Subject: Wotanging Ikche--nanews03.048 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 048 O o o o o O __/_ / ) (___/ / ( (___, 2 December 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, INNU-L, NATIVELIT, NATCHAT & NATIVE-L listservers; Newsgroups: alt.native,soc.culture.native; 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 "My heart is a stone;heavy with sadness for my people; cold with the knowledge that no treaty will keep the whites out of our lands; hard with the determination to resist as long as I live and breathe.now we are weak and many are afraid. but hear me; a single twig breaks, but the bundle of twigs is strong. someday I will embrace our brother tribes and draw them back into a bundle and together we will win our country back from the whites." __ Chief Tecumseh, Shawnee +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ | 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! One of my sisters-in-law supervises a shelter and community store house. She tells me the incidence of battered women and abused children is increasing. Is this a sign of stressful times, or an indication of what acculturation has done to human beings? I do not have the answer, but I do know what my heart tells me is true. The more we lose our own sense of community, the less we care about one another. The more we lose our way and drift from the path, the less we care about where we are going. The more we forget the lessons from our ancestors, the less we want to give to the generations who follow. If we continue to allow ourselves to be lead away from the ways that have been entrusted to us, nothing else we say or do will have value. It matters not what words are spoken if they are not accompanied by sincere belief and deed. You, I, we must walk in a true way. This is a time of year when needs are felt even more. Help children in need. Help elders in need. Extend your hand to our brothers and sisters in the iron house. Pray for the People. Do what you can to help rebuild our Circles and our Ways. 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 - Four Women Still Jailed for Protest - Conferences and Powwows - online - Student Needs YOUR Help with Survey - Lost Bird Web Site - Small Grants Available - A Thanksgiving Story - Native Proverb - Pugeesukq Thanksgiving - Indian Prayer/Poems - Pride/Heritage - Review: The Eagle Catcher - Residential Schools - Poems of and for Warriors - Oneida Textiles Samples - Verse: Hawai'ian Book of Days - Harris Government Cuts Programs - Conferences and Powwows - offline - John Trudell Tour in December --------- "RE: Four Women Still Jailed for Protest" --------- Date: Mon, 27 Nov 1995 09:59:20 -0400 From: Larry Innes Subj: Four Women Still Jailed for Runway Protest Mailing List: INNU-L UPDATE! Although most of the Innu were released on "temporary absences" after their convictions for "mischief" arising from the September '93 occupation of the runway at CFB Goose Bay, four women have decided to remain in jail. They were transferred to the Stephenville correctional centre on Friday, where they will serve their remaining time. Letters of support and encouragement can be sent to Elizabeth Penashue, Lyla Andrew, Philomena Penashue and Kari Reynolds at: c/o Bay St. George Status of Women P.O. Box 501, 54 St. Claire Ave. Stephenville, NF A2N 3B4 fax: (709) 643-4495 Larry Innes es051322@orion.yorku.ca (direct to me) Environmental Advisor innu@web.apc.org (general to Innu Nation) Innu Nation P.O. Box 119, Sheshatshiu, Nitassinan (Labrador, Canada) A0P 1M0 Phone: (709) 497-8398 Fax: (709) 497-8396 =\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/=\/= --------- "RE: Student Needs YOUR Help with Survey" --------- Date: 26 Nov 1995 04:44:24 GMT From: Capucine Subj: URGENT: Mi'kmaq student needs YOUR help with survey Newsgroup: soc.culture.native I am a Native student (Mi'kmaq) attending my third year at McGill University here in Montreal. My program is a Bachelor of Education and I am required to take an "Intro to Philosophy" course as part of my core courses. My problem begins with the fact that there were absolutely no references to any Aboriginal, Native or First Nations views on philosophy in the required textbook or in the course outline. I pointed this matter out quite strongly to the professor who was very flexible and understanding in the matter. As a result, he has allowed me to take on a special writing assignment for 100% of my mark: an overview of Native and/or Aboriginal Philosophies (from a Native viewpoint). To avoid any overly personal bias, I am turning to the many personal resources that are on the Net such as yourself... I would like to find out *individual* viewpoints on native philosophy (sometimes referred to as "The Way") from a variety of people: status native, non-status, and metis from any of the First Nations and Inuit peoples. (I am not trying to reveal any "secrets" of traditional life, just to give an understanding to non-natives of the belief systems that guide of our way of thinking and living...) Philosophy: from the greek word *philosophia* = love of wisdom, ³practical wisdom that comes from the general laws and principles; system of general beliefs or views; serenity, composure At this point, I do not want any more references from books, I want real natives and their viewpoints, not another non-native telling us what they think we believe. You donıt even have to put it in ³big words²; I would like an honest down-to-earth version of oneıs native beliefs concerning their life, their culture, their family, tribe or nation, in nature and the world around us, their belief in an afterlife, in their guiding spirits or totems. You donıt have to touch on matters that are considered too sacred to you if you are not comfortable in discussing or revealing it to others. Please feel free to add any other information that you deem necessary to make yourself understood. This is YOUR chance to reform the present education system as Professor Kelebay has promised to take the results of this project into consideration when teaching philosophy classes in ALL future semesters. McGill University is responsible for certifying hundreds of new teachers every year (elementary, secondary, adult ed., phys. ed. and art ed.) and these teachers will go on to teach the many generations of children across North America that will help form the future of our world. I am under a rather tight deadline, the final written report must be in his hands by Dec. 15th, so I would appreciate as a quick a reply as possible under the circumstances. Please pass on this message to any others who may be of assistance. (If you have any further questions concerning this project please feel free to contact me by e-mail and Iıll probably get back to you by the next day.) My deepest thanks go out to all of you in advance; your help is greatly appreciated. Capucine Plourde of the Mi'kmaq Nation (Membertou Reserve, Nova Scotia) McGill University, Bachelor of Education, U3 Montreal, Quebec, Canada --------- "RE: Small Grants Available" --------- Date: Mon, 20 Nov 1995 08:34:33 -0600 From: berryj@Okway.okstate.edu (John Berry) Subj: Small grants available(FWD) Mailing List: IND-NET To all, Small grants add up. Best, John Berry ______________________________ Forward Header __________________________________ Subject: Small grants available Author: native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us at SMTP Date: 11/18/95 5:17 PM Original Sender: cottonwood@igc.apc.org (Paul Moss) Approximately 15 grants of up to $1,000 will be awarded in 1996 by Cottonwood Foundation, a small foundation that provides grants to grass roots organizations internationally that combine activities in all of the following four areas: protecting the environment, promoting cultural diversity, empowering people to meet their basic needs, and relying on volunteer efforts. Among the activities that may be eligible for grant support are efforts by indigenous peoples' organizations to repurchase their land base. If your organization is interested in applying for one of these grants or would like to nominate another group for consideration, please request grant guidelines and an application form from: Cottonwood Foundation Box 10803 White Bear Lake, MN 55110 USA e-mail: cottonwood@igc.apc.org Completed applications are due on February 15, 1996 for consideration in Spring 1996 and August 15, 1996 for consideration in Fall 1996. --------- "RE: Native Proverb" --------- Date: Thu, 23 Nov 95 20:43:36 PST From: Phillip Manuel Subj: Here's a Native Proverb Newsgroup: soc.culture.native Indian Proverb I look to the beauties that surround me, the aromas that entrance me, the sounds that enchant me. In and through everything, I am able to see beauty and purpose. Reasoning or logic does not fit in my world, they are things that only seek to assist the physical world, the world of the lost ones. With great thankfulness, I look to the moon, to the sun, to the water, to the eagle, the bear, the salmon, the deer, coyote, and I trust in them for the surety of my existence. I know that these things will outlive the lost ones, I know that some will say, who is he to teach of our values? I know that some will say, he does not seem the logic one who will teach of our values? But who is talking logic, I am talking inner-spirituality. When the moon does not come out one night then comes out in full form the next, I am able to trust that tomorrow I will be in full form. So I greet the life with power from within. I seek my strength, my power, my destiny from within. This omnipotence from within cannot be destroyed so easily. I stand on my two feet, sunken into mother earth. Like two blood veins, they surge life into me. Complete with all the emotions of mother earth. Like a tree, I will raise my arms to the sky, to father wind, giving thanks for the timeless lessons he reveals to me through his ancient stories. Into father winds breath, I will drop seeds of life with dreams that they will take root in new land, giving vigorous beauty and shelter for all to once again respect. To my children, eat of the fruit that grows from my branches, this fruit is your protection from the lost ones. It is my love. Through the cracks of the cement sidewalks and buildings, my roots will come, to grow into great tokens of life. Bringing hope to those people who have lost the meaning of life. They will tear their way in blind fury to get to my protection. They will feel their hearts once again, and learn how to listen to the stories that have been hidden deep in the beating heart for so long. Thank you, oh Great Creator for my gift of life, thank you for my people. Thank you Mother Earth, for the energy that you swell in my heart. Thank you for listening to my words. --------- "RE: Indian Prayer/Poems" --------- Date: Mon, 27 Nov 95 14:27:59 EST From: gwelker@mail.lmi.org Subject: AN INDIAN PRAYER/Poems UUCP email A friend of my sister gave me these poems and I thought you might find them to be meaningful. Peace Glenn ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- AN INDIAN PRAYER O' GREAT SPIRIT, Whose voice I hear in the winds, And whose breath gives life to all the world, hear me! I am small and weak, I need your strength and wisdom. LET ME WALK IN BEAUTY, and make my eyes ever behold the red and purple sunset. MAKE MY HANDS respect the things that you have made and my ears sharp to hear your voice. MAKE ME WISE so that I may understand the things you have taught my people. LET ME LEARN the lessons you have hidden in every leaf and rock. I SEEK STRENGTH, not to be greater than my brother, but to fight my greatest enemy - myself. MAKE ME ALWAYS READY to come to you with clean hands and straight eyes. SO WHEN LIFE FADES, as the fading sunset, my spirit may come to you without shame. Traditional Native American Prayer, from Earth Prayers: from around the World, 365 Prayers, Poems, and Invocations for Honoring the Earth, edited by Elizabeth Roberts and Elias Amidon, Harper San Francisco SIOUX PRAYER (From Earth Prayers) Grandfather Great Spirit All over the world the faces of livings ones are alike With tenderness they have come up out of the ground. Look upon your children that they may face the winds and walk the good road to the Day of Quiet. Grandfather Great Spirit Fill us with the Light. Give us the strength to understand, and the eyes to see. Teach us to walk the soft Earth as relatives to all that live. O, Our Father, the Sky, hear us and make us strong. O, our Mother the Earth, hear us and give us support. O, Spirit of the East, send us your wisdom. O, Spirit of the South, may we tread your path of life. O, Spirit of the West, may we always be ready for the long journey. O, Spirit of the North, purify us with your cleansing winds. >From Navajo "Night Chant" (From Earth Prayers) House made of dawn. House made of evening light. House made of the dark cloud. House made of male rain. House made of dark mist. House made of female rain. House made of pollen. House made of grasshoppers. Dark cloud is at the door. The trail out of it is dark cloud. The zigzag lightning stands high upon it. An offering I make. Restore my feet for me. Restore my legs for me. Restore my body for me. Restore my mind for me. Restore my voice for me. This very day take out your spell for me. Happily I recover. Happily my interior becomes cool. Happily I go forth. My interior feeling cool, may I walk. No longer sore, may I walk. Impervious to pain, may I walk. With lively feelings may I walk. As it used o be long ago, may I walk. Happily may I walk. Happily, with abundant dark clouds, may I walk. Happily, with abundant showers, may I walk. Happily, with abundant plants, may I walk. Happily on a trail of pollen, may I walk. Happily may I walk. Being as it used to be long ago, may I walk. May it be beautiful before me. May it be beautiful behind me. May it be beautiful below me. May it be beautiful above me. May it be beautiful all around me. In beauty it is finished. In beauty it is finished. It was the wind that gave them life. It is the wind that comes out of our mouths now that gives us life. When this ceases to blow we die. In the skin at the tips of our fingers we see the trail of the wind; it shows us the wind blew when our ancestors were created. TEWA PUEBLO PRAYER O our mother the earth, O our father the sky, Your children are we, and with tired backs We bring you gifts that you love. Then weave for us a garment of brightness; May the warp be the white light of morning, May be weft be the red light of evening, May the fringes be the falling rain, May the border be the standing rainbow. Thus weave for us a garment of brightness That we may walk fittingly where grass is green, O our mother the earth, O our father the sky. HOPI SONG The day has risen, Go I to behold the dawn, Hao! you maidens! Go behold the dawn! The white-rising! The yellow-rising! It has become light. ZUNI PRAYER Cover my earth mother four times with many flowers. Let the heavens be covered with the banked up clouds. Let the earth be covered with fog; cover the earth with rains. Great waters, rains, cover the earth. Lightning cover the earth. Let thunder be heard over the earth; let thunder be heard; Let thunder be heard over the six regions of the earth. This is what I want to happen: that our earth mother may be clothed in ground corn four times over; that frost flowers cover her over entirely; that the mountain pines far away over there may stand close to each other in the cold; that the weight of snow break some branches! In order that the country may be this way I have made my prayer sticks into something alive. ZUNI CHANT Beseeching the breath of the divine one, His life-giving breath, His breath of old age, His breath of waters, His breath of seeds, His breath of riches, His breath of fecundity, His breath of power His breath of all good fortune Asking for his breath And into my warm body drawing his breath, I add to your breath That happily you may always live. from Earth Prayers: from around the World, 365 Prayers, Poems, and Invocations for Honoring the Earth, edited by Elizabeth Roberts and Elias Amidon, Harper San Francisco --------------------------------------------------------------------------- SONGS OF DAWN BOY (From American Indian Poetry) I Where my kindred dwell, There I wander. The Red Rock House, There I wander. Where dark kethawns are at the door, There I wander. With the pollen of dawn upon my trail, There I wander. At the yuni, the striped cotton hangs with pollen, There I wander. Going around with it. There I wander. Taking another, I depart with it. With it I wander. In the house of long life, There I wander. In the house of happiness, There I wander. Beauty before me, With it I wander. Beauty behind me, With it I wander. Beauty below me With it I wander. Beauty above me, With it I wander. Beauty all around me, With it I wander. In old age traveling, With it I wander. On the beautiful trail I am, With it I wander. II In Kininaeki. In the house made of dawn. In the story made of dawn. On the trail of dawn, O, Talking God! His feet, my feet, restore. His limbs, my limbs, restore. His body, my body restore. His mind, my mind, restore. His voice, my voice, restore. His plumes, my plumes, restore. With beauty before him, with beauty before me. With beauty behind him, with beauty behind me. With beauty above him, with beauty above me. With beauty below him, with beauty below me. With beauty around him, with beauty around me. With pollen beautiful in his voice, with pollen beautiful in my voice. It is finished in beauty. It is finished in beauty. In the house of evening light. >From the story made of evening light. On the trail of evening light. O, House God! (The rest as in I, except that lines 12 and 13 are transposed.) To the house of my kindred, There I return. Child of the yellow corn am I. To the Red Rock House, There I return. Where the blue kethawns are by the doorway, There I return. The pollen of evening light on my trail, There I return. At the yuni the haliotis shell hangs with the pollen, Going around, With it I return. Taking another, I walk out with it. With it I return. To the house of old age, Up there I return. To the house of happiness, Up there I return. Beauty behind me, With it I return. Beauty before me, With it I return. Beauty above me, With it I return. Beauty below me, With it I return. Beauty all around me, With it I return. Now in old age wandering,4 I return. Now on the trail of beauty, I am. There I return. Native American Prayer from the Navajo "Night Chant" Now Talking God With your feet I walk. I walk with your limbs I carry forth your body For me your mind thinks Your voice speaks for me Beauty is before me And beauty is behind me Above and below me hovers the beautiful I am surrounded by it I am immersed in it In my youth I am aware of it And in old age I shall walk quietly The beautiful trail. The mountains, I become part of it . . . The herbs, the fir tree, I become part of it. The morning mists, the clouds, the gathering waters, I become part of it. The wilderness, the dew drops, the pollen . . . I become part of it. May it be delightful my house; >From my head may it be delightful; To my feet may it be delightful; Where I lie may it be delightful; All above me may it be delightful; All around me may it be delightful. A PRAYER (FOR SECOND DAY OF THE NIGHT CHANT) >From the base of the east. >From the base of the Pelado Peak. >From the house made of mirage, >From the story made of mirage, >From the doorway of rainbow, The path out of which is the rainbow, The rainbow passed out with me, The rainbow raised up with me. Through the middle of broad fields, The rainbow returned with me. To where my house is visible, The rainbow returned with me. To the roof of my house, The rainbow returned with me. To the entrance of my house, The rainbow returned with me. To just within my house, The rainbow returned with me. To my fireside, The rainbow returned with me. To the center of my house, The rainbow returned with me. At the fore part of my house with the dawn, The Talking God sits with me. The House God sits with me. Pollen Boy sits with me. Grasshopper Girl sits with me. In beauty Estsanathlehi, my mother, for her I return. Beautifully my fire to me is restored. Beautifully my possessions are to me restored. Beautifully my soft goods to me are restored. Beautifully my hard goods to me are restored. Beautifully my horses to me are restored. Beautifully my sheep to me are restored. Beautifully my old men to me are restored. Beautifully my old women to me are restored. Beautifully my young men to me are restored. Beautifully my women to me are restored. Beautifully my children to me are restored. Beautifully my wife to me are restored. Beautifully my chiefs to me are restored. Beautifully my country to me are restored. Beautifully my fields to me are restored. Beautifully my house to me are restored. Talking God sits with me. House God sits with me. Pollen Boy sits with me. Grasshopper Girl sits with me. Beautifully white corn to me is restored. Beautifully yellow corn to me is restored. Beautifully blue corn to me is restored. Beautifully corn of all kinds to me is restored. In beauty may I walk. All day long may I walk. Through the returning seasons may I walk. On the trailed marked with pollen may I walk. With grasshoppers about my feet may I walk. With dew about my feet may I walk. With beauty may I walk. With beauty before me, may I walk. With beauty behind me, may I walk. With beauty above me, may I walk. With beauty below me, may I walk. With beauty all around me, may I walk. In old age wandering on a trail of beauty, lively, may I walk. In old age wandering on a trail of beauty, living again, may I walk. It is finished in beauty. It is finished in beauty. NIGHT CHANT (FOR THE NINTH SONG) In Tsegihi, In the house made of dawn, In the house made of evening twilight, In the house made of dark cloud, In the house made of rain and mist, of pollen, of grasshoppers, Where the dark mist curtains the doorway, The path to which is on the rainbow, Where the zig-zag lightning stands high on top, Where the he-rain stands high on top, Oh, male divinity! With your moccasins of dark cloud, come to us, With your mind enveloped in dark cloud, come to us, With the dark thunder above you, come to us soaring, With the shapen cloud at your feet, come to us soaring. With the far darkness made of the dark cloud over your head, come to us soaring, With the far darkness made of the rain and the mist over your head, come to us soaring, With the far darkness made of the rain and the mist over your head, come to us soaring. With the zig-zag lightning flung out high over your head, With the rainbow hanging high over your head, come to us soaring. With the far darkness made of the dark cloud on the ends of your wings, With the far darkness made of the rain and the mist on the ends of your wings, come to us soaring, With the zig-zag lightning, with the rainbow hanging high on the ends of your wings, come to us soaring. With the near darkness made of dark cloud of the rain and the mist, come to us, With the darkness on the earth, come to us. With these I wish the foam floating on the flowing water over the roots of the great corn, I have made your sacrifice, I have prepared a smoke for you, My feet restore for me. My limbs restore, my body restore, my mind restore, my voice restore for me. Today, take out your spell for me, Today, take away your spell for me. Away from me you have taken it, Far off from me it is taken, Far off you have done it. Happily I recover, Happily I become cool, My eyes regain their power, my head cools, my limbs regain their strength, I hear again. Happily for me the spell is taken off, Happily I walk; impervious to pain, I walk; light within, I walk; joyous, I walk. Abundant dark clouds I desire, An abundance of vegetation I desire, An abundance of pollen, abundant dew, I desire. Happily may fair white corn, to the ends of the earth, come with you, Happily may fair yellow corn, fair blue corn, fair corn of all kinds, plants of all kinds, goods of all kinds, jewels of all kinds, to the ends of the earth, come with you. With these before you, happily may they come with you, With these behind, below, above, around you, happily may they come with you, Thus you accomplish your tasks. Happily the old men will regard you, Happily the old women will regard you, The young men and the young women will regard you, The children will regard you, The chiefs will regard you, Happily, as they scatter in different directions, they will regard you, Happily, as they approach their homes, they will regard you. May their roads home be on the trail of peace, Happily may they all return, In beauty I walk. With beauty before me, I walk. With beauty behind me, I walk. With beauty above and about me, I walk. It is finished in beauty. It is finished in beauty. from American Indian Poetry: An Anthology of Songs and Chants, edited by George W. Cronyn, Ballantine Books, New York --------- "RE: Review: The Eagle Catcher" --------- Date: Thu, 23 Nov 1995 20:54:57 -0700 (MST) From: Steve Brock Subj: Review of The Eagle Catcher by Margaret Coel (fiction/mystery) Mailing List: NATIVELIT THE EAGLE CATCHER by Margaret Coel. University Press of Colorado, Box 849, Niwot, CO 80544, (303) 530-5337, FAX: (303) 530-5306. 186 pp., $19.95 cloth. 0-87081-367-6 REVIEWED BY STEVE BROCK Since Tony Hillerman has taken a vacation from writing Jim Chee mysteries, many authors have, with more-or-less success, jumped into the void by penning murder mysteries which take place on Indian reservations. Most of these are mixed with a generous amount of Indian lore and traditional beliefs which, in many cases, drive the plot. The Quinault have Naomi M. Stokes, the Cherokee have Jean Hager, and the Crow have Sandra West Prowell; to these, mystery aficionados will applaud the addition of Boulder resident Margaret Coel. In Coel's debut novel, Father John O'Malley, a Jesuit priest who is recovering from lengthy ministrations to the whiskey bottle and was "banned" to the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming, teams up with divorced tribal attorney Vicky Holden who had recently returned to the reservation to open a law office, to solve the murder of two tribal leaders who had uncovered some shady land deals in the 1800s that affected Arapahoe oil revenues, in a story reminiscent of the movie "Thunderheart." The prime suspect is Anthony Castle, nephew of slain Tribal Chairman Harvey Castle. Anthony was seen arguing with Harvey shortly before his body was discovered, and Anthony's bloody knife is found near the tipi where the murder took place. Jeff Miller, an FBI agent, believes it's an open-and-shut case and refuses to examine other suspects and motives, and BIA police chief Art Banner seems to believe him. When O'Malley, an ex-history teacher, discovers that Harvey was writing a history of the Arapaho that may affect a land acquisition deal between gubernatorial aspirant Ned Cooley, whose grandfather was the Indian agent when the reservation was created, the St. Francis Mission archives may hold the key to present misdeeds, as well as those in the "Old Time." With her abundant knowledge of Western history, exploration of tribal issues such as romance between Indians and non-Indians and the exploitation of natural resources, and characters that are easy to imagine, Coel has turned a nifty mystery into a fascinating history lesson. Grade: A-. Due next year is "The Ghost Walker," also featuring Father John. Also by Coel: "Chief Left Hand, Southern Arapaho" (1981), and "Goin' Railroading: A Century on the Colorado High Iron" (1985, 1991). --------- "RE: Poems of and for Warriors" --------- Date: Fri, 10 Nov 1995 08:58:13 -0800 (PST) From: Larry Kibbey Subj: VETERANS DAY - NOVEMBER 11, 1995 Mailing List: IND-NET *Indian Veterans Of U.S. War* Indian, You fought in World War I Along side of those Who knew not The Way of the Indian! Indian, You fought in World War II Along side of those Who knew not The Way of the Indian! Indian, You fought in the Korean War Along side of those Who knew not The Way of the Indian! Indian, You fought in Vietnam Along side of those Who knew not The Way of the Indian! Indian, You fought for America As one of America's Prisoners of War. You fought along side of those Who knew not Nor cared For the Indian Way of Life! But, be proud Indian! You are a Warrior, An Indian Veteran of Many Wars! +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ *Yesterday's Warrior* Warrior, Once proud And noble. Brave With pride And dignity You stood so tall Before your people. Warrior, With your painted face Astride your horse Ready to fight With your heart, soul And mind To fight for life To fight for death Everyday was A good day To die. Warrior, You have lived, And you have died. You gave of yourself So that your people Could live. Every war Fought For the rights of our people. Warrior, Your War cries Are still heard Through The valleys and The plains Across this land. The Indian Nation Hears your war cry. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ *Weeping Widow* >From the field of war They brought home The wounded, dying And the dead. You searched And you looked, And then you wept. A widow. The pain came When you saw him not He was gone Taken from you But never To be forgotten Now You are a widow. You knew him To be brave You knew him To be gentle You knew him As a part of your life But now You are a widow. You know He is with you But still you Weep His spirit Will live on With you And through his children But still You weep Still You are a widow. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The above are copyrighted. Two are published in "Native American Poetry" by Larry Kibby. Larry Kibby, Consultant/Director Western Shoshone Historic Preservation Society Elko Indian Colony 1581 Pinenut Circle Elko, Nevada 89801 Phone # (702) 738-4147 Fax # (702) 738-7070 E-Mail kibbey@sierra.net --------- "RE: Verse: Hawai'ian Book of Days" --------- Date: 95/11/23 15:46 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 December 3-9 NOWEMAPA (November) (Welehu) 3 Weave the pattern of life into your every creation. 4 In simplicity, we can find the solutions to our most complex riddles. 5 Lava steams and crackles as it pours into the churning ocean -- the marriage of fire and water. 6 Let your dreams fly upon the wings of the wind. 7 May I one day sing the song of my being in the land of my heart's desire. 8 In the mirror pool, you will see reflected your own spirit. 9 Learn all that life has to teach you. (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, 30 Nov 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 Newsgroups: soc.culture.native Subject: Sacred Assembly 95 in Hull, Canada early Dec. 95 SACRED ASSEMBLY 95 The Honourable Elijah Harper invites all members of the public to join with him in Sacred Assembly 95 at the Palais des Congre`s in Hull from December 6th to 9th. Sacred Assembly 95 will bring together Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples from all parts of Canada, all walks of life, and all faith communities. Elders, spiritual leaders, political leaders, and citizens like you will be there. They will spend four days listening, learning, talking, praying, and worshipping together to lay a spiritual foundation for: - dealing with current crisis situations across Canada; - working towards justice on issues such as land rights and self-government; and - beginning the process of spiritual healing and reconciliation both within and between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal communities across Canada. Registration is $30. For more information on the Sacred Assembly, to register, to volunteer your help, or to offer billets to visitors from outside the Ottawa-Hull area, please call (613) 947-9711. Sacred Assembly 95 437-360 Laurier Avenue West Ottawa, Ontario K1P 5K3 Ph.: 613-947-9711 Fx: 613-947-9717 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: 1996 ASU Spring POWWOW! AHO! From: ADGNR@asuvm.inre.asu.edu The ASU Powwow Committee, ASU Office of the President & Vice-President for Student Affairs, ASU Cultural Diversity Committee, & Sun Valley Nation Singers present T h e T e n t h A n n u a l A R I Z O N A S T A T E U N I V E R S I T Y S p r i n g C o m p e t i t i o n P O W W O W April 19-21 1996 Tempe, Arizona ASU Band Practice Field/6th St. & Rural Rd. S C H E D U L E: Friday, April 19 5:00 pm - Guord Dance 7:00 pm - Grand Entry! Saturday, April 20 11:00 am - Gourd Dance 1:00 pm - Grand Entry 5:00 pm - Gourd Dance 7:00 pm - Grand Entry Sunday, April 21 10:00 am - Gourd Dance 1:00 pm - Grand Entry 6:00 pm - Closing Song H E A D S T A F F: Host Northern Drum: Little Island Cree (Little Island Lake, Saskatchewan, Canada) Host Southern Drum: Cozad Singers (Anadarko, Oklahoma) Arena Director: Randy Medicine Bear (Sioux, Rosebud, South Dakota) Master of Ceremonies: Sammy Tonekei White (Kiowa, Scottsdale, Arizona) C O N T E S T C A T E G O R I E S: Mens' (18-49 yrs.): Northern Traditional Southern Straight Northern Fancy Southern Fancy Grass Dance Womens' (18-49 yrs.): Northern Traditional-Buckskin Southern Traditional-Buckskin North. & South. Traditional-Cloth Fancy Shawl Jingle Dress Teen Boys' (13-17 yrs.): Northern Traditional Southern Straight Fancy Dance Grass Dance Junior Boys' (7-12 yrs.): North. & South. Traditional Fancy Dance Grass Dance Teen Girls' (13-17 yrs.): Northern Traditional Southern Traditional Fancy Shawl Jingle Dress Junior Girls' (7-12 yrs.): North. & South. Traditional Fancy Shawl Jingle Dress Tiny Tots' (6 yrs. & under) Golden Age (50 yrs. & older) Drum Contest: All drums invited. Bring own PA system and chairs. ARTS & CRAFTS SPACES AVAILABLE: - Native/Indigenous American Artists Only (Proof of Enrollment Req'd.) - Fee for 12' X 12' booth space: $ 125.00 - Before March 22, 1996 $ 150.00 - After March 22, 1996 ADMISSION: - Adults: $ 4.00 - Students: $ 2.00 - 3-Day Pass: $ 8.00 HOST HOTELS: Rio Salado Suites: 602/423-7300 Travelodge Motel: 602/968-7871 FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Lee Williams: 602/965-5224 or ASU Powwow Committee P.O. Box 248 Tempe, Arizona 85280-0248 ======================================================================== From "News from Indian Country" (published twice monthly by Indian Country Communications, Inc., Rt. 2 Box 2900-A, Hayward, WI 54843) EXCELLENT powwow info source (and a fine newspaper, too) Dec 1-3 Native American Indian Festival, Melbourne, FL Info: 407-253-6149 Dec 2-3 Massachusetts Native Christmas Fest, Springfield, MA Info: 704-452-3685 Dec 2 Mason School Powwow, Tacoma, WA Info: 206-596-1139 Dec 8-9 8th U. of St. Thomas, St. Paul, MN Info: 612-962-5950 Dec 9 Lakota Powwow, Arlington Heights, IL Info: 708-882-1644 Dec 12 Lady of Guadalupe, Jemez Pueblo, NM Info: 505-834-7235 Dec 16 12th Trails Conference, Hertel, WI Info: 800-236-2195 ========================================================================== -------------------------------------------------------------------------- --//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//-- 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: Feather Eaglerock, Larry Innes, Janet Smith, Debra F. Sanders, Steve Brock, Marie Fouche, Larry Kibby, Glenn Welker, Mary Dog Soldier, Capucine Plourde, Paul Moss(via John Berry), Joseph V. Kelly, III, Dan Umstead, Planet Peace, Feather Eaglerock, John S. Brack, Lawrence Otway(open letter) --//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//-- ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 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, 30 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 = Original Sender: nap@hugse1.harvard.edu Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Please forward this information to others who might be interested. All events are free and open to the public. Free parking is available at the Everett Street Garage (corner of Massachusetts Avenue and Everett Street). For more information call the Harvard Native American Program at (617) 495-4923. TRIBAL COURTS SYMPOSIUM American Indian Tribal Courts and Self-Governance Sponsored by: The United States Department of Justice, Harvard Law School and Harvard Native American Program Ames Courtroom, Austin Hall, Massachusetts Ave. Harvard Law School, Dec. 2, 1995, 8:30 a.m. Greetings - Herbert Becker, Director Office of Tribal Justice 8:35 a.m. Invocation - Steven C. Emery Attorney General, Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe 8:45 a.m. Welcoming Address - Dean Robert Clark, Harvard Law School 9:00-9:20 Overview of Tribal Courts - Honorable Janet Reno, U.S. Attorney General (invited) 9:25-9:45 Department of Justice Initiatives - Mary Morgan, Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Office of Policy Development 9:50-10:05 Aboriginal Justice in Canada - Honorable David Arnot, Judge, Department of Justice -- Aboriginal Justice Directorate, Ottowa, Canada. 10:10-10:25 - Mid-Morning Break 10:30-11:45 - Federal-Tribal-State Court Cooperation Honorable J. Clifford Wallace, Chief Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, Honorable Mary Wynne, Chief Judge, Colville Tribal Court, and Honorable Ray Cavanagh, Associate Justice, Michigan Supreme Court 11:50-1:20 Luncheon with Symposium Presenters, Tribal Representatives & Invited Guests, Pound Hall, 1563 Massachusetts Ave., Ropes and Gray Room. Invited guests only. 1:25-2:35 The Impact of the National Farmers Union and Progeny on Tribal Court Adjudication - Ed Kneedler, Deputy Solicitor General, U.S. Department of Justice, Bob Anderson, Associate Solicitor for Indian Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior, and Jim Simon, Deputy Assistant Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice 2:40-3:20 Tribal Courts, Tribal Values and Traditional Dispute Resolution Honorable Robert Yazzie, Judge, Navajo Nation Court, Ray Halbritter, Nation Representative, Oneida Indian Nation Of New York. 3:25-3:40 - Afternoon Break 3:45-4:55 The Institutional Development of Tribal Courts and Comity & Full, Faith & Credit - Professor Robert Clinton, Iowa University & Justice, Rosebud and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, Professor Frank Pommersheim, Univ. of South, Dakota & Justice, Rosebud & Cheyenne River Sioux Tribes, and Professor Gerald Torres, University of Texas. 5:00-5:15 Closing Remarks - Vice Dean David Smith 5:30-7:00 Reception in Ropes Gray Room Sponsored by Harvard Native American Program, Native American Law Students Association, and Harvard Indigenous Peoples. The reception will include a reading by alumna and author Susan Power (Standing Rock Sioux). Mr.Power's reading is in honor of Caleb Cheeshateaumuck, the first Native American to graduate from Harvard in 1665. Music will be provided by drum group, the Young Blood Singers. Please join us for hors d'oeuuvres and cake to celebrate the Harvard Native American Program's 25th Anniversary. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: New Years Eve Powwow-Peterborough, Ontario Original Sender: smoore@flemingc.on.ca (Sandra Moore) Mailing List: NATIVE-L The Peterborough Native Friendship Centre and Niijikiwendidaa Anishnaabe-Kwewag Services Circle are Proud to Host this Alcohol and Drug Free Event "HONOURING OUR BUNDLES" SUNDAY DECEMBER 31, 1995 Male Elder: Jim Windigo Female Elder: Vera Martin Male Veteran: George Charles Female Veteran: Bev Cowie Lead Dancers: Male - Sandy Benson Female - Darla Blodgett Jr. Male - David Taylor Jr. Female - Lynn Smoke M.C.'s - Jim Johnson & Sandra Moore Host Drum: Nani-Gish-Kung Singers Invited Drums: Medicine Sky Singers, Rice Lake Singers LOCATION: PETERBOROUGH ARMOURIES Peterborough, Ontario CANADA SCHEDULE 1:00 PM Grand Entry 5:00 - 7:30 PM Traditional Feast 7:45 2'nd Grand Entry 11:50 Countdown to "96" Honourariums based on availability of Funds EVERYONE WELCOME Due to Limitation of space ONLY Pre-Registered Vendors will be permitted at this event ------------------------------------------------------ For more information please call: Charlene or Terry (705)876-8195 Wilma or Annette (705)741-0900 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Original Sender: rholmes105@aol.com Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) To those of you in or near the Boston area: A DINE' INTERTRIBAL Powwow and trade show will be held Dec. 2/3 at the Bayside Expo Center, So. Boston, MA. Show hours are 10:00a-5:00p both days and admission is $6.00 Grand entry is usually around noon - indian time of course invited drums - 'GOOD THUNDER' 'SPLIT FEATHER' appox. 200 dancers are expected to attend various artisans will be selling their crafts Hope to see a good turnout! FROM THE WOODS OF WILTON, NH -- Richard --------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: Peltier benefit concert (San Rafael, Calif., 28 December) Original Sender: aimca@igc.apc.org (American Indian Movement) Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Benefit Concert Caribbean AllStars will perform a Benefit Concert for the Leonard Peltier Defense Committee on December 28th, 1995 at New Georges 824 4th street in San Rafael, California. The Performance starts at 9:00 P. M. Help Free Native American Activist Leonard Peltier. Also Bobby Castillo, International Spokesperson for the Leonard Peltier Defense Committee will up date the audience on what is happening with the Leonard Peltier case For More information contact 415 552-1992 LPSG --------- "RE: Lost Bird Web Site" --------- Date: Sun, 26 Nov 1995 16:35:36 -0700 From: fouche@rmii.com (Marie Fouche) Subj: Lost Bird Web Site Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Hi Everybody, I hope you're all enjoying your weekend. It's snowing like crazy here in Colorado, and I'm loving every minute of it. I just wanted to let all of you know that I finally got the Lost Bird WEB page going thanks to Eric Forhan. Eric figured out what I couldn't, and I guess he's the one who actually got it onto the server. I just did the typing. Thanks Eric! This page is all about Lost Bird of Wounded Knee and the contentious topic of the adoption of American Indian Children by other cultures. Just in case you didn't know, Lost Bird, or Zintkala Nuni, was a baby girl found underneath her dead mother four days after the Wounded Knee Massacre. There had been a horrible blizzard and that is why it was four days before she was found. She was placed into the arms of a Grandmother since all of her family had been murdered. It is believed that she was the daughter of Sitting Bull. In what could only be described as an act of espionage, she was taken from the Grandmother by General Leonard Colby of the Nebraska National Guard. The only reason why he was interested in her was because he wanted to have a live curio of the massacre. This girl lived a very tragic life... she was later raped by her adopted cousin and by General Colby. She was never accepted by the "white" world, and when she went home to Pine Ridge, she was not accepted there either because of her brashness and rude behavior. She was forever lost, looking for the connection to something that she could not name or understand. She died at the young age of 29 on Valentines Day. After year's of searching Marie Not Help Him and Renee Sansom-Flood located her remains and returned her to Wounded Knee where she is now buried next to the Wounded Knee Memorial. This page includes stories about Zintka, Lost Bird, which I will be expanding upon here soon. These excerpts come from Renee's book about Zintka. I've also included information about her son whom we are currently looking for, her lost cap which is about to be returned to the Lakota people, and the story of Wounded Knee told by a woman who survived named Alice Ghost Horse. I will also probably expand on the Wounded Knee information in the future. I've also included information about four court cases which are challenging the Indian Child Welfare Act. Three of these cases are headed to the Supreme Court. I'm hoping to have the Indian Child Welfare Act typed up and on the page by the end of December I've also included information regarding Canadian Indian efforts to protect their children. Soon I will have pictures of Zintka on the page for all of you to see. The web site is http://rainbow/rmii.com/~fouche or http://www.rmii.com/~fouche. Please pass this information on to circles, listservs, or friends who may be interested in this. Thank you for your time, and I hope that this note finds you well. In Lak'ech Yelir, Marie Fouche --------- "RE: A Thanksgiving Story" --------- Date: Sun, 26 Nov 1995 12:10:08 -0600 From: zzshem@acc.wuacc.edu (sheldon mary) Subj: A Thanksgiving Story Mailing List: NATCHAT (natchat@gnosys.svle.ma.us) [Editorial Note: Mary has asked that her original posting be altered slightly. I do not normally edit articles, but have done so per Mary's request.](Gary, Thank you for requesting to reprint my article to NatChat. You may reprint it. If possible, could you make the following changes) Here's a true story. I write it in fear. But when I was under death threat in Guatemala, I discovered the greatest fear of all came from facing the possibility of death WITHOUT ANYONE KNOWING THE TRUTH of what was happening to those I loved and me in Mayan Guatemala. And the truth of what is happening in Native America now . . . . PREFACE: FEAR My husband Philip is serving two more years on his nine year sentence for second-degree burglary (no people involved). They let him out on parole when he was homeless and had only $50; but just before Thanksgiving denied him out-of-state parole when he had a wife (a professor, drug and alcohol free), an AA sponsor, and a counselor who would see him through a vocational education program. One white minister now in another state (who worked in an old trailer) I talked to last summer said he only saw one Native American paroled from that prison who HAD A CHANCE to stay out . . . and did. (A lawyer just charged us $1,200 for appearing for ten minutes at Philip's parole hearing with all the letters Philip and I had gathered. But, friends, that's not theft.) You have to understand how white America makes money off of a large number of Native Americans in prison, not just from them but from their children in foster care and boarding schools. (The latest Washington D.C. cuts fit right in here.) My husband's childhood friend, Mike Gilbert (also age 44), just froze to death on the street in downtown Sioux Falls--an All-American City with a great mall that even boasts a Disney store. While the white independent minister who married Philip and I (when no one else would) just held a Thanksgiving Memorial Service for Mike and the 34 homeless and needy people (including children) who died in Sioux Falls this year--including many Native American people. Philip's son ran away from a Native American Catholic boarding school twice this year. This gives Philip nightmare memories of when he ran away, was caught, was beaten with a leather belt, had his hair shaved off, ran away; hid, hid, drank, was shot in the back by a policeman in Winner at seventeen and prayed to die in the hospital; and was Unemployed, Homeless, Hounded, and Sometimes Drunk; and could not stop shaking in prison (not just from alcoholism) and wrote friends two years ago he just wanted to die, and cut and dyed and waved his long hair, and was "used" by others so bad, and wrote to me and couldn't just remember, for sure, if he was Lakota and was afraid to speak a word of Lakota though, damn it, he's full-blood. And I tried to get him to remember, "What was the happiest time you remember in the last ten years,"and he looked shocked, and then frightened, "None . . . but I saw an eagle and a deer once in another prison." (And one Native American Successful Man said to me, "They just don't want to do anything to help themselves." And one White Man said, "They're just worth shit.") STORY: FEAR AND AWE In June 1987 the Quiche Mayan child (12-25-75) I loved as my heart's son was sent away from an orphanage in Guatemala with 30 cents and no medication for his epileptic condition by American mission sisters and priests. They informed me of this when I arrived the next day. (They were jealous a Catholic church in my home town was giving money directly to a Guatemalan priest in another city, they explained.) He was among the thousands of Mayan disappeared in Guatemala. Last Christmas, the American bishop from a plains state who has responsibility over this mission wrote me, You have no proof this ever happened. (!) A retired white farm couple and myself (also white) were place under death threat and fled from that province after three days of church terror. Thanksgiving 1987 my mother died and the same day I discovered I was pregnant. (A miracle, I thought, because I had never been on birth control in my life and had never gotten pregnant. It took my three months to figure out I was pregnant! My doctor had a fit!) My daughter was born six weeks early due to stress from more death threats on April 16, 1988. In 1993 my blonde, blue-eyed daughter just started kindergarten. At age five, she sat down at the kitchen table and drew a picture for her teacher. It was, my God, the inside of the orphanage where Miguel stayed in Guatemala! (Later I got it back from the teacher.) Many strange things had happened over the years. Easter 1993, Emily turned to me in the car and said, "Something happened to you, mom." I looked in the mirror, "I didn't have a chance to fix my hair!" "No, she replied. "You died in Guatemala, didn't you. And now you're back!" "What!" I was shocked! "I'll tell you when you're older what happened. Actually, I died in a way. Don't worry." Easter 1994, standing near me for birthday songs at our Lady of Guadalupe Church, Emily had leaned over and whispered, "This is great, mom! But I wish my birthday had been December 25th!" Miguel's birthday! But I had barely mentioned Miguel OR Guatemala to her. May 1993 at a hotel near Pipestone, Emily wanted me to turn off the TV. She hated violence, but I wanted to see that KUNG FU II rerun so I refused. She fainted! When she came to she cried out, "They're trying to kill my mother!" The woman on the show had looked like me. I said, "That was just a TV show!" She said, "No, you don't SEE! They were trying to kill my mother!" So after she drew the orphanage picture, I went to her bedroom and got up my courage and sat on the bed and said, "I'm glad you're back." And she said, "I've been telling you I'm back for a long time! [angry] You don't listen to me." I replied, "But how was I supposed to know? I don't believe in these things!" Walking to the car a bit later, I called softly so she couldn't hear, "Miguel." She stopped cold, did not turn around, and sang, to the tune of "Take Me Out to the Ballpark," "I don't care if I ever go home." And walked on to the car. So many things have happened. In a new form, the spirit of Miguel is back. One day we were taking a long walk. She said, "Let's play walking to Mexico." "Walking to Mexico?" I laughed. "Yes, everyone plays that!" she answered. "Oh no!" I thought. She talked about how it was going to be a long hard trip across the desert, but eventually we'd get to "the Indian world" and help. Because she had a key for the right door ("You don't have a key, do you, mom!" she kidded) and could get to "the right level" and get help. "You seem to know more about the Indian world then me," I said in disbelief. "I do, and I'm still growing," she admitted proudly. Months later we were having a pillow fight on the bed and trading insults. I said randomly "When we visit the desert and the car breaks down (we were going to the southwest) you'll have to walk for water!" She sat down and cried in anger, "What Do YOU KNOW about walking in the desert. If you had to walk in the desert you wouldn't think it was funny!" And she wept and wept. Once I bought an expensive candle with treasures in it. I said we'd burn it when she was about twelve. She laughed good naturedly, "Do you think I'll live that long this time?" In first grade, I taught her the "Hail Mary" for school one night. The next night she said she'd give me phrases from it, and I could explain them. We got to the end: Emi: Pray for us sinners. Mary: Pray for us because we made mistakes. Emi: Now Mary: Now Emi: And at the hour of our death, amen. Mary: Just before we die because we want to go home to the holy people. Emi: [roars with laughter] Mary: What's so funny. [laughing too now] Emi: You don't need any prayers when you die. You go straight to the sun! [points straight up] It's not like we need to take anything you know! Mary: [laughing] I guess we don't need prayers then. Emi: No. There aren't going to be any problems on the journey. You don't need a suitcase you know! There WON'T be any problems will there? Mary: Not for you! More than a year later, I read her an article my dad wrote for DAV magazine. He was wounded in battle in World War II and went into a light and begged to return to earth and woke up screaming on the battlefield. Emily laughed uproariously! Shocked, I said, "What's so funny?" "Did he come back in THE SAME BODY?" "Yes," now laughing too. "In the same clothes?" "Yes!" "Well he must have come back AWFULLY FAST then because that's not how it works!" A few other moments: Emi: Where do we live, mom? Mary: [so smart!] Earth! Emi: No. The emerging layer! [Since three when she saw ONE episode of Daniel Boone, she has insisted she was child Mingo. Mingo was the name of a boy Miguel knew too.] Emi: I have just one question for you, Rebecca. Mary: What? Emi: Why did you steal the land? Emi: I have just one question for you, Rebecca. Mary: It's hard to explain why I stole the land. Emi: No! This time, How come you almost married the wrong man? [Daniel instead of Mingo] [At the old Potawatomie Mission School at the Kansas Historical Society] Emi: I [child Mingo] live here, but maybe you will take me home. Mary: Well, I will if you want. Emi: [takes my hand gently] Once I lived here and a beautiful woman came away and wanted to take me home. Mary: [tears] Emi: [Looking over environmental cards from a fast food place] Mom, what does extinct mean? Mary: What does it mean? Emi: A Christian. I omit pages here. Just a month ago she came home with a picture of herself in the future she had to draw in school. She had drawn an Indian man (yes! with headband) in the woods with an eagle above her. "My teacher asked me why I drew an Indian!" Surprised, too, I exclaimed, "Why did you draw an Indian!" She cried out, "I drew MYSELF as a RANGER in the future! That's ME! I wish I was NEVER BORN!" And she cried with the same deep sadness as when a white woman guide asked her in a museum, "How do you know so much about these items? Do you have Indian blood?" I felt useless. Because how was I ever going to explain to her that none of us could ever see her truth because we were just too old and too hurt and too brainwashed to get it right. And I cried too. All this is to say, my daughter and my life on it, The Mystery lives. Vaster than any of us! And those of us who believe in it, through whatever suffering and miracles in our lives, need to join together and honor it with even our lives, reaching out with courage, reaching out to at least one of the homeless and the imprisoned (so many get no letters years in a cell or the hole three months with nothing there and can be victims of anything when no one cares), the children, the poor who need employment and housing and food. "Winds of life are blowing Across this great nation And I can hear the voice Of a rainbow generation Oh Great Spirit won't you hear their prayers Oh Grandmother Earth we know you care" --Buddy Red Bow, Tatanka Records Mitakuye Oyasin, Mary Dog Soldier --------- "RE: Pugeesukq Thanksgiving" --------- Date: Tue, 21 Nov 1995 13:02:51 -0500 From: inobu@aol.com Subj: Pugeesukq Thanksgiving Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) AN OPEN LETTER TO SENATOR DODD AND THE PEOPLE OF CONNECTICUT Saygo and Happy Thanksgiving: I know that you will be sitting down to a feast this week, to give thanks for your ancestors deliverance from starvation in a new land. On the Paugeesukq reserve tribal members will likewise give thanks and many who live off the reservation will come together on the reservation, bringing food to give thanks. It was very hard for the ancestors of the first New Englanders and it is unlikely that they would have survived if not for the help an Algonquin Indian, Squanto, gave to them. Today, it is hard for the Paugeesukqs. Though they are a tenacious people and would not say that survival is threatened, without the help of the descendants of the first New Englanders, this nation of first people, of Algonquins like Squanto, will have a very hard time. Squanto was greatly wronged by English people. He was kidnapped from his land to be sold into slavery. He was taken to Europe for this purpose, but was delivered out of slavery by Christian friars. After many years he returned to the land of his people to find that they were all dead. When living among a neighboring tribe, he discovered a group of English pilgrims, barely alive, at the site of his people's village. He took pity on them and showed them how to find and grow the foods of his land. The first Thanksgiving on these shores was a three day feast of celebration to honor that harvest which would not have happened, but for the decency of that Algonquin, Squanto. Some time after that, Paugeesukqs had their first encounter with New Englanders. Under the leadership of a man named Mason, Paugeesukq villages were burned and the men, women and even the children were killed. The Paugeesukqs were killed, not because they had made war on the new people, they did not. They were killed because they were Algonquin Indians. This was America's ethnic cleansing. Mason's followers did not give much thought to the kindness of Indians like Squanto who had welcomed them into the new land. Though most of the Paugeesukqs were slaughtered or sold into slavery in the sugar plantations of the West Indies, some remained. In spite of constant theft of the little land they still had, they remained and like Squanto were good neighbors in spite of the wrongs done to them. Contemporary records show that Paugeesukqs, like William Sherman, in the 1830's, were good neighbors to the non-Indian community which still was in the process of taking Paugeesukq land. Over the centuries New Englanders have celebrated Thanksgiving by remembering the pilgrims' deliverance. The part of Squanto in that remembrance is not a major aspect of the celebration. Could it be that New Englanders seldom remember the good works of Indians? For example, Senator Dodd and Connecticut neighbors of the Paugeesukq oppose Federal recognition of the Paugeesukqs. They do not acknowledge that when a Paugeesukq chief, acting alone and without the necessary direction of the Tribal Council, attempted to tie up their homes in litigation for ancient land claims, it was the Paugeesukq Tribal Council that went to court and had these land claims withdrawn. The Chief was removed from office. There were no letters of thanks from the homeowners whose land was defended by Paugeesukq Indians. Rather, a committee was formed, the Connecticut Homeowners Held Hostage, whose purpose was to complete the ethnic cleansing begun so long age. The purpose was to erase the Paugeesukq nation from existence with letters instead of a sword. This Thanksgiving, is it too much to ask that you honor Squanto's memory. Senator Dodd, please end your endorsement of ethnic cleansing, and sisters and brothers in New England, please write to Senator Dodd and ask that he become a friend to the Indians of Connecticut. Truly in Thanks and Fellowship Lawrence Otway Tribal Court Judge Golden Hill Paugeesukq Tribal Nation --------- "RE: Pride/Heritage" --------- Date: Wed, 22 Nov 1995 09:38:56 -0700 From: kellyj@plk.af.mil (Joseph V. Kelly) Subj: Pride / Heritage et al Mailing List: NATCHAT (natchat@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Greetings to all, I've given the subject of pride alot of thought. I'm proud of my ancestry, I am Irish, Mohawk, Seneca, and Finnish about equal parts, and it is my goal to learn as much as I possibly can about each. My pride, however, is not boastful. I wish there was a better word than "pride" to describe this. Perhaps contentedness (but that wouldn't look good on a bumper sticker, a big red fist and the words "Red Contentedness"...) There are certain pre-conditions to understanding "pride in indian heritage". First, most indian people in the eastern half (and California) suffered under a 500+ year long campaign of cultural destruction and assimilation. This campaign left many peoples without their traditions and without their own languages. The sudden switch from living as sovereign nations, supported by the earth, to being minimalized as less than citizens, living in extreme poverty, and dependent solely on the US government, left most people broken -- it has become so bad that many indian people have taken that oppression, and have directed it inward to themselves. Hence there is alot of alcoholism, substance abuse, suicide, and cases of familial abuse on the reservations. Second, many of these assimilated people, to break away from the poverty and the ills of alcoholism, to provide a stable future for their children, had to, in effect, denounce their indigenous ancestry -- this was a survival method. But discarding your identity in favor of an identity based on a Victorian world-view is sometimes as equally damaging. Try to imagine being anyone else but who you are -- how would you define your values, how would you just get through the day? This is what happened in my family. These people never had the option of successfully bringing the two worlds together. Third, there were movements in the 60s and 70s which were sparked by thinkers such as Vine Deloria, Jr. These movements embraced cultural identity -- many indian people came to terms with the oppression in their cultural history. This was a period of great awareness as many people suddenly realized that all this poverty, unhappiness, and death they grew up with was not how life had to be. So you see that indian pride is indeed based on overcoming many great obstacles. In the present day, there are healing movements among indians -- people from many different tribes are recognizing the need to heal and recover. The phrase "95% Sobriety by the year 2000" is very common among many of these, and I believe it is a very feasible goal for our peoples and communities. There is a growing connection between indigenous people on this continent and the whole world. I even know of many Dineh people who are part of this emerging indigenous world-view. So you see, the reason I am contented with my indian ancestry, is because it has survived for so long -- I feel honored to be related to such strong people. I have heard of people who were 1/65536 Cherokee who learn the language and who identify with that culture, because it offers them community and a path to follow. There is no such identity in the mainstream white world outside of the church. I am proud to be related to all of humanity and all the other creatures because I am born of the Earth. May everyone have a good Thanksgiving, and thank you for listening, and to Mr. Attakai, I hope all that cold and ice back east doesn't get you down, --Joseph V. Kelly, III kellyj@ug1.plk.af.mil (KAFB, Albuquerque) --------- "RE: Residential Schools" --------- Date: Wed, 29 Nov 1995 03:26:58 -0500 From: eaglerok@northernnet.com (feather eaglerock) Subj: residential schools Mailing List: NATCHAT (natchat@gnosys.svle.ma.us) O siyo! Some of the residential schools are still in operation. A couple that i know of personally are the Chemawa School near Salem, Oregon, Wahpeton and Flandreau which are over the boarder here from Minnesota in the Dakotas. Children are still being removed from their families and sent by court order to these boarding schools. Flandreau was recently investigated for abuse of students and has had several staff turnovers. Removal from the homes is based many times on judgement passed by caseworkers and juvenile justice system with western values and standards of what constitutes "appropriate" living styles and family structure. A good resource is book by Polingaysi Qoyawayma (Elizabeth Q. White) titled _No Turning Back, a Hopi Indian woman's struggle to live in two worlds. Polingaysi was the last child in her village to be sent away to school. She was hidden from the Indian agent by the elders, but finally asked to be sent away as there were no other children left in the village. Also an episode of PBS American Experience titled _In the White Man's Image_. The greatest struggle that our families have is to overcome the damage that was done by the federal policies of education for indians. The children were removed to keep them away from the influence the traditional care givers, the elders, to force them to acculturate. That is when our family circles, the backbone of our nations, were broken. We have generations of indian people who were raised in these institutional environments who did not learn parenting skills. This lack of parenting skills was then used against them when they become parents to remove the children of another generation and so it goes... and goes... Remember also that these children were forbidden to speak their languages, and severely punished in many cases when they did. As a survival skill they stopped communicating in a natural way and spoke only when they were called upon to speak -- in a foreign language that had no soul for them. During this time of forced acculturation, alcohol became a source of temporary relief from the emotional pain of the separation for the many adults who had their children taken from them. Now we must deal with the devastating effects of multigenerational alcoholism, and with fetal alcoholism. So today we have families who still function in 'survival' mode. As we travel through indian country we see families and communities healing by returning to traditional ways and by reclaiming their languages. Recently at a community meeting here on the rez dealing with juvenile crime, gang activity, family violence, etc. We heard a very wise non-Indian juvenile probation officer say that perhaps is time for the social workers and helpers to cheer the families on from the sidelines and to stop being the quarterbacks calling all the plays. It is good to see students out there seeking to learn about the true history of Indian people. Remember that this true history is the reality of our existence today. It breaks my heart when I hear a school teacher tell one of our young people that the only way they can 'make it' in the world is to leave the reservation. Thank you for listening to this gramma. Feather Eaglerock Leech Lake Rez (a sovereign nation surrounded by the state of Minnesota) English is a foreign language! Reclaim your heritage Reclaim your language --------- "RE: Oneida Textiles Samples" --------- Date: Mon, 27 Nov 1995 13:15:21 -0500 From: umstead@oneida-nation.org (Dan Umstead) Subj: Oneida Textiles Samples Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) News Release - November 20, 1995 The Oneida Textile Printing - an Enterprise of the Oneida Indian Nation - is pleased to announce that it has just published its first sample catalog of original "T" shirt designs on the Oneida Indian Nation Home Page (http://nysernet.org/oneida/) At this time the sample catalog can be accessed from a link on the Nation's Press release page or directly at http://oneida-nation.org/oneida1/textiles/otp-index.html We hope you have a chance to view the designs. Thank you. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Daniel Umstead + The Oneida Indian Nation Internet Coordinator + Oneida Indian Nation + "The first Indian Nation on 315-361-6300 + 315-361-6333 (fax) + the World Wide Web" umstead@oneida-nation.org + + URL - http://nysernet.org/oneida/ +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ --------- "RE: Harris Government Cuts Programs" --------- Date: 29 Nov 1995 16:05:57 +0100 From: br975@freenet.carleton.ca (John S. Brack) Subj: Harris Government Cuts Aboriginal Programs in Ontario Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) HARRIS CUTS TO ODAWA'S LI'L BEAVERS PROGRAM Vision Statement: To improve the quality of life for aboriginal people in an urban environment by supporting self-determined activities which encourage equal access to and participation in Canadian society and which respects aboriginal cultural distinctiveness. THE ONTARIO PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT WILL BE TERMINATING 3 ODAWA NATIVE FRIENDSHIP CENTRE PROGRAMS: + Li'l Beavers Program + Community Development Program + Youth Support Program These cuts will take effect on December 31, 1995. These programs have been the core of our Centres programming for years and these cuts serve as a direct attack on our Aboriginal community! Please feel free to spread the word! -------------------------------------------------------------- P E T I T I O N The Odawa Native Friendship Centre is opposed to further cuts to urban Aboriginal programming by the Ontario Government. NAME ADDRESS 01. --------------------------------------------------------------- 02. --------------------------------------------------------------- - - - 25. --------------------------------------------------------------- If you wish, you may print this petition out, have it filled in, and mail it to: Odawa Native Friendship Centre 396 MacLaren Street Ottawa, Ontario Canada K2P 0M8 Tel.:1-(613)-238-8591 Hours of operation are from 9:00 am to 5:00 E.S.T., Monday to Friday. Your support will be greatly appreciated, Thank you/Meegwetch! --------- "RE: John Trudell Tour in December" --------- Date: Tue, 21 Nov 1995 14:05:52 -0800 From: amt@teleport.com (Planet Peace) Subj: John Trudell Bad Dog Band Tour in December Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) (A copy of this message has also been posted to the following newsgroups: alt.org.earth-first, alt.save.the.earth,alt.activism) John Trudell will be touring the Westcoast in December with his Bad Dog Band. BAD DOG TOUR Santa Cruz, CA Thursday, Dec. 7 Palookaville, Benefit Center Non-Violence San Francisco, CA Friday, Dec. 8 SFSU, Benefit for Lincoln Defense Fund Mendocino, CA Saturday, Dec. 9 Crown Hall, Benefit for Lincoln Family Mendocino, CA Sunday, Dec. 10 Crown Hall, Benefit for Lincoln Family Arcata, CA Monday, Dec. 11 TBA Ashland, OR Wednesday, Dec. 13 Kate Buchannon Hall, SOSC Eugene, OR Thursday, Dec. 14 TBA Portland, OR Friday, Dec. 15 Roseland Theatre, Benefit Project Peace Seattle, WA Saturday, Dec. 16 Kane Hall #130, U of W, Benefit for KCMU For more info, background, and to check out his home page or other resources relating to indigenous and environmental issues, go to http://www.teleport.com/~amt/planetpeace/ -- \Planet Peace http://www.teleport.com/~amt/planetpeace/ /-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\ Nothing Real Can be Threatened. Nothing Unreal Exists. \-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/-\-/ ˙˙˙