Although many Latinos can trace our ancestry to indigenous tribes like the Aztecs, when learning about our ancestors in U.S. schools we’re met with savage representations and bloody sacrifices. In fact, the Aztecs had complex belief systems...
...and loved to dance, laugh, and play like everyone else. They were warriors, poets, and artisans known for their legendary wit. They gave people fierce nicknames like Tochnenemi (he hops like a rabbit) or Maxtlacozhuehue (old yellow loincloth) 😂
Their capital city of Tenochtitlán was the beating heart of North America. Aztecs would probably find today’s immigration routes ironic, since they traveled south and Mesoamericans now journey north. Because history books are told from the perspective of Spanish colonizers...
...Aztecs are painted simply as barbarians. But they created an advanced civilization. They just had different customs that were foreign to the Spaniards...
Like how Aztecs used a pictographic writing system instead of the Roman alphabet. And the Aztec pyramids were different from the towers and arches in Spanish architecture.
Across the country, especially in the Southwest, many Latinos with indigenous roots get a white-washed version of history. To better understand history we need to consider other angles.
