Dialogue and illustrations trace the history of the first peoples of South, Central, and North America and encourage students to look at past and present patterns of colonialism and to view colonialism from the perspective of the colonized. Chapter 1 critiques Columbus 500 years after founding the first colony in the Americas. Chapter 2 presents the indigenous people who lived in South and Central America before Columbus arrived. Following this, chapter 3 explores the structure of the colonial system, and chapter 4 discusses colonialism in North America from 1607 to 1776. Chapters 5 and 6 provide case studies of the native people of Georgia and Alabama and of the Sioux nation. Chapter 7 describes the struggle for aboriginal rights by the first Canadians, and chapter 8 examines the aftermath of colonialism. Chapter 9 discusses second stage colonialism by the United States as internal conquest turns to external expansion. Guatemala is a case study of neocolonialism in chapter 10, and chapter 11 delineates the indigenous people of the Americas organizing together to achieve change. The final chapter presents activities to use with the text and a simulation game designed to give participants a sense of the emotional, cultural, and economic effects of being colonized. A list of 11 audiovisual and print resources provides further information. (CK)