I dedicate these pages to my good and true friend
Elder Pedro Guanikeyu Torres, his Tribe and to all Taino People.
"AJI AYA BOMBE!" (Better dead than a slave)
"We, The Taino People Who Discovered Columbus In 1492
Are Still Here"
The Taino People
Taino Jatibonicu' Tribe of Boriken (Puerto Rico)
"Great People Of The Sacred Hight Waters"
A Jatibonicu' Taino History in Puerto Rico & New Jersey
Taiguey Guaitiaos
Good Day Friends
Taino Indigenous People of The Caribbean & Florida
The Taino people living in the mountainous regions of the Caribbean
Islands faced economic hardship. Because they were by tradition farmers,
Taino workers from the Islands and from Florida entered into contracts
with farmers in southern New Jersey to supply agricultural labor in the
production of vegetables.
This settlement took place in the 1930s and marks the beginning of
the Taino Jatibonicu' band of southern New Jersey, known as by their tribal name of Jatibonicu' "Great
People Of The Sacred High Waters". It was not until November 24th, 1993,
that the first NJ Taino Council came to order in the State of New Jersey
under the leadership of its founding father:
Elder Pedro Guanikeyu Torres.
Proud Taino Warrior Man"
These Taino peoples originated in the mountain yucayeke (village) of
Jatibonicu' - the village of Great Chief Orocobix of the district of
Jatibonicu', which today covers the cities of Orocovis, Barranquitas, Morovis and Aibonito on the Island of Boriken (Puerto Rico).
Our New Jersey Taino Tribal Band has its own United States Taino Tribal Council Government and today serves as the United States region office of the Taino Tribe of Jatibonicu' of Boriken (Puerto Rico),that has representation via two (2) NJ Inter-Tribal Commissioner within the New Jersey Commission on Indian Affairs.
"We are not, nor are we so bigoted as to have ever claimed to be
the Taino Indigenous People of the Caribbean and Florida, but just another
small humble branch of the same old Sacred Cojobana tree".
Memories of Columbus
Tau Guaitiao, Guazabara (Hello Warriors Friends)
We, the Taino people, know Cristóbal Colón very well.
He called our people Indio. The word sounds like In God one with God, yet
he committed mass genocide against 8 Million of my family members. My beloved
great-grandfather Chief Orocobix of Yucayeque (Village) of Jatibonico was
put to the Guamikena (Covered peoples) sword, after Diego Colónin
Boriken (Puerto Rico) took the land and over 400 pounds of gold from
his mountain yucayeque (Village).
Now ask me, "Do I love this white
man named Colón?"
Guaroco Yucayeke
In Rememberance of My People
I always seem to cry when I talk about what this man and his people
did! The pain of my people is still very deeply rooted within my heart!
I only ask the Creator Yaya for forgiveness, for my painful bitterness
of this cross that I carry within my heart!
The Taino people are very much alive. They just cover the negative
side of how Cristóbal Colón (Columbus) and his Euro-criminal
scaused mass genocide against our people. They do not tell the whole truth,
they just keep spreading the Caribbean Taino extinction story. The other
problem we find is that they do not inform people that the Taino's had
lived in the tropical Taino homeland of Florida as the Tribes of the Timucua,
Guacara and Calusa or other Taino people living in Bemini (Florida) at
the time of the Spanish invasion of 1492-93. We will start a Taino
Indigenous book review, to clear out the false story tellers.
Most of the books you find do not cover the fact that the Taino people
are very much alive.
Yes, the memories do cut like a knife into my heart. But the memory
of this animal must be spoken about, for our people have gone too long
without telling the world the truth, about this man called Cristóbal
Colón, the man that did not discover anything. To the north they
speak of him in history books, as a great man. They do not tell how he
and his people fed the chopped up body's of our children to their killer
dogs. Nor do they talk about the men that, jokingly placed our young
Yucayeke(Village) boys in a line and cut them in half with the Toledo
swards. See how many of our Taino children that they could cut in half
with one single blow! Yes the 500 plus years of pain never goes away.
I, as a Taino man must tell the world what it does not want to hear.
The truth spoken by one of the real First Americans who survived of the
great holocaust of the of the 6 to 8 Million tears.
WE TAINO'S HAVE SURVIVED TO TELL THE WORLD THE TRUTH ABOUT THIS
MAN NAMED COLUMBUS !!!
The Tainos And The Pocahontas Story
Pocahontas is anther lie! Many Taino know that Pocahontas was a not even
in the picture 200 years, before the original story was being read by some
White Man named John Smith. He read the Garcilasco De Vega story, about
a captive Spanish man called "Ortiz" and his account of 1528. This account
was later published in 1557 in Lisbon, Portugal and later translated into
English in 1605. This account by Garcillasco De Vega about Juan (John)
Ortiz's encounter with the Taino-Timucua Indigenous Cacique (Chieftist)
near Tampa Bay in Bimini (Florida). Her real name was Caciquea Ulele (Chieftist).
The use of the word "Barbacoa", a word that survived as "Barbecue" is of
the Taino Language, meaning the fire pit.
It seems that the father of Ulele, Cacique Hirrihugua of the Yucayeque
(Village) of Ucita, was going to have Juan (John) Ortiz put to death,
because the Spaniard Narvaez had cut off his nose and killed his Mother.
The daugther Ulele pleaded with her father to spare Ortiz's life. The next
day Caciquea Ulele took Ortiz to the nieghboring Guacara Yucayeque (Village)
of Cacique (Chief) Moscoso. The rest is nothing but a little white lie told
by John Smith or John Ortiz an English manor a Spaniard? The Powhatan people
do not have our Taino southern traditions; furthermore we do not speak the
Powhatan language of the North-East. We Taino Indigenous Nation of the
Caribbean & Florida know the truth of Juan Ortiz. It was not until
500 years later on in November 18th, 1993 that we have made this statement
via our supporting evidence of traditional language and customs of the
Taino-Timucua people of Bimini (Florida). Please do note that many
historians of Florida support these historical facts.
We The Indigenous People of Amikekia
I will speak my heart, as my fallen Grandfathers would ask of me. Many
times we lose track of what symbols mean.
We, as the true landlords of our mother Atabey (Earth Mother) must always
remember the past, so we can live in the present. The old Taino language
name for Turtle Island was once called the Amikekia (The People's Island
Land of the Great Lord). Today they call it America. We as a United Native
American people have never had a flag that represents our people, "La Raza":
The Race of Amikekia.
The point that must be made here is that we shed our blood for
something that was not ours! Many Native American Warriors fell in battle
for this colonial symbol. We must respect the memory of those brave
Warriors, not the colonial flag of United States OF North America.
We must remember the memories of our Sacred Chiefs, like War Chief
Guarionex and Chief Joeseph with the tear in his eye. Do you not remember
the Indian Wars? Then why do you still think of this colonial symbol as
being yours? It is time that all Native people of Amikekia, stand up: for
the symbol of the four Directions. This is what rises in the morning, under
one Amikekia Nation. The Nation of the Sun father must soon be free!
A point of North American Anglo prejudice AMERICA does not mean the
United States "OF" North America. We are one people, one race, that family
of the rising Sun, shining upon our Sacred Caguana (The Trutle Island).
In the morning before the wings sing their honor song, I rise in
the west. Hear me sing my morning bird song, holding up my arms like the
sacred tree, giving thanks for the birth of the new day, as was shown tome
by my honored Grandfathers.
"We are still here!"
Tayno Ti! (Walk in gentleness)
Pedro GuanikeyuTorres, Council Elder
The Taino Indigenous Documentation Project
(An Umbrella Research Project)
The Taino National Directory List
The Taino National Directory List project was started on
November 24, 1993, with the support of the Puerto Rican Genealogy
Society of Morovis Puerto Rico. The linking of all the Taino families
under one National Directory of the Caribbean is a monumental task.
The Taino Elders Documentation Project
It seems that the Indigenous Caribbean knowledge is disappearing
at an alarming rate with the passing on of our older Elders. We have taken
the task of documenting all Taino family genealogy and mountain culture
remaining that is in the past memories of our older Elders, who are dying
off like flies. We must act now! We must realize for each minute we waste
an older elder dies, with them goes a part of our past history, our true
understanding of the Taino Indigenous way of life. Each day a part of our
own life dies along with our beloved sacred Elders!
Project Team Volunteers
We are asking that if anyone is interested in working with the
Committee on this new Elders Project, who are living on the other Caribbean
Islands to please contact our office so that we can make unified effort.
Donations
We are asking that anyone having any free time to work on the Taino
Elders project to please contact our office in Southern New Jersey. We
will be needing monies to fund the project. If you know about grant writing,
please do not hesitate to contact us. This Project will be needing a VCR
CamCorder, a Type Recorder, to archive the Elders on the Islands and in
the United States as part of the Taino Indigenous Project documentation.
Taino National Repatriation Committee Members Needed
(Statement: To Repatriate All Sacred Objects and Cultural Property)
Our Taino Indigenous People's Sacred Objects are being sold at auctions,
yet we can not stop them, because of a loophole in the law of not being
BIA officially recognized. We are now starting up a fight to stop these
people from selling our Sacred things. We need the help of our all Native
American Nations to stop this from happening. Can anyone help us Tainos
the First Americans of the invasion of Oct 12, 1492. Your fight is our
fight, our fight is your fight! Now we Taino's need your brotherly support.
Our Southern Colibri (Hummingbird) is calling to his brother the Guaraguao
(Great Redhawk) and the Spotted Eagle) its brothers to the north. Our Mayohuacan
Drum of the South beats for the union of the Sacred Buffalo Drum. The Longhouse
of the Wolf Clan hear our cries, the crys of the 8 Million Taino ancestors
the victims of Columbus!
"AJI AYA BOMBE!" (Better dead than a slave)
Great War Chief Guarionex of Otuao
November 1511
The Great Battle of the Toa
PLEASE PASS THIS MESSAGE ON TO ANYONE
WHO CAN HELP OUR SACRED CAUSE
Fraternally yours,
Pedro GuanikeyuTorres
Jatibonicu' Tribal Council Elder & Nitayno
Survivor of the Taino Tribe of Jatibonicu', Boriken (Puerto Rico)
References:
"The Indian Chronicles" by Jose Barreiro Ph.D a Prof. at Cornell
University
The Taino Documentation Project A Monumental Task
We have The "Taino Documentation Project." We have collected many Taino
files that we have within our project archives related to the Taino
Indigenous people of the Caribbean and United States mainland. The BBS
Hummingbird BBS online Service has a major database so call the Board
[and] look around. If you have any new Taino documents or other related
information files that you would like to share, then please upload, then
to the Hummingbird BBS database. Please do it today. The Taino people
need the help of lots of good Caribbean/Florida friends.
The Hummingbird Colibri Taino Bulletin Board Service
A Taino Community Bulletin Board Service
Sysop: Mr. Welfredo Cayey Alvarado
Voice: (609) 696-4571
The National Taino Computer Database
An American Indian Community News Service
The Hummingbird BBS Data Line: (609) 825-7922
High Speed US Robotics 28800 Modem (24 hour online BBS Service)
Recognize your Taino Roots
Puerto Rico And United States Tribal Contacts
El Consejo Tribal Taino De Jatibonicu'
Las Montan~aa De La Cordillera Central
Barrio Caonillas, Aibonito, Puerto Rico 00705
The Taino Inter-Tribal Council Inc.
NJ State Regional Office
527 Mulberry Street
Millville, New Jersey 08332
Voice: (609) 825-7776
Fax: (609) 825-7922
Southern Jersey Taino Tribal Band of Jatibonicu'
Tribal Caney Longhouse
Bohike: Frank Yuguaraguao WhiteEagle
Voice Phone: (914) 292-3544
The Taino Tribal Council of Jatibonicu'
US Regional Tribal Affairs Office
703 South Eight StreetVineland, New Jersey 08360
Voice: (609) 690-1565
May the Great Mystery Bless, Guide, Protect and Sustain you all,
now and always!
Qué el Gran Mysterio Bendiga, Guía, Proteye & Sustenga a todo,
ahora y siempre!
Taino-Ti! (Good Spirits Be With You! / Buenos Espiritus Estar
Con Ustedes!)
Begin Your journey, learn the Steps to
Your Indian Ancestry
Beginners Lesson in Genealogy
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The Indigenous Peoples' Literature pages were researched and organized by Glenn Welker.