How do I feel about being Native american

How does it feel to be Native American? For me I feel I struggle with my identity allot because allot of my cultural identity I do not know or fully understand because it was taken away from my great grandma Luise who as a teenager was put into a boarding school and, told not to speak her own language,all her traditions were stolen from her as well. If she spoke her language or, did anything traditional she would get punished. When she had her children they were also limited on what traditions and, language to speak and, when my grandma Lilian had my mother Gina, she also did not get any knowledge or cultural traditions passed down;this means my mother was raised American and, I was raised the same, without my language/traditions and culture. Every race has almost suffered in some form yet, almost all still have there land and cultural identity.
I'm not 100% white but I'm not 100% Native American and, not having a deep rooted culture within makes me confused at times. When I do tell people I am part Native American. I get responses that can be prejudice. for instance every one assumes I drink ,its prejudice to think this,or that my family lives in a tipi. The only reason why natives lived in tipis before they were placed in "reservations" was because the tipis were made out of buffalo Hide ,buffalo hide kept the heat in and, a little fire could be burning inside while the smoke would go out through the top . Another thing we are not all "hippies" just because we natives tend to wear our hair long , we are all not into "nature", my nephews have long hair and get mistaken for girls,long hair is a regular style in the native american culture. Also just because salmon is a traditional food this does not mean we are all experts on how it should taste, we all do not go fishing this is a stereo typical thought of Native Americans.

war bonnets

These are some pictures I found on the web they are war bonnets and chest plates War bonnets were one of the charms, and medicine, worn by native americans in battle.The eagle was considered by native americans as the greatest and most powerful of all birds, the finest bonnets were made out of its feathers.Someone holding a completed bonnet would have the authority to tell many stories. Long ago the bonnet was only worn on special occasions and it was highly symbolic. the beauty was not the importance but the bonnet's real value was in its power to protect the wearer.The bonnet had to be earned through brave deeds in battle because the feathers signified the deeds War bonnets are made by hand and made in diffrent styles and with diffrent materials such as painted cloth and, feathers are decorated with horse hair and, breath feathers, gypsum, buckskin/elk or fur on tips of feathers.these styles differ from tribe to tribe. chest ornament / chest armor. The long bones called hair-pipes, were made with bones from buffalo, birds, or manufactured non-natives - then assembled by the Natives. The top of the plate was tied around the neck with a thong, and other thongs at the bottom secured it around the waist. Since the hair-pipe bones were difficult and expensive to obtain, the number of bones in the plate often indicated the wealth of a warrior. Such breastplates were worn on occasion in battle, but could be penetrated