“Summary: This paper lays emphasis on cranial remains in the ancient New World which establishes the pre-historic presence of ‘Africoid’ types in the Western hemisphere. The evidence suggests, argues Clegg, that even before the great mongoloid migrations via the Bering Straits a black element, variously designated by physical anthropologists as ‘proto-negroid’ and ‘pseudo-Australoid’ entered both the Northern and Southern halves of the American continent.” “Rarely considered in histories and treatises on the New World is the ‘Negroid’ race. These long-headed, dark-skinned folk usually possess crinkled or wavy hair, a nose that ranges from broad to keen and lips that are often fleshy. Many ‘Negroid’ people were imported by Europeans into the Americas during the early period of White colonization. Although scholars are gradually expressing a growing tolerance for historians who discuss the enslavement of Black people in the New World, any examination of the role of Blacks in the Americas prior to the slave-trade and slavery is met with bitter resistance by many of these same savants whose allegiance to outmoded tradition far outweighs their pursuit of scientific accuracy.” “Before Western scientists began the universal suppression of the history of Black people, several early scholars, primarily Latin American scholars, acknowledged and investigated evidence of an ancient Black presence in the Americas. Among those pioneers were Jose Melgar, Manuel Orozco y Berra, Riva Palacio and Jose Villacorta. In modern times, the one scholar who has synthesized the work of these and other scientists and brought a fresh approach to the history of the Western Hemisphere is Rutgers University anthropologist Ivan Van Sertima. His book, They Came Before Columbus, The African Presence in Ancient America, is a landmark that firmly establishes the significant role that Black folk played in the advancement of pre-Columbian, New World civilization.” “The contributions of the foregoing scientists are immeasurable and are slowing forcing the intransigents of the academic world to budge as the new, revolutionary school of thought gradually rises from the blight of white supremacist propaganda. One certain indication of the impact of the New School on modern science is that many archeologists, anthropologists and historians are now listening to the arguments of a growing number of experts on African and American history, and examining their evidence which confirms the presence of black people in the Americas between c. 800 B.C. and 1400 A,D.” Article by Legrand H. Clegg II title “The First Americans” Book title “African Presence in Early America” Edited by Ivan Van Sertima Page 264
Posted on: Thu, 09 Oct 2014 09:19:53 +0000
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