People who believe they are the originators of everything great and positive in the U.S.—and even the world—are showing a deep ignorance of history.
Do you really think Black people and other people of color existed for hundreds—thousands—of years without building civilizations, creating knowledge, advancing science, shaping culture, and contributing to the world?
Before colonization, there were thriving societies, innovations, art, governance, medicine, and education across Africa, Asia, the Americas, and beyond.
History didn’t start with one group—and it certainly doesn’t belong to one group.
Erasing or ignoring those contributions doesn’t change the truth. It only reveals a refusal to learn it.
Ignorance of history, along with a white supremacist mentality, are some of the many reasons we are going backwards instead of progressing forward.
The first surfers weren’t from modern beach culture—they were Native Hawaiians and other Polynesian people who had been surfing for centuries, long before the West even knew it existed.
Surfing, called heʻe nalu (“wave sliding”), was deeply rooted in Hawaiian life It wasn’t just a sport—it was spiritual, cultural, and social Chiefs (aliʻi) often rode the biggest, best boards.
Surfing didn’t start in California or Australia—it started in Polynesia, especially Hawaii, and spread to the world from there.