When Pueblo Indians say, "The first white man our people saw was a black man," they are referring to Esteban, who came to New Mexico in 1539. After centuries of negative portrayals, Esteban: The African Slave Who Explored America highlights Esteban's importance in America's early history. Books about the history of the American West have ignored Esteban or belittled his importance, often using his slave nickname, Estebanico. What little we know about Esteban comes from alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca and other Spanish chroniclers, whose condescension toward the African slave has carried over into most history books. This work by author Dennis Herrick dispels the myths and outright lies about Esteban.

We welcome the author of Esteban for a discussion, slide show, question and answer session, and book-signing of his 2018 University of New Mexico Press publication.