Estevanico deserves his bad reputation
Areview by David Steinberg about a book written by Dennis Herrick (“Author digs into the life of Esteban, a 16th-century slave who explored the Southwest,” Oct. 7) left me wondering how ignorant Mr. Herrick thinks people are. The book, “Esteban,”is basically a rip-off of the authoritative first-hand account of the actual events that originally put Esteban in his well-deserved place in history.
The original author (conveniently hidden from Mr. Steinberg by Mr. Herrick) is Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca. His official report was submitted to the king of Spain under the title “La Relacion.” Cabeza de Vaca was the commanding officer and responsible for, not only survival of the party, but sole author thereof.
He led the expedition and authored the only written account of the events surrounding “Esteban” and his contributions to the survival of the expedition. His actual name — from said authority — was Estevanico the black, a Moor from the west coast of Morocco.
Books such as this one by Mr. Herrick, are akin to grave-robbers. They are written in the hopes of making a few bucks using sources without crediting them. They also — as gathered by the article — used speculation and misinformation without documentation to create a “history” that never existed.
As a descendant of Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca, I find his “version” of history disturbing. Particularly his assertion that Estevanico had a “bad reputation.” Outside of a handful of scholars in Early American history and the Pueblo People, his existence would have been lost.
To clarify, there are basically two “episodes” to Estevanico’s history in the Americas. His first was well documented and his positive contributions acknowledged. However, his return to America is a chapter that was never written about as extensively. For that, we rely on the oral history of the Pueblo natives of New Mexico.
Having Pueblo blood and privileged to that oral history, we can arrive at certain conclusions. He apparently returned with hate and contempt for the Native population. Secondly, the expedition he was employed to lead was indeed for the sole purpose of “discovering” the “Cities of Gold.”
The only question surrounds the exact location of his demise. Since my Native roots are Rio Abajo, I would agree with the Keresan and Tiwa. Personally, I would believe Native oral history that he was killed in Cochiti for his wellknown reputation of raping the girls and women of those Pueblos he came across in his search for gold. He barely escaped Zuni warriors before heading East.
Long story short, Mr. Herrick: Estevanico’s “bad reputation” was well deserved and he was definitely not unfairly treated. He was summarily executed for violating Pueblo women. Had he NOT returned to exploit the Native population, he would have indeed deserved merit for his positive accomplishments. Like many people — regardless of color — he was the victim of his own greed and hate.
Personally, the most authoritative account of the many contributions of Estevanico and how he was instrumental in the remarkable survival of the Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca party is a local publication. That book is titled “Adventures in the Unknown Interior of America,” translated and edited by Cyclone Covey. A UNM Publication.
As for Mr. Herrick’s book: file under “fiction.”