for the language) I have been looking for something like this on you tube since in arrived in san antonio in 05. I am born and raised in the 9thw/d bunny friend park area and this is the mardi gras i grew up seeing in the 6th w/d under the claibourne bridge. Thx man I will be searing for Doornob films

this explains why my gray grand father is a full blooded Indian on my mother and father side cool!

this is straight neworleans the only way to understand is to live here ya know I mean born and bread here until you live here you will never understand...let the documentry talk to ya

I just watch the video and I just found out recently that my family was one if the original families who created Mardi gras Indians I see a lot of family in this video some I never seen in real life. Tuti Montana stated with lot of my family thanks I needed to see that.

Shimmy I more thing to tell u I am a Choctaw Indian and by my black mother who is Choctaw and black and father who's the same mother and father on both side

wow ,real copper colored nativeamericans like my self.this footage is so dope i can overlook the disturbing missinfo thAT is being spoken over it. haha hehe ...african what? these people been around much longer than the african slave stories.

every race on the planet was black

I;m Afro Native American with Hindi Indian but whats funny is a woman of Dutch and Native American Cherokee recognized my Native American Cherokee ancestry . She told me Indians recognize Indians regardless of their skin tone and I'm brown skinned. She welcomed me as a Cherokee Sister. My daughter is the same way she has blended features of both Native American and Hindi Indian and West African . Her hair has the high glossy shiny texture of our native indian and hindi indian ancestry.

Thank you!

The sad thing is many Indians returned many run away slave in return for guns, liquor...

You are so dumb they had black Indians already in the tribes, while they had some that joined, I am creole black woman myself, I know my heritage, I will not let nobody dictate who people are like Walter Ashby Plecker did making that one drop rule mess and he was a white racists supremacists look him up,because he could not distinguish between the natives and the Africans he made the one drop rule up, so until you know where our roots are then you can speak, but till then I advised you to hush!

Wonderful history!

True.africans have been here much longer than slave stories. Much longer.

WE ARE ALL ONE!!!!!!!!!!!

the confused blacks are not being confused and lied to any longer. They are starting the find out the truth that was hidden by whites. Whites like yourself are in fear that the age of enlightenment is upon us. The whites are scurrying about to try to keep the lid on, but all you do to achieve this will not work. Its time to shed all the truth thats been in darkness. Theirs nothing you and your brethen can do. :D

Thank you for posting this and thank you for replying about where to get the whole documentary. Very interesting.

New Orleans has some of the most attractive people I've ever come across, I'd like to move there one day.

You have got to post the second part of this story it was very interesting.

Very interesting

I'm from Michigan and my grandfather is Potwatomi...it is obvious he is native american...but he married a black woman. Also a lot of native americans were purposely mixing with blacks at one point too because they didn't want their children to be recognized at Natives because they were being killed and moved off their land. Its really sad. Blacks and natives got along better than people think cause they went through a lot of the same hardships.

💥💥💥🔥🔥🔥🔥

...a Mexican group identified as being of African origin and six Mayan groups show the B Allele of the ABO system that is considered to be of African origin (9-10). We conclude that the genetic evidence points to distinct origins for the Paleoamerican populations. This molecular evidence supports a possible early colonization of the Americas, not only by Melanesians as suggested by Hubbe et al, but also Africans. The molecular evidence is...

@W0nd3rw0m4n , To tell you the truth when you see the rapper Snope Dog you are looking at a blackindian, his DNA was taken and he had more Indian in him then African, European. Now thats food for thought.

my daddy used to take me to the indian parades when i was little. they said i needed to learn my heritage

this is so interesting, is there any more you can upload or are there any links to more info on this? It seems to be an important cultural link in the history of America, such an obvious one too but its usually brushed over very quickly or not mentioned at all.

very true

i'm born and raised in louisiana, but live in chicago now. our history is so rich. i myself have white ancestory.

i have seen this whole program on tv

they were in beyonce's Formation video

The Native Americans and the Africans are the people who gave America Culture, without their beauty, we would not make it.

Correct .

Black and native American here. I'm from New Orleans and as a kid growing up I use to be called white girl by other kids and I hated it!! I would actually stand in the sun to try to get my skin darker. Kids were horrible and judgemental. High school I would be told that light skinned girls with long hair thought they were better than dark skinned girls so I grew up fighting alot.

What film is this clip taken from? It's amazing! I'd love to see the whole thing.

Yes, i am to.

I am a Moor. I also come from the Sycun & Pettiford tribes...

@phylliewilly , the whole documentary is available from Doorknob films

My great grandmother is cherokee,yes i knew her before she died. she explained to me she loved my great grandfather. They both worked on a plantation, not as slaves. She fell in love with him. He was african american. Sometimes hardship brings folks together no matter the race. Why is it so hard to believe that their are african/Indians. big deal lets all just live.

My gran and her parents ares from LA their from Mississippi but she's black Indian her mother is,her father is full blooded and it's the same on the other side of my family but more irish. It's cool being black irish and Cherokee. But since my gran was raised black-even tho she looks Indian and her kids as well...i don't know the culture. I wish I did. It's beautiful.

when was this video taped? it looks like the 70s!!

Man always messing up history black people are the first in america not those asian .

Its very hard for me to understand my heritage. I'm 16 years old and I'm Creole but most of me is African American and Native American. But dont know anything about culture or tradition. It's upseting because my ancestors ran away from the hate in Louisiana and came here to California. It just makes me really upset that all our tradtons have disappeared and I'll never understand who or what I'm really am. =''''(

@Mike Bendezu oh yes we can

Cool video. Brings back lots of memories. Everything in this video is accurate. This is not a case of someone just wanting to be something else. The Black Code was never strictly enforced. Relations between people here in Louisiana was more affected by the events of the time more than any modern conception of 'race relations.' We are who we are and are here because of all our ancestors endured to ensure our survival. Race is an artificial construct. Throughout all our history all of our ancestors have been oppressed/oppressors. It makes no sense to denigrate this or that group for injustices of the past. History happened and all that is necessary is that we do not repeat the mistakes of our ancestors. We should appreciate the traditions that have survived and realize that these traditions are part of who we are. I may look like an Aryan poster child, but after all these hundreds of thousands of years there is still sub-Saharan African in my DNA as well as Native American. Hatred of any group is hatred of part of yourself and is destructive. We all came from Africa. The fact that we are here today is nothing short of a miracle. We are all family and it is past time that we start acting like it. I am not a politically correct person, I despise political correctness in all it's forms as it is intellectually dishonest and is nothing more than another tool for oppressing others. This video portrays something wonderful. Preservation of tradition should be encouraged and not disparaged.

is it available for me to order?

The local Indian tribes would show favor to the large slave population in New Orleans. An African Slave could very easily find shelter and protection in an Indian tribe, as a result New Orleans African American genealogy is full of people mix with Indian blood lines. The American Slaves paid homage to the Indians by masking in the same attire that was use to disguised their identify. To learn more about the culture of New Orleans visit our Facebook group called "9th Ward Trivia"

@ fourjack4444 ,when columbus 1st arrived in 1492 he asked the indians "where did you get the gold chains (with gold medallions on them)" they said "from the black men who come from across the water (atlantic ocean) with the feathers in thier hair", columbus also describes the people of the new world as being "similar in skin color to the people of west africa & islands off the coast of west africa", columbus also stopped on the west coast of africa to ask the black men how 2 get to new world

What era was this, the sixtys

@mihiva .... yes thats basically it

Why are the Hopi so similar to the Dogon? And what happened to the pyramid building Olmecs?

Oh Really? Check this out...James l. Gutherie (2000) in a study of the HLAs in indigenous American populations, found that the Vantigen of the Rhesus system, considered to be an indication of African ancestry, among Indians in Belize and Mexico centers of Mayan civilization(9). Dr. Gutherie also noted that A*28 common among Africans has high frequencies among Eastern Maya. It is interesting to note that the Otomi,...

I dont think they want to be native but it's there way of showing respect to them as well as their people I would like for them to maybe invite some Native to see them and get some ideal from them too

Judah!!!!

What does the word Indian mean?

@W0nd3rw0m4n Umm... not in this context. They're just black people in New Orleans who dress up as Native Americans (often called Mardi Gras Indians.) They don't need to be part Native American at all.

Well I have a photo of my great grandmother who really was Cherokee.

@DementedBCecil pt.2 By the way my comment was not meant at all to be negative or to "hate" on your post in anyway. I have family members in this documentary. The truth simply is that there is much more to the story. I have posted a Video as a response to this one if you would be kind enough to allow your viewers to connect with the FULL truth in this matter. Peace.

shouldnt Eraserhead bust onto the scene at about 6:20?

Basically...

@W0nd3rw0m4n Yes.

im from new orleans

The raw footage here is priceless. We refer to them as Mardi Gras Indians. Some of what is asserted as fact by the narrator is really just a best guess. The origins of Mardi Gras Indians are really lost to history. There are some clues as to how, why and when, but few hard facts. The tradition has changed a lot in the last 30 years that I have been observing it, but for the most part all for the better. Women are now welcome. Violence is now rare when it was common in the past.

it should be. google door knob films. if that doest work. private message me

Black and native American here. I'm from New Orleans and as a kid growing up I use to be called white girl by other kids and I hated it!! I would actually stand in the sun to try to get my skin darker. Kids were horrible and judgemental. High school I would be told that light skinned girls with long hair thought they were better than dark skinned girls so I grew up fighting alot.

Okay this is going to be a stupid question but what is a Black Indian... An Afroamerican muxed with native american?

i am a yamasee

kakaaaaaawww

I'm not sure what your point is.... Im comparing the Hopi to the Dogon culturally. And as far as I know neither the Hopi or Dogon built pyramids. My question is what happened to the Olmecs...where did they go? And didnt the Maya learn pyramid building from the Olmecs? I think the Egyptians were here anyway.

Page 3. Now don’t go start a war with people that are still on the land when you find your roots because if it was not for these people you really would be lost and they have lots of information you may find handy to help you more and remember these people are your people as well. I’m Native Cherokee/Comanche Indian mix with Afro American, I grow up as Native Indian and I know nothing about being Black just what I see on TV but still I can’t connect to the live style.

"IndiVisible: African-Native American Lives in the Americas" is a video to watch held at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington,DC. It's the latest from the Tribes. The correct term is to say AFRICAN-NATIVE AMERICANS. This is crucial. Through knowledge comes understanding. I'm a descendant of this mixed heritage of Kadohadacho (Caddo: Kadawdáachuh) & Washataw/African in Louisiana. The enemy has infiltrated the ranks & want us 2 fight amongst ourselves. Stay Strong FAMILY. We know who we are!

Page 1. I wonder do Afro Americans know theirs a difference in the Black race. Let me help you all to understand what Im saying here. SATAN SEED "white man" put it all in the Black Americans mind that they all are from Africa and you are Africans. NOT all you DARK skins are AFRICANS; now you may had came from the same continent but still your identity is different and the Europeans manage to make your ancestors to believe you all AFRICANS to BRAINWASH you for hundreds of years until now.

read their desciptions of their initial contacts with them.They described a range of looks from an asiatic look to an african look and a blend of the two. They described some of them as belonging to the Ethiopian race and wearing ethiopian braids (cornrows) and having wooly and frizzly hair. Anthropologist recovered the oldest 'American" skeleton in Brazil and it was revealed to be of an ancient austrailian root race-black. They are also the root race of ancient Europeans. Look it up

my girlfriend mother is afro-jamaican and her father is west african/cherokee and cree descent but my girlfriend look more like her mother

They call themselves black Indians, but yes, like in ST thomas, it's really only for Mardi Gras/Carnival

@DementedBCecil Incorrect. Afro-American mixed with Native American is only a small portion of the legacy. The narration is purposefully Misinforming the viewers.

When a Native American mixes with a black person they make a Zambo.

...consistent with Hubbe et al two wave human expansion across America, while supporting an introduction of some Americans directly from Africa. I have pictures of some of the oldest artifacts found in the Americas and they are clearly African people.

i'm african american with native blood also