Subject: Wotanging Ikche--nanews03.045 From: gars@netcom.com (Gary Night Owl) To: Internet Recipients of Wotanging Ikche Message-ID: _ __ _____ __ _ __ ___ ____ _ __ ___ ' ) / / ') / / ) ' ) ) / ) / ' ) ) / ) / / / / / / /--/ / / / ___ / / / / ___ (_(_/ (__/ ( / (_ / (_ (___/ '__/_ / (_ (___/ ' O ____ _ , ___ _ , ___ O o O / ' ) / / ) ' ) / / ' O o O / /-< / /--/ /-- VOLUME 03, ISSUE 045 O o o o o O __/_ / ) (___/ / ( (___, 11 November 1995 O o O O o O K A N O H E D A A N I Y V W I Y A O ( N A T I V E A M E R I C A N N E W S ) This issue contains articles from IND-NET, NativeWeb, NATCHAT & NATIVE-L listservers; Newsgroups: alt.native,soc.culture.native,soc.culture.canada, soc.culture.quebec; UUCP & Genie (General Electric) email Articles appearing have been previously posted for public dissemination and/or permission for inclusion has been secured. Letters of authorization are on file. A list of those granting permission to repost their words in this issue are listed at the end of part A. I thank each of you for allowing your words to be shared with the people. <----<<<< >>>>----> This newsletter is a way of keeping the brothers and sisters who share our Spirit informed about current events within the lives of those who walk the Red Road. Thanks to Don Rayment ,don.rayment@uptowne.com, Wotanging Ikche/ Kanoheda Aniyvwiya is being redistributed via a listserver. If you would like to receive Wotanging Ikche via the listserver, you can send a message to listserv@uptowne.com and include, in the body of your message "sub wotanging.ikche " Thanks to Marc Becker and David Cole issues of Wotanging Ikche/ Kanoheda Aniyvwiya are being archived at a World-Wide-Web site. The URL is http://web.maxwell.syr.edu/nativeweb/journals/nanews Thanks to Phil Duran, duranp@wsuvm1.csc.wsu.edu, issues are now being archived at the Washington State University gopher in the following directory: gopher.wsu.edu /WSU Campuses Info /Public Services /Native Peoples "All that belongs to the Earth, belongs to me. All that surrounds the Earth, surrounds me." __ Song of the Earth, Dine' +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ | Indian Pledge of Allegiance | The Indian Pledge of Alleg- | | iance was first presented | I pledge allegiance to my Tribe,| on 2 December '93 during the | to the democratic principles | opening address of the Nat- | of the Republic | ional Congress of American | and to the individual freedoms | Indian Tribal-States Relat- | borrowed from the Iroquois and | ions Panel in Reno, NV. NCAI | Choctaw Confederacies, | plans distribution of the | as incorporated in the United | Indian Pledge to all Indian | States Constitution, | Nations. | so that my forefathers | | shall not have died in vain | Walk in Beauty! Night Owl +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ O'siyo Brothers and Sisters! It is two weeks before Thanksgiving is celebrated. Throughout the United States, schools perpetuate a lie about the origins of this holiday that tells of a happy gathering between grateful Europeans and their "Indian" benefactors. Many reading this newsletter will even be asked to appear before civic or school groups to tell this happy story. The following, researched by William B. Newell (Penobscot Tribe) Former Chairman of the University of Connecticut Anthropology Department, may be of interest. Source: Documents of Holland, 13 Volume Colonial Documentary History, letters and reports form colonial officials to their superiors and the King in England and the private papers of Sir William Johnson, British Indian agent for the New York colony for 30 years. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The year was 1637.....700 men, women and children of the Pequot Tribe, gathered for their "Annual Green Corn Dance" in the area that is now known as Groton, Conn. While they were gathered in this place of meeting, they were surrounded and attacked by mercenaries of the English and Dutch. The Indians were ordered from the building and as they came forth, they were shot down. The rest were burned alive in the building. The next day, the Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony declared : "A day of Thanksgiving, thanking God that they had eliminated over 700 men, women and children. For the next 100 years, every "Thanksgiving Day" ordained by a Governor or President was to honor that victory, thanking God that the battle had been won. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Happy Thanksgiving. Peace! Night Owl , , Gary Night Owl gars@genie.geis.com (*,*) P. O. Box 672168 gars@netcom.com (`-') Marietta, GA 30067, U.S.A. gars@igc.apc.org ===w=w=== ----------- News of the people featured in this issue ---------- Part A: Usenet and e-mail Part B: NATCHAT and NATIVE-L lists - Urgent Action: Istook Amendment - Conferences and Powwows - online - Veterans Day - Rosemary Cambra's War - Fight to Keep Our Children - Cecilia Rodriguez Assault - Save "NYC of Indian World" - Canada First Nations Info - We Won't Go - Festival of Native Plays - Action Alert: Ward Valley - National American Indian Heritage Month - Poem: Voice of the White Buffalo Spirit - Verse: Hawai'ian Book of Days - Conferences and Powwows - offline --------- "RE: Urgent Action: Istook Amendment" --------- Date: Tue, 7 Nov 1995 12:17:47 -0800 (PST) From: Larry Kibbey Subj: Urgent Action: Istook Amendment (fwd) Mailing List: IND-NET This is urgent in that it will affect many tribal non-profit organizations as well. Please address this matter.... ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Tue, 7 Nov 1995 11:40:13 -0800 From: Diane M. Zorich Colleagues, It has just been made known that the supporters of the Istook Amendment (aka the Istook Nonprofit Gag Bill -- a proposal that would restrict nonprofits who received ANY federal support from advocacy efforts of any kind) are planning to attach the amendment to the House Continuing Resolution. This would be disastrous, because the Continuing Resolution is certain to pass (it is the bill that will provide the government with the money it needs to keep running until Congress passes a federal budget.) If your institution received federal funding (or ever plans to), YOU will be affected by this bill -- your institution will not be able to do any advocacy -- no signing of petitions, no letters urging support of bills, etc. This will, clear and simple, strip you of the basic tenant of freedom of speech. The bill is being brought to the House floor tomorrow. Please take the time to call you representative and urge them to have the Istook amendment taken out of the Continuing Resolution bill. You can find your representative's phone number by pointing your Web browser to http://www.stardot.com/~lukeseem/zip.html ( - Enter your zip code you will get complete contact information for your congressperson.) Please do this today. If this bill passes with the Istook amendment attached, it will be illegal for me to post notices like this to Museum-L because MCN is a federal grant recipient. Thank you, Diane Zorich Government Affairs Liaison Museum Computer Network --------- "RE: Veterans Day" --------- Date: Thu, 2 Nov 1995 14:51:27 -0800 (PST) From: cherokee@gonzo.wolfe.net Forward From: GRDancer Subj: Veterans Day UUCP email As Veterans' Day fast approaches this year I would like to put out some information and ask for help. As most of you know the Congressional Medal of Honor is the highest decoration awarded to military personnel in the US. It is given for bravery above and beyond the call of duty and, due to the strict guidelines for its reception, it is, more often than not, awarded posthumously. What you may not know is that 27 Medals of Honor were awarded to members of the US 7th Cavalry for the action known as Wounded Knee. That's right, 27 of the highest awards for bravery that this country can award were given to men for slaughtering unarmed men, women and children in the snow. Ancient history, you say, nothing I can do. You're wrong. Yes it happened a long time ago but the memory is emblazoned on the hearts of all Native people, in particular the Lakota people, and will be for generations to come. There is something you as veterans, family or friends of veterans can do. I ask that you write a letter to the president of these United States and also to your particular senators and congressmen, asking that a hearing be held to revoke the awarding of these medals and remove the record of their presentation from all official documentation. I ask that these letters be written without belligerence or hateful comments, so they will be read, but let them know how you feel about the awarding of these medals. Ask that the hearing be held in a timely manner. I ask for letters from veterans of all races who believe this to be the travesty that I do. In approximately one year, if a hearing is not held to discuss this matter, others and myself will be organizing a gathering of veterans. This will be a particularly interesting gathering with invitations going out to the president, congressmen and senators of all 50 states, and all high ranking military personnel. The reason for this gathering will be to publicly return any and all medals received by the veterans who participate. If 27 medals of the highest honor can be awarded to men who were no more than butchers and the government over 100 years later cannot see this and do something to change it, then the medals I received during my 10 years of military service mean nothing to me and they can have them back! I have spoken and it is so! for further information on this subject please contact by e-mail: GRDancer@aol.com POW2WOW@aol.com --------- "RE: Fight to Keep Our Children" --------- Date: Thu, 2 Nov 1995 13:15:13 -0700 From: mfouche@thepost.com (Marie Fouche) Subj: Fight to Keep Our Children UUCP email I first wish to say that I wish I could have been there personally to tell you of what my friend Marie Not Help Him and her family has been going through. Please know that my spirit will be with you this day, and I hope that you will hear these words with your hearts. First I wish to share with you Marie Not Help Him's words when she found out that her nephew would not be returned to her family. This is a battle that has been going on for many years, and I feel will go to the Supreme Court. We are not giving up, and we will make a trail for Jeff's son to follow home when he is ready. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++ On Friday 25 August, I received the most shocking and unbelievable words that I could possibly...or ever want to hear - that our case to bring my nephew home had been decided and that he will remain with Leland and Karla Swenson. My breath was taken away for just a second, I had to swallow hard for a couple of times to keep the grief, the hurt and the tears from coming. The grief and hurt were momentary, the tears will always be there, but for joy when my nephew comes home. My nephew will come home, damaged and confused about his identity, but he will be back. It will take a long time for his healing and rebalancing and will need a lot of help from his people, spiritually as well as culturally. I believe that my nephew is smart and that this will be his supreme advantage in his fight to return to us, the smarter that he is, the worse it will be for his caretakers to keep him there and the sooner he will come back. Mrs. Swenson truly believes that she is doing the ultimate for my nephew, but she is actually doing the worst damage, by forgetting that my nephew has Lakota blood, the same blood that runs through my veins runs through my nephew, that she has no biological ties whatsoever. It is likening a swan raising an eaglet, the eaglet will bond to the swan and act like a swan, because it has no other to bond to. It will eat, talk and walk like a swan, but the eaglet soon finds out it is not a swan and flies away, back to the eagles. The judgment to leave my nephew in the care of adoptive parents is against the Indian Child Welfare Act; this Act applied even the day that his mother decided she did not want him and he was handed over to the non-indian, non-relatives. Only after he was taken and placed elsewhere were we notified. I, as the natural aunt and blood relative will continue to struggle and fight for the return of my nephew to his rightful place among his people. I will stand up for the woman of all tribes, for the Lakota heart and motherhood and ask you, my sisters to help. This fight will not only be for today, but for the children who were taken in the past, who are far from their homes and for those who will be taken from us. Our fight to keep our children must be the best and supreme effort for survival of our nations, families and children. To the woman, the Native American heart and motherhood and sisters...remember Sand Creek and Wounded Knee! Marie Not Help Him +++++++++++++++++++++++++++ I would like to add that Jeff refused to sign away his parental rights to his son after the trial as was asked of him. Two weeks later the adoption went through anyway. This case is one of three cases where ICWA has been ignored. All of these cases are heading to the Supreme Court. If ICWA is weakened as members of Congress are hoping to do, this could endanger all that has been fought for. Literally, thousands of children were adopted away from their biological families before ICWA was created, and were arranged by social workers who convinced the young mothers that they would never be able to give their children what a white family could. >From my view, white families are not better off or stronger than any other group of people. Everyone has their problems. If ICWA is lost, who knows how many more children will be lost to families of all First Nations. The next Seven Generations, we must remember this, and not let go of our little ones. They are the voices for the People in the future. Why do you think Congress wishes to relinquish this FEDERAL law? It is because they wish to silence the First Nations people by removing the children, not allowing them to be who they are or learn of their heritage and one day stand up for their people - for their ancestors and the children yet to be born...Remember this... The American Indian people are tired of this government thinking they know what's best for the American Indian people. The American Indian people know how to take care of their own children, and the People do not need to have their hands held or decisions made for them. Once again this government is breaking yet another treaty by ignoring or altering ICWA. Stand up for your children! Write to your congressmen and senators. Let them know that you do not wish to see any part of this bill changed in any way if it means that it will undermine American Indian Rights and their rights to their own family, their own children. If you wish, please feel free to e-mail me at mfouche@thepost.com with your senators and congressmen's names and I will try to locate their e-mail addresses for you. A frequently updated list of e-mail addresses and WWW homepages of members of the House and Senate can be found at the URL >>gopher://una.hh.lib.umich.edu:70/00/socsci/poliscilaw/uslegi/conemail. My dear friend Marie Not Help Him always says, "This is about our children. How can we turn our backs on them?" This is all I have to say... Blessings, Marie Fouche In Lak'ech Yelir Marie Fouche P.O. Box 104 Norwood, CO 81423 (970) 327-4231 --------- "RE: Save "NYC of Indian World"" --------- Date: Thu, 2 Nov 1995 From: Hlandatsi@aol.com Subj: Save "NYC of Indian World" UUCP email Wysquaqua (Wyckers Creek), the sacred Lenni Lenape capital and mound site on the Hudson outside New York City is once again under attempted development. Members of the American Cherokee Confederacy appeared before the Dobbs Ferry Planning Board Thursday, November 2, to signal Native American concern over the construction of 140 townhouses on the site. The author of this message was joined by our tribal mother, Chief Sacajewea Qualla, and others of the Hawk Band, in reading a rallying statement for the cause from Chief William Rattlesnake Jackson in Georgia. Media coverage at the event was good. The next bout in the battle will be the Village Trustees hearing at 8 p.m Tuesday, November 21, Dobbs Ferry Village Hall, Main Street. We are calling for an intertribal presence and counting our warriors! E-mail, write or telephone for information. Best to phone. Band Chief Donald N. Panther Yates (Hlandatsi) Cherokee Communications, Inc. 301 N. Harrison St., Ste. 24 Princeton, NJ 08540 Telephone (609) 252-1777 e-mail at AOL above or 102004.1215@compuserve.com --------- "RE: We Won't Go" --------- Date: 07 Nov 95 11:48:10 EST From: Ann Stewart <75361.1143@compuserve.com> Subj: "We Won't Go" UUCP email During the week before Quebec held its referendum to determine if the province should separate from Canada, the James Bay Cree, Inuit and Montagnais peoples held their own referenda. In each instance, the result was an overwhelming NO. The Quebec referendum was narrowly defeated 49.5 to 48.7%, and the separatist Parti Quebecois has already vowed to try again soon. The following remarks were made by Grand Chief Matthew Coon Come at a Montreal press conference announcing the Cree results on October 25. The question Cree voters were asked was: "Do you consent as a people that the Government of Quebec separate the James Bay Crees and Cree traditional territory from Canada, in the event of a Yes vote in the Quebec referendum?" Wachiya! I have just learned the results, and so have you. My people, Eeyouch, the James Bay Crees, voted yesterday. We have spoken. We have spoken clearly. We have spoken in our own voice. We have spoken on our own territory. We have spoken as our own people. We have spoken as unanimously as a people possibly can. The message is clear, and now others must listen. We will not be separated from Canada. We have withheld our consent. The message is clear: we won't go. Let me state at the outset, as I have done before: we Crees understand the aspirations of Quebecers. We fully respect their right to hold consultative referendums and determine their future. But I must also state that this cannot, and will not, be done at the expense of our rights, or of the rights of other peoples in Canada. We Crees have the self-same right to our aspirations and to determine our future. Quebec would never agree to be forcibly included in the results of a majority vote in Canada. We Crees cannot agree to be forcibly included in the results of a single majority referendum in Quebec. The message is clear, my people have made their choice. We and our territory will not be forcibly included in an independent Quebec. Let me explain this choice to you, and how this choice was made. In October, it is already winter in James Bay. It is already snowing in James Bay, and the hunting season is underway. In James Bay, from September to spring, we Crees are out hunting on the land. Our communities are often ghost-towns at this time of year. This year, on October 24, things were different. From hundreds of kilometers away, people made their way back to our communities. Yesterday, in Mistassini, in Chisasibi, in Whapmagoostui and in Wemindjii, they made their way to our polling stations in our schools and our meeting halls. There were line-ups and some people waited an hour or two to vote. This referendum was different. No one was left out. There were voting stations in every community. There were voting stations outside of our territory: in Montreal, in Val' d'Or, in Senneterre, in Ottawa, and even in North Bay in Ontario, where our post-secondary students are studying. And this referendum was even more different than that. There were Cree families in their hunting camps that were too far away in the bush to get back to the communities. Our territory is not covered by a network of roads and telephone services. These families were each contacted by radio. They were asked to provide their coordinates and to stay in their camps between Friday the 20th of October and Tuesday the 24th. And in order to ensure that every Cree had a chance to vote, we chartered three helicopters, which flew thousands of kilometers across our territory, until last night. Imagine if Mr. Parizeau [premier of Quebec] had called a referendum at the end of July. We were forced to do the equivalent: our referendum could not have been held at a more difficult time. And yet under these conditions, over 77% of eligible Crees participated in our vote. And more importantly, they have made their choice abundantly clear. The Cree NO majority was not a 50% plus 1 vote such as Mr. Parizeau and Mr. Bouchard [leader of the Bloc Quebecois] say is enough to break up a country. We have spoken more clearly than that. The Cree NO majority was not a 60% vote. We have spoken more clearly than that. The Cree NO majority was not an 80% vote. The Cree NO majority was much clearer than that. The Cree people are almost unanimous: over 96% of my people have stated their choice. We won't go. What does this mean? The separatists will say that our Cree referendum is all very well, but it does not count. We Crees and our lands, they say, are to be forcibly included in the majority vote. And then, they state calmly, we Crees and our territory are to be forcibly included, if necessary by force, in a sovereign Quebec. Well, let me say calmly in reply: the Crees have spoken. We won't go. To forcibly separate us from Canada would be unconstitutional. To forcibly separate us from Canada would be illegal. To forcibly separate us from Canada would be undemocratic. To forcibly take us out of one country and into another would be a breach of our human rights. This would be the kidnapping of the James Bay Crees. This would be the hijacking of a whole people and their lands. This we will not allow the separatists to do. The James Bay Crees have spoken clearly. We won't go. A few days ago, the Parti Quebecois chief spokesman on Aboriginal issues [David Cliche] said that the Crees will be violating the law, violating international law, if we resist our inclusion in his independent Quebec. I find this truly ironic. Here we have a separatist government of a province contemplating an illegal and unconstitutional secession. The Superior Court of Quebec has already ruled that the PQ's Bill 1 is illegal and unconstitutional. The Superior Court of Quebec has already ruled that the PQ's plans are a grave threat to the rights and freedoms of Quebec citizens. No, Mr. Parizeau. No, Mr. Bouchard. No, Mr. Cliche. The James Bay Crees have spoken. We will resist the violation of our treaty rights. We will resist the violation of our constitutional rights. We will resist the violation of our human rights. And in doing so my people will be upholding the law. We will be upholding Canadian law. We will be upholding international law. We will be upholding the democratic wishes of a people who have lived here, and governed themselves on this land for thousands of years. We will be upholding the Canadian Constitution and the rule of law. We will be challenging the law of the jungle. We will be challenging the tyranny of the self-declared rights of a majority over the fundamental rights of others. We will be challenging the discrimination, the double standards, the manipulation and the use of force. There is NO international law right to hold a revolution. And yet what the separatists are proposing is just that. There is NO international right to break up existing states. In fact, international law forbids these things. And yet it is the separatists who are proposing a unilateral declaration of independence, an insurrection, the breakup of an existing state, all in violation of international law. The best they can say is, we will exercise effective control, by force if necessary, and then we will be independent. And here are the separatists accusing the Indians of threatening to break international law! Once again, one standard for Quebecers, another for indigenous peoples. My people have spoken. We are no longer prepared to be treated like cattle in a field. We are no longer prepared to be treated like a second- class people, with second-class rights. We showed at Meech Lake, and we showed at Charlottetown that the politics of exclusion and the politics of denial are no longer acceptable. My people have spoken. They have expressed their will. We will no longer allow decisions to be made by others that are ours, and only ours, to make. In the last few weeks, I have received many calls from Aboriginal leaders across this country. They are watching this situation with alarm. We Crees have a treaty with Canada. Our treaty rights are entrenched in section 35 of the Canadian Constitution. The Aboriginal leaders in the rest of Canada are saying: if the Crees' treaty rights, if the Crees' constitutional rights can be disposed of just like that, then so can ours. Please hear me. There will be outrage across the rest of Canada, from the east coast to the west, from the American border to the Arctic, if Aboriginal peoples see the James Bay Crees and other First peoples in Quebec, being hijacked and forcibly included in a sovereign Quebec. My people have voted. We are saying we won't go, we won't go, we won't go. This is not Matthew Coon Come alone. This is all of the Crees. This is not the Crees alone. Listen carefully, and you will hear the other First Nations and First peoples of Quebec. There is a fundamental problem here. We know our rights. We intend to defend our rights. We won't go. And neither will our lands, and neither will the hydroelectric and other natural resources they contain. I am always asked, so I may as well answer the question in advance, will the Crees become violent? We are not a violent people. We oppose the use of force, and have always found other means of resolving our differences. The use of violence and force is against our most fundamental beliefs. We Crees are committed to working together with Quebecois and other Canadians, to building a country that is responsive to all of our aspirations and priorities, and fully respectful of ALL of our rights. But we will not be passive in any strategies of inequality and unilateral action. We know our rights. We know we will receive the support of many Quebecers, and the support of other Canadians. We will not be forcibly included into a sovereign Quebec. Our traditional territory, Eeyou Astchee, will not be forcibly removed from Canada and included in a sovereign Quebec. Our human rights will be upheld. Mr. Ron Irwin, federal Minister of Indian Affairs, said yesterday that the land in the 1898 area, that is our land, is different. He affirmed that the Aboriginal peoples' voice is a significant part of this situation. We will use the courts. We will gather the support of Canadians. We will approach the international community. And in the end, we won't go. Meegwetch. Merci. Thank you. NOTE: The Grand Council of the Crees has just published SOVEREIGN INJUSTICE. This 500-page book, already in its third printing, concludes that Aboriginal peoples cannot be forcibly included in any future Quebec state. Any such action would lack both validity and legitimacy, from the viewpoint of international, Canadian and Aboriginal law and practice. The implications also extend far beyond the 1995 Quebec independence referendum, for Crees and other Aboriginal peoples must share equally in the development of Canada. SOVEREIGN INJUSTICE is available for $US35 which includes shipping. Please make checks payable to Grand Council of the Crees and mail to: Stewartship, Box 391161, Cambridge MA 02139-0012 USA. For more information please call 617-491-5531. Stewartship is registered with the US Department of Justice (#4632) as an agent of the Grand Council of the Crees. --------- "RE: Action Alert: Ward Valley" --------- Date: 7 Nov 1995 07:28:10 GMT From: yincait@crash.cts.com (Brian Skowron) Subj: WARD VALLEY EMERGENCY ACTION ALERT Newsgroup: soc.culture.native This is the most critical point in the struggle to save Ward Valley from a radioactive waste dump. Plans are to bury dangerous, long-lived radioactive waste from nuclear power reactors in shallow, unlined trenches above an aquifer, just 18 miles from the Colorado River, in the midst of critical habitat for the threatened desert tortoise and in an area considered sacred homeland by Native American tribes. The dump threatens our precious water supply! Nuclear industry allies in Congress have attached a stealth amendment to the Budget Reconciliation Bill which would force California to host a national radioactive waste dump. The legislation attempts to exempt the dump from all environmental laws and prevent the public from challenging the maneuver in the courts. Members of Congress are attempting to sidestep the law to accommodate the nuclear power industry, allowing nuclear utilities to transfer liability for radioactive wastes from reactor sites to the California taxpayer. Clean up costs are estimated to be over $500 million. A stand-alone bill, HR 2334, has been introduced by Representative Brian Bilbray (R-San Diego) to do the same dirty work. We must stop both attempts to push the dump forward. We must act now! Our grassroots coalition must generate an unprecedented outpouring of resistance to this impending catastrophe. ALTERNATIVES to shallow land burial include the separation of waste according to danger and longevity, source reduction, on-site storage and containment in above ground, highly-engineered, monitored, retrievable regional storage facilities. Send personal letters, phone calls, email and faxes to key legislators. CONTACT President Clinton, tell him to veto the Budget bill if it contains a Ward Valley rider: President Bill Clinton The White House Washington, D. C. 20500 Telephone (202) 456-1414 % Email: president@whitehouse.gov IMPORTANT! Contact White House Chief of Staff Leon Panetta who will be negotiating with the Republicans over the contents of the Budget bill: Chief of Staff Leon Panetta The White House Washington, D. C. 20500 Telephone (202) 456-6797 % FAX (202) 456-2883 CONTACT Senator Dianne Feinstein, tell her that she must protect California's precious water resources, Wilderness areas and the Mojave National Preserve and that she should stand firm with Senator Boxer to oppose the dump: Senator Dianne Feinstein United States Senate Washington, D. C. 20510 Telephone (202) 224-3841 % FAX (202) 228-3954 CONTACT your Congressional Representative, tell him/her to remove the Ward Valley rider from the Budget bill and to oppose HR 2334 and any other attempts to force the dump on California: (Your Congressional Representative) United States House of Representatives Washington, D. C. 20515 Telephone (202) 224-3121 CONTACT Senators John McCain and Jon Kyl of Arizona. Tell them that radioactive contamination of the Colorado River would adversely affect Arizona businesses and that Native American tribes in their state adamantly oppose the dump: Senator John McCain United States Senate Washington, D. C. 20510 Telephone (202) 224-2235 % FAX (202) 228-2862 % Email: senator@mccain.senate.gov Senator Jon Kyl United States Senate Washington, D. C. 20510 Telephone (202) 224-4521 % Email: info@kyl.senate.gov Please contact each and every lawmaker on this list today! Negotiations between the White House and Congressional conference committees on the Budget Reconciliation bill are happening right now. Call (415) 868-2146 or (619) 326-6267 for more information. Thank you! WARD VALLEY NEEDS YOUR SUPPORT NOW!* Dear defenders of Ward Valley, The Encampment at Ward Valley in October was a great success and an important step in developing grass roots resistance to the dump. Hundreds of caring and capable people came to the land to make a commitment to protect the Colorado River from radioactive contamination, to defend endangered species, Wilderness and the fragile desert ecosystem and to honor Native American land and water rights. One exciting result of the gathering at Ward Valley is an on-going presence at the proposed dump site by activists and Native Americans. In this way, dedicated activists are protecting the land in the most fundamental way. We are proud to announce that we just have opened an office in the city of Needles, California, where local residents and members of the five lower Colorado River Indian tribes can find support and information. The new office is located at 107 F Street, Needles, 92363, and is in need of office supplies and financial support. The telephone number is (619) 326-6267. At this writing, Congress has passed the Budget Reconciliation bill with an amendment forcing a land transfer at Ward Valley and exempting the dump project from all existing environmental regulations. Grass roots advocacy has been successful in removing the amendment from the Senate version of the bill, but it still remains in the House version. We must remain vigilant and demand that President Clinton veto any legislation that forces the dump on California. Meanwhile, Secretary Babbitt has announced his intention to transfer the land with unenforceable conditions, a betrayal of his promises for essential safeguards. We have a tremendous task (and expenses) ahead mobilizing a national grass roots outreach campaign. We must find the resources to support the new office (about $1,500 per month for staff, copies, phone and fax) and the on-going encampment (about $500 per month for food, supplies and gas) as we prepare for direct action if necessary to defend the site. PLEASE send us your generous donation today so that we may continue to develop our media strategy, educate the American public and maintain a strong presence at the site. We need your support now at this crucial time. Thank you for you work to save Ward Valley! Make tax-deductible checks payable to the BAN Waste Coalition 2760 Golden Gate, San Francisco, California 94118. NOV. 1ST UPDATE: Contact Rep. George Miller (D-CA.) concerning the Ward Valley transfer of land from federal gov't. to the state of CA. Senator Barbara Boxer has had language relating to the Ward Valley transfer stricken from the Budget Reconciliation Committee Bill. Miller wants to reinstate the language related to the transfer back into the bill. Please call Rep. Miller at (202)225-6065, asking no Ward Valley transfer. --------- "RE: National American Indian Heritage Month" --------- Date: Sun Nov 05, 1995 From: Gayle Swanson (usa.gayle@genie.com) Subj: National American Indian Heritage Month GE Electronic Mail THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary _______________________________________________________________ For Immediate Release November 2, 1995 NATIONAL AMERICAN INDIAN HERITAGE MONTH, 1995 - - - - - - - BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA A PROCLAMATION November is traditionally the season for thanksgiving in America, the time when we reflect on the abundance with which we have been blessed. It is especially fitting, then, that we set aside this month to pause and reflect on the many gifts bestowed on our land and our heritage by American Indians and Alaska Natives. American Indians have a great reverence for the earth and its bounty, and they generously shared their knowledge and their food with the early European settlers in our country. We still enjoy that harvest today, with an agricultural industry that supports America and the world with the corn, potatoes, beans, cotton, and countless other crops first cultivated on this continent by American Indians. A second and equally precious gift is that of courage. American Indians and Alaska Natives have fought and died for the United States of America in time of war, answering the call to service to defend our freedoms. The Navajo, Lakota, and Dakota Codetalkers were crucial to our victory in the Pacific during World War II, and it was a Pima Indian, Ira Hayes, who helped to raise the American flag on Iwo Jima. They and so many others have endured separation, hardship, and sacrifice so that the world might know peace. The gift of wisdom is one that our society has struggled to learn. Living in harmony with nature instead of seeking domination, American Indians have shown us how to be responsible for our environment, to treasure the beauty and resources of the land and water for which we are stewards, and to preserve them for the generations who will come after us. They have taught us as well the value of sharing, of recognizing that there must be room at America's table for all her peoples. American Indians and Alaska Natives have made invaluable contributions to our common heritage; in every field of human endeavor, from the arts, sciences, and humanities to politics, religion, and public service, they have added immeasurably to the strength of our civilization. As we celebrate National American Indian Heritage Month, we give thanks for these contributions and acknowledge the special legal relationship that exists between the tribes and the Government of the United States of America. NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim November 1995 as National American Indian Heritage Month. I urge all Americans, as well as their elected representatives at the Federal, State, local, and tribal levels, to observe this month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this second day of November, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-five, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and twentieth. WILLIAM J. CLINTON --------- "RE: Poem: Voice of the White Buffalo Spirit" --------- Date: Wed, 1 Nov 1995 04:47:14 -0800 From: Birgit Spinella Subj: Voice of the White Buffalo Spirit Mailing List: NativeWeb The "Voice of the White Buffalo Spirit" is not a poem but a message by an anonymous "author", so just put it in your newsletter. I work in a European support group concerning Native American human rights and land issues. Just a few days ago we have gone to the net with our homepage: Working Group on Indigenous Issues Cologne (http://www.ndh.com/home/spinella http://www.ndh.com/home/spinella/circle The page "The Spirit cannot be jailed" is in preparation, as other issues are like Badger-Two-Medicine, Lubicon Cree, Mount Graham, and Big Mountain. You might have a look at it (German and English) Voice of the White Buffalo Spirit I was here before the rains and the violent sea. I was here before the snows and the hail. I was here before the mountains and the winds. I am the spirit of Nature. I am in the light that fills the earth, and in the darkness od nighttime. I give color to nature, for I am in nature's growth and fruits. I am again in nature where themes of mystic wisdom are found. I am in your chants and laughters. I am in the tears that flow from sorrow. I am in the bright joyous eyes of the children. I am in the substance that gives unity, completeness, and oneness. I am in the mountains as a conscious symbol to all mankind when the earth's face is being scared with spiritual undone. I am in you when you walk the simple path of the Redman. I am in you when you show love of humankind, for I also give love to those who are loving. I am in the response of love among all humans, for this is a path that will find blessing and fulfillment of the Great Spirit. I must leave you now to appear in another age, bit I leave you with the Redman's path. (Anonymous) ><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> WorkGroup on Indigenous Issues Cologne LPSG-Cologne MY FAVORITE SITES: http://hanksville.phast.umass.edu/misc/NAother.html http://offworld.wwa.com/bighole.html Birgit Spinella Troisdorf, Germany Fax: +49-2241-408254 e-mail: b.spinella@public.ndh.com "When you are afraid, seek out what you fear. Bannish fear with reason. When you are in doubt, seek knowledge. When you feel ignorance, attack with wisdom, and never spare the knowledge" (Old Kurushani Proverb) <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> --------- "RE: Verse: Hawai'ian Book of Days" --------- Date: 95/11/03 00:03 From: Debra F. Sanders (dfsanders@genie.geis.com) Subj: Verse: Hawai'ian Book of Days GE Electronic Mail A HAWAIIAN BOOK OF DAYS, week of November 12-18 NOWEMAPA (November) (Welehu) 12 The reef fish dart in and out of shadows like restless dancers. 13 In the sunlit ocean, you can barely see the translucent beauty of the Portuguese man of war. 14 Children can see a world which we have forgotten. 15 In this land, it is always spring. 16 The path of self-knowledge is different for every person. 17 If I can hear the ocean's song and feel the wind's caress, then I am at peace. 18 All things return to the ocean at last. (c) Copyright 1991 by D. F. Sanders Me ke aloha i ka nani, ... Moe'uhanekeanuenue (With love and beauty, ... Rainbow Dream) --------- "RE: Conferences and Powwows - offline" --------- Date: Thu, 9Nov 95 08:00 -0500 From: Janet Smith (Evening Star) (jans@genie.geis.com) Subj: Upcoming conferences and powwows not previously posted to Mailing Lists NATCHAT or NATIVE-L GE Electronic Mail All are invited and welcome to the Native American Month Social Pow-wow and Indian Craft Market, November 24, 25, 26, 1995. Amigos Indoor Complex, 250 E. 36th Street (36th St & 4th Ave) South Tucson, Arizona *****ALL DRUMS WELCOME***** *****DRUM CONTEST $500.00+***** *****PEE-POSH VETERANS ASSOCIATION - HONOR GUARD***** Tentative Schedule: Fri. Sat. Sun. Gourd Dancing 4-6pm 12-2pm 12-2pm Social Pow-w ow 8pm-12 3pm-12 3-6pm midnight midnight Arts & Crafts 4pm-12 12-12 12-6pm midnight midnight Traditional Food 4pm-12 12-12 12-6pm midnight midnight Exhibition Dancing - 12-5pm 12-5pm Craft Demonstration - 12-4pm 12-4pm Baby Contest - 2-6pm - Drum Contest 8 pm (all drums must be registered by Fri. 8 pm) Exhibition Dancers/Exhibitors Hopi Social Dancers Ernest Northrup - Hopi Flute Fort Apache Mountain Spirit Dancers Tohono O'odham Youth Dancers Master of Ceremonies - Archie Mason Tulsa, OK $4.00 donation, plus a new Christmas toy Call the Flamingo Travelodge at (520) 770-1910 or Howard Johnson at (520) 623-7792 and ask about the Pow-wow Specials. Sponsored by the North American Indian Information & Trade Center. See You There! ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Sender: owner-ind-net@listproc.wsu.edu From: Chris Milda Indian Net" Subject: Two (2) NIEA Convention Pow-Wows !! COMMUNITY VETERANS'S RECOGNITION POW-WOW Saturday, November 11, 1995 6:00PM - 12:00 Midnight Come join us to Celebrate and Honor our Veterans TCC Arena National Indian Education Association Convention November 11-15, 1995 Tucson, Arizona NIEA - POW-WOW Monday, November 13, 1995 Tucson Convention Centre Arena All Drums Are Welcome ! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: berryj@Okway.okstate.edu (John Berry) Subject: NAS Conference (Michigan, April 1996) - Call for Papers(FWD) Subject: NAS Conference (Michigan, April 1996) - Call for Papers Author: native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us at SMTP Date: 11/1/95 11:24 AM Original Sender: apayment@lakers.lssu.edu Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Anee, Boozo. BiiWaagajig Ndiznakoz. BaWeting Ndonjiba. Muckwa Ndodem. My name is Aaron Payment. I was recently hired in a tenure tract, grow your own Native faculty position at Lake Superior State University. I am Anishinabe (Sault Tribe of Chippewas). I am working on a PhD in Political Science at MSU. I teach political science, public admin, stats, and Native studies. Please note the attached call for papers and consider our Native studies conference. Chi MeGwitch! Baama Pii Negee! ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Wed, 01 Nov 1995 08:43:12 -0500 (EST) From:APAYMENT@lakers.lssu.edu * * * CALL FOR PAPERS * * * TRADITIONS: LEADING THE WAY Lake Superior State University 5th Biennial International NATIVE AMERICAN STUDIES CONFERENCE Friday & Saturday, April 12 & 13 Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan Conference InfoLine: (906) 635-2185 or (800) 682-4800 ext. 2185 (MI) Email Address: APAYMENT@LAKERS.LSSU.EDU Cursor down for infor on keynotes, panels, and details for submissions. Keynote Speakers: WARD CHURCHILL "American Indians Sovereignty: A Prospectus" Professor and coordinator of American Indian studies at the University of Colorado at Boulder, writer, activist, & Co-Director of the Colorado Chapter of AIM. JOHN MOHAWK "Indian Sovereignty in the Context of Economic Development" Professor of Social Philosophy/ American Studies at SUNY at Buffalo, writer, activist, Negotiator for Indian Claims and former Editor of Akwesasne Notes (the newsletter of the American Indian Movement). Special Conference Panels this year: "Creating Sacred Places for Indian Children" Dr. Rick St. Germaine Dr. St. Germaine will lead a panel of local/regional Anishinabe educators in a discussion of educating Indian children, youth, and college students. Panelists will include Indian teachers from the local tribal school, an Anishinabe Quay Community College VP, Indian Education Directors from two tribes, and a BIA education representative. Dr. St. Germaine is Professor of Education/History at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and former chairman of the Lac Courte Oreille Tribe. "Images of American Indians in Written Form" Dr. George Cornell Dr. George Cornell, will lead a discussion among fellow Anishinabe faculty of how Native people are depicted in the written form. What stereotypes exist? What romanticized depictions? and How these written images have shaped our perception of history and how we perceive contemporary Indians. Dr. Cornell is Professor in American Studies at Michigan State University. His colleagues will include 3 fellow tenure tract Native American faculty. PAPER SUBMISSION INFORMATION: * You are invited to submit two copies of a 250-500 word program proposal * Half-hour individual and one hour group presentations or workshops * Variable presentation formats (professional journal, lit works, student papers, etc.) Suggested areas include but are not limited to: Indian Spirituality/ Traditions; Indian Education; Legal Issues; Sovereignty; Governance; History, Anthropology; Archeology; Science and Technology; Literature; Music; Dance; Art; Repatriation; Health; Language Revival; Economic Development; Gaming; Contemporary Socio-political Issues. A $500 Competitive Student Presentation Scholarship will be Awarded. Selected papers/abstracts will be provided to presenters in a published journal style conference proceedings (5th edition). SUBMIT ABSTRACTS/ PROPOSALS TO: Aaron A. Payment, MPA Native American Studies Conference Lake Superior State University Sault Ste. Marie, MI 49783 Email: APAYMENT@LAKERS.LSSU.EDU ABSTRACT/PROPOSAL DEADLINE: DECEMBER 30, 1995 PRESENTATION OUTLINE DUE: MARCH 1, 1995 CONFERENCE VARIA: This years marks the 5th Biennial Native American studies conference for Lake Superior State University. We are smack in the heart of Anishinabe Country, "Home of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians". Our community has a great history with many ancient assemblies of Anishinabe meeting at BahWeting (Ojibwe for Rapids). The presence of the local tribes, the Sault Tribe, and the Bay Mills Indian Community make this part of the country unique with a Tribally controlled community college in our region and with the first tenure track Native American faculty hired at Lake State. The climate for educating Indian children is at a peak with one tribe having established a tribal school, and the other local tribe in the process of charting a school. No Promises - but we are tentatively planning an Anishinabe Art Exhibit, a Mini-Pow Wow Social, and a concurrent Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe) language session. Hospitality wise, each tribe has a hotel and gaming complex to round out your stay. Both hotels are four star quality and include free gaming packets. If you would like more information about submitting a paper or would like to register to attend, please contact me - Aaron Payment (Sault Tribe) by phone or Email. Baampii, Chi-MeGwitch Negee! Aaron A. Payment BiiWaagajig ============================================================ Powwows from Aboriginal Voice, a magazine of Native American art, literature, culture, media and entertainment. Bimonthly, 1 year subscription, $25.00. Nov. 10 - Veterans Powwow, Ojibwe Reservation, Hayward, WI. Info: 715 799-5166 Nov. 10 - Pawnee Veterans Day Dance, Pawnee, OK Info: 918 762-3624 Nov. 11 - National Museum of the American Indian Powwow, Manhattan, NY. Info: 212 598-0100 Nov. 11 - Veterans Day Powwow, Council Bluffs, IA 712 325-1770 Nov. 11 - Veterans Day Powwow, Owyhee, NV 702 757-3161 Nov. 10-11 American Indian Exposition & Sale, San Antonio, TX Info: 209 221-4355 Nov. 11 - Veterans Day Powwow, Salem OR 503 399-5721 Nov. 11 - Veterans Powwow, Davis, CA 916 758-0470 Nov. 11-12 - Annual Indoor Native Arts and Crafts Show, Bloomsburg, PA. 717 389-4574 Nov. 10-12 - North Bay Clan Fall Powwow, Lynn Haven, FL 904 762-6717 Nov. 11-13 - Great American Indian Expo, Richmond, VA 410 788-0254 Nov. 10-12 - Veterans Day Celebration - Toppenish, WA 509 865-5121 Nov. 10-12 - Veterans Day Powwow, Nespelem Community Centre, 509 634-4711 Nov. 10-12 - Veterans Memorial Powwow, Hopi Civic Centre, Oraibi, AZ. 602 734-2411 Nov. 10-12 - Nklaka'pamux Nation's Traditional Veterans Remembrance Powwow, Lytton, BC 604 455-2467 Nov. 10-12 - Veterans Day Rodeo & Fair, San Carlos Apache Reservation, San Carlos, AZ 602-475-2361 Nov. 10-12 - Oglewanagi Powwow, Akron, OH 216-225-3416 Nov. 10-12 - Veterans Powwow, Hobbema, AB 403-585-3739 Nov. 11-12 - Rimrock Rendezvous, Redding, CA 916-873-4834. Nov. 10-15 - National Indian Education Association Convention Tucson, AZ, 502-294-5875 ========================================================================== -------------------------------------------------------------------------- --//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//-- Notice of Copyright Clearance by Contributors: The following have granted permission for their original articles to be reposted in order to help mend the Sacred Hoop: Janet Smith, Debra F. Sanders, Birgit Spinella, G R Dancer, Ann Stewart, Diane Zorich via Larry Kibbey, Donald N. Panther Yates, Gayle Swanson, Brian Skowron(Action Alert), Fred De Van, Peter Guither, Wesley Rehberg(Action Request), Stephen Buel, editor for Michael Medina via Thomas Eric Brunner --//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//-- ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Part B of this newsletter (not included) has already been distributed via the NATIVE-L or NATCHAT mailing lists. --------- "RE: Conferences and Powwows - online" --------- Date: Thu, 9 Nov 95 08:00 -0500 From: Janet Smith (Evening Star) (jans@genie.geis.com) Subj: Upcoming conferences and powwows already posted to Mailing Lists NATCHAT or NATIVE-L = Powwows and Gatherings From the Internet listserv groups = Subject: John Trudell Spokenword Tour Itinerary Original Sender: amt@teleport.com (Planet Peace) Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) (A copy of this message has also been posted to the following newsgroups: alt.native, soc.culture.native,alt.org.earth-first,alt.activism) Brief Bio & Tour Listing In a rare solo appearance, poet-musician John Trudell will perform his Spoken Word Westcoast benefit tour from Nov. 7 - Nov. 21. Named "one of the most challenging political performers of our time," Trudell will have opportunity to present his powerful messages in two of the oldest oral traditions: poetry and talk. Trudell, a Santee Sioux Indian from Nebraska, is establishing a hard-earned reputation as a rock poet after years of being known as one of the country's most outspoken activists for Native American rights. His debut album, "aka Graffiti Man" (Rykodisc), was released in 1992 to critical acclaim by music reviewers in the US and abroad. Known as a spell-binding performer, Trudell has a spoken-sung phrasing and creative acumen that have caught the attention of many. Bob Dylan, in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine called "aka Graffiti Man" the "best album of the year." From 1973 to 1979, Trudell served as national chairman of the American Indian Movement. Following the loss of his wife, children and mother-in-law in an arson fire, he turned to writing free verse. He has released five albums of poetry set to music and also played prominent roles in two Michael Apted movies, the drama "Thunderheart" and the Robert Redford produced documentary "Incident at Oglala." Trudell's insights into contemporary and ageless social problems, though well known in 'Indian Country' for sometime, are now gaining a broader audience. His poetic visions of respect for life, and peace with earth pose critical examination of world environmental issues, human and Native American rights; using communication to rise above the alienation and isolation inherent in a materialistic society. TOUR DATES: - Monterey, CA, Tuesday, Nov.7, 7 pm, Barker Theater, CSUMB - Santa Cruz, CA, Wednesday, Nov. 8, 7:30 pm, Pacific Cultural Center - San Francisco, CA, Thursday, Nov. 9, 8 pm, SFS, Student Union, #A-E,1600 Holloway - Willitts, CA, Friday, Nov. 10, 7 pm, Willits Community Center - Briceland, CA, Saturday, Nov 11, 7 pm, Beginnings @ Briceland Community Center - Arcata, CA, Sunday, Nov 12, 7 pm, Kate Buchanan Hall, Humboldt State Univ. - Ashland, OR, Tuesday, Nov 14, 7 pm, Britt Ballroom, SOSC - Eugene, OR, Wednesday, Nov. 15, 7 pm, U of O,100 Willamette - Portland, OR, Thursday, Nov 16, 7:30 pm, Clinton Street Theater - Olympia, WA, Friday, Nov. 17, 7 pm, Evergreen State College @ Longhouse - Seattle, WA, Saturday, Nov 18, 7:30 pm, UWA, Red Square,120 Kane Hall - Everett, WA, Monday, Nov. 20, 12 pm, Everett Comm. College, Lecture Hall - Portland, OR, Tuesday, Nov 21, 7:30 pm, Clinton Street Theater --------- "RE: Rosemary Cambra's War" --------- Date: Thu, 2 Nov 1995 15:12:18 -0800 From: brunner@hpuxsv11.cup.hp.com (Thomas Eric Brunner) Subj: Local Ohlones seek official federal tribal recognition Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) From: Stephen_Buel@livewire.com (Stephen Buel) Subject: Re: Fwd: Request for permission to distribute "Rosemary's War" Michael Medina would be happy to have his article posted on the boards you alluded to. Please do attach a copyright to any such postings. Regards, Stephen Buel, editor + copyright 1995, Michael Medina Rosemary Cambra's War Local Ohlones seek official federal tribal recognition By Michael Medina When just-elected president Bill Clinton fielded questions on MTV in 1993, a young woman from the Lumbee Indian tribe of North Carolina asked him what he planned to do about the plight of federally unrecognized tribes such as hers. "I didn't even know there was such a problem," the bewildered rookie president responded. Clinton knows more about the problem now. This month the White House concluded a first-ever series of meetings with representatives of numerous unrecognized Indian groups, including several from the Ohlone people who once inhabited the Bay Area. To the Spaniards who colonized California, the tribes which occupied the area from San Francisco and the Carquinez straits to Big Sur were lumped together and called the Costanoans, or coast people. Although they experienced the same decrease of more than 90 percent of their population suffered by other California tribes, small groups of these Ohlone Indians survived into the present, but were never formally recognized as a tribe. Once even considered extinct by Indian scholars, today the Ohlone combat this perception as they seek formal recognition. Rosemary Cambra, the chairwoman of one Ohlone group, the 300-strong San Jose-based Muwekma tribe, said the biggest obstacle to recognition is the maze of technical, ambiguous and demanding federal regulations that govern tribal recognition. The villain in Cambra's eyes is the Bureau of Acknowledgment and Research, the branch of the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs which oversees tribal recognition. Like some Orwellian bureaucracy, the BAR, ostensibly in charge of recognizing tribes, is in fact in charge of not recognizing tribes, Cambra charges. Some tribes have been waiting for more than a decade just to have their petitions for recognition reviewed, she said-and positive findings are rarely made. Tribes begin the recognition process by first submitting a letter of intent. Then they work with BAR staff-a three-person team consisting of a historian, anthropologist and genealogist-to remedy any shortcomings. When the petitioner feels the application is ready, they ask for a formal review, which occurs in the order the materials are submitted. Cambra said there is an inherent conflict in the process because the bureau staff ends up adopting a stance either for or against the petitions during the research, and then is asked to judge the very same petitions. Bureau staff historian John Dobbern says bureau staffers are scholars, not advocates-although he admits they wear two hats and do play a judicial role. But Dobbern defends his agency, noting they have more than doubled their staff, streamlined some of their regulations and slashed their turnaround time for reviewing petitions. While only 25 petitions were acted upon from 1978 to 1992, Dobbern said, the bureau has issued decisions on three petitions in the last three months, with six more ready with preliminary findings. Still, Cambra said the Muwekma have little faith in the process, but are intent on exhausting all the possibilities in seeking recognition. Cambra said that when she turned in the Muwekma petition to BAR head Holly Record at the White House in January, she told them: "This is my declaration of war." The Muwekma also hope to win the war on another front, by getting Clinton to recognize them and other unrecognized tribal groups through executive order. Cambra met Clinton personally-albeit briefly-when she attended the first meeting of unrecognized tribes in October. "He acknowledged the presence of the California tribes, he talked about working as a 'partner with the government,'" she said. "He's a good P.R. man." Despite her lack of faith, Cambra has made some progress with officials at the White House meetings. Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Interior Michael Anderson was scheduled to visit San Jose March 20, with Dobbern slated to visit the following week to begin evaluating the Muwekma petition. The Muwekma would use their federal recognition to promote economic development, Cambra said. Indian housing, health and education grants, for example, could be combined with local city and county moneys to develop projects that would benefit both the Ohlones and the community at large, she added. Recognition would also put the Ohlones at the front of the line to claim surplus federal land. Already the Muwekmas have registered a claim to 400 acres of the Presidio in San Francisco including the present site of Letterman hospital. Under federal law, recognized aboriginal groups have the first right to claim such land. Even if the recognition comes too late to pursue the Presidio claims, Cambra said other area base closings will free up federal lands for potential Muwekma claims. The Muwekma cite other Ohlone groups-specifically the Esselen in Monterey County and the Amah-Mutsun of San Benito County-as mutually supporting each other's petitions for recognition. But there are other Ohlones as well, not all of whom apparently support the recognition efforts. Larry Myers, executive secretary of California's Native American Heritage Commission, chuckled when he heard that Muwekma materials mentioned only the other two Ohlone groups. "Often these things revolve around family rivalries," he said. "The Muwekma, the Esselen, the Amah and the Mutsun are all united, but the other groups do not all get along with them. In the minds of many of the other Ohlone, there is the fear they may be excluded if one particular group is recognized." Myers named more than a half-dozen Ohlone not involved in the recognition efforts-although none returned phone calls for this article. The most organized of these other Ohlone is undoubtedly the Galvan family, which runs a non-profit organization to administer the Ohlone cemetery near Mission San Jose in Fremont. Cambra admitted their is little or no overlap between her group and that of the Galvans, her cousins. "We are interested in different things, in different projects," she said. "I guess you could say that we are competing groups in some ways. But that should not stand in the way of tribal recognition. The question is not whether this family or that family runs the tribe, but if the tribe should be recognized at all. If the fact that there were competing factions within a nation was grounds for not recognizing that nation, we would refuse to recognize most of the governments of the world." Tracing their roots to the original aboriginal Ohlone society may be a bigger obstacle to Muwekma claims. Although Cambra, for example, can trace her lineage to ancestors at California missions in the 1700's and early 1800's, the standards by which the recognition petitions are judged stress continuity with the original tribal society, something California Indians-disrupted by the Spanish Mission system, Mexican abolishment of that system, and later United States annexation- rarely maintained. "The problem most Ohlone have, like many California Indians, is some can trace their ancestry to the mission where there ancestors were baptized, but people were hauled off to the missions without regard for their origins-most mission records don't say where they're actually from," Myers said. At least one Indian advocate believes this distinction should no longer be an obstacle to the bureau's recognition of the Muwekma and other tribes. "Their main concern has been 'historic versus non-historic,'" said Al Slagle, attorney for the Association on American Indian Affairs. "They don't want to recognize 'created tribes.' But the validity of this was challenged, especially in regards to California. By their definition of 'historic tribe' there were no tribes in California at all. Congress overrode this policy and declared it void, and in December 1994 the BIA staff agreed not to use the historic/non-historic distinction anymore. But the BAR improperly continues to use that term nevertheless." A lack of support from other American Indian tribes has complicated matters for the Muwekma, Cambra said. Many other tribal groups either believe in the extinction of the Ohlone themselves, she said, or just can't take seriously a group of a few hundred when their own group numbers in the thousands. Some tribal opposition can even be traced to simple self interest. When the Lumbee introduced recognition legislation a few years ago, they ironically discovered that some of those lobbying the hardest against the legislation were representatives of the already recognized tribes, said Richard Regan, an aide to Rep. Charlie Rose of North Carolina. "Recognized tribal representatives have told me they were opposing Lumbee recognition because it would mean stretching the limited resources devoted to Indians even thinner," he said. " 'It would mean putting even more spoons in the soup,' they told me." One local Indian rights activist, Alan Leventhal, a staff member of the San Jose State University School of Social Work and Department of Anthropology, said he withdrew from national Indian politics because he felt the needs of the California Indians-the people he was trying to help- were being ignored. No tribe has ever been recognized by executive order, Regan noted, but a number of tribes have been recognized through congressional legislation. The current political climate in Congress, however, makes this route unlikely. "If there is no BIA actions, we can expect to see more and more tribal petitions to Congress," Regan said. "I can't tell you the number of tribes calling us up and asking about the process of turning to legislation for redress. But the chances of legislation passing in either chamber is very low." Still, many feel legislation may be the best way for California's unrecognized Indians to pursue their claims. "By October we will be putting together a report for Congress," said Polly Gervin, staff person for the Advisory Council on California Indian Policy. "Then we expect to come forward with draft legislation." The council itself is the stepchild of recognition legislation. The Council was formed by President Bush as a sort of consolation prize in 1992 after he vetoed tribal recognition legislation, yet acknowledged the extent of the problem. Altogether, Gervin said, there are 42 unrecognized tribes in California totaling some 80,000 individuals. U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren said she met with Cambra when she was in Washington earlier this month for the third White House meeting. She said she supports the Muwekma petition despite the potential cost to the federal government. "To me this is an issue of fundamental rights, not money," said Lofgren. "Do we say- although I guess the Republicans are these days-that we are not going to provide benefits to disabled veterans because it would cost too much, or we are not going to enforce Civil Rights laws because it would cost too much? No. This is about doing what's right. This is about justice, not economics." + copyright 1995, Michael Medina --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Transmitted via LiveWire, a Virtual Valley service. Modem: 408.298.8646 (FirstClass, VT-100) Voice: 408.298.8174; E-mail: online@livewire.com --------- "RE: Cecilia Rodriguez Assault" --------- Date: Thu, 2 Nov 1995 14:44:11 -0800 From: wrehberg@igc.apc.org (Wesley Rehberg) Subj: Cecilia Rodriguez Assault Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) From: Wesley Rehberg SPAN/ Alternative Networks --------------------------- Wes Rehberg 415 Grove St., #B Elmira, NY 14905 USA phone & fax +607-734-4833 Internet: wrehberg@igc.apc.org November 2, 1995 To: President Bill Clinton, USA President Ernesto Zedillo, Mexico Congresspersons, USA The rape in Chiapas of Cecilia Rodriguez, who is coordinator of the National Commission for Democracy in Mexico/USA and a human rights worker, was a reprehensible act that demonstrates the impunity with which forces in Mexico can freely operate against those who seek truly democratic resolutions to the oppression and subjugation. I join the outrage expressed by the National Commission over the assault against Cecilia Rodriguez and her companion on October 26. Rape, other assaults and murder are part of the low-intensity warfare engaged in by forces who oppose truly democratic solutions to the continuing brutal marginalization of the poor and the indigenous in Mexico. I join these voices as a human rights worker myself who has been to Chiapas in March 1994 to observe first-hand the viciously abusive climate of such low-intensity warfare and as one who has been part of those who seek to insure that such assaults and murders do not go unnoticed or without a just response. Cecilia Rodriquez characteristically had protested, while in Mexico for a round of peace talks between EZLN and the Mexican government, the illegal arrest of a man purported to be Comandante German of the EZLN, in violation of the accords governing the peace talks. Cecilia Rodriguez reported that she was told, after the assault against her: "...you already know how are things in Chiapas right?...Shut up then, shut up, do you understand, or you know what will happen to you...". This clearly suggests that although Cecilia Rodriguez was not breaking any Mexican laws, that this was an act of intimidation and warning to international human rights workers who dare to speak for justice and human rights in Mexico. The catalog of such assaults and abuses is growing in Mexico. Therefore, I join with other human rights activists in urging the following: * That the US Embassy in Mexico City where Cecilia Rodriguez's complaint is lodged expedite an investigation into this incident and register an official diplomatic protest with the Mexican government. * That troops be withdrawn from the state of Chiapas and public information disseminated about the involvement of the US military in this low intensity warfare. * That the US suspend military aid and technical assistance to Mexico for any purpose until this and other human rights violations are resolved. * That there be the formation of an international human rights inquiry into the situation in Chiapas and a monitoring process installed. * That the US Congress conduct hearings into US military involvement in the low intensity warfare in Chiapas and its impact on human rights. * That efforts for a political solution to the conflict in Chiapas continue until there is true peace with dignity and secure human rights. Wes Rehberg --------- "RE: Canada First Nations Info" --------- Date: Sat, 4 Nov 1995 13:10:35 -0900 From: fdv1@ix.netcom.com (Fred De Van) Subj: First Nations (CA) Info Mailing List: NATCHAT (natchat@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Hi to All: Below is a thread that clearly indicates the kind of material that is not being distributed as widely as possible. These are releases from First Nations leaders. I found these on the Canadian News Wire. These are pure press releases that are intended to inform the press that there is something to cover. I had never heard of the FIRST NATIONS INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE, and although I try to monitor closely, nowhere, had I seen such a notice. These releases are not the flesh of a story. What, did Grand Chief Matthew Coon Come, say, at ``Forum '95 - The Quebec Referendum'' in Guelph, Ontario?" Is there more to this story. We all know that there is. It would serve us all well to have a single person to get in touch with all the Canadian leaders and provide a central spot where there releases can be found. I am sure they maintain files of, clips, responses and stories that are filed in response. They may be able to obtain clearance for distributing these too. It could also act as a clipping service and archive resource for the general media. as this story heats up, the ability to supply background to media types will dictate the type of coverage they provide. There is no reason for messages asking the position of the James Bay Cree, when they do a professional job of letting their views know but have limited avenues willing to distribute them. One more can be provided if a few of us band together and make that possible. Fred De Van --------------------------------------------------------------------------- JAMES BAY CREES VOTE NO - OVERWHELMINGLY - TO SEPARATION FROM CANADA Attention News Editors: MONTREAL, Oct. 25 /CNW/ - The James Bay Cree voted overwhelmingly yesterday to stay in Canada if Quebecers chose to secede. All across their traditional territory Crees came in from their hunting grounds to vote in a special referendum in which they overwhelmingly rejected Quebec independence. 96.3% of those who voted, voted ``NO'' to having the Quebec government take the James Bay Crees and their territory out of Canada in the event of a ``YES'' vote in the Quebec referendum. There was a high turnout - 77% or 4915 voters - for the Cree referendum, despite the short time available to publicize the referendum, and the long distances involved for many travelling to the polls. Grand Chief Matthew Coon Come stated : "The People have spoken and the message is clear. We won't go. This is not the 50% plus one that Jacques Parizeau says is democracy. This is a virtually unanimous message from my people. We won't go." Deputy Grand Chief Kenny Blacksmith described the lengths to which the Cree went to ensure full participation in their referendum: "It is the middle of hunting season. Three helicopters were chartered and flew to the far reaches of Eeyou Astchee, our traditional lands." Grand Chief Matthew Coon Come added that the Cree would do whatever was necessary to compel the federal government to uphold their constitutional rights. Furthermore, in response to the clear message from his people, the Grand Chief plans to undertake a national and international campaign to focus attention on "this wholesale denial of our status and rights. We won't go." For further information: Bill Namagoose, (613) 761-1655, cell: (613) 725-7024 or Grand Chief Matthew Coon Come, (514) 861-5837 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- GRAND CHIEF MATTHEW COON COME TO DELIVER KEYNOTE ADDRESS AT CONFERENCE IN GUELPH ONT. TOMORROW Attention News Editors: OTTAWA, Oct. 26 /CNW/ - Grand Chief Matthew Coon Come will deliver a keynote address tomorrow at ``Forum '95 - The Quebec Referendum'' in Guelph, Ontario. The James Bay Cree people voted on October 24, refusing to be separated with their traditional lands and resources from Canada. Following this overwhelming expression of Cree will, Chief Coon Come will deliver a major message to Canadians outside of Quebec at the Guelph conference tomorrow. He will address the fact that Cree traditional lands covering much of northern Quebec are legally and constitutionally not subject to unilateral removal from Canada by Quebec. (These lands contain over $20 billion of hydro-electric installations and produce over $3 billion dollars of revenue annually to Quebec.) This is particularly important in the context of threats by Quebec to renege on Canadian debt. Chief Coon Come will also address the latest assertions by The Hon. Mr. L. Bouchard that the territory of Quebec is indivisible (while Canada's is of course subject to division). He will alert Canadians to the contradictions of this position, one that has highly discriminatory foundations. Forum 95 - Lady of Lourdes High School, 54 Westmount Road, Guelph 1:00 pm For further information: Bill Namagoose, Grand Council of the crees, (613) 761-1655, cell: (613) 725-7024; Conference organizers:Joe Tersigni, Our Lady of Lourdes High school, Guelph, Ont.,(519) 836-2170 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- INTERNATIONAL TRIBUNAL TO HEAR THE QUESTION - ``WHEN AND HOW DID THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA BELIEVE IT ACQUIRED JURISDICTION OVER FIRST NATIONS?'' Attention News/Assignment Editors: TORONTO, Oct. 27 /CNW/ - A reception launching the First Nations International Court of Justice will be held on Wednesday, November 1, 1995 in the ``Atlantis'' Room of Ontario Place, Toronto, Ontario. Media are invited to attend the reception at 7 pm for a brief program which will include leadership from the national Aboriginal political organizations addressing why an International Tribunal has been established and explaining the process of the Court. On Wednesday, September 27, 1995, Prime Minister Jean Chretien was served with indictment papers for Crown breaches of international law and constitutionally protected treaty and Aboriginal rights. The indictment states that Her Majesty in right of Canada must respond to these charges by November 30, 1995 to the office of the Registrar of this Court. The establishment of the First Nations International Court of Justice is one step towards the implementation of First Nations jurisdiction over the administration of justice in our territories. The impetus for the convening of this first sitting of the court was the occupation of the Revenue Canada offices in Toronto in December, 1994, lasting for 28 days. The reception will launch a series of events leading up to the sitting of the First Nations International Court of Justice to be held in Ottawa, April 2, 3, and 4, 1996. For further information: Gordon Peters, Ontario Regional Chief;Andrea Chrisjohn, Executive Director, Chiefs of Ontario; Sylvia Thompson, Chiefs of Ontario; Telephone: (416) 972-0212, Fax:(416) 972-0217 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- OFFICIAL LAUNCH OF THE FIRST NATIONS INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE Attention News/Assignment Editors: TORONTO, Nov. 1 /CNW/ - A reception launching the First Nations International Court of Justice will be held today, Wednesday, November 1, 1995 in the ``Atlantis'' Room of Ontario Place, Toronto, Ontario. Media are invited to attend the reception at 7 pm for a brief program which will introduce the Court and its procedures. This reception will launch a series of events leading up to the sitting of the First Nations International Court of Justice to be held in Ottawa, Ontario on April 2, 3, & 4, 1996. In this country, the need for ``change'' was forcefully demonstrated in Monday's Quebec Referendum. Even more fundamental is the recognition of the rights of the First Nations Peoples of this land. The continual Crown breaches of treaties and human rights, international law and constitutionally protected treaty and aboriginal rights experienced by all Aboriginal groups in Canada has led us to a unique show of support for an international tribunal. Speakers at tonight's reception include Chiefs of the First Nations communities, Mr. Gordon Peters, Ontario Regional Chief, Mr. Fred Plain, Ontario Regional Elder, and Mr. Roger Obonsawin, President, O.I. Group of Companies. Mr. Peters stated ``we can no longer wait for other governments to protect and implement our rights. Their agenda is to reduce us to municipal governments. It is time we acted to put back into place our aboriginal, treaty and inherent rights and relationships.'' The First Nations International Court of Justice represents the continuation of a long battle for First Nations to give full expression to the Treaties and to implement our Aboriginal, Treaty and inherent rights which have never been relinquished. It is a tangible demonstration of the exercise of our sovereignty and jurisdiction. For further information: Gordon Peters, Ontario Regional Chief;Andrea Chrisjohn, Executive Director, Chiefs of Ontario;Sylvia Thompson, Chiefs of Ontario, Telephone: (416) 972-0212,Fax: (416) 972-02 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- When old dreams die, New ones come to take their place. Perish, The One Dream Man. My Correct e-mail addresses are -- fd1@ix.netcom.com or fdv@aol.com ---- Fred De Van --------- "RE: Festival of Native Plays" --------- Date: Sat, 4 Nov 1995 14:23:34 -0500 From: pguithe@oratmail.cfa.ilstu.edu (Peter Guither) Subj: Festival of Native Plays Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Announcing: ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ + Native Voices -- Back to Normal + + The 2nd Annual Festival of Native Plays + ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Illinois State University Department of Theatre Normal, Illinois _Native Voices - Back to Normal_, the second annual Festival of Native Plays, will be held November 10 through 19 at Illinois State University's Department of Theatre. The Festival features staged readings of four new Native scripts and the world premiere production of "Now look what you made me do", which was workshopped at last year's festival. _Native Voices_ supports Illinois State Theatre's ongoing commitment to introducing audiences to multi-cultural issues. The Festival merges the talent of Native American playwrights, Native playwrights from Canada and multi-cultural theatre professionals across the continent. In 1994, Illinois State Theatre sponsored the first Native festival of this kind in the United States. Established specifically for the staged readings of original Native plays (readings with limited stage movement and no set or costumes), the festival attracted professional theatre artists from Toronto, New Mexico, Vancouver, Oregon, Florida, Chicago, Tennessee, and Urbana, IL -- including directors, actors, and dramaturges. In the past year, several of these works have been seen at The Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles, The Royal Court Theatre in London, Native Earth Performing Arts in Toronto, New York Theatre Workshop at Dartmouth and in New York, and the BANFF Playwrights Conference. Second Annual Festival of Native Plays -------------------------------------- Staged Readings: "Only Drunks and Children Tell the Truth" by Drew Hayden Taylor November 17 at 8:00 pm "Please Don't Touch the Indians" by Joseph A. Dandurand November 18 at 2:30 pm "Sitting Bull's Laundry" by William Lang November 18 at 5:00 pm "Rose" by Tomson Highway November 19 at 12:00 noon All staged readings are free and open to the public. An open discussion will follow each reading. Space is limited and reservations are recommended. Call (309) 438-2535. Special Events: Open Panel Discussion: "Developing Native Playwrights" November 16 at 2:00 pm Public Reception November 16 at 6:15 pm _Movement and Playwrights Workshop_ with Marie Humber Clements November 18 at 1:00 pm World Premiere: "Now look what you made me do." by Marie Humber Clements Nov. 10, 11, 14, 15, 16, 17 at 8:00 pm; Nov. 12, 19 at 3:00 pm Allen Theatre Tickets $10 (students $5) Limited Seating Call (309) 438-2535 for tickets "Now look what you made me do." was featured in a staged reading at last year's Native Voices Festival. Note: The play deals with domestic violence issues and contains adult language and situations. _Native Voices - Back to Normal_ is sponsored in part by the Illinois State University Office of Undergraduate Studies, the Minority Scholars-in-Residence Program, MECCPAC and the Illinois Arts Council. You may also email reservation requests to Peter Guither, General Manager: pguithe@oratmail.cfa.ilstu.edu For more information about Native Voices, contact Randy Reinholz, ISU theatre faculty member, Choctaw, and organizer of the Festival: rsrein@oratmail.cfa.ilstu.edu Native Voices Web Page: http://orathost.cfa.ilstu.edu/public/cfaInfo/programs/NewTheater/Native.html ------------------------------- Peter Guither, General Manager Illinois Shakespeare Festival Illinois State Theatre pguithe@ilstu.edu ------------------------------- ÿ