Subject: Wotanging Ikche--nanews03.049 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 049 O o o o o O __/_ / ) (___/ / ( (___, 9 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, NATCHAT & NATIVE-L listservers; Newsgroups: alt.native,soc.culture.native; Lakota Project; 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 "Fair is the white star of twilight, and the sky clearer, at the days end; but she is fairer, and she is dearer, she, my heart's friend. Fair is the white star of twilight, and the moon roving, to the skies end; but she is fairer, better worth loving, she, my heart's friend" __ Song of Love, Shoshone +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ | 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! Let us remember this is a time of forgiveness. Let us pray all forgive. This is a time of giving. Let us pray there are giving hearts. This is a time of healing. Let us pray the healing will include our Earth Mother. This is a time of love. To all, I send love. 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 - Message from a Mixed-blood - Trudell Benefit for Bear Lincoln - Life - What Price is Dignity? - Sunbow Reconciliation Report - Focus on Self-reliance - Help on Huckleberry Needed - Peltier's Activities - Bear Lincoln Murder Indictment Quashed - Talking Points on Indian Gaming - House Construction Alert - North American Native Nations to U. N. - Swimmer Resigns - Poem: An Indian Prayer Christmas Day - Verse: Hawai'ian Book of Days - Conferences and Powwows - offline --------- "RE: Message from a Mixed-blood" --------- Date: 01 Dec 95 11:52:04 EST From: Robyn Kalama <76102.3405@compuserve.com> Subj: Message from a Mixed-blood UUCP email Aloha Gary, I would love to write for the newsletter and perhaps it would be healing for me. Here's what I struggle with. I lived in Hawai'i for the past ten years and did much research and writing on Hawaiian history and culture. I was married to a Hawaiian man and the Hawaiian people "hanai" me which means adopt and much more. Even with the divorce, they said "we are keeping you". And they have. When I moved over a few months back it was to get the Hawaiian word out and get into a place and a market where my work can be taken seriously and has a chance to be heard more. While here, I have people there praying for me on my journey. Before I started my research in Hawai'i I didn't know any of my family. Ironically, two years ago my Mother (who is still very dysfunctional) gave me the name of a far distant cousin who had all the records. (Coincidence, I believe the ancestors are with me...) Since then I've learned much and the only line that I can't find is my grandfather. All it says is that he was buried in full chiefly regalia. Since then I have a picture of him and know that he was native. When I was in Hawai'i a kahuna...their version of a shaman or medicine man...told me that we choose what "koko"/blood that we follow. It is the native blood that boils in my veins. I'm an Outward Bound alum and found that part of me in the mountains. There is plenty of injustice in our world and it is the native injustice that makes my heart bleed. For me, I understand and stay on my path. For native people that have so many "haole"/white people manipulating and twisting their truth and way of life, I don't want to be one more. So I try to walk very quietly, not wanting to be where I don't belong or those around don't want me. Even in Hawai'i where I was taken in taught and loved so dearly, the people are divided. Divided by the words of another people trying to dissect who they are, trying to take the pieces of their culture/history/being that they can wrap in their own culture and use. Some of that is good. There are many things we can all learn from each other. I am constantly struck though, with the need for a foundation or values and beliefs. In my thought, that is one of the biggest reasons we have so many problems around the world...there is no foundation of values. For instance, now maybe you'll laugh at this, however, look at food. We try all these diets and foods of different countries...seemingly very good. ..but look at our health and well being...even those who are "eating well" are dying. There is a nutritionist that says our body has genetics to generations before which includes food. For instance, Hawaiians have a terrible obesity problem along with diabetes, heart disease etc.--they are number one on the list for so many of the most negative things. Over the last bunch of years, a diet has been circulating in which they go back to eating Hawaiian foods of fish and poi and a few other very Hawaiian foods. The results have been startling. Blood pressures go down, weight flies off, and health is returning to those people who get clear on that. So, though we have a world that is more and more mixed blood, couldn't it be possible that for each of us, there is one blood that calls to us. When we are raised in homes that don't really raise us, what is it that we take to live by. I have brothers and sisters who have chosen alcohol and living a life with a black cloud. I chose to walk a spiritual path and find those ancestors that can be with me to make me strong. It is a native path. I believe that in this quest my tribe will find me. And I know that just as there is division in Hawai'i, there will be division in my tribe, just as there is division around the world. All that to say, that I want to speak out. I want to have love and respect from a family of my own...my own family is not capable of doing that because they are lost in their own lack. One of the roads for forgiveness, especially when you come out of such dysfunction and chaos is to find the ancestors before and know that there is a genetic force whether it be spiritual or physical that is a gift to us. Hopefully, people will learn to open their hearts and learn the way of adoption that native people have had and have. It is hard to take rejection when you have grown up with it. Relearning trust is hard too. So, I want to have a voice to my native brothers and sisters but have been afraid to speak out because many times I become the ball that's thrown in the game of hating one another instead of getting to be a piece of the medicine that will heal. Gary, maybe that's where our place is, those of us who are not with our family...to speak out and remind people of the mending hoop. Are we not one of the lost tribes too? You may print this letter. I had no idea all THAT was going to come out, it must be what is supposed to be said. It is a different voice and one that needs to be heard too. Mahalo nui loa, malama pono, a hui hou, Me ke aloha, Robyn --------- "RE: Life" --------- Date: 95/12/05 03:35 From: Art Horovitch(a.horovitch@genie.geis.com) Subj: Life LIFE By Mike Rossignol of the Innu Nation Written 22/02/94 Submitted to Wotanging Ikche with the author's permission for reprint by Art Horovitch LIFE When I wake up in the morning, I see the beauty that Our Great Creator provides for us. As I walk on the surface of Our Mother Earth, I get lost in the vastness of blue of Our Father Sky and as I feel Grandfather Sun embracing my face with his warmth, that is when I can feel our Great Creator looking upon me, and as he looks upon me I can feel the sadness in his heart. He is all forgiving, since we are sill alive today. To many of the Great Creator's Children have forgotten how to live in peace and harmony with their surroundings, they destroy without realizing it, sometimes they realize what they do but believe it is acceptable since most of their Brothers and Sisters are doing just the same. Some believe it is the only way to be able to sustain themselves or else they are not somebody, they believe life is to take advantage of because they only live once, how would they know? We choose to live in a system of destruction. Everything we use in this present lifetime, was part of some destruction of some sort of either Our Mother Earth, Our Father Sky, to the Spirit of the Water only to name few; but even though we continue our rampage, we are still alive. Practically every Forests are gone, of curse some Tree People remain from these Forests but a handful of them does not make them a Forest. Too many rivers are potent of our destructive waste, some of these rivers are not fit for any living thing but still some of our children swim and drink the poison we created. After all this time we still haven't learned much. We still think: "Everything will be okay, it will turn out for the best". The Great Creator knows, he watches us kill and torment ourselves and the worst thing is that we blame him for everything and n addition we ask him for material things, we never thank him from our heart for what he gave to us, no, what we do is ask and ask for everything, we are never happy, only a few of us are following the right Path, the Path of respect, the Path of illumination, of eternal joy, the Path of Our Great Creator and believe me that those few will receive the true blessing of the Great Creator himself. --------- "RE: Sunbow Reconciliation Report" --------- Date: 30 Nov 1995 12:07:20 -0500 From: sunbow5@aol.com (Sunbow5) Subj: Sunbow 5 Update Newsgroup: soc.culture.native SUNBOW RECONCILIATION REPORT - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 1995 The Sunbow 5 Walk for the Earth is whole again after a three-day healing and reconciliation circle held in the desert at Rio Rancho, just to the West of Albuquerque, NM. As Emily Lee Phillips has reported in the Sunbow 5 Circle electronic mailing list, an array of actual Sunbows (Sundogs or Whirling Rainbows) marked the sky on Friday afternoon, November 24, as the circle got underway on a scrubby desert knoll. That afternoon was given over primarily to prayer and a pipe ceremony, led by Grandfather William Commanda, keeper of the Seven Fires Wampum Belt for the Algonquin Nation. On Saturday Grandfather Commanda met with Lakota teacher Leonard Crow Dog in the early morning, and they exchanged tobacco. Leonard told Grandfather that the many Native people gathering with him that day for Inipi (Sweat Lodge ceremonies) would pray for the walk. Jose Lucero of the Santa Clara Pueblo presided over the second day of the circle, which went on for many hours, giving each of the over 50 people in attendance an opportunity to speak. The circle ended well after sunset. On Sunday, just as the third and final circle was about to begin, a vast low-pressure weather system to the North spawned winds of up to 55 miles an hour. The wind roared across the desert and drove biting blasts of sand into great dark red clouds. As the dust storm raged through the afternoon, Grandfather Commanda and the walkers huddled behind a small bush and completed the three-day healing circle. The roar of the wind and the stinging sand made it hard for everyone to hear what was said, but the feeling of the messages was unmistakable: walk and pray together. "You must walk together," Grandfather told the circle, "and you must forgive and love each other. It is the only way that this walk can work. You must make a sacrifice. Even if someone has done something wrong, love them. You cannot cast them out of the circle. That is not the way." A pipe ceremony followed the discussion. Cree elder Ned Pashene later said that during the pipe ceremony he felt the Earth move, just as many years ago his teachers had told him would happen during important ceremonies that were done in a proper manner. After the ceremony the walkers stood in the wind to embrace each other and to make plans to travel on together -- as one group -- to the West, where the walk will end in Santa Barbara, CA about February 2, 1996. Tom Dostou has returned to New Hampshire for a visit with his family. He plans to place his feet back on the road as one of the Sunbow 5 Walkers in a few weeks. Cherokee walkers James and Norma Duncan, and their five young daughters, have rejoined the walk, and will go all the way to the West. Alycia Longriver, Sherry Noser, Valaine Lighty, and Clayton Peters -- the Rainbow Walkers who departed from the Sunbow 5 Walk in Arkansas in early October -- also attended the healing circle. They told the circle that experiences and insights they had been gifted with at Chaco Canyon had shown them that their walk is now complete. Sunday night just before a pot luck summer hosted by the Bah'ai Center of Albuquerque, Grandfather Commanda collapsed. He was weak and his face was drained of color. The emotional ups and downs of the previous days had been a lot for every participant, including him. "I took it all onto myself," he later said, "and it made me feel sad." Grandfather, now 83 years old, soon recovered. He departed from Albuquerque for his home on the Maniwaki Reserve in Quebec, Canada on Wednesday, Nov. 29 feeling strong and happy. "I feel a whole lot better than I did last week," he said. "I feel good now. They are going to make it. I know in my heart they are going to complete the walk." As of Wednesday the walkers were encamped in the village of Puyate in the Laguna Pueblo -- adjacent to the world's largest open-pit uranium mine, which is now closed. This pit is an environmental travesty worthy of its own book, and has caused untold suffering for the people of the Pueblo. The walkers were being hosted and graciously attended by Grandmothers Dorothy Perly and Virginia Romero. The walk itself was already well beyond Laguna on this day, and approaching Grants, NM. The camp will move today, or Friday, to Church Rock, a Dene (Navajo) reservation, and then soon, perhaps next week, to Big Mountain. Today (Thursday 11/30) Native spiritual elders on the walk will meet with a circle of Traditional Hopi Elders. The weather has been typically sunny and warm (60 degrees) during the day, and cold (30 degrees or colder) at night. The walkers are low on food, wood, and money, but not on faith. They are one Circle again, and walking steadily to the West, praying each step of the way. - Steven McFadden +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The Sunbow 5 Walk for the Earth began June 23, 1995 on First Encounter Beach, Cape Cod, MA, and will conclude in early February, 1996 near Santa Barbara, CA. For information on the walk, send a brief request to info@sunbow5walk.org For background materials, photos, an archive of the Journal, and more, visit the World Wide Web site: http://www.sunbow5walk.org/sunbow5 Donations to support the Walk are needed, and may be sent to the Sunbow 5 Foundation, P.O. Box 954, South Orleans, MA 02662. All donations are tax-deductible. --------- "RE: Help on Huckleberry Needed" --------- Date: Thu, 30 Nov 1995 09:54:27 -0500 From: Johnny.Montour@igloo.magicnet.com Subj: Cheslatta Carrier Nation UUCP email Cheslatta Carrier Nation Your help on Huckleberry is needed Cheslatta Carrier Nation in northern B.C. faces a new threat to its Traditional Territory. Huckleberry Mines Ltd. with the support of Mitsubishi #1 on the 1995 Fortune 500 list with revenues of U.S. $176 billions, plans to build a large open copper mind on Cheslatta nation Land. The world's richest company would get richer while Cheslatta, its land, life and people would become poorer. The environmental assessment of the project has highlighted serious flaws with the mine. B.C.'s new environmentals assessment process and B.C.'s approach to resource issues on unsurrendered First Nation's land. The government and the company want to reap the development benefits while leaving Cheslatta with the impacts, which includes two permanent tailings' ponds. The fight to protect Huckleberry Mountain is a costly struggle. Legal fees, research, postage, telephone and copying costs are mounting. The telephone, photocopier and fax are our links with the outside world. They are critical to ensuring Cheslatta's voice on Huckleberry is heard. If you can help, please send your financial contribution to Chief Marvin Charlie, Cheslatta Carrier Nation, P.O. Box 909, Burns Lake, British Columbia. Canada, V0J 1E0. Please indicate on your cheque it's for the Huckleberry struggle. Thank you. Chief Marvin Charlie --------- "RE: Bear Lincoln Murder Indictment Quashed" --------- Date: Sat, 2 Dec 1995 16:33:04 -0800 From: Nicholas Wilson Subj: NEWS: BEAR LINCOLN MURDER INDICTMENT QUASHED UUCP email Judge Quashes Murder Indictment of Bear Lincoln, New Charge Filed by Nicholas Wilson for the Albion Monitor (http://www.monitor.net/monitor) 12/2/95 In a stunning decision, a judge threw out the entire Grand Jury murder indictment of Eugene "Bear" Lincoln November 30. Bear Lincoln is the Wailaki man from the Round Valley Indian Reservation accused of killing Deputy Sheriff Bob Davis last April. The prosecutor immediately filed a new murder charge, and a preliminary hearing has been set for December 14 in municipal court. Mendocino County Superior Court Judge James Luther quashed the Grand Jury indictment because the prosecutor had failed to present evidence tending to exonerate Lincoln. The evidence might have cast doubt about the truthfulness of Deputy Sheriff Dennis Miller, the only surviving witness to the shooting besides Lincoln. The Grand Jury was not told about important discrepancies in Miller's story between what he told investigators hours after the shootings and what he testified months later to the Grand Jury. Lincoln's lawyer, noted San Francisco attorney J. Tony Serra, argued at an earlier court hearing that Lincoln and his friend Leonard Peters were ambushed, and Peters killed, by deputies who mistook him for his brother who was wanted for an earlier killing the same day. Serra argued that the slain deputy was then accidentally shot by his partner, Deputy Miller, citing Miller's own account of how he had fired a multi-round burst from Davis' fully-automatic M-16 assault rifle just as he slipped and fell. When Miller got to his feet, Davis had been hit in the head by a high velocity bullet such as an M-16 shoots. No bullet fragments were removed from Davis' body for forensic testing, and the body was cremated and the ashes scattered at sea. Serra accused law enforcement of covering up the deputies' tragic mistakes and trying to frame Lincoln for the killing. The prosecution lost on all three motions decided November 30. The day began with the judge giving his decisions on two prosecution motions argued last week. One motion asked the court to sanction (punish) defense attorneys Serra and Philip DeJong for allegedly violating a court-imposed gag order by statements they had made to the media about the case. The purpose of the gag order is to prevent the necessity for a change of venue by avoiding prejudicing potential jurors. In statements to media outside court, Serra had called the Grand Jury indictment "immoral," and described it as an ambush by the prosecution. He had said it was the second ambush, with the first one being the police ambush of Peters and Lincoln on the reservation. Serra had also accused law enforcement of a cover-up of what really happened. The judge ruled that those statements, though strong, were within the limits of what a defense attorney was allowed to say. They were allowable partly because the trial was still six months in the future, diminishing any potential prejudice of the jury pool, and partly because under the order a defense attorney is allowed to make statements designed to counter prejudicial statements made earlier by law enforcement and the prosecution. The second prosecution motion asked the judge to impose a stronger gag order forbidding attorneys in the case from making any comment whatsoever to the media. The judge also denied that motion, saying it would violate the defendant's and the attorneys' First Amendment guarantee of freedom of speech. Defense attorney DeJong then argued the defense motion to set aside the grand jury indictment. He read from a transcript of a tape of Deputy Miller's statement to an investigator made a few hours after the shooting. Miller had described how he and Deputy Davis had been watching from a darkened patrol car backed off a rural road on a wooded hilltop. He said they saw a silhouette of "a person" walking up the road. He told how he and Davis challenged the person and ordered him to drop a rifle he was carrying, and how they both fired their pistols at him when he fired at them. After the man had fallen mortally wounded to the ground, Miller said Davis warned him that he heard noises in the brush, and that there must be a second person nearby. Miller stated to the investigator "... and that's the first time I knew there were possibly two. I knew the one guy was there, because I got a good look at him when he got lit up, and he's the same person that is the decedent, that was lying in the roadway up there." DeJong then compared that initial account to a transcript of Miller's later testimony to the Grand Jury, in which he stated that he had seen two men coming up the road. He testified that he thought he had seen a muzzle flash from the weapon of the first man, but that it could have been from the second man to the rear of the first. What had happened in the interval between Miller's first statement and his grand jury testimony was that tests showed the rifle allegedly carried by Leonard Peters had not been fired, and gunpowder residue tests on Peter's body showed he had not fired a gun. The implication was that Miller may have changed his story to fit the later known facts. A Grand Jury inquiry is a secret proceeding. The prosecutor presents the case and witnesses without the presence of defense lawyers. The defense can't cross-examine prosecution witnesses, call defense witnesses, or present evidence or arguments of the defendant's innocence. A Grand Jury has the power to call any witness or subpoena any evidence it is aware of in order to determine the facts of the case and decide whether there is cause to indict the defendant and bring him or her to trial. But the Grand Jury in this case was a special panel chosen from the regular trial jury list, and was inexperienced at conducting an investigation. Because the defense is not a participant in the hearing, the law requires the prosecutor to present the Grand Jury with all known relevant facts, including evidence which favors the defendant. Prosecutor Aaron Williams stated that in questioning before the Grand Jury he had asked Miller if there was a possibility that he had said in his initial statement that he had seen only one person coming up the road. Williams said Miller replied, "Yes, that's possible." But DeJong pointed out that the Grand Jury had not been told of the tape recording of Miller's first statement, or that it had been reduced to written form. Without that knowledge, there was no way that it could subpoena that evidence. In explaining his decision to overturn the indictment, Judge Luther said there are centuries-old rules for determining the credibility of witnesses. He said that while he was not making a determination of the credibility of Miller's testimony, it was the Grand Jury's duty to do so in order to weigh the evidence against Bear Lincoln. The judge cited language from case law stating that the prosecutor's duty in a Grand Jury proceeding is not simply to seek a conviction, but to present all evidence and to seek justice. He ruled that the prosecution had failed in its duty to present evidence known to it, which significantly impaired the Grand Jury's duty to judge Miller's credibility in deciding whether there was sufficient evidence to indict Lincoln for murder. Lincoln's family and supporters in the courtroom were visibly elated at the unexpected decision, and a few barely contained whoops were heard. After court had adjourned, and free from any restraining order, Serra had some enthusiastic comments for the media: "I feel that our team triumphed. ... The judge indicated that the Grand Jury could have concluded that Miller perjured himself.... I think it's a landmark. The judge is wise, and the judge is honest, and the judge is courageous, and I think that we're way ahead at this moment. We think that potentially the district attorney here, who failed to do what his duty clearly prescribes, is in dereliction, and is irresponsible ... and ought to be fired." [Section Break, The Bail Hearing] The defense first sketched out in court what the defense case would be at a November 20 hearing on whether Lincoln would be allowed bail. Serra put Lincoln's mother Lucille Lincoln on the witness stand. She told how she had gone to bed the evening of April 14 when the shootings occurred. She said her granddaughter came into her room and said she heard many shots being fired on the hilltop. She said they assumed they were being fired by vengeful members of the Britton family, because "Neil (Britton) had threatened me earlier." "We thought the Brittons were going to kill us." Gene Britton had been the first to die that day at the hands of Leonard Peters' brother Arylis Peters, and Arylis had been at her house when Mrs. Lincoln arrived home earlier. She had driven Arylis to the home of one of his friends on the main reservation. As she was getting dressed she said her granddaughter told her Bear had come into the house and said, "They killed Leonard right in front of me. You better leave or they'll come and kill all of you." She and five other adult family members decided to take the four babies and leave her isolated home for the greater safety of the main part of the reservation. As they were getting into the car, Mrs. Lincoln testified, Bear Lincoln approached the car and said to her, "Mom, don't go. They'll kill all you guys." She said that was the first time since dark that she had seen Bear. She said it was dark and she needed a flashlight to get to her car. She said she could not see Bear clearly because it was dark. The importance of this testimony was that it showed that Bear Lincoln believed he and Peters had been attacked by Brittons, not law officers, because there was no reason for him to believe that law officers would come kill the whole family. This cast doubt on whether the deputies identified themselves as sheriff's officers, as Deputy Miller said, and whether Lincoln had been close enough to see and recognize the patrol car in the semi-moonlit darkness. Serra argued that the two deputies had ambushed Leonard Peters in the dark, shooting and killing him without warning because they wrongly assumed he was Arylis Peters, whom they expected to be armed and dangerous since he had just killed Gene Britton a few hours before. As mentioned earlier, Serra argued that Miller accidentally shot his partner Davis while falling over an embankment as he fired a fully automatic weapon that was not his own. The judge denied bail due to the possibility of the death penalty in the case. He ruled that the standard of proof required to allow granting bail would be a showing that a guilty verdict based on the available evidence would likely be set aside on appeal. [possible section break, what follows is mostly analysis] The significance of Miller apparently changing his story to account for the fact that Peters did not fire a weapon is that it tends to support the theory of a cover-up and undercuts Miller's credibility. There is the possibility that Miller made up the story about Peters firing first in order to justify killing him. Since tests showed Peters had not fired, Miller could cover for having said he saw a muzzle flash by saying there must have been someone right behind Peters who did fire. However Miller clearly stated initially that the first he knew of a second person was when Davis warned him of hearing sounds in the brush after Peters was dead. Miller had testified to the Grand Jury that the deputies were sitting in a marked patrol car with insignia on the door and a light rack on top. He testified that a person on the road where Peters was shot could have seen the patrol car in the moonlight and realized that he was dealing with law officers. But if the patrol car could be seen by the suspect, the officers in the car should have been able to see that there were two suspects, if they were close enough together that Miller could mistake a muzzle flash from the second suspect as coming from the gun of the first. But according to Miller's initial story neither he nor Davis saw a second suspect before shooting Peters. Miller now claims he saw two suspects right from the beginning. Miller does not claim he saw Lincoln shoot Davis. Without Millers' credible testimony the prosecution hasn't much of a case against Bear Lincoln. The case against Lincoln is that he was at the scene by his own admission when he stated on turning himself in that, "The police ambushed Leonard Peters and myself." But the prosecution has produced no murder weapon, and has not shown that Lincoln possessed a gun of any kind. Investigators say they found at the scene spent .223 caliber shells of the type used in an M-16, but of a brand different from that issued by the Sheriff's Department. They say they found shells of the same caliber and brand at Bear Lincoln's house. They found a hat identified as Lincoln's down the road from the shooting scene. That, and Miller's testimony of what happened, is the total of the prosecution case against him. Based on that evidence the prosecution has charged Lincoln with first degree murder of Davis with special circumstances of killing a law officer and lying in wait, and with first degree murder of his close friend Leonard Peters, on the theory that Lincoln fired the first shot, starting a gunfight that led to Peters death. At the Dec. 12 preliminary hearing in Municipal Court, the prosecution must present its case, subject to challenge and cross-examination by the defense, which also will be able to call witnesses and present evidence of innocence. Then the judge must decide whether there is probable cause to hold Lincoln for trial, or to dismiss the charges against him and set him free. --------- "RE: House Construction Alert" --------- Date: 6 Dec 1995 From: Janet Smith (jans@genie.geis.com) Subj: We Need Your Help to Find Help ... Transcribed Interview (originally a letter to the editor in the Cherokee One Feather, permission given by the Julia Maney (writer's wife) to publish here) My name is Bill Maney. I am an enrolled member of the Eastern Band of Cherokees. I purchased tribal land through my family. I then went on accomplish my goals to build my dream house for myself and my family. This dream only to come crashing down on me. I took the recommendation of the FHA (currently RCD's) and hired the builder they recommended -- Robert Carnes of Whittier. Mr. Carnes not only breached his contract and did not complete my house on time, he locked me and my family out of our house and he did not build my house to the NC State Building Codes. I have made countless efforts in order to find someone to help me with our serious problem. I contacted the BIA in Cherokee; BIA in Virginia; the State Capitol; The White House; Senator Helms; Governor Hunt; Congressman Taylor; the NC License Board for General Contractors; the U.S. Attorney's office in Buncombe County, FHA (currently RCD's); and Jackson County's Inspectors Office, only to be told by each and everyone I spoke to that this was Tribal land and this was considered to be another government, so this was out of their jurisdiction and they could not help me and my family. Our contractor did not complete this house. He breached his contract, built our house incorrectly. Not only is he allowed to continue building and to defraud the public daily, the N.C. License Board for General Contractors dismissed our complaint on Nov. 17, 1995 during their Review Committee meeting. Their final report stated: "Complaints residence was built and is presently located on the Cherokee Indian Reservation and, therefore, is not subject to building permits and inspections. As such the N.C. Licenses Board for General Contractors has NO jurisdiction to enforce building code requirements on the Reservation. Although our contractor is allowed to break his contract and not fulfill his agreement with FHA, FHA expects us to comply with our contract and pay our monthly payments on a house that was built substandard and unin- habitable. Why is the Cherokee Indian Reservation not subject to building permits and inspection. How is the homeowner protected if there are no requirements enforced. If no one is willing to take responsibility for houses built on tribal land, then what does one member do when such a serious problem occurs? If anyone has any suggestions or information on which office can help us with our problem, please contact us at (704) 497-9816. Any suggestion would be helpful. Bill Maney, Member of Eastern Band of Cherokees (Update by Janet Smith: I spoke with Mrs. Julia Maney on December 6, 1995. She said that since this letter was published on November 29, her family has received numerous phone calls and a visit from the assistant to the new Chief of the Eastern Band. The Maney's have been informed that in 1966 the Eastern Band did adopt the N.C. building codes as the codes for the reservation as well, and that these codes have been enforcible by the tribe since that time. The new chief, Joyce Dugan, through her assistant, has promised to help find funding to first help the Maneys and then to establish an Inspection office on the Reservation to protect other Eastern Band members. Among the callers have been others victimized in the same way as the Maneys -- people whose roofs have caved in and who have had numerous other problems with substandard building. These people have been told the same thing as the Maneys had in the past, and have had to repair their homes at their own expense. The FHA has waived payments for a few months, but have let the Maneys know the payments must resume soon. Meanwhile, they have told the Maneys that because they did not take out an additional loan to make needed repairs to their poorly built house -- they have not "done their part." The Maneys can file a civil suit against the builder, but have been told that settlement can take a year or even 18 months to even come to court, and that in the meantime, they still must make payments and in addition, pay a lawyer to argue their case. Mrs. Maney says the family is hopeful -- that conversations with Senator Helms and Congressman Taylor -- indicate a willingness to find the funding to assist the Eastern Band in establishing a building office to enforce the codes already on the books, and to assist families such as theirs who are living in substandard housing that had not been built to code in past years.) She says there has been an outpouring of calls, including individuals who offer volunteer labor, if such is needed, since publication of their letter. From my perspective, although it appears this instance is on it's way to resolution, I felt it important to publish the Maney's letter and followup. Clearly the tribes are "sovereign" whenever it is convenient for them to be. And clearly the tribes need to watch out for this kind of usage of their sovereign status by builders and other business people who hope to "duck" regulations in this way. --------- "RE: North American Native Nations to U. N." --------- Date: 30 Nov 1995 23:46:07 +0100 From: Christophe Franchini Subj: Important Press Release Lakota Project announces ------------------------ For your information, please note the following Press Release. If you need any information, just reply to the following e-mail cricri20@pacwan-mm-soft.fr or check the web server http://www.demon.co.uk/agora (available in french only for the moment :-( Pour information, voici un communique de Presse. Si vous avez des questions ou des precisions, envoyez moi un message : cricri20@pacwan.mm-soft.fr ou sur le serveur http://www.demon.co.uk/agora ! Merci --------------------------------------------------------------------------- NORTH AMERICAN NATIVE NATIONS TO U.N.: Don't tamper with our dreams ! Ottawa: North American Indian and Inuit delegations leave this week for Geneva with a strong message for United Nations human rights officials: they will fight any changes in a draft U.N. declaration on the rights of indigenous peoples. A special meeting of U.N. Member States will take place November 20 to December 1, at the call of the U.N. Commission on Human Rights, to review the draft declaration before it is considered for adoption by the commission and the General Assembly. Indigenous peoples fear that governments will insist on revising the text and deleting a number of key provisions. Several countries, including Canada, Brazil, and India have recently made official statements that the draft gives indigenous peoples too many rights. Some, led by Bangladesh, even tried to force the postponement of this crucial meeting, in talks last week with the U.N. Assistant-Secretary- General for Human Rights, Ibrahima Fall. The draft declaration was prepared by a U.N. group of five legal experts, meeting annually in Geneva with hundreds of indigenous people from around the world. It took eight years to complete, and proclaims that indigenous peoples are "equal to all other peoples in dignity and rights", including the rights of self-determination, self-government, and control of their own lands. Unlike most U.N. declarations in the field of human rights, the draft declaration on indigenous peoples was prepared with the full participation of the people whose rights were to be protected. "For the time in U.N. history," explains Willie Littlechild of the Four Nations of Hobbema (Alberta), "the victims of human rights abuses were asked to join with the international community in shaping a response." "It would have been a great breakthrough to celebrate on the United Nation's 50th anniversary this year", adds Littlechild, who is a former Member of the Canadian Parliament, "but right now it looks like just one more tragic proof that the U.N. cannot stick to its own principles." Among the nearly 100 indigenous organizations expected at Geneva next week will be several from Canada, Chiefs of Ontario, the Treaty Four Tribal Council from Saskatchewan, Four Nations of Hobbema, and the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada. There will also be a large delegation representing the Navajo Nation in United States, led by Navajo President Albert Hale. All of the North American indigenous participants have agreed to a common front against any changes in the text of the U.N. declaration. Dr. Erica-Irene Daes of Greece, chair of the group of U.N. legal experts who drafted the declaration, is also on her way to Geneva this week from New York, where she had been attending the General Assembly. In a 9 August 1995 speech at the United Nations, she advocated keeping the present text of the declaration intact, explaining that "The draft Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was not intended to be a synthesis of current practice, but a beacon of hope - a beacon of hope for the justice indigenous peoples seek, as they shed the fears, humiliation, and despair of centuries of oppression. Shall the United Nations offer them a declaration of rights to inspire them, or one that deepens their sense of rejection by the rest of the humanity ?" Willie Littlechild describes the situation more bluntly, "what it comes down to is simply this. The legal experts who worked with us on the declaration say that we have the same rights as other human beings - and the governments are saying, 'not quite' - When will this racism come to an end ?" Next week's showdown in Geneva between indigenous people and U.N. Member States comes as the first year of the U.N. International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples draws to a close. "If Member States gut the Declaration which was drafted to defend our rights, " concludes Sakej Henderson, director of the Native Law Centre at the University of Saskatchewan, "the decade will have a pretty hollow ring to it." For further information contact (in canada) Bob Epstein, Grand Council Crees of Quebec (613) 761-1765 Sakej henderson, Native law Centre (306) 966-6191 Willie Littlechild, Four Nations of Hobbema (403) 585-3741 Wendy Moss, Inuit Tapirisat of Canada (613) 238-8181 Richard Powless, Chiefs of Ontario (613) 733-7915 For progress reports from Geneva after November 19 contact: Russel Barsh and Helga Lomosits (Four Directions Council) Valerie Taliman (Navajo Nation) c/o Movenpick Hotel Geneva, +41 22 798-7575, Fax +41 22 791-0284 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Christophe Franchini LFRS French Driver #44 - Team Zodiac Volskwagen Check my personal Web server: http://www.demon.co.uk/agora --------- "RE: Swimmer Resigns" --------- From: cherokee observer Subj: FYI--SWIMMER Resigns as Cherokee Nation Industries C.E.O. Date: 30 Nov 1995 17:31:29 GMT Newsgroups: alt.native,soc.culture.native The following is a press release dated November 20, 1995 from the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma STILWELL-President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Cherokee Nation Industries (CNI), Inc., Ross Swimmer, rendered his resignation during an executive session of the CNI Board of Directors meeting Nov. 29. Swimmer, a former chief of the Cherokee Nation, resigned in response to a request from Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Joe Byrd and the board of directors. They are currently addressing the financial status of the Cherokee Nation-owned subsidiary. CNI has been the focus of much controversy in recent months concerning issues such as management, financial status, and the overall direction of the company. According to Chief Byrd, Swimmer's resignation was requested based mainly upon the substantial financial setback CNI has encountered in recent years. CNI has lost more than $2.4 million during the last three years. Additional factors for requesting Swimmer's resignation included the recent controversy regarding a $550,000 loan made by Swimmer to Simulation Technologies Corporation from the state of Delaware. The unsecured loan was made without CNI board approval. The loan was also made in violation of a loan agreement between Bank IV in Tahlequah and the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which states the BIA will guarantee loans made from Bank IV to CNI. The BIA recently informed the bank it would not guarantee the loan. Swimmer's actions could place an existing $2.5 million line of credit CNI has with the bank in jeopardy. "Swimmer's negligence by not acting in the best interest of the company, led to our decision. During my campaign for office, I promised a higher level of accountability, including that of CNI and all subsidiaries of the Cherokee Nation," Byrd said. While management has played a key role in the current financial status of the company, there are additional factors involved. CNI has been struggling to recoup the loss of several defense contracts. Cuts in the federal budget have also had a direct impact on the number of contracts CNI has been awarded. Byrd said at his request and by mandate of the board, an internal audit of CNI will be conducted. Specific points to be addressed will include a history of all financial transactions, contracts and management practices. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ This press release posted for your information courtesy of The Cherokee Observer, your only independent Cherokee newspaper. P.O. Box 1301, Jay, OK 74346-1301. e-mail:cwyob@mailhost.galstar.com ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ --------- "RE: Poem: An Indian Prayer Christmas Day" --------- Date: Mon, 4 Dec 1995 11:23:11 -0800 (PST) From: Larry Kibbey Subj: "An Indian Prayer Christmas Day" Mailing List: IND-NET The following was written December 25, 1992, and because I know that so many of the reader's will have gone home for the Holidays, I thought that I would share this with you before any of you left. "AN INDIAN PRAYER CHRISTMAS DAY" by Larry Kibby Great Spirit Grandfather I send these words to you To Father Sun And with his eyes, Grandmother Moon, Will see all that is good To Mother Earth, And with his ears, To all you have created, Will hear all that is good To all our relations And the words And to the four Sacred Winds. That he will speak, Grandfather, Will be strong and powerful Today you gave In a most Sacred Way. The breath of life Grandfather, To an Indian child This Indian Child In a most Sacred Way. That you have Grandfather, Brought before us This Indian Child Your Native People, Will walk amongst his people Will be like his Ancestor's With his head held high, That have gone With dignity and pride, Before him on their journey, In a most Sacred Way. In that he Grandfather, Will always travel This Indian Child, Within the Sacred Circle of Life Will stand before his people, In a most Sacred Way. With honor Grandfather, And respect, This Indian Child, In a most Will use, Sacred Way. His Eagle Feathers, Grandfather, His Sacred Pipe, This Indian Child, His drum, Will be strong, His Cedar, With wisdom, knowledge His Sage, And understanding, His Sweetgrass, That will come from Within the Sun Dance, The heart, soul Within the Sweat Lodge, And mind Within all of his Traditional Ceremonies In a most In a most Sacred Way. Sacred Way. Grandfather, Grandfather, This Indian Child, This Indian Child, Will be strong within, Will come before His Tradition, A humble Nation of people His Culture, And like his brother His Religion, The Eagle, In a most Sacred Way. And like the Sacred Buffalo Grandfather, This Indian Child Thank you for each breath of life, Will be their strength That you have given to our young. In a most For tomorrow, Sacred Way. Another Indian Child Grandfather, Will come before us This Indian Child And he too You gave to us Will have been born In a Sacred Way, The Indian Way. --------- "RE: Verse: Hawai'ian Book of Days" --------- Date: 95/11/30 23:52 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 10-16 KEKEMAPA (December) (Makalii) 10 Seek love, knowledge, and above all else -- happiness. 11 If we can achieve a meeting of minds, then all our other differences are meaningless. 12 Welcome new possibilities -- they are the zest of life. 13 Enjoy your dreams, for they come from a very special part of you. 14 Be creative in every aspect of your life. 15 Expect fulfillment, and you will achieve it. 16 Help others to achieve their goals. (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, 7 Dec 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 Date: Fri Dec 1 14:13:12 1995 Subj: Arts, crafts fair set at Indian School From: Taabe21@aol.com Crafts, entertainment and food will highlight Sherman Indian High Schools Arts and Crafts Fair on Saturday, Dec.9. Holiday crafts, authentic Native American art and food will be on sale at the fund-raising event, which runs from 10 am. to 4pm. Sherman's senior class is sponsoring the fair to raise money for a graduation trip. The Sherman Indian Museum will be open for self-guided tours. Special performances will include dancers, a drum group, flute players, storytellers and a live band. Craftmakers can reserve booths until 9 am. the day of the fair. The cost is $30. Those who donate an item for a drawing will be charged only $25. For more information or to reserve booth space, call Celeste Townsend at (909) 276-6329. The school is at 9010 Magnolia Ave. in Riverside, California. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ From: "News From Indian Country" Dec 12 Lady of Guadaloupe, Jemez Pueblo, NM Info: 505-834-7235 Dec 16 12th Trails Conference, Hertel, WI Info: 800-236-2195 Dec 26-Jan 1 Miccosukee Art Fest, Miami FL Info: 305-223-8380 Dec 29-Jan 1 White Swan New Years, White Swan, WA Info: 509-865-5121 Dec 29-31 Amigos New Year, Tucson, AZ Info: 602-622-4900 Dec 29-31 On the Red Road New Year's Celebration of Sobriety Minneapolis, MN Info: 612-724-3129 Dec 29-31 Inter-Tribal Osh Kwi Keenonawin, Thunder Bay, Ontario Info: 807-345-5840 Dec 30-31 Denver New Years, Denver, CO Info: 303-455-4575 Dec 30-Jan 1 3rd New Year's Sobriety, Columbus, OH Info: 614-228-0460 Dec 31 7th Sault Ste. Marie, Sault Ste. Marie, MI Info: 906-635-6050 Dec 31 Jan 1 New Year's Powwow, Cherry Creek, SD Info: 605-856-3465 Dec 31 Menominee New Years Eve, Neopit, WI Info: 715-756-2354 Dec 31 The Good Medicine Society Powwow, Oklahoma City, OK Info: 405-943-7935 ========================================================================== -------------------------------------------------------------------------- --//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//-- 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: Steven McFadden(for Sunbow 5), Robyn Kalama, Janet Smith, Debra F. Sanders, Larry Kibby, Johnny Montour(for Cheslatta Carrier Nation, appeal for help), Mike Rossignol(via Art Horovitch), Linda Summerfield, Nicholas Wilson, Bill Maney(via Janet Smith), Christophe Franchini(Press Release), Glenn Welker, Teresa Morris-Bloom(via John Kincheloe), Scott Tippetts, Fred De Van(Press Release from Ada Deer), --//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//-- ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Part B of this newsletter (not included) has already been distributed via the NATIVE-L or NATCHAT mailing lists. --------- "RE: Trudell Benefit for Bear Lincoln" --------- Date: Thu, 30 Nov 1995 23:03:53 -0800 From: nwilson@mcn.org (Nicholas Wilson) Subj: John Trudell Benefit for Bear Lincoln Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 30, 1995 CONTACT: Betty or Gary Ball, Mendocino Environmental Center, Ukiah, California, (707) 468-1660 JOHN TRUDELL AND BAD DOG IN MENDOCINO BENEFIT PERFORMANCE Internationally known poet, musician, movie actor and Native American activist John Trudell will do a two-night benefit performance for the Eugene "Bear" Lincoln legal defense fund. Trudell will perform in his evolutionary traditional "spokenword" style, accompanied by his "rant and roll" band Bad Dog, at Mendocino town's historic Crown Hall Saturday and Sunday, December 9 and 10. Here's what some well-known people have said about him: + Bonnie Raitt: "John Trudell is probably one of the most charismatic speakers I've ever heard." + Bob Dylan called Trudell's first mainstream release "AKA Graffiti Man" the best album of the year. "Only people like Lou Reed can dream about doing work like this," said Dylan. + Cree singer Buffy Sante-Marie: "He stood up for our people as we resisted the destruction of Mother Earth right in our own communities.... The triumph of John Trudell is that he has been able to bring the strength of a brilliant activist into the arena of the arts -- tender, intact, but still on fire." + "Trudell's music is unique and unforgettable. He has the unique distinction of being the most prominent musician of our time." (review from recent European tour) + "...extremely elegant" (FBI memo) ABOUT BEAR LINCOLN Bear Lincoln is a Wailaki man from the Round Valley Indian Reservation accused of killing a deputy sheriff during the tragic events on the reservation of April 14, 1995. Lincoln's lawyer, noted San Francisco attorney J. Tony Serra, has argued in court that Lincoln and his friend Leonard Peters were in fact ambushed by deputies who mistook him for his brother, Arylis Peters, wanted for another killing earlier that day on the reservation. Leonard Peters was shot to death by the deputies. Serra argued that the slain deputy was accidentally shot by the other deputy, Dennis Miller, citing Miller's statement that he fired a multi-round burst from a fully-automatic assault rifle just as he slipped and fell. Serra accuses law enforcement of covering up the deputy's tragic mistake and trying to frame Bear Lincoln for the killing. In a stunning development late this afternoon, Superior Court Judge James Luther threw out the entire Grand Jury indictment of Lincoln. Luther granted a defense motion to quash the indictment on the basis that the prosecutor had failed to present to the Grand Jury evidence tending to exonerate Lincoln. The evidence had to do with the credibility of Deputy Miller, the only eyewitness to the shooting. The Grand Jury was not told about important discrepancies in Miller's story between what he told investigators hours after the shootings and what he later testified to the Grand Jury. The prosecutor immediately filed a new murder charge in municipal court, and a preliminary hearing has been set for December 14. MORE ABOUT JOHN TRUDELL John Trudell came to prominence as the national spokesperson during the Indian occupation of Alcatraz Island in 1969, which culminated in the formation of AIM (American Indian Movement) in the '70s. He was National Chairman of AIM from 1973 to 1979, during a time of great turbulence and intensity for Native Americans, culminating in the siege of Pine Ridge, the Occupation of Wounded Knee, the Jumping Bull Incident (two FBI agents and one Native American killed) and the years of trials and continuous attacks following these events. This marked the beginning of intense surveillance and scrutiny of John Trudell by the FBI, and the FBI's covert COINTELPRO campaign to subvert and disrupt the American Indian Movement. In February of 1979, Trudell, citing injustice, racism and classism as the reason for doing so, burned the flag at a demonstration in Washington, D.C., in front of the J. Edgar Hoover Building. Less than 24 hours later, his wife, her mother, and their three children were killed in a fire "of suspicious origin" on the Shoshone Paiute Reservation in Nevada. Through the heartache which followed him for all the 100,000 miles traveled in the next three years, he began the process of speaking through poetry, then music. "It was murder; they were murdered as an act of war," he said. His poetry evolved into a book published in 1981 titled "Living in Reality." The inspiration of good friend and musician Jackson Browne enabled him to sample the world of music, eventually forming "The Graffiti Band" with Jesse Ed Davis, a Kiowa in 1985. The next two releases "AKA Graffiti Man" and "Heart Jump Bouquet" were followed by the death of Jesse Ed in 1988. Other releases followed: "Tribal Voice," "But this isn't El Salvador," "Child's Voice," and a new remixed version of "AKA Graffiti Man. "Appearing in several movies (Michael Apted's "Incident at Oglala," and "Thunderheart," and Steven Segal's "On Deadly Ground," and the release of John's second book, "Stickman," in 1994 brought a new level of visibility in the media. Not just a poet, or musician, or actor, John seems to transform his politics and "heartspeak" from the experiences of life into an optimism which is not so clearly defined, but rather felt. MORE ABOUT THE BENEFIT EVENTS Doors open at Crown Hall both nights at 6:30 pm, with the show beginning at 7:30. The hall is located on Ukiah Street in Mendocino town. Admission is $12, and tickets will be available at the door. Also on Sunday at Crown Hall from 2 - 5 pm there will be a Round Valley Justice Forum featuring speakers, information and discussion in a public forum. The concerts and forum are sponsored by the Mendocino Environmental Center. Call (707) 468-1660 for more information. --------- "RE: What Price is Dignity?" --------- Date: Thu, 30 Nov 1995 14:20:35 EST From: gwelker@mail.lmi.org Subj: Chiapas: What Price is Dignity? Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) November 2, 1995 To: Cecilia Rodriguez National Commission for Democracy, USA From: Subcomandante Insurgente Marcos CCRI-CG of the EZLN Chiapas, Mexico. Cecilia: I write these lines to you during this dawn in which the dead, our dead accept the bridge extended to them through thousands of offerings in the indigenous mountains of the Mexican Southeast. The reason for it is not pleasant, it is not a salute, yet it is a salute. We want you to know that we repudiate, together with all honest men and women, the criminal intent to which you were subjected. Yes, "subjected", because that kind of aggression consists of making a thing, an object of a human being and "using" that human being as things are used. Those responsible for the attempt will be hunted. Yes, hunted like animals, which is what they are. But we also want you to know that we salute your determination, your refusal to be humiliated and converted into what the Powerful call a "normal woman", a conformist, a resigned, quiet and objectified woman. As you have well pointed out, the aggression against you is part of a "silent" war, a "discrete" war, a war beyond the reach of the headlines in the press and therefore, distant from the financial markets. We salute your wisdom in reminding everyone that here, in this country called mexico, there is a war, a war by those who would preserve irrationality and eternal omnipotence against those who want a democratic change. We salute all that, this is true. But above all we salute you as a Zapatista woman, your "I will not surrender!" your "I am here!", your "enough is enough!". We salute the fact that being a Zapatista is not limited by borders or customs checkpoints, that it jumps walls and mocks the "border patrol", that it finds voice and a banner in the Latino blood upon which, among others, rests the power of the American Union. The body of a woman is also a battle ground in this "new type" of war designed for extermination. They wound you as a woman, but above all as a Zapatista. And, more so because you are a North American citizen who sympathizes with the EZLN and its cause of peace with democracy, liberty and justice. Some women, among which are those who say they are close to Zapatismo, take advantage of the dilemma of rape to denounce..the Zapatista machos! They now demand that we take off our ski-masks, they say, in order to distance ourselves from the rapists and so that we will not promote, they say, crimes such as the one you suffered. We are not the enemy, and our ski-masks do not hide criminals. They remain indignant, they demand a denial, an explanation, a penance for the simple fact that we are men. This is the new crime of which we are accused; of being men. Because of it, they say, we are accomplices of the rapists. Because we have taken up arms, they say, we have created a climate of violence against women. But this is not a position common to everyone. The great majority of women close to Zapatismo (in other words close to you) understand that this crime forms a part of a belligerent chain which has found in the body of a woman a battle ground. They and we understand that it is the political, economic, social and cultural system which holds up as its banners crime and impunity, which promotes, nurtures, protects and permits this and other aggressions. We understand, they and us, that we should fight to transform the entire world into something better: a world with democracy, liberty, and justice. Before January 1st of 1994, in this land there were rapes of all kind. Not just of women, and also of women. The fact of being indigenous added a double silence to the fact of being women. Here, and I do not just refer to Chiapas but to the entire country, the human being is raped, dignity is raped, history is raped. The indigenous Zapatista women, those women who do not belong to us but who march at our side, those women who are so far from the Peking Summit, those women who fight against everything and everyone (and this includes us Zapatista men), those Zapatista women, have decided to stop being women in order to win the right to be women. You know all this well. In the year or more that you have been our legal representative in the American Union, you have discovered us and have found thousands of those women (and men) who are your sisters and with whom you are united by something which is in your blood: human dignity. The companera comandantes of the CCRI-CG of the EZLN will give your our communique in regards to this aggression which you have suffered and that all of us Zapatistas, suffer with you. They are the ones with the best ability for it. Personally, I feel incapable of putting in pen and paper the bridge of support, sympathy and admiration which you inspire in me. My clumsiness, or perhaps my fear at being clumsy tie up my words. They, our companeras, are not free because they are Zapatistas. But the fact that they are Zapatistas, as you are, makes them fighters who fight to change everything, including us. Rape is not solely the concern of women, it involves all men, not only because men are capable of its perpetration, but because we can be accomplices as well, by engaging in harmful ridicule and by our silence. But the struggle for respect for the specificity of gender, can also include us, by acknowledging what we are, what we are not, and above all, what we are capable of becoming. So I do not write to you as though you were someone who sympathizes with Zapatismo and is wounded for that reason. I write to you as a companera, as a Zapatista. Perhaps this can explain the paucity of these thoughts and the hesitant lines which try to express it. I only write to you, in the name of my Zapatista companeras and companeros, to remind you and to remind all of us that we are one, we are the intuition that something new is possible and that the fight in order to win it, is worth it. Vale. Health and a hope that humiliation not be the present or future of women, or of any human being. From the mountains of the Mexican Southeast, Subcomandante Insurgente Marcos Mexico, November 1995 --------- "RE: Focus on Self-reliance" --------- Date: Thu, 30 Nov 1995 19:27:03 -0500 From: kincheloe@carlyle.meredith.edu Subj: Focus on Self-reliance Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Greetings, A graduate of the college where I teach has asked me to post a letter she has written. I am pleased to do this for her. My name is John Kincheloe. I teach Native American History and Cultures at Meredith College. If you wish to respond to her, please snail mail to the address below. I will also be glad to forward E-mail to her. Here is her letter: "To: Native Americans and the Public-at-Large Re: Focus on Self-reliance The 20th century is fast approaching and what do we, as Native Americans, have to show for it? According to the United States Census, there are approximately two million American Indians in the United States, yet so few people really know who we are. Why is this? Where are and who are our role models living today? Perhaps one answer might be that Native Americans do not really stand together in a strong union. Instead we concern ourselves with government recognition of tribes and blaming others. Why do we, as Native Americans, allow ourselves to be cast into federally recognized groups--some of us with papers to prove what type of American Indian we are? We, as Native Americans, should not accept this system of determining "pedigree." (We are not AKC registered dogs.) We need to stop pitting Native Americans against Native Americans. As a people, we need to join together to face real issues that affect us as proud Native Americans, and affect our children's future. The following facts are from the 1990 United States Census: Age + 39% of the American Indian population is under 20 years old, compared with 29% of the nation's total population. + About 8% of all American Indians are 60 years old and older, compared with 17% for the total population. + The median age of the American Indian population is 26 years, considerably younger than the U.S. median age of 33 years. Education + 66% of the 1,080,000 American Indians 25 years old and over are high school graduates or higher, compared with 75% of the total population. + About 9% of American Indians have completed bachelor's degrees or higher, compared with 20% of the total population. Income + The median family income of American Indians is $21,750, compared with $33,225 for the total population. + 27% of all American Indian families are headed by females without husbands. 50% of these families are in poverty, compared with 31% of all families headed by females without husbands in the total population. + Approximately 31% of American Indians live below the poverty level. The nation poverty rate is approximately 13%. + 27% of American Indian families live in poverty, compared with 10% of all families in the nation. In the days ahead, dedicated Native American leaders and passionate supporters from all walks of life will be invited to come together for the 21st Century Native American Focus on Self-reliance Gathering. We will identify important issues such as: Native American children being left behind as the 21st century approaches. Additionally we will push for a Native American curriculum which includes languages being taught in public schools and universities. We will also examine the "pedigree" issue and the importance of having living, Native American role models. If you are interested in being a part of this event, please contact us at the following address or phone number. 21st Century Native Americans Unite 2413 Rockridge Court Raleigh, NC 27612 919-781-1633 Thank you. Teresa Morris-Bloom Water Lily Is the daily Native American influence slowly becoming extinct? What is there to pass on today other than movies and arrowheads in museums? Why? What are we doing to elevate heritage so that young people feel the connection and know it is important? + Ignorance*, *Unawareness*, and *Lack of Concern* are three traditions we do not want to pass on to the next generation. Do you?" There is her letter. As I mentioned I will forward responses to her if you prefer to communicate with her via the net. John Kincheloe Meredith College kincheloe@carlyle.meredith.edu --------- "RE: Peltier's Activities" --------- Date: Thu, 30 Nov 1995 09:25:25 -0500 From: tippetts@pire.org Subj: Peltier's activities Mailing List: NATCHAT (natchat@gnosys.svle.ma.us) In the spirit of what Todd Hiatt shared here (Peltier & Christmas), I wanted to share something in my heart. Much effort has been made (by FBI and their lackeys) to characterize Leonard as a cold-blooded thug & lifelong bully. I regret to admit that at one time I too had bought into that view--even after viewing Redford's documentary the first time, I still suspected that perhaps he wasn't on the "up-and-up". But I was still deeply disturbed in my heart and felt I had to know more. Then in the course of my further research (which clearly convinced me of Leonard's innocence), I was struck by the interviews of all those who knew Leonard personally. Invariably, those who knew him describe him as one who was a quiet leader by deeds, who continually exhorted abstinence from alcohol (many of his associates at the camp did have alcohol problems), who chopped firewood for the elderly, did gardening and carried water for those unable to, offered gentle words of encouragement and optimism for the dejected. Always quick with a joke or humor observation. When one of the leaders (by word) called for action, Leonard was among the first to eagerly to jump in and do the labor; short on words perhaps, but the ideal unselfish "follower"--a leader by example. Some antagonists claim Leonard's activities are just a public relations ploy to paint him in a favorable light. NOT TRUE. The pattern of deeply honorable character was always there. Sure he was a fighter; what honorable man wouldn't be when his relatives are being abused and assaulted continually? Self Defense is no crime. I honor Leonard not only because he fought for the people, but because he had always quietly & humbly worked for them in mundane--yet essential--ways, BEFORE the shootout. Peace & Justice to all, Scott Tippetts --------- "RE: Talking Points on Indian Gaming" --------- Date: Thu, 30 Nov 1995 06:13:17 -0900 From: fdv1@ix.netcom.com (Fred De Van) Subj: Talking Points on Indian Gaming from Ada Deer Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) found at: http://www.codetalk.fed.us/deergame.html Ada E. Deer Assistant Secretary - Indian Affairs U.S. Department of the Interior Talking Points on Indian Gaming There are many harmful myths about the governmental status of tribes and the application of federal tax laws to Indian tribes and tribal members. This was most recently demonstrated by the introduction of a proposed amendment to Section 511(a) of the Internal Revenue Code, which would treat tribes as charitable organizations and tax tribal gaming revenues. It is a well- established, longstanding principle of Constitutional law that Indian tribal governments possess all powers of government which are not inconsistent with overriding national interests or which have not been been expressly extinguished. In 1832, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall ruled, "Indian Nations had always been considered as distinct, independent political communities, retaining their original natural rights...." This is equally true today. Because of their governmental status, tribes, like state, local, and county governments are not taxed by state or federal governments. It is a fundamental principle of law that governments do not tax other governments. The logic is that government revenues should be used to support the governmental services, functions, and activities of each respective government. Tribal members, on the other hand, with few limited exceptions, do pay taxes. As employers, tribes, like states: deduct and withhold state and federal income tax and FICA from all tribal employees; deduct and withhold state income taxes from all tribal employees; pay federal employment taxes (FUTA) and employer's share of FICA; Report payments to independent contractors to the IRS on Form 1099; Like all governments, tribes use their revenues to pay for a wide variety of governmental services, like law enforcement, courts, social services, roads, construction, and so on. Under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act there are special rules governing the use of tribal gaming revenues. Tribes must use gaming revenues: To pay for tribal government operations; To provide for the general welfare of the tribe and its members; To support economic development; To make charitable contributions; and To fund local government agencies. A tribe may petition the Secretary of Interior to approve a tribal revenue allocation for per capita distribution to tribal members, but a plan addressing welfare and economic development must accompany the application. In addition, tribes are obligated to: Deduct and withhold federal income taxes of statutorily defined gaming winnings; Report gaming winnings to the Internal Revenue Services on Form 1099; Withhold payment of certain gaming winnings from non-resident aliens; Report per capita distributions of more than $600 to members to the IRS; and withhold federal income tax on distributions of $6,400 or more. Recently, the provision of the Bank Secrecy Act were applied to tribal gaming operations, thus certain tribes will be required to report incoming and outgoing cash transactions of more than $10,000 in a 24-hour period. All tribes must report incoming cash transactions under Section 60501 of the Internal Revenue Code. Gaming revenues already support tribal governmental services. Given the large cuts in federal subsidies to tribes for tribal operations, the United States should be encouraging tribal economic growth, rather than penalizing it. Indian gaming revenues should not be taxed. U.S. Department of the Interior ÿÿ