American Indian creationism refers to a belief among Native Americans that rejects the scientific theory of evolution and other scientific ideas of human origins, arguing that American Indians originated in North America. It has deep roots in Indian tradition and religion. Vine Deloria, Jr., an American Indian author, theologian, historian, and activist, was influential in its recent development.
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Creation myths by tribe
Cherokee
In at least three Cherokee creation stories, the world begins as a large, unexplored body of water. The only existing beings are the animals and they all live in the sky. In two of these stories, the earth is a great island floating above the water. In another story, the actual land isn't formed until the Water Beetle volunteers to go and explore what is at the bottom of the large body of water and comes back with mud, which then becomes the land.
Apache
According to the Apache, nothing and no one existed in the beginning except two creators, Tepeu and Gucumatz. One time, the two creators sat with each other and created the world. Whatever they thought came into existence, so they thought up the entire earth (birds, trees, land, water, etc.). The two creators wanted beings that could praise them, so they created beings of clay that didn't last very long, as they fell apart when wet. Their next set of beings were made of wood, but caused much trouble and didn't satisfy Tepeu and Gucumatz, so the two creators sent a flood to get rid of their creation and start anew.
Iroquois
In the story of Sky Woman and the Big Turtle, the land is created after Big Toad scoops up mud from the bottom of the sea---in an effort to save Sky Woman after she falls from the sky---and spreads it on the back of Big Turtle. The land begins to grow until it is the size of North America. Sky Woman then steps onto the land and sprinkles dust into the sky. The dust becomes the moon, stars, and sun. Then Sky Woman gives birth to two sons (Sapling and Flint) who play a key role in the creation of the remainder of the earth. Sapling brings into the world all that is good (plants, animals, and rivers), while Flint tampers with/aims to destroy Sapling's good creation. The two get into a fight and Flint is defeated but doesn't die. Flint's anger is manifested into the form of a volcano.
Criticisms of the belief
American Indian creationism suggests the idea that humans were not created by means of evolution. These truths held by American Indian creationists rely heavily on Native American oral tradition, not scientific fact. Because of this, the belief as a whole is often seen as "myth" or "ethnic pseudoscience." Dr. H David Brumble, an English Professor at the University of Pittsburgh, has openly expressed his criticisms toward this belief in some of his works, including his article, Vine Deloria, Creationism, and Ethnic Pseudoscience.
Vine Deloria Jr. and critics
Vine Deloria Jr., a Native American author and activist, was very influential in the development of American Indian creationism. His book Red Earth challenges scientific fact and claims it to be myth. In this work of his, Deloria also defends Native American creation stories and oral tradition as being more legitimate than scientific theory. On page 243 of his book, Deloria describes a time when he made a trip back to his reservation and delivered a speech. According to his speech, Deloria believes that a proposed stegosaurus sighting by the Sioux people (sawtooth-backed "monster," according to the Sioux tale) a hundred years back is proof that dinosaurs did not actually go extinct millions of years ago. His views in regards to scientific theory and American Indian origins have brought significant opposition by other scholars. One of his main critics, H. David Brumble, refers to Deloria's views as being a type of ethnic pseudoscience, or "affirmative-action science."