American Indians aren't from India. Calling themselves first peoples, aboriginals or whatever tends to be obscurantist. Historically most nations and peoples were named for their tribe/race or place. There were actual Brits, Germans and so forth. Even Russians and Chinese. Sure there are Tlingits and Seminole yet St. Louis is right in the middle of things- where the national capital would have been located if they were looking a couple hundred years ahead. Maybe Indians should call themselves Cohokians or something similar. Cohokia might have been the greatest race/civilization of North America.
Certainly Meso-Americans can call themselves by race or tribe; Aztecs, Incas, Mayans etc. yet that does not apply for North America where their are countless tribes and in a sense races, with the exception being that they aren't not too different at all. So why not name themselves after their greatest civilization? That might be useful to people that don't understand the meanings and political correctnesses that attend the issue.
The Kansas City Cohokians has a nice sound to it.
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