The

the ghost dance has recurred frequently in human history, but the term has its origins close to california. by the late 1800s, a decades-long assault of european values and technology, not to mention forced relocation, poverty, and disease had taken their toll on native americans across the west. many tribes were at or near collapse when on new year’s day 1889, a walker River paiute Mystic named wovoka had a vision. wovoka foresaw a new age in which the white interlopers would vanish and the natives would reclaim a rejuvenated world and be rejoined by their ancestors. wovoka preached that this new world would arrive sooner if believers would engage in moral conduct, peaceful behavior, and practice a ritual round-dance that came to be called the ghost dance....