_ __ _____ __ _ __ ___ ____ _ __ ___ ' ) / / ') / / ) ' ) ) / ) / ' ) ) / ) / / / / / / /--/ / / / ___ / / / / ___ (_(_/ (__/ ( / (_ / (_ (___/ '__/_ / (_ (___/ ' O ____ _ , ___ _ , ___ O o O / ' ) / / ) ' ) / / ' O o O / /-< / /--/ /-- VOLUME 05, ISSUE 007 O o o o o O __/_ / ) (___/ / ( (___, 15 February 1997 O o O KANOHEDA ANIYVWIYA Otapi'sin Atsinikiisinaakssin O o O Es'te Opunvk'vmucvse Aunchemokauhettittea O ( N A T I V E A M E R I C A N N E W S ) This issue contains articles from Triballaw, Innu-L, Uptowne, Minn-Ind & NATIVE-L listservers; Newsgroups: soc.culture.native,alt.native,alt.prisons, alt.activism,apc.indig.info,igc.indig.survival; UUCP & genie 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. ++ It may be subscribed to via email by sending a request from your own internet addressable account to gars@netcom.com 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 Borries Demeler all _Wotanging_Ikche_ (part a) submissions to AISESnet are archived under AISESnet and can be accessed easily by World Wide Web: 1994: http://bioc02.uthscsa.edu/94_dis.html 1995: http://bioc02.uthscsa.edu/95_dis.html 1996: http://bioc02.uthscsa.edu/96_dis.html This is a searchable index to the AISESnet Discussion mailing list database archive, and the keyword "Wotanging" will retrieve all issues for that year. "I bow to no man for I am considered a prince among my own people. But I will gladly shake your hand." __ Chief Joseph Brant, Mohawk, to King George III +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ | 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! Normally, this space is reserved for words from my heart. In fact, it is the only part of the newsletter that can be attributed to me. The rest is gifts from others that I may or may not agree with, but are of interest to the community this newsletter is dedicated to. In this issue even this space will not be my words. I received a letter that is too important and that I have also received permission to share. It does echo words of my heart, and that is why it is here. Lora Dika-Ni Czarnowsky writes: O'siyo Gary: Thanks again for forwarding the address for Helmina in Little Eagle. I was able to ship 14 boxes of coats, gloves etc out yesterday afternoon. I hope they will find some comfort in these items. I will admit the shipping costs wiped me out so I will need to wait a little while before I can do another shipment. But I WILL do another one as soon as I can. I understand that there was another urgent request for help from Germaine Tremmel of the Lakota/Dakota of Standing Rock.....well, looks like I'll be scraping my pennies together to try to help them a little. I wish I would just win the lottery so I could just take care of these good people...something the government doesn't chose to do! I'm so frustrated with so many on this lovely internet. They want to talk their big words about being Indian and relating to the traditional way of life and how they are there to help all the Indians but when the need is there...where the hell are they? Sometimes I just want to scream! If each and everyone one of those people who read your newsletter or read Native-L or read FN would just get off their butts and mail a check for $5.00 or mail a box of warm things ...what a difference that would make!! But do you suppose they'll do it?? I doubt it and that's so very sad! You are supposed to take care of your brothers and sisters but so few want to back up their words with actions..It makes me want to just sign off the internet and walk away! Thanks for listening to my rantings and thanks for doing all YOU do! In Unity: Dika-Ni Thank you Lora! I did receive word from Pine Ridge checks were received from the following: Pat Talley, Lewisville TX, Kelton and Monta Moore , Vista Ca 92083 and W. Robert and J. Kay Totten, Clarkston WA. I do not mean to embarass these people, but at this writing only they have helped the elders in Pine Ridge. It is very cold there. The money was immediately rushed to the reservation so it could be used immediately to provide heat. The people who sent this money may never know the lives they could have possibly saved, but I assure you, the names of each of these people with such beautiful hearts were carried to the elders making sure they know who loved them enough to sacrifice for their well being. The blankets and clothing that is being sent will save lives. Not "might" - "will". Bill Tyrrell contacted me for addresses. He is shipping a bunch of winter clothes and blankets to the elders. Grandfather has seen honor with these people, and he shall bless their lives for it. To all who have given, Thank you! Here are some addresses for those still wanting to help: PO Box 8392 Rapid City, SD 57709 Checks made out to Wapaha Canku Luta (a Lakota nonprofit organization) or to Joe Chasing Horses The Dakota Sovereign Traditional Oyate PO Box 732 Fort Yates, North Dakota 58538 Blackfeet Tribe PO Box 850 Browning, MT 59417 Peace! Night Owl , , Gary Night Owl gars@netcom.com (*,*) P. O. Box 672168 gars@juno.com (`-') Marietta, GA 30006, U .S.A. gars@igc.apc.org ===w=w=== gars@genie.com ----------- News of the people featured in this issue ---------- Part A: Usenet and e-mail Part B: NATCHAT and NATIVE-L lists - Peltier/Tulsa Conference - Conferences and Powwows - online - Hopi/Navajo Land Dispute - Disaster at Standing Rock - Navajo Forced Removal - F.B.I./Leonard Peltier/Robert Black - Norma Jean Croy is Free - Robert Black Response - Some of the Talk - Sisters Sent to Male Prison - Yellowstone Bison - Indians Achieve Landmark Decision - Montana Not Threatened - Assistance Needed to Rescue Graves - Royal Commission 3-6 - Support of Zapatistas - Working At Voisey's Bay - Keweenaw Bay - Pocahontas Descendents' Land - Ts'peten Defenders Trial Update - Huron Indian Cemetery - Respect Among Natural People - Senator John McCain at the NCAI - Pai Ohana Faces Eviction - Peace Delegate Seeks Help - Obtaining Eagle Feathers - Tobacco Education Volunteers - Poem: Defenders of the Shuswap Nations - Verse: Hawai'ian Book of Days - Conferences and Powwows - offline --------- "RE: Peltier/Tulsa Conference" --------- Date: Thu, 6 Feb 1997 11:44:39 -0600 (CST) From: Freedom Heart Rising Subj: Peltier/Tulsa Conference: UUCP email Thanks to Ishgooda: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 25, 1997 "A four day Worldwide Clemency Conference for Leonard Peltier's Freedom is scheduled June 19-22, 1997 at the Tulsa Creek Community Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma," announces Dennis J. Banks, "Bring Peltier Home" Campaign Director and AIM's National Field Director. Peltier Support Groups from around the world will gather to present reports on their activities and to discuss strategy. If Peltier is released by this date, he will address the conference and the focus will be indigenous issues, the environment, and human rights. The agenda will include reports from the different countries represented, presentations by Peltier's trial lawyers and Native American teachers, as well as showings of the Robert Redford documentary "Incident at Oglala" and PBS's "Warrior; the life of Leonard Peltier" by Suzie Bear. Send a business-size SASE to BPH Campaign, P.O. Box 315, Newport, Kentucky, 41071 requesting a registration packet. The pre-registration fee is $32.00 (for four days). Primitive camping is available. --------- "RE: Hopi/Navajo Land Dispute" --------- Date: Fri, 7 Feb 1997 12:53:31 -0700 (MST) From: dh88691@goodnet.com (THURSDAY/Jon Norstog) Subj: Hopi/Navajo "Land Dispute" UUCP email NAVAJO-HOPI "LAND DISPUTE" UPDATE: FEB. 7, 1997 I just got back from Council chambers in Window Rock, over the hill from our house. Council adjourned its special session on the Navajo-Hopi land settlement - the Agreement in Principle, proposed accommodation agreement, and P.L. 104-301. The session ran all week and featured testimony by many of the elders and youth of the "disputed lands". Lee Phillips and Katherine Hazard also testified on Monday. The administration had a resolution prepared ahead of time. It essentially approved the land settlement, advised the families to sign accommodation agreements, and requested authority for the (NN) President to sign on behalf of those families who refused to sign on their own. This resolution was put before the Navajo-Hopi Land Commission last week and tabled, denying President Hale of standing committee support. On Monday evening Council grilled Mr. Hale and Attorney General Yazzie on a number of issues. The Atty. General was asked if the Navajo Nation supported the eviction of families from the HPL (the "disputed lands" area). Mr. Yazzie answered, "that has already been agreed to" - it was on television, Navajo language channel 5 even. Yesterday about 2 PM, after testimony was finished, Council went into closed session to discuss three of four proposed resolutions, including CD-107-94, "the Mother of All Resolutions", which had declared the Agreement in Principle void and directed the President to negotiate a new agreement. It took until after 8 PM to work out language. Council amended and reaffirmed CD-107-94. The new provisions include a position that accommodation agreements should be negotiated at the community or extended family level wherever possible; that the agreements be specific and binding in permitting traditional land use and religious activities; that the march 31, 1997 deadline be extended to allow this process to work itself out. The amended CD-107-94 strongly opposes forced relocation or eviction and directs the President to appeal directly to President CLinton, or if that doesn't work, to the U.N Human Rights Commission, to stop any attempted eviction. The resolution is still being typed up and will be available in final form today or Monday. I will write at length then. jn --------- "RE: Navajo Forced Removal" --------- Date: Mon, 10 Feb 1997 09:33:49 -0600 From: Chris Spotted Eagle Subj: Navajo Forced Removal Mailing List: Minnesota Indian Affairs FYI: Twin Cities Dineh Coalition & Native American Rainbow Network (flyer) On April 1, 1997, the United States Government plans to forcibly relocate over 2,000 Dineh (Navajo) people off their traditional homelands at Big Mountain, Arizona. This genocidal relocation of the Dineh clearly demonstrates the U. S. Government's total lack of regard for indigenous communities, in that the Government is trying to paint the militant removal of families as a "land dispute between the Dineh and Hop Tribal Councils. The reality behind the land dispute is that Peabody Western Coal Company wants to continue raping Big Mountain of her coal, mineral and possibly uranium deposits. "Without the land we are no longer the Dineh, the People of the Earth Surface." explains a member of the Sovereign Dineh Nation. Twin Cities Activists demand a stop to this genocidal relocation of the Dineh, and we call on the United Nations to denounce this action by the U. S. Government. Please lend your support in a call to action: Rally, Tuesday, February 11, 1997 noon to 4pm at The Bureau of Indian Affairs, 331 Second Ave South, Minneapolis. This day is the last day to legally stop the relocation. Endorsements: International Indian Treaty Council, AIM, Earth First!, Food Not Bombs, Greenpeace, Woman Against Military Madness. Contact: Dineh Coalition (Becca or Whitney) 612-377-9489 or Rainbow Network (Paul) 6121-825-7071 from 8-10pm Chris Spotted Eagle cseagle@maroon.tc.umn.edu Voi: 612/377-4212 Fax: 612/377-7020 --------- "RE: Norma Jean Croy is Free" --------- Date: 8 Feb 1997 00:12:16 GMT Subj: URGENT: Norma Jean Croy is Free as of 1:30PM Today! From: amt@teleport.com Newsgroups: soc.culture.native,alt.native,alt.prisons,alt.activism Greetings to Everyone! After several days of nerve wracking suspense and 19 years of incarceration NORMA JEAN CROY IS FREE. We officially received word at 8:30 AM this morning from the Norma Jean Croy Defense Committee, San Francisco, CA that Norma Jean Croy was FREED today at 1:30PM (PST). Her lawyer and several of her supporters met her at the Chowchilla, CA prison to pick her up. Congratulations to Norma Jean and the Defense Committee for enduring almost 2 decades of stress, endless paper work, bureaucracy, fundraising, public awareness, and injustice - all to get to this defining moment in history. We honor your hard work and fortitude, because this is one of the few instances of justice for Indigenous peoples - thank you for all your incredible work and strong spirit! I am including a quick synopsis (see below) by Jan Herzog of the Norma Jean Croy Defense Committee sent to us yesterday, in lieu of an official press release to be posted at a later date. Everyone is very excited - the Defense Committee has worked for 19 years to seek justice for Norma Jean Croy. To find out more about Norma Jean Croy's case, please go to the Norma Jean Croy Defense Committee's website at http://www.teleport.com/~amt/planetpeace/norma/. In the Spirit of Friendship, Andrea Web-Diva, Planet Peace ---- |>Here's a quick synopsis. |> We've been trying to seek justice in the federal courts and were to the |>point of getting an evidentiary hearing last summer to see if she had been |>given a fair trial in the first place. |> Then clinton signed the anti-terrorism bill and the attorney general |>raised the issue in court so her case ground to a halt. Our lawyers yelled |>at the attorney general and for some reason he capitulated and said that |>he would sign a stipulation to withdraw the issue of the anti-terrorism |>bill if Norma Jean would agree to not have an evidentiary hearing but |>instead allow the magistrate judge to decide the issue based only on the |>papers submitted. |> Eventually this is exactly what happened and in November there was a |>phone status conference with Norma Jean's lawyers, the attorney general |>and the magistrate judge. At that time the judge said he didn't need to |>see any more papers and that he was willing to sign an order saying that |>her convictions were to be overturned based on the issues such as that she |>had poor counsel at her first trial, there was evidence that was never |>submitted, etc. We were ecstatic. |> By December 4th the magistrate Judge and the senior Judge had signed the |>order. Then it was just a waiting game. The attorney general had 30 days |>(until January 6th) to decide that he was going to go back on his word and |>the district attorney in Siskiyou County had 60 days (until February 3rd) |>to decide if they wanted to retry Norma Jean. |> Well those days have come and gone and today the DA faxed Norma Jean's |>lawyer a letter saying that he did not intend to retry her. So now she |>is a free woman trapped in the bureaucracy of the Board of Prison Terms in |>California. We are trying to wrestle her from their grip. There is a |>chance that we will be getting her tomorrow or Friday. |>I just wanted you to know. |>Peace and In a successful struggle - Jan Herzog |>Norma Jean Croy Defense Committee -- Andrea M. Thein Indigenous Community Internet Project Director, Planet Peace http://www.teleport.com/~amt/planetpeace/ email: amt@teleport.com PO Box 487, Ashland, OR 97520 541-858-6485 I must fight with all my strength so that the little positive things that my health allows me to do might be pointed towards helping the Revolution, the only real reason for living. --Frida Kahlo --------- "RE: Some of the Talk" --------- Date: 31 Jan 97 10:45:00 From: FROSTY.DEERE@igloo.magicnet.com (FROSTY DEERE) Subj: Some of the talk going around. Newsgroup: alt.native Well the newest debate is about what is legal or illegal. See to those of you that are reading this echo for the first time, we are talking about the idea that Quebec wants to have a vote for the third time on separating from Canada. On one side we have the those that think this is a great idea. On the other side we have those that think the idea sucks. In between we have the native population which have pointed out they could careless what the vote by the non-natives say on the question of separation. Then we have those that are saying if you have the right to separate, then so do we. Which leaves the other side who happens to be the present elected government to say, "No you can not breakup the province of Quebec". Which then brings up the argument, that if you have the right, so do we. Then up pops a person called "Jacques Brassard" who said in 1992 and again this past week. "If they do not respect the laws of Quebec, the state will simply see to it the the laws are respected.... A modern state possesses the means to enforce that laws voted democratically ... are respected." In other words the outlaw regime would use force against regions of Quebec that chose to abide by the Canadian Constitution. The other points out that without legal frame work they don't have a democracy. So we have at the present a lot of lip service and that could lead to chaos in the near future. Then we have people saying that what Brassard has said is nothing more than a lie. Well, right now that is a short idea of the problem facing those of us that live here in Quebec and are moving away out of fear. Each day this government is using the threats to force people to move out of fear for the future. A good point is that 44% of all businesses failing in Canada are here in Quebec. With the addition of people moving this rate is going to increase. So the governments in both Canada and Quebec are playing mind games on the people. Its war, and the game is to get people so upset that they will react in some way that will benefit one side or the other. Quebec by getting people to move and leave so they can reduce the number of voters that would say NO ! Ottawa by showing those that would vote YES, that all this means less people, less land, less everything and that separation is not as great as those would like to say it is. So in between we have the native population, and part of those that have a major claim are the Cree. See the land that the Cree live on is a major part of the separation plan. Its rich with WATER, and RIVERS. Which are all great areas to build HYDRO power stations and sell this power to the rest of North America. So anyone that tells Quebec that those that do not want to separate and the have the numbers to vote no, have a right to not to do so. This leave the Cree in a very dangerous position and one very good reason that Hydro has its own armed police force. If the government of Quebec were to separate, its future plans include the construction of these dams on Cree land. If they fail in doing so, the ideas they have been dreaming about will vanish. So the question is just how far are they willing to go to force the Cree to remain within Quebec ? By telling the world we treat our native people better than Canada is not going to win any votes. It is high time that people living in North America start to understand that the natives of 1492 are not the same people that one can just brush aside and plant a flag in the soil and say this is ours. The Cree and it brother and sister Nations have just as much if not more right to maintaining treaties, and land claim as those French voters have. If they have the right to leave, the native people have to the right to say "We are not going nor do want to be apart of you future nation." That as native people we have the right to make a choice, and in this case we choose Canada as partners. The native people of Quebec are not cattle, that one can move from one side to the other. The people of Canada have been saying for years, why can't the natives be like us. Well in this case they can be, by letting those that want to remain within Canada as satellite nations and with resources that are controlled by the natives on the lands they have. Imagine, the Mohawks of Kahnawake would no longer need permission to open a Casino or police themselves with Quebec and Ottawa approval. That the Cree could look for investments to build its own power stations and sell it to those that need it. That the Cree would run its own affairs, and those that want to hunt can and those that want to work in power stations can. Separation in this case would be wonderful for the native people of Quebec because they could truly be free to be Nations according to the treaties that were signed many years ago. Peace and goodnight. --------- "RE: Montana Not Threatened" --------- Date: Sat, 08 Feb 97 23:05:14 -0600 From: "J.D.K. Chipps " Subj: Montana not threatened UUCP email URGENT TO THE LIST: A VICTORY FOR OUR EFFORTS!! APHIS has written the state of Montana and assured them that their no-brucellosis status will not be revoked. This is primarily due to the outrage expressed over the slaughter. Way to go!! But we still have to keep pressure on the state of Montana, they haven't stopped killing the buffalo yet. Call these numbers below and DEMAND that they stop. They no longer have any reason to kill the buffalo, but are still doing so. + State Governor Mark Racicot, (406) 444-3111 (wk) (406) 444-5543 (hm) Call anytime. Fax (406) 444-5529 + Secretary Larry Peterson, MDOL,(406) 444-2023 Fax (406) 444-1929 + State Vet MDOL Clarence Siroky (406) 444 2043 + Montana Travel Bureau 1-800-847-4868 (No more visits till the slaughter stops) + Senators Max Baucus at max@baucus.senate.gov Conrad Burns at conrad_burns@burns.senate.gov -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Also the USDA and APHIS should be commended on their attempt to save the buffalo with this announcement. We were quick to voice our displeasure, and they responded to our desires. Let's not forget to acknowledge their efforts and thank them. The following numbers can be used for this: Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman, 202-720-3631. fax- 202 720 2166 e-mail: agsec@usda.gov APHIS Director 202-720-3668 Dr Bob Nervig 303-784-6201 Stewart McDonnald 303-784-6238 (w-thur) 303-969-6560 (m-tue) (fri-?) -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Here is their announcement: Prepared for the Web: Friday, February 07, 1997, 09:06 PM State's no-brucellosis status not threatened By JOE KOLMAN Gazette Bozeman Bureau The Billings Gazette BOZEMAN - Montana would retain its brucellosis-free status even if pregnant bison carrying the disease are allowed on lands to be used by cattle in the spring, federal officials said Friday. In a four-page letter to Gov. Marc Racicot, officials of the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service detailed last month's proposal to limit the killing of Yellowstone Park bison, which Racicot at the time called "a mile wide and an inch deep." With the number of bison killed in the name of disease control this winter standing at about 800 and a harsh winter taking its toll, Park Service officials fear that the bison population may drop below the number needed to sustain the last free-roaming herd in the country. The most recent count estimates that 2,100 bison remain, compared to a population of 3,400 at the start of this winter. Under the proposal, bison would be allowed to graze on public land in the Horse Butte area near West Yellowstone and other Gallatin National Forest land near Gardiner. There are no cattle in the areas proposed for bison grazing, officials said, and cattle are not expected to be there before April 30. Two months would be enough time for any bacteria left by the bison to die, the letter said. But Montana state veterinarian Clarence Siroky has said brucellosis can survive for months when frozen. Neither Racicot nor state Livestock Department officials could be reached for comment Friday. The plan also calls for agreements with landowners to allow the moving of bison from private land to public land where there are no cattle. "We are not proposing to allow bison on private land where there are livestock," the letter said. "Rather, we are proposing that shooting need not be the technique of first choice when bison are on private land where there are not cattle." Much of the controversy over the brucellosis-free status stems from previous threats by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to withdraw the disease-free distinction, which could cost the cattle industry millions of dollars. APHIS administrator Terry Medley endorsed Friday's plan saying, "These measures will help get us through the winter and into the spring while protecting cattle from the spread of brucellosis." In the "unlikely event" bison and cattle mingle, officials said the cattle would be quarantined and tested. If the mingling cattle and adjacent herds remained disease-free, the federal status would be unchanged, the plan said. And even if the cattle herd were infected, the letter said, the status would remain intact if the cattle were killed and no evidence of the disease were found in neighboring herds. APHIS would compensate owners whose infected livestock or bison had to be destroyed, officials said. However, the letter added that it is unknown how states that buy Montana cattle would react to the plan. In addition to Medley, the letter was signed by Roger Kennedy, the director of the National Park Service, and Mike Dombeck, who heads the Forest Service. Federal officials also said they are willing to help the state improve its capture facility near West Yellowstone, and they endorsed a quarantine site in the state for bison and said some groomed roads in the park may be closed to recreational use to prevent bison migration. (\######/) J.D.K. Chipps \ o ~ / "Wokiksuye Canpe Opi" (^ ^) (Remember Wounded Knee) \*/ http://www.eden.com/~jdkc --------- "RE: Yellowstone Bison" --------- Date: Mon, 10 Feb 97 17:55:05 -0600 From: "J.D.K. Chipps " Subj: Yellowstone Bison Article(Fwd) UUCP email Here is my article I submitted to the Banner for the March Issue. Feel free to use it. --Drusha ------------------------------------------------ 800 Yellowstone Bison Slaughtered so far this Winter! by Drusha L. Mayhue This winter the state of Montana has shot 232 bison near West Yellowstone and 559 have been shot or sent to slaughter by the Park Service near the north entrance of Gardiner, Montana. This puts the total number of bison shot or slaughtered at 791 as of February 5. The herd of Yellowstone bison is the nation's last free-ranging bison population and are the remnant of the vast herds that were nearly annihilated in the 19th century. Officials have called the current situation the "largest slaughter of wild bison in this century". Some biologists fear a collapse in the bison population. In October there were approximately 3500 bison in Yellowstone NP. On February 4 a survey flight counted only 1982 bison in the Park. The bison are leaving the park because of the coldest winter on record since 1943. Arctic freezes separated by heavy rains have encased the park in ice as hard as cement. The bison cannot dig beneath the snow for food and are forced to leave the park. Additionally, increased snowmobiling accommodated by groomed trails have made it easier for bison to exit from Yellowstone into Montana. While the Montana Department of Livestock claims that the bison are wandering onto neighboring ranches, a look at any map shows the majority are wandering onto national forest land. The state of Montana is taking over wildlife management on national public lands! And the Park Service has not considered the effect of their winter use program on wildlife. The reason for this disgrace is the fear by Montana cattlemen that Yellowstone bison carry brucellosis, which if passed to cattle, could cause them to abort their calves and force a quarantine on Montana cattle. The facts are: Elk also carry brucellosis, although state officials rarely admit this. There are more than 90,000 elk in the Greater Yellowstone Area. Montana makes money from the sale of hunting licenses given for elk hunting. There has never been a documented case of bison or elk infecting cattle with brucellosis in the wild. The brucellosis organism, discharged from bison cows with fetal material, is quickly killed in direct sunlight. Scavengers also reduce the prevention of infectious tissues. Bull bison pose virtually no threat of transmission. Please write or call the Governor of Montana, demand that he put a stop to this horrible slaughter, and tell him you won't be visiting Montana until they stop the killing. Gov. Marc Racicot, State Capital Helena, Mt 59620, 406-444-3111 Also write or call the following people and request that a stop to this needless slaughter be issued NOW! Sec. of the Interior Bruce Babbitt, Dept. of Interior, 1849 C Street NW, Washington, DC 20240, 202-208-7351 Sec. of Agriculture Dan Glickman, Dept of Agriculture, 14th St. and Independence Ave. SW, Washington, DC 20250, 202-720-3631 Write the Superintendent of Yellowstone NP and urge him to stop the slaughter, to allow Yellowstone's bison to use surrounding public lands, and to consider closing Yellowstone to snowmobiles. Supt. Mike Finley, Box 168, Yellowstone National Park, Wyo. 82190, 307-344- 2002 (\######/) J.D.K. Chipps \ o ~ / "Wokiksuye Canpe Opi" (^ ^) (Remember Wounded Knee) \*/ http://www.eden.com/~jdkc --------- "RE: Royal Commission 3-6" --------- Date: Tue, 14 Jan 1997 04:59:00 +0000 From: don.rayment@uptowne.com (Don Rayment) Subj: Royal Commission 3 - 6 Mailing List: UpTowne Online Services [Editorial note: This is a continuing series of a public release of a Royal Commission Report. Paul Antone posted it to the UpTowne listserver maintained by Don Rayment.] Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples Restructuring the Relationship Fair Sharing: A Plan For many years, Canada has had a land claims process. Its purpose is to allow First Nations to pursue either a specific claim for example, the return of reserve land improperly sold off by the government or a comprehensive claim to an allotment of the nation's traditional land in a case where it has no treaty or other settlement with Canada. The existing land claims settlement process is deeply flawed: * It assumes that no Aboriginal rights apply on Crown land unless Aboriginal nations can prove otherwise. This position is at odds with the doctrine of continuing Aboriginal title and with the duty of the Crown to protect Aboriginal interests. * The government of Canada controls the process. It acts as defender of the Crown's interests and also as judge and jury on claims. This is a clear conflict of interest, since it considers itself the 'loser' when a claim is settled in favour of Aboriginal people. * The process is not generally open to Metis claims, leaving Metis people without a land and resource base and with no way of settling their grievances. * The government has always (except in one instance) required Aboriginal claimants to give up or 'extinguish' their general Aboriginal land rights, in favour of specific terms laid down in the settlement. Aboriginal people cannot accept the rupture of their special relationship with their lands that extinguishment implies. A new process for negotiating the fair distribution of lands and resources is long overdue. The Commission proposes that this be handled as part of a new treaty process (outlined later in the chapter). The process would result in three categories of land allocation: 1. Lands selected from traditional territories that would belong exclusively to Aboriginal nations and be under their sole control. 2. Other lands in their traditional territories that would belong jointly to Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal governments and be the object of shared management arrangements. 3. Land that would belong to and remain under the control of the Crown but to which Aboriginal people would have special rights, such as a right of access to sacred and historical sites. The third one would be the largest category of lands. As a support to the new process, we are recommending establishment of regional treaty commissions and an Aboriginal Lands and Treaties Tribunal. Regional treaty commissions would facilitate and support treaty negotiations but would not conduct negotiations this would remain the responsibility of political leaders. The tribunal would be responsible, first and foremost, for ensuring that treaty negotiations were carried out in good faith and financed fairly. Second, it would ensure that the interests of all parties were protected while treaties were being negotiated. Third, it would rule on discrete, specific claims that are capable of settlement in the short term. The new treaty processes we propose will take time to show results. Steps must be taken in the meantime to provide enough lands and resources to meet Aboriginal nations' immediate needs. * The federal government can help First Nations add to their existing land base by (1) allocating all land promised to them in existing treaties; (2) returning to First Nations all land it has expropriated or bought, then left unused; and (3) establishing a fund to help Aboriginal people purchase land on the open market. * Aboriginal people have been largely excluded from the resource industries of Canada even forestry and fisheries, where they once played a significant part in the labour force. Governments can revise their policies and set up programs to increase access to natural resources for Aboriginal people. * Governments can continue along the route toward co-management arrangements with Aboriginal people. The goal of co-management is shared responsibility for and benefits from particular resources where overlapping interests are great, such as fisheries on the west coast, forestry in many regions, and all resources in certain national and provincial parks. Failure to redistribute land and resources will doom Aboriginal people to a state of dependency on other Canadians a sure recipe for grievance on both sides. Economic Development Aboriginal people want to make a decent living, to be free of dependence on others, free of the social stigma and sense of personal failure that go with dependence, and free of the debilitating effects of poverty. Economic self-reliance will let them thrive as individuals and as nations and make their new governments a success. The historical self-sufficiency of Aboriginal people and nations was destroyed in several ways: * Their control over their lands and resources was diminished or usurped. * New forms of economic activity (agriculture, manufacturing) were monopolized by non-Aboriginal people and businesses. * Governments failed to live up to the spirit and intent of treaty promises to preserve traditional means of self-sufficiency hunting, fishing, trapping, trading and to help Aboriginal people take up the trades and occupations of the settlers if they wished. * Legislation, especially the Indian Act, interfered with economic activity on reserves by restricting the flow of capital and limiting the decision-making capacity of First Nations governments and entrepreneurs. * Businesses, industries and other workplaces have begun only recently and occasionally to welcome and accommodate Aboriginal people as employees. * Education and training facilities have begun only recently and occasionally to support Aboriginal people as students, with the result that few adults are equipped to compete for good jobs. Several factors will make revitalization of Aboriginal economies a big challenge: * Inequality: In 1991, 54 per cent of Aboriginal people had annual incomes of less than $10,000, as compared to 34 per cent of Canadians generally. Unemployment is high, and it has risen noticeably in the last decade as the size of the youth population has swelled. * Rapid labour force growth: Higher birth rates and life expectancy have produced a sharp increase in the Aboriginal population (see graph). The number of children under 16 is especially high, with sobering implications for future job needs. * Variability: Aboriginal nations are located all over the country, from east to west and north to south, from isolated villages to urban enclaves. Most have limited natural resources at their command, although many have riches under their feet. Economic activity in communities ranges from traditional harvesting to modern wage work. Economies may be restricted by the Indian Act, assisted by federal programs or outside the reach of both. Because of this complexity, means and strategies to achieve self- reliance will vary. No single economic development plan or program will work. Ownership of lands and resources is essential to create income and wealth for Aboriginal individuals and nations. But ownership is not enough. Communities and nations that want to control the wealth available from their resources don't want to leave operation of their economies to outside specialists. The challenge of skills development to meet the demands of both modern and traditional economic activity is just beginning to be met in Aboriginal communities. Federal, provincial and territorial governments should co-operate to stimulate economic vitality in both the traditional and the modern sector so that all Aboriginal people have the chance to make a reasonable living, whether as a carver in Cape Dorset, a teacher in Saskatoon, or a part-time trapper and radio technician in Moose Factory. Recent progress in economic development gives rise to hope for a brighter future. But the challenge of turning pockets of progress into a broad transformation of economic life for Aboriginal people remains immense. Levers of Economic Change Transforming Aboriginal economies from dependence to self-reliance will not be easy. The greatest boost for most nations will come from access to a fair share of lands and resources. The results of recent land claims settlements suggest that nations will use their timber, minerals, fish, wildlife and other resources to create jobs, bring in revenue, and lay the foundation of a diversified economy. Access to resources is the key, but increasing the land and resource base is not enough. Other strategies are needed too. Regaining Control As things stand, Aboriginal communities are subject to a changing array of economic development programs, most of them managed from distant government offices. They must tailor their ideas for stimulating the economy to program criteria set by external authorities. We call on federal and provincial governments to enter into long-term development agreements with Aboriginal nations to provide support, advice and stable funding for economic development. Aboriginal nations would design programs, make investment decisions, and be accountable to their people for managing these resources. Regaining control of economic matters without the human resources and capacity to manage them would spell trouble for Aboriginal nations. They must be helped to develop the personnel and the regional and national institutions they need to invest in and manage businesses in specific sectors resource extraction industries, agriculture, communications, tourism, and so on. Business Development Governments have worked with Aboriginal entrepreneurs to help make business development one of the sparks of economic growth in Aboriginal communities. Many have demonstrated their capacity to master a wide range of commercial skills as individual entrepreneurs and as managers of community-owned businesses. * Levels of business formation have been high in recent years. About 10 per cent of Aboriginal people report business ownership or income from self-employment. * Self-employment has increased markedly in the last decade, particularly among Aboriginal women. Entrepreneurs face the same challenges everywhere: the need to plan, raise money, produce a good product and market it effectively. But Aboriginal entrepreneurs face other obstacles too: limited capital for investment, distrust from banks and other financial institutions, absence of local business services and advisers, tiny local markets, and sometimes even hostility at home and from nearby communities. Aboriginal nations have had perhaps their greatest successes through collectively owned enterprises where shares in the company are held by the community or the nation government on behalf of its members. Through their companies, communities run regional airlines. They are involved in forestry management, silviculture, wood harvesting and processing. They run grocery stores and wholesale food distributing networks, motels, hotels, bowling alleys, golf courses and much more. Some have had a rough ride making mistakes, losing investments, sometimes experiencing bankruptcy. But valuable lessons have been learned, and there are now scores of Aboriginal people with the skills and confidence to manage the operations of modern commercial enterprises. They, and those who would follow in their footsteps, still need support. We recommend that Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal governments work together to develop * improved business services * improved access to loan and equity capital, including the creation of a national Aboriginal development bank * improved access to markets ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Internet: don.rayment@uptowne.com (Don Rayment) This message was processed by NetXpress from Merlin Systems Inc. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- This multi-part series will be presented over the next several issues. My thanks to Don and Paul for bringing this to my attention. gary --------- "RE: Working At Voisey's Bay" --------- Date: Fri, 31 Jan 1997 16:05:10 -0500 From: Larry Innes Subj: Working At Voisey's Bay - A Personal Account Mailing List: INNU-L Working at Voisey's Bay by Kanikuen Nuna I arrived with another fellow at the Voisey's Bay camp early spring 1995. We were the first few people hired from our community of Sheshatshiu. There were also a few more from Davis Inlet. We started our morning at 6:30 a.m. with a wake-up call. Seven to nine choppers would be going up each morning to the drill sites for the drillers' shift change. They worked around the clock on 8 to 12-hour shifts. The camp personnel, including me, worked 8-hour shifts, 7 days a week for three weeks straight and then we got 10 days off to go home. I worked there from April to June. It was quite difficult for married men to live like this day-to-day. We constantly thought about our children. There were times when we were only allowed to phone home once a week for five minutes. This was not enough time to talk to the family, the wife and the kids. After a couple of weeks, I got to know a few of the other people I was working with. There were a few I never got to know. We were probably too busy, I guess, but before I left in June I got to talk to a number of people there. A few of the guys had some negative things to say about how people from outside were taking jobs away from the locals. We felt we were capable of doing those jobs. I told people I thought the Innu and Inuit could handle the jobs and that the foreman's son shouldn't have been hired for a job that the people from our small communities needed to support their families. People were being hired because they were the relatives or friends who were running the camp. I don't think that was fair. The Innu and Inuit workers held a few meetings amongst ourselves to see how we felt about what was happening and who should be doing what about it. We felt we were being hired for many jobs - for example: core shack technicians, prospectors, line cutters and drillers - but none of us was getting promoted. In the meantime people from outside were working only 2 or 3 weeks and getting the promotions. We felt this was discrimination, but it seemed like nobody wanted to speak up, fearing they would lose their jobs. I, for one, really felt that people from the outside were taking our jobs away. We also talked about our concerns, like what was going to happen to the environment. One guy was from Davis Inlet. I'm sorry to say I didn't have any answers for him when he said how much people depended on the land. If there is no land, as he put it, there will be no animals to hunt or fish to eat, or plants for the animals to eat. He said if these don't exist, we as hunters will cease to exist too. Another Innu talked about a problem he was having at the camp. He was being called "Chief" by a few of his co-workers and he was offended by this. We talked about this at our meetings. There were other comments being made to us that we found offensive. We took it up with the foreman. But these were his friends and relatives who were saying these things to us, so he couldn't really do anything. He wasn't going to fire his relatives. There were a lot of problems with the environment - pollution like oil spills, cut trees and garbage scattered all over the place around the camp. They were burning garbage but sometimes they would leave it for a week. Bears and small animals would take it out into the woods and make a mess. Also the workers would feed the bears, so they would come back to the camp or drill sites for food. Sometimes the workers would taunt the bears and throw sticks at them. The bear would start approaching them and then turn back into the woods. It would eventually end of getting shot. There was a no feeding policy for bears, but everybody seemed to ignore that. I was upset when they shot the animals. There was no need. They weren't doing anything they didn't naturally do, like feeding on berries and small plants. Sometimes the choppers would come in and try to scare the bears away. They would hover over treetops to scare animals. The poor animals must have been having heart attacks running for miles and miles to get away. Bears are not meant to run like this. One time we saw a bear on the hill about a half-mile away. It was huge; it must have been about 8 feet tall and weighed about 500 pounds. About 10 workers headed for the hill with knives and sticks to have a look at it and scare it. In the end, the reason I quit was because I didn't want to see what was happening to the environment. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kanikuen Nuna is a Sheshatshiu Innu presently doing a program in Micro-Computer Business Applications at CompuCollege in St. John's. This story and others are available on the Innu Nation/Mamit Innuat WWW site: http://www.web.net/~innu --------- "RE: Pocahontas Descendents' Land" --------- Date: Mon, 3 Feb 1997 17:01:50 GMT From: cliu@queens.lib.ny.us (Carol Liu) Subj: Pocahontas Descendents' Land and River Threatened (fwd) ------------- From: Mark Graffis Subject: Pocahontas Descendents' Land and River Threatened Newsgroups: apc.indig.info,soc.culture.native,alt.native WILLIAMSBURG, VA February 1, 1997 A proposed 2,220 acre reservoir in King William County, Virginia, threatens to destroy the ancestral lands, drain water from the Mattaponi river, and disrupt the way of life of the Mattaponi Indians, who are the direct descendents of Pocahontas and Chief Powhatan, and whose reservation here is the oldest Indian reservation in the U.S. A contract has been signed for the reservoir by the City of Newport News and the King William County Board of Supervisors, without consultation or participation of the Mattaponi peoples whose ancestral lands will be inundated, and who have always depended on the freshwater marshes of the Mattaponi River for the shad, herring, and striped bass that have sustained their people for generations. Besides inundating valuable Mattaponi archaeological sites, the reservoir will destroy 524 acres of wetlands and 1,457 acres of upland wildlife habitat, and will pump 75,000,000 gallons of water daily from the Mattaponi river, upstream from the reservation, thus destroying the freshwater marshes by reducing freshwater flow into the estuary, and causing salination to migrate upstream from the York River and Chesapeake Bay. The reservoir and pumping station will also disrupt a bald eagle nest, osprey nests, and 17 great blue heron nests, as well as 112 Native American campsites that could provide archaeological information on life in Tidewater Virginia up to 8,000 years ago. For further information, contact Assistant Chief Carl T. Custalow of the Mattaponi tribe at 1-804-769-4508 --------- "RE: Huron Indian Cemetery" --------- Date: Thu, 06 Feb 1997 12:05:56 -0500 From: "D. English" Subj: Legal Assistance Needed to Protect Huron Indian Cemetery Mailing List: TRIBALLAW (triballaw@thecity.sfsu.edu) The Wyandot Nation of Kansas has been involved in a legal battle to preserve the sanctity of the Huron Indian Cemetery in Kansas City Kansas for the pat 130 years. The most recent threat to the sanctity of the cemetery has been that of a casino development utilizing the Huron Indian Cemetery as a site for the gaming facility by the Wyandotte Tribe of Oklahoma. Chief Leaford Bearskin initially proposed disinterring the graves at the Huron Indian Cemetery, moving them to Oklahoma and building a casino on the site. Never mind the fact the Oklahoma Wyandottes left Kansas in the 1860's and haven't buried anyone there for over 130 years... We need legal assistance in the worst way!! Please take a look at the Huron Cemetery website and see if you can offer any assistance. The website has all of the pertinent documentation, including persuasive legal arguments against the fee to trust transfer for the purposes of Class III gaming, by Kansas Governor Bill Graves. Thank you for your help. Darren English Wyandot Nation of Kansas Cultural Coordinator -------------------------------------> Darren Z. English / Chihoatenhwa denglish@sfo.com http://www.sfo.com/~denglish Huron Indian Cemetery Preservation Site "CURSED BE THE VILLIAN THAT MOLEST THEIR GRAVES" http://www.sfo.com/~denglish/huroncemetery Wyandot Nation of Kansas http://www.sfo.com/~denglish/wynaks/wyandot2.html Remember... Custer was warned. --------- "RE: Senator John McCain at the NCAI" --------- Date: Mon, 10 Feb 1997 07:30:21 -0800 (PST) From: tlingit (William E. Martin) Subj: Senator John McCain (fwd) -------------- From: BillnNorCa@aol.com Date: Mon, 10 Feb 1997 02:12:16 -0500 (EST) To: tlingit@netcom.com UUCP email Thanks to Bill for Transcribing these critical speeches from the Winter NCAI. The next few issues will include speeches from the following: 1. NCAI President Ron Allen 2. Senator Daniel Inouye (D-HI) 3. Representative Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) 4. Secretary of Interior Bruce Babbit 5. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) Senator John McCain's speech at the NCAI Winter Session: NCAI Winter Session Grand Hyatt Washington Washington, DC January 21-24, 1997 Honorable John McCain (R-AZ) Former Chairman, Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Thank you very much, Mr. President. It's wonderful to see all my friends again and I apologize for being so late in the week and I know that some people had to leave, but first I want to say how much I've enjoyed working with you my friend, it's been a great pleasure, you've got a wonderful staff and much of what we have been able to accomplish has got a lot to do with your outstanding leadership and I'm grateful for it. I would like to say, first of all, I feel the Indian Affairs Committee is in good hands with Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell. I will remain a member of the Committee, I will remain active, and I will also be able to address some of these issues as Chairman of the Commerce Committee. There are a myriad of programs that have to do with economic development that fall under the oversight and responsibilities of the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee. It covers every imaginable, it covers everything that moves or talks, to tell you the truth, NASA, the railroads, the airlines, and telecommunications and many other. So I will be able to do some good work there, and by the way, Senator Inouye is on that committee also. I have been assured by the new Chairman, Senator Campbell, that he will continue the non-partisan basis that the Indian Affairs Committee has it's business over the last eleven years that Senator Inouye and I have. It's been a great privilege to serve with Senator Inouye, he is a spiritual leader of mine and a man who has the greatest concern for those of our society that need help, but more importantly, I know no stronger supporter of the concept of self-government and tribal sovereignty and he will be there for a long long time. Let me just run through a couple of issues with you very quickly. By the way, Bill Cohen will hear of this and as the in-coming Secretary of Defense he will still remember that he was once friends with me. He may not remember for long but I'll remember to remind him of that! Note: The Senator was commenting on a previous comment made by a delegate about the storage of nuclear waste sites on Indian land by the Defense Department. As for the Indian Child Welfare Act. We're not going to quit on it, we'll not allow situations where children are allowed to be kidnapped, nor are we going to allow for situations where some in the House and some in the Senate want to do and that is to take away the ability of tribes to be involved in this issue. The National Right to Life organization, as you know, was able to mis-characterize the Tulsa Agreement. My job, and yours, is to provide the right information to the American people. The Right to Life People have said that this would discourage adoption, but exactly the opposite is true. The reason I want to mention this first, is because I know of no greater obligation we have than to our children. I would suggest that we continue to make this a very high priority item on our agenda. I am embarrassed and ashamed that Congress would not be able to agree to a hard fought compromise that was made between all parties who were really involved (in Tulsa at the mid-summer NCAI Session). The other I want to mention to you is Indian gaming. There will be more assaults on Indian gaming. I'm sure you know that the Chairman of the Commission, Mr. Monteau, has resigned, we're going to have to look for a good replacement for him. There are ballot initiatives all over the Country, there are court challenges, there are all kinds of things. Let me just remind you that when we talk to our friends that only about 7% of all gaming revenues in America are from Indian gaming. To talk to most Americans, because of the publicity and propaganda is presented, you would think it was 97% from Indian gaming. There is a report of legal difficulties that have been placed before that issue, I just saw some of my friends from New Mexico yesterday, there is still a problem over there. In Arizona, we do have some function compacting with one tribe that there is a problem with, but it is going to be a bigger and bigger issue. Not just the issue with gambling, but the hope of the issue of Indian gaming as well. You may note that the Congress passed a bill to study gambling in America 2E Many Americans are concerned with the effect of gambling in America, so w e will have that commission and when they report out, we will be some re-verberations associated with that. Not so much with Indian gaming but on gambling as well. The other issue I would like to talk about is economic development because that's really the crucial issue that lies before us. I went down and looked at the Choctaw Tribe in Mississippi and I see a booming economy. I've gone to other tribes across America and see a booming economy, I go to other tribal entities and I see devastation and degradation at a level that is not in any other parts of the country. Part of this is got to do with giving Native Americans a level playing field. Programs such as the DOD programs, many other programs and providing business with the knowledge and information that they need in order to come to Indian Reservations and locate there. I have to tell you, one of the greatest impediments to economic development on Indian Reservations or Indian Country is Tribal Governments! In Flagstaff, Arizona, it takes between three to five days to start a business, three to five days to get the permits, go to the City Council, whatever requirements are necessary to set up the business, get the electricity turned on, etc. In Window Rock, Arizona, it takes between three to five years to start a business! No young Native American is going to stay in an environment where it takes three to five years to start a business, they're not going to do it! Socialism doesn't work! I suggest that there are models out there, such as the Choctaw, and there are many others, many other tribes throughout America, and I would be glad to provide you with a list, who have created a business friendly environment both for outside businesses to come in, or businesses s to begin on the Reservation. I would look to them as models and adopt tribal laws and regulations that are like those and then we would take a great step forward. Now that does not relieve the Federal government of it's obligations to you that are treaty sound obligations, nor do I make such because there are solemn treaties that were entered into that must be adhered to and kept and I will do everything in my power to make sure that those obligations to make sure that those commitments are fulfulled. They are solemn treaty obligations. They are no more different than the treaty obligations we've made with the Soviet Union for the reduction of nuclear weapons. But you've got to create the economic climate that makes young Native Americans not move to Flagstaff, not move to Phoenix or Scottsdale and start businesses on reservations. I'll tell you another story. I was on a reservation before another tribal election. Two guys came up to me, they were running a dry cleaners and one of them said to me, "You know, if so-and-so wins the election, I'm out of business". I said "Why?", he said "Because I'm supporting this guy". The wrong guy won and guess what? They were put out of business! You can't do that! You can't do that! I say that in the spirit of which it was intended. Let me just mention again. With Indian housing, we've been trying for years together, we've been striving to give the tribes the authority and responsibility and the money and exercise themselves. We've succeeded, and guess what? We've got some corruption out there. Many of you saw the Seattle Times series that was done. One couple who, with a combined income of over $150,000 a year just built a $250,000 home with housing money. There's this kind of things happening in Phoenix, Arizona, in Chicago, Illinois, and many other parts of America. We've got to clean this up, we've got to police this, we've got to make sure that these dollars are spend in the most wise and efficient fashion and those that violate have got to be punished and those that don't have got to be rewarded in every possible way you've got to reward people who do good work. If there is a Tribal Council, if there's a Tribal Chairman who is condoning this misuse of funds, throw them out! Otherwise, you're going to be seeing the FBI and a whole lot of other organizations in Indian Country which we don't need. So, I want to urge you because this could derail our whole effort to give authority, responsibility, and funds necessary for tribes to run themselves because this is the whole concept of tribal sovereignty and tribal self- governance. We've got to make sure that we don't see these articles in the newspaper about the misuse of funds. By the way, you and I know that this is maybe 1/2 of 1%, the other 99 44/100% of the others are doing a fine and dedicated job. My friends, I don't see sympathy. When Dan Rostenkowski goes to jail, some people may think I'm a crook too! So please take this advice in the spirit of which it is intended and I promise you that the best way that we could succeed together and recognize and make sure that all Americans recognize that tribal sovereignty and tribal self-governance is a solemn promise that we made to Native Americans when we took all that land and committed some of the blackest and most despicable deeds in the history of this nation, must be honored and the best way that we can honor that is by having the best possible leadership that we can in Indian Nations throughout the country. I want to say to you that I will not quit in the fight, I will keep it up, I will work with Senator Inouye, I will work with you, and finally want to say one of the great honors and pleasures and privileges and most important things in my life is with the relationships and friendships that I have developed over the years with people in this room and Tribal leaders and members of Indian tribes throughout this nation has been the greatest source of satisfaction to me. When I retire or die, whichever happens first as it seems to be some question about that in the Senate these days, I will be able to......in fact there's a rumor about some guy who died and remained in the Senate.....but I would look back at one of my greatest sources of satisfaction to me would be the things that we have been able to accomplish together on behalf of Native American People. Thank you very much and God bless you. Questions and Comments Q. Good morning, Senator McCain, I hope that God continues to bless you, as you've been a good friend. It's something that makes grown men cry to see what happens to our children and they get away with it so we'll be there if it takes my life forever. I have a question on relation to the Pryce activity and the initiative you were working on last year, is that on the plate for this session? A. Yes, we will continue that. A problem is, that we have a new Congress. We have 20 new Republican Senators over the last two years. We have almost two thirds of the House of Representatives are new members, Republicans and Democrats. There is no corporate memory over these issues. There is no one who remembers why Mo Udall was so concerned over what was happening to Indian children that we passed a law to begin with. Our job is to educate these people, why do we have ICWA? Because children were being kidnapped , children, American citizens were being kidnapped. So one of our big problems, and this is why I think NCAI is so important to be here in Washington is we've got to educate these people about the fundamental relationship, but also about specific issues such as ICWA and by the way, Indian gaming as well. We will continue with those economic initiatives and we will continue, and I'm glad to say Pete Domenici among others is very committed on that. Q. It appears that in the House it's going to be ICWA issue again is going to be folded into a larger adoption issue. It looks like this time the administration is going to be a strong advocate. A. I'm going to use every parliamentary tactic I know. I mean it, there are other ways to include amendments to a bill and let they try to knock it out. One of the benefits about getting old, is that you learn all the tricks, and since they did not play fair to us last time, I feel no compunctions to alert them as to how our plans in the future for us, but believe me I am not going to quit on that. Q. Randy Noka, Narragansett Tribe of Rhode Island. I just want to take this opportunity to thank you, sir. It's been several months since it passed, but most folks are aware of the omnibus bill that was passed last year and Senator Chaffee's amendment that was attached to that appropriations bill 2E I haven't had the chance to thank you for your strong opposition to that amendment and your floor statement that you made in support of the Narragansett Nation and in support of Indian Country and protecting sovereignty. The good work that you have done for the Native people of this land, the accolades would never touch on the amount of thanks we can give and the appreciation we have for you and Senator Inouye and others that speak up in favor of tribal sovereignty for Indian People. Again, thank you sir for all that you have done. A. Thank you very much. You don't mind if I invite you out to Arizona in the upcoming campaign?! At this point, Senator McCain was presented with posters from Miss NCAI, Ke-dues-cha Lara of California, and a Pendleton Blanket by President Allen. --------- "RE: Pai Ohana Faces Eviction" --------- Date: Sun, 2 Feb 1997 07:07:32 -1000 From: monet@aloha.net (Sam Monet) Subj: Pai Ohana faces eviction from National Park Newsgroup: igc.indig.survival Pai Ohana faces eviction from National Park By Bobby Command West Hawaii Today 1/30/96 Members of a Native Hawaiian family who claim a section of a national park in Kona is their ancestral land have been told by park officials to leave now or be evicted. The Pai Ohana was notified in writing by Stanley T. Albright, field director for the Department of the Interior, "immediately" to leave Aiopio, southernmost portion of Kaloko-Honokohau National Cultural Park where they now reside. "If the Pai Ohana does not promptly an completely vacate federal land, the family will be evicted and their possessions will be removed," read a hand-delivered letter dated Jan.27. Mahealani Pai, spokesman for the Pai Ohana, confirmed that the family had received the eviction notice on Wednesday. However, he said the family has reasserted its right to remain on land he says his ancestors have been caretakers of since the I7OOs. "Why should we?" Pai said. "What would you do?" The eviction notice comes about six weeks after an agreement had seemingly been finalized by the Pai Ohana and state and federal government; officials. The pact had called for the family to he relocated on state land just outside the park boundaries and adjacent to the area they now occupy. In December, U.S. Sen. Daniel K. Inouye announced that Bruce Babbitt, secretary of the interior, had agreed to put off the eviction while final relocation details were worked out with the state. But Albright said Wednesday that the eviction notice was issued to the family because the Pai Ohana had abandoned the negotiations. Because of the recent actions of the Pai Ohana, Inouye said he could not, in good conscience, ask Babbitt for any more special consideration. "While I am disappointed with the decision of the Pai Ohana, I wish Mahealani and his family Godspeed." Pai now says he has evidence that proves the United States is prevented from holding fee-simple title in the Hawaiian Islands by existing treaties. Pai said he would elaborate further this morning during a 10 a.m. press conference at Aiopio. The Pai Ohana and the Interior Department have been at an impasse about the family's right to remain at Aloplo since 1993, when a federal use permit expired. The Pai family agreed to the permit in 1988, when Kaloko-Honokohau was purchased by the U.S. government from the Greenwell family. Pai has consistently argued that the family does not need permission to live at Aloplo because it has an inextinguishable right to be on the five-acre plot. But National Park officials counter that the family is seeking exclusive use of public lands. The Pai Ohana has already lost two federal court battles in its efforts to remain on the land, which is just north of the mouth of Honokohau Small Boat Harbor. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals gave the Interior Department the authority to evict the Pai Ohana in May 1996. Park officials have called off seven eviction threats since the Pai Ohana's use permit expired. According to Holly Bundock of the National Park Service's San Francisco regional office, negotiations between the Pai Ohana and government officials have broken down because the family will not keep its commitment to relocate peacefully. "The Pai's have stated in a letter to (President Clinton) that they hold exclusive title to nearly 60 acres of federal land within the park and that any federal personnel who attempt to remove them 'will be held accountable,"' Bundock said. Pai said his family remains steadfast despite the National Park Service "banking on might makes right" to evict them. "The land of my ancestors continues to speak to me and give me and my family guidance through this long struggle with the National Park Service," Pai said. ___________________________________________________________ | Hawai`i - Independent & Sovereign | | exec@hawaii-nation.org http://hawaii-nation.org/ | |___________________________________________________________| "The cause of Hawaii and independence is larger and dearer than the life of any man connected with it. Love of country is deep- seated in the breast of every Hawaiian, whatever his station." - Queen Lili`uokalani _______________________________________________________________ Sam & Julie Monet P.O. Box 309 Haleiwa, Hawai'i 96712 Sam: Ph (808) 638-8934 Julie: Ph (808 638-7299) Fax: 638-8018 email: monet@aloha.net --------- "RE: Peace Delegate Seeks Help" --------- Date: Sat, 8 Feb 1997 02:41:12 -0500 (EST) From: Spikegritz@aol.com Subj: Native Peace Delegate Seeks Travel Assistance for Bosnia Pow Wow journey UUCP email Gary: Post only if you feel appropriate: I have been invited to go and hear a plan for peace....not just for Bosnia, but for the whole world, that must begin with the Native Peoples of North America. So says the Virgin Mary, who has been appearing in Bosnia daily for many years! Although I am not a roman-catholic, I firmly believe that Mother Mary and White Buffalo Calf Woman could very well be one in the same. Their message is the same...Peace and Unity. I want to go because of a dream I had a few weeks ago, in which a voice simply told me "Hopi (which means peace in the Hopi language) before it is too late." For background, go to the website: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Plains/3706 (use exact spelling--include upper case where I use them) to read the astonishing message about the very sacred things that have been happening in Bosnia, and why the Virgin Mary wants representatives from all Native American Nations to go to Bosnia and pray for peace. World Wars One and Two started over Bosnia, which has been called :"The Tinderbox of the World." The next world war, if it happens, will affect all of the world, because Nuclear Weapons will certainly be used! There are also many of you out there that may be being led to attend this event also. Remember Close Encounters? Call me at 801-686-2568 or 686-2567 for details. If no one answers at 686-2567, leave a message with your e-mail address at 686-2568. I will be sending and checking e-mail every hour or two for the next few days. Please understand that it is very awkward for me to ask, but anyone wishing to help out with donations of any size to get me over and back, please send them to: Scott Anderson "Runningbull" PO Box 44 LaSal, Utah 84530 It will take about $2000 to get me over and back, so please help if you can. Any amount will help! Make Money Orders payable to Scott Anderson. Send to PO Box 44, LaSal, Utah 84530 Time is of the essence. If you decide to send a donation, please take the time to send a money order. I know many of you won't be able to help financially, but some of you will. If you can't help financially, please pray for me, my journey, and world peace! Please e-mail me if you are helping with my expenses and how much you are sending, if anything, so I can make concrete plans. I'd also like to hear from you if you are praying for me on this trip. I will share the message of this plan for world peace that is being given by the Virgin Mary, who many Lakota and others believe was White Buffalo Calf Pipe Woman. The has been appearing daily in Medjugorje, Bosnia daily for a few years. Oh-nah (later) Scott "Runningbull" Anderson Blue Lodge of Aniyunwiya (Cherokee) Editor of TIMBER! Newsletter of Prophecies of Native Peoples Worldwide and Mother Earth's Coming Changes at http://members.aol.com/spikegritz/mw44/bluelodg.htm --------- "RE: Obtaining Eagle Feathers" --------- Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 01:24:26 GMT From: ltate@hiwaay.net (Les Tate) Subj: obtaining eagle feathers from National Eagle Repository Newsgroups: apc.indig.info,soc.culture.native,alt.native Information is now available on the Web about the National Eagle Repository and how federally recognized tribal members may obtain eagle feathers from it. However I recommend you first read the regulations below, then visit their website which has copies of the necessary forms in WordPerfect 5.2 for Windows format and the address to write if you need paper copies. I've included text from the main webpage below for those without browsers. Les Tate ---------- 50 CFR Sec. 22.22 Title 50 CHAPTER I SUBCHAPTER B PART 22 Subpart C Sec. 22.22 Permits for Indian religious purposes. The Director may, upon receipt of an application and in accordance with the issuance criteria of this section, issue a permit authorizing the taking, possession, and transportation of bald or golden eagles, or their parts, nests, or eggs for the religious use of Indians. (a) Application procedure. Applications for permits to take, possess, and transport bald or golden eagles, their parts, nests, or eggs for the religious use of Indians shall be submitted to the appropriate Special Agent in Charge (See: Sec. 13.11(b) of this subchapter). Only applications from individual Indians will be accepted. Each such application must contain the general information and certification required by Sec. 13.12(a) of this subchapter plus the following additional information: (1) Species and number of eagles or feathers proposed to be taken, or acquired by gift or inheritance. (2) State and local area where the taking is proposed to be done, or from whom acquired. (3) Name of tribe with which applicant is associated. (4) Name of tribal religious ceremony(ies) for which required. (5) Applicant must attach a certification from the Bureau of Indian Affairs that the applicant is an Indian. (6) Applicant must attach a certification from a duly authorized official of the religious group that the applicant is authorized to participate in such ceremonies. (b) Additional permit conditions. In addition to the general conditions set forth in Part 13 of this Subchapter B, permits to take, possess, and transport bald or golden eagles, their parts, nests or eggs, for the religious use of Indians shall be subject to the following conditions: (1) Bald or golden eagles or their parts possessed under permits issued pursuant to this section are not transferable, except such birds or their parts may be handed down from generation to generation or from one Indian to another in accordance with tribal or religious customs; and (2) Permittees shall make such reports or submit inventories of eagle feathers or parts on hand as may be requested by the Special Agent in Charge. (c) Issuance criteria. The Director shall conduct an investigation and not issue a permit to take, possess, and transport bald or golden eagles, their parts, nests or eggs, for the religious use of Indians unless he has determined that such taking, possession, and transportation is compatible with the preservation of the bald or golden eagle. In making such determination, the Director shall consider, among other criteria, the following: (1) The direct or indirect effect which issuing such permit would be likely to have upon the wild populations of bald or golden eagles; and (2) Whether the applicant is an Indian who is authorized to participate in bonafide tribal religious ceremonies. (d) Tenure of permits. Any permit issued pursuant to this section under which the applicant is authorized to take eagles shall be valid during the period specified on the face thereof which shall in no case be longer than 1 year from date of issue. Any permit issued pursuant to this part which authorizes the permittee to transport and possess eagles or their parts shall be valid for the life of the permittee unless sooner revoked. -------- Division of Law Enforcement National Eagle Repository The National Eagle Repository is located at Rocky Mountain Arsenal northeast of Denver, Colorado. Its purpose is to provide a central location for the receipt, storage, and distribution of bald and golden eagles that are found dead, and their parts. The eagles, and their parts, are shipped to qualified Native Americans for use in religious Indian ceremonies. It is illegal for any individual to possess a bald or golden eagle, including its parts (feathers, feet, etc). The distribution of bald and golden eagles, and their parts to Native Americans is authorized by the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act and Regulations found in 50 CFR 22. Qualified Native Americans wishing to obtain bald or golden eagles or their parts, must submit an application to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Wildlife Permit Office which services the state where the applicant resides. The completed application is sent to the National Eagle Repository and the order is filled on a first come, first serve basis. In 1995, there were approximately 3,00 more approved applications for eagles on file than there were available eagles. Federal and State conservation agencies, zoological parks, rehabilitators, and others who may legally possess and transport dead bald and golden eagles are encouraged to send the dead birds, and their parts, to the Repository so they can be re utilized by Native Americans. Contact the Repository prior to shipping of the eagles to ensure someone will be present to receive them. The National Eagle Repository may be contacted at: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Eagle Repository Rocky Mountain Arsenal, Building 619 Commerce City, Colorado 80022 303/287-2110 ---------- Their website has copies of the necessary forms in WordPerfect 5.2 for Windows format and the address to write if you need paper copies. http://r6alph.irm.r6.fws.gov/www/fws/law/le65.html You may also want to take a look at the National Wildlife Property Repository since they may be able to supply other items such as furs, bones, claws, etc. http://r6alph.irm.r6.fws.gov/www/fws/law/le64.html Les Tate --------- "RE: Tobacco Education Volunteers" --------- Date: Thu, 6 Feb 1997 10:40:43 -0700 (MST) From: joseph c winter Subj: TOBACCO EDUCATION VOLUNTEERS UUCP email Volunteers are needed to help with tobacco health and culture education presentations at six Native American events this spring. There will also be other presentations later in the year. The presentations will be made by the Traditional Native American Tobacco Seed Bank and Education Program (TNAT) at the University of New Mexico, which was formed to help reduce the use of commercial tobacco by native youth. Volunteers are needed to serve from 1-2 hours each at education tables, where information about the deadly health effects of commercial tobacco use and the positive role of traditional sacred tobacco in Native American society will be handed out. Information about TNAT and an affiliated organization -- Tionantati -- will also be handed out. These and later events will occur throughout the country. If you are planning to attend one of these events, or you live in the general area, we could use your help. The events are: BLACKJACK MOUNTAIN NATIVE AMERICAN FESTIVAL - April 12-13 - near Tyus, Georgia - a family-oriented powwow (social gathering with dances), along with a buckskinner rendezvous NAVAJO STUDIES CONFERENCE - April 17-19 - University of New Mexico, Albuquerque NM - educational conference with native and non-native scholars, students, elders, and other members of Navajo tribe; held concurrently with Nizhonni Days (UNM Native American student organization's annual week-long festival) and AISES Regional Conference (see below). In addition to the education table, TNAT will also be hosting a day-long symposium on the Navajo use of traditional and commercial tobacco, and the negative health effects of the latter. AISES REGION III ANNUAL CONFERENCE - April 17-19 - annual conference of native students, scholars, and other professionals, of the Southwest regional branch of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society - at University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, concurrent with Navajo Studies Conference GATHERING OF NATIONS - April 25-26 - Albuquerque, NM - largest powwow in North America, with up to 80,000 people expected to attend. In addition to the education table, we will be making a short presentation to the whole audience, immediately before the grand entry. KEEPERS OF THE TREASURES Annual Conference - April 28-30 - in Anchorage Alaska - meeting of Native American elders, students, scholars, professionals, etc. involved in cultural resource management and the preservation of tradition FIREHAIR'S POWWOW - annual festival of the Native American Heritage Association - May 31-June 1 - family-oriented powwow hosted by the Native American Heritage Association of Franklin County - near Bunn NC Hopefully some of you will be attending one or another of these powwows and conferences, or you live in the area and you might be willing to help. Even if you can't help at our tables, please visit and introduce yourselves. If you can donate an hour or two, send me an email at the following address. Thanks!!! ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Joseph C. Winter Phone: 505-277-5853 Director, Traditional Native American Tobacco FAX: 505-277-6726 Seed Bank and Education Program email:jwinter@unm.edu University of New Mexico 1717 Lomas Blvd NE Albuquerque, NM 87131 USA http://www.treaty7.org/friends/tnat/tnat.htm --------- "RE: Poem: Defenders of the Shuswap Nations" --------- Date: Sun, 1 Dec 96 18:05:00 GMT From: Suzan Horovitch Subj: poem for WI UUCP email [Suzan sent this several weeks past. I apologize for the delay in sharing it. gary] Night Owl: I was at a prose and poetry reading last night and was most taken with the quality and intensity of some of the young McGill University students poets. After David read this one I talked to him and he gave me permission to submit it to Wotanging Ikche for publication. ------------------------ Submitted by Suzan Horovitch Written by David Neudorfer: Jazz-poet for Montreal's rhythmic Missionaries ( a jazz-poetry ensemble featuring four poets and four musicians, Trumpet, Saxophone, Bass and Drums) @ email : neudorf@discovland.net DEFENDERS OF THE SHUSWAP NATIONS (SUNDANCERS AT GUSTAFSEN LAKE, B.C.) " It is important for those people given the power to enforce the law to refrain from using force and to be patient above all else." -Assembly of First Nations Chief - Ovide Mercredi 1. treaty land? non-treaty land? who knows? (they ain't my people so...) who cares? 2. (BNA ACT,INDIAN ACT, ACT 1, ACT 11, ACTS, FACTS, ETC.= royal declaration of wrongs or royal right to genocide or simply royal SHIT!) 3. dancing sun blood negotiates 4. modern rcmp: clickclick Bang! Bang! shoot em up clickclick Bang! Bang! Put em up oops - you dead we win - victory victory! 5. CONSTITUTIONAL COLONIALISTS! what's new legal victims? CONSTITUTIONAL GENOCIDE! 6. CENTURIES of WHITE JUSTICE by David Neudorfer --------- "RE: Verse: Hawai'ian Book of Days" --------- Date: 97/02/02 22:59 From: Debra F. Sanders (dfsanders@genie.geis.com) Subj: Verse: Hawai'ian Book of Days genie email A HAWAIIAN BOOK OF DAYS, week of February 16-22 IANUALI (January) (Kaelo) 16 In our children lie the blessings of our heritage. 17 When entering the secret valley, knock three times, ... and see who answers! 18 My hopes are cast, like stars, upon the sky. 19 I am a keiki o ka aina, a true child of the land! 20 My hope lies in the future; my strength lies in the past; my survival lies in the joining of the two. 21 Look into the eyes of a stranger, ... and find a friend. 22 Trust in the lessons of our heritage. (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, 13 February 97 08:00 -0500 From: Janet Smith (evestar@juno.com) Subj: Upcoming conferences and powwows not previously posted to Mailing Lists NATCHAT or NATIVE-L UUCP email Date: Wed, 5 Feb 1997 05:06:30 -0700 From: "Debra M. Strom" Subj: Region I Conference Mailing List: AISESnet Discussion List (aisesnet@victor.umt.edu) Subject: Region I Conference The 1997 Region I Conference will take place March 6-8 at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. This year's theme is BUILDING STRONG COMMUNITIES: SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, and NATIVE VALUES. This also marks the first time the conference will be in Alaska. The DEADLINE for registration and travel scholarships has passed, but there is still some space as long as we hear from you SOON!!!! Partial Travel Scholarships for qualified students are available through generous donations from IBM and Alyeska Pipeline. Those that had applications in on time will be reviewed first. There will be a campus-wide career-fair on March 6th, and several sessions geared towards high school students. The conference coincides with the 24th Annual Festival of Native Arts which will bring over 25 dance groups from Alaska, Russia, and Canada as well as various Native artists and craftspeople. This three day event is something not to be missed. For more information contact the UAF AISES Chapter at (907) 474-1995 or email at fsmmb1@aurora.alaska.edu ----------------------------------- For the past few years, one of my sources other than online for powwow information east of the Mississippi has been a monthly newsletter called The Spike. Recently, when my husband and I began organizing a Native American/Buckskinner festival that will occur in April, we listed in the Spike, and we've received a good number of calls mentioning it. The Spike has always been right on the edge financially, and it remains thus today. It performs a valuable service to the Native American community and its friends in the Eastern U.S. If you'd like a reliable, informative source of powwow information in the East, you CANNOT do better than subscribe to The Spike. Subscription cost is $36 in the US, and $38 US on U.S. Postal Money Order in Canada -- they also accept VISA and Mastercard. Send address information and payment to The Spike, P.O. Box 368 Milltown, NJ 08850 or call 1-908-656-0074. From The Spike: Feb. 15 3rd Annual Honor Our Youth Dance, Rockville, MD Info: 202-234-8631 Feb. 22-23 9th Annual Powwow, Lima, OH Info: 419-228-1097 Feb. 22-23 MSU 14th Annual Powwow, E. Lansing, MI Info: 517-353-5255 Feb. 13-16 Second Annual North Florida Native American Powwow Green Cove Springs, FL Info: 904-692-2637 Feb. 14-16 59th Annual Brighton Field Day and Rodeo, Brighton Reservation, FL Info: 941-763-4128 Feb. 14-16 13th Annual Native American & Pioneer Heritage Days Festival, Naples, FL Info: 941-394-3397 Feb. 21-23 6th Annual American Indian Festival, St. Augustine, FL. Info: 904-756-7900 Feb. 22 Native American Powwow at NC School of Science and Mathematics at the Phys-Ed Center, Durham, NC. Info: 919-286-9401 ===================================================================== -------------------------------------------------------------------------- --//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//-- 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: Ishgooda via Freedom Heart Rising, Sharleen Williams, Prison News Service, Joe Don Chipps, Larry Innes, Debra F. Sanders, Janet Smith, Darren English, David Neudorfer via Suzan Horovitch, Jon Norstog, Andrea M. Thein, Les Tate, Paul Antone via Don Rayment, Mark Graffis via Carol Liu, Drusha L. Mayhue, Andi, William E. Martin, Scott "Runningbull" Anderson, Stephen Kishewitsch, Dave Chief via Elaine Flattery, Jerry Lee Curtis via Laurie Anne Whitt -//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//-- ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Part B of this newsletter has already been distributed via the NATIVE-L or NATCHAT mailing lists. --------- "RE: Conferences and Powwows - online" --------- Date: Thu, 13 February 97 08:00 -0500 From: Janet Smith (evestar@juno.com) Subj: Upcoming conferences and powwows already posted to Mailing Lists NATCHAT or NATIVE-L UUCP email Date: Tue, 28 Jan 1997 00:16:34 -0600 From: lpcohan@students.wisc.edu (Leslie Parker Cohan) Subj: Wisconsin Indian Law Conference (22 February) Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) 11TH ANNUAL COMING TOGETHER OF THE PEOPLES CONFERENCE SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 199 University of Wisconsin-Madison, Memorial Union, Tripp Commons Invited to speak: Scott Taylor, University of New Mexico School of Law Brian Pierson, vonBriesen, Purtell, and Roper, S.C., Milwaukee, WI Richard Monette, University of Wisconsin Law School Kalyn Free, Environmental and Natural Resources Division, US DOJ Hon. Mark Butterfield, Chief Trial Judge, HoChunk Nation Robert N. Clinton, University of Iowa College of Law Frank Pommersheim, University of South Dakota School of Law Chris McNeil, Washington Representative and Legal Counsel, Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, Washington, DC Annual Pow-wow concludes events, 6:00-12:00, Tripp Commons. All sessions are free and open to the public. Wisconsin CLE credits are pending. The Indian Law Students Association will host a banquet and awards presentation at Tripp Commons in Memorial Union on Friday, February 21 at 6:00 pm in conjunction with the National NALSA Moot Court Competition, which is being held at the Law School February 20-21. A limited number of tickets are available at $20 each ($15, students with ID). Tickets must be purchased by February 10. To reserve your spot, please send payment immediately to: ILSA, University of Wisconsin Law School, 975 Bascom Mall, Madison, WI 53706. For more information, please call Leslie P. Cohan or Jessica Kachur at 608/262-2240 or email lpcohan@students.wisc.edu. Sponsored by UW Indian Law Students Association, University of Wisconsin Law School, American Indian Studies Program, UW Multicultural Center, and Associated Students of Madison. Leslie Parker Cohan 2104 East Mifflin Street Madison, WI 53704 608/241-9028 lpcohan@students.wisc.edu --------- "RE: Disaster at Standing Rock" --------- Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 15:59:05 +0000 From: andi@earthlink.net (Andi) Subj: disaster at Standing Rock - help urgently needed Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Spoke with Mr. Russell Gates, Tribal President. (701) 854-7165 Anything anyone sends is greatly appreciated. Clothing, blankets, coats, medical supplies, fuel, food that can be stored. Checks are easier and faster. If anyone sends a check, make sure that the intention is written on it... Clothes, Fuel, Blankets, Medical, Food, etc. It will be used for that intention only. You may also mark it General Fund, and it will be used for whatever is most pressing. Assistance is needed throughout the spring as the spring rains and run-off from the melting snow are going to be disastrous. 4 of 8 communities are devastated right now. They expect it to get worse once the flooding begins. Address is: The Dakota Sovereign Traditional Oyate PO Box 732 Fort Yates, North Dakota 58538 --------- "RE: F.B.I./Leonard Peltier/Robert Black" --------- Date: Mon, 10 Feb 1997 05:40:42 -0800 (PST) From: Sharleen Williams Subj: News release regarding F.B.I./Leonard Peltier/Robert Black Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Possible Clinton Election in 1992 Gives Rise to F.B.I. Surveillance of Leonard Peltier, While the F.B.I. and the Federal Prison System Betray Yet Another Native American Just prior to the 1992 election, the Federal Bureau of Investigations (F. B.I.) became concerned that Bill Clinton might become President of the United States and, if elected, just might be inclined to parole or pardon Leonard Peltier. Mr. Peltier was falsely convicted of the murder of two F. B.I. agents, although it is alleged to this day, that there is conclusive proof to the contrary that the F.B.I. refuses to release, which would give rise to a new trial for Mr. Peltier. Mr. Peltier has spent over twenty years in a federal prison for crimes he did not commit. Serving time in a federal prison was a young Hunkpapa Lakota Sioux warrior by the name of Robert Black Cloud. The F.B.I. enticed Mr. Black Cloud with an offer too good to refuse at the time. They offered him "immediate parole" in exchange for his service to the United States Government as an informer doing undercover surveillance work, including surveillance of Mr. Peltier. As a further condition of his employment by the government in services performed, Mr. Black Cloud was also promised never again to be sent to another "federal prison." This young warrior agreed to perform services in reliance upon the F.B.I.'s promises. Yet no such "immediate parole" was forthcoming. Moreover, time and time again, the federal government has failed to keep its promise whereby Mr. Black Cloud would never again set foot inside another federal prison. One F.B.I. agent even threatened to bury Mr. Black Cloud if this story ever met with media involvement. This threat is documented in Mr. Black Cloud's federal civil suit filed in Atlanta, alleging cruel and unusual punishment for having been betrayed, threatened, beaten, denied of his fundamental rights, and for his life being placed in danger time after time. If the F.B.I. agent's threat to bury Mr. Black Cloud is successful and Mr. Black Cloud is killed, allegations of dereliction of duty and wrongful death may well be waged against the F.B.I. agent and the U.S. Penitentiary at Atlanta, Georgia (U.S.P. Atlanta), through its warden, Willie Scott, and through the hands of the Regional Director of the Department of Justice in Atlanta, Mr. R.L. Matthews, for having allowed such a travesty to occur. Mr. Matthews has been put on notice that this situation is serious, but to-date, merely contends that Warden Scott will handle the situation. Therefore, Warden Scott and R.L. Matthews continue to keep Mr. Black Cloud's life in danger by not taking immediate steps to remedy this situation by transferring Mr. Black Cloud to a safer institution and to a safer cell. -- F.B.I. Turns Native American Against Native American For almost four months, Mr. Black Cloud performed services for the F.B.I. . While undercover, Mr. Black Cloud put his life on the line dozens of time. He was even flown all over the country in jets all by himself and hidden in prisons. It is Mr. Black Cloud's contention that inmates under his surveillance (with the exception of Leonard Peltier) were no longer loyal to one another or to the Native American people. Interesting to note is that allegedly, the federal prison system has become a system of petty drug dealers for the most part, and Tribal leaders should think about the consequences of sending their young men there. Mr. Black Cloud is bringing this information to the Native American people and to society at large in order to prove that the F.B.I. continues to use such methods to turn Native American against Native American. -- Details Surrounding the U.S.P. Atlanta Dereliction of Duty Mr. Black Cloud was transferred from New Hampshire to U.S.P. Atlanta in error. While at New Hampshire, an officer slapped Mr. Black Cloud three times in front of witnesses. Mr. Black Cloud filed a federal civil suit against the guard and shortly thereafter, was thrown into isolation. When the period of isolation was up, Mr. Black Cloud was to go to U.S.P. Atlanta for further punishment and isolation, where he has presently been for one year. On the way to U.S.P. Atlanta, Mr. Black Cloud was beaten for refusal to board the plane to Atlanta. Mr. Black Cloud's refusal was due to his concern for his safety and that he would immediately be killed upon his arrival at U.S.P. Atlanta. While at U.S.P. Atlanta, Mr. Black Cloud has been beaten, betrayed, and his life continually placed in danger, which has led to a 3.4 million dollar federal civil suit against Warden Scott, R. L. Matthews, the F.B.I. and others. Allegedly, under the auspices of R.L. Matthews, Warden Scott continues to refuse to correct this terrible travesty of justice. Rather than "immediate parole," Mr. Black Cloud's undercover work has accomplished nothing except continued beatings, punishment, and isolation in a maximum security prison in which he doesn't belong. Until filing his first civil complaint against a guard for assaulting him, Mr. Black Cloud enjoyed the freedom of a 24-hour per day unlocked cell. Privileges were available, such as all of his property, better visitation, and freedom to walk the yard freely; privileges which have been currently denied for one entire year at U.S.P. Atlanta. Once the civil suit was filed, the New Hampshire prison retaliated by putting Mr. Black Cloud in isolation in the hopes that it would cause him to dismiss the lawsuit against the guard. When that didn't work, the New Hampshire prison then shipped Mr. Black Cloud to U.S.P. Atlanta for further isolation in the hopes that Mr. Black Cloud would drop the suit against the guard in New Hampshire. Warden Scott has kept Mr. Black Cloud in isolation for one year. Over the years, Mr. Black Cloud has earned a lower level security, but since U.S.P. Atlanta is a maximum security prison, Mr. Black Cloud was just dumped into isolation since they had no other place to put him. To add further insult to injury, U.S.P. Atlanta apparently has a policy whereby if an inmate is due to be released within one year, that inmate would not be transferred, but rather released from there. However, Mr. Black Cloud was transferred to U.S.P. Atlanta in error and should be transferred out immediately to correct the error. Moreover, Mr. Black Cloud's life remains in terrible danger 24 hours a day for as long as he is forced to remain at U.S.P. Atlanta. U.S.P. Atlanta is fully aware of this. At this period of his incarceration, Mr. Black Cloud should be getting pre-release classes to help him adjust back into society, but those are likewise being denied by U.S.P. Atlanta for reasons only U.S.P. Atlanta administrative officials know. -- U.S.P. Atlanta Denies Fundamental Rights In isolation, Mr. Black Cloud has been continually denied writing utensils with which to communicate to friends and family, as well as to prepare his legal work. He has continually been denied access to law books in which to prepare his legal paperwork. Access to the prison law library and the time and resources to do legal work are fundamental rights of prisoners. Warden Scott continues to deny Mr. Black Cloud his fundamental rights to writing utensils and access to the aforementioned law library. Mr. Black Cloud is forced to borrow writing utensils not only to write to friends and relatives, but in order to get his legal work prepared. Yet another injustice. In less than three months, Mr. Black Cloud has been told on numerous occasions that he would be transferred. He has also been told that all of his work for the government has been confirmed. It has taken U.S.P. Atlanta one year to confirm these facts, which, in reality, should not have taken more than a few days or weeks at best. All U.S.P. Atlanta has to do to fix this particular problem is to transfer Mr. Black Cloud to a safer prison in keeping with the security level he has rightfully earned and where he can obtain badly needed pre- release classes. Mr. Black Cloud's fundamental right to protection continues to be denied in yet another way by U.S.P. Atlanta. The prison administration is duty- bound in keeping the prison safe for its inmates. Yet, Mr. Black Cloud's life has been threatened on numerous occasions while at U.S.P. Atlanta. A guard recently threw hot, boiling floor cleaner into Mr. Black Cloud's cell, although Mr. Black Cloud saw him coming and put up a blanket to protect himself. A guard was watching the entire thing and didn't even reprimand the floor worker. The guard chose, instead, to move Mr. Black Cloud to a new cell, which, unfortunately, was still in reach of the floor worker. Lately, guards have begun to yell for all inmates to hear that Mr. Black Cloud is in protective custody and that he is an Indian snitch. Inmates are telling Mr. Black Cloud that the guards are doing this all over the prison. Continually! Yet, Warden Scott does nothing to remedy this serious injustice. Mr. Black Clouds' life remains in jeopardy. These facts make it imperative that U.S.P. Atlanta, the Department of Justice, and the Federal Bureau of Prisons make right the promises of the F.B.I. Promises to protect Mr. Black Cloud and to incarcerate him in a safer prison setting at the level of security he has rightfully earned. These officials MUST get Mr. Black Cloud out of the federal prison system altogether. -- Protest of Injustices and Punishment Mr. Black Cloud began his "spiritual fast" out of disgust waiting for U. S.P. Atlanta to transfer him and because just prior to the fast, three prison guards came into his room. One guard hand-cuffed him, slammed him up against the wall and held him there while the other two guards rampaged his room. Once again they took his writing utensils and a few other things. And once again, Mr. Black Cloud was forced to endure mental torture because of the ploys of U.S.P. Atlanta, since the administration was fully aware that Mr. Black Cloud had timely legal work which was due to the court within a short time. Without his writing utensils, Mr. Black Cloud was forced to borrow them. Mr. Black Cloud began his spiritual fast without food and water on January 14. The fast lasted until the evening of January 19 for a total of five days. Mr. Black Cloud decided that enough was enough and that the American people should know what the F.B.I. had done in his case, and with what U.S.P. Atlanta continues to do by way of terrible travesty of justice in the mental tortures, beatings, and savaging of his personal property. Adding to this insult, U.S.P. Atlanta guards are spreading the word around the entire prison complex that Mr. Black Cloud is in protective custody for being an Indian snitch. The guards likewise keep Mr. Black Cloud's life in danger on a daily basis. -- In Conclusion The fact that withheld evidence was allowed during the kangaroo court trial of Leonard Peltier, and the fact that Mr. Black Cloud was recruited in the surveillance of Peltier just prior to the election of Bill Clinton in 1992, and the fact that Clinton continues to deny either clemency or a new trial even in the face of all of the evidence pointing to the innocence of Peltier, leads one to conclude that the F.B.I. was not only derelict in the continuing persecution of Peltier, but in keeping its promise of "freedom" and a stay from the federal prison system, to Mr. Black Cloud. Sadly, just as the government has failed with its promises over and over again to Native American tribes, so has it failed Mr. Black Cloud. This matter is of the utmost serious nature. The federal government has no right to use this Native American and then to betray him by placing his life in danger, such that he might be brought up on charges for self-defense. Shouldn't the federal government be above the status of the very criminals they are sworn to protect? But rather, aren't many merely wolves in sheep's clothing? Where is the federal government's integrity in this matter? Corrective action must be taken NOW! U.S.P. Atlanta MUST move Robert Black Cloud where he rightfully belongs AND the government must keep its promise to protect him! +++++++++++++++++++++++ -- How You Can Help Please pass this News Release along to your Tribal Affiliates and Tribal Councils, to your local media by way of newspapers, radio, local TV stations, magazines, and newsletters. Those of you who have access to the Internet, please post this entire news release on List Servs at your local colleges or universities. E-mail it to your friends and relatives, especially to Native Americans of all tribes and nations. Finally, send letters and email messages to your local government officials demanding that Robert Black Cloud be transferred immediately. If you are an attorney or know of an attorney who can help Mr. Black Cloud obtain a transfer to a safer prison, and/or if you could help in his federal civil suit against these government officials over such terribly invasive injustices, please advise. For further information and a list of people and/or organizations to contact, please connect to our URL on the World Wide Web as follows: "http://www.pe.net/~sharw/robert.html" Please help a Native American to help other Native Americans. This news release has been brought to you by Sharleen Williams as told to her by Robert Black Cloud. Dated: February 9, 1997. You can contact her as follows: Sharleen Williams P.O. Box 73 Email: sharw@pe.net Perris, CA 92572 (909) 657-2766 or (909) 880-5336 --------- "RE: Robert Black Response" --------- Date: Tue, 11 Feb 1997 11:52:02 -0800 From: nobody@huge.cajones.com (Huge Cajones Remailer) Subj: Re News Release Regarding F.B.I./Leonard Peltier/Robert Black Newsgroups: alt.native I don't understand. This guy Robert Black Cloud made a pact with the Devil to try to get incriminating information on our brother Leonard Peltier and you want us to feel sorry for him now? I'm a native, and I've long supported activities to help Leonard Peltier -- a man who has never given up his principles even in the face of prison life and harsh treatment and a man who would never turn on another native. (Indeed Leonard has repeatedly refused to name Mr. X, who has confessed to the crime for which Leonard is unjustly being held.) I do not feel sorry for Robert Black Cloud, who you say would have turned on another blood if he had had the chance. I'm glad he never got the chance. --------- "RE: Sisters Sent to Male Prison" --------- Date: Fri, 7 Feb 1997 16:54:54 -0500 (EST) From: Stephen Kishewitsch Subj: Sisters being sent to male maximum prison Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) Kingston Prison for Women situation is not over yet Women inmates dread move to maximum security prison for men Three years ago this April a disturbance took place at Kingston's Prison for Women in Ontario (Canada). It resulted in the strip-search, by a male response team, "body cavity search", and shackling of the six women prisoners involved, and their detention in solitary for many months. The case developed into a major news item, culminating in the Arbour Commission of Inquiry, which was generally commended for taking a principled stance on the matter. After publication of the commission's report last year, P4W and the conditions within slipped from the public's awareness again. The prison was supposed to be closed, and the women sent to regional centres. It was believed that that particular sore spot would no longer be a problem. Such hopes have turned out to be premature. Vague motions are being made in the direction of closing Prison for Women, but what will happen to some of the women there is no improvement. Corrections Canada has decided to send several of them, who are classified as maximum-security risks, to Kingston Penitentiary, one block away. (Kingston has five prisons within town limits, and another five within a 45-minute drive.) Kingston Pen is itself a maximum-security institution, heretofore entirely populated with male offenders - many of them violently so. The space being prepared for the women is currently used by a psychiatric treatment centre located in the prison. The space is on the top floor of the building, and a fenced exercise area is also to be prepared. Kingston Pen is only one block from the P4W, but is a world away in function and intent. It houses some of the worst of Canada's criminals: murderers, wife-batterers, pedophiles, child molesters, serial killers and serial rapists. All are a danger to women. KP did, in fact, house female inmates until they were moved to the P4W in 1935 on the grounds that it was inappropriate for women to be housed with abusive men. Margaret Atwood describes the place in her current best-seller `Alias Grace'. The move, given the reputation of KP and its inmates, has made the women extremely anxious. One visitor said the women are "a wreck." Two in the past week have threatened suicide. The reasons for their concern can be expressed no more clearly than by Karen Dodd, herself one of the women facing possible transfer: Studies show that most women in prison have had crimes committed against them, both as women and as children. So why are we being moved to a prison which holds these types of men? I ask you, where is the rehabilitation in this picture? I see only punishment. Another woman prisoner said, I was raped and my daughter has also been abused. ... I don't want to be around rapists and pedophiles. Shortly after the April 1994 incident, several women were in fact moved temporarily to KP. Here are a couple of descriptions of their reception: We were in the yard one day and a bunch of guys came up to the fence and started yelling at us. They started shaking the fence so hard the guards came out of the towers with their guns. We got scared and tried to get back inside the building but no-one would let us in. - a woman from P4W who had been in KP The men would yell things like, 'show us your tits, bitch,' call us sluts, tell us to go back to P4W. - a woman from P4W who had been in KP And Marjorie Beaudry, another woman in P4W, points this out: A year and a half ago a woman, a clerk at KP, was raped and held hostage. If they can't ensure the safety of their own female workers, how the hell are they going to ensure my safety? Male inmates presently resident on the third floor are being moved to make room for the women. Furthermore, KP administration says the men will be locked down any time the women are moved - two measures certain to aggravate the resentment the men can be expected to feel. A citizen's advisory committee has written to Solicitor-General Herb Gray and other officials, to say that the move to KP is "a very poor idea, and will be very costly in human and financial terms." The chair of the committee, who has worked with the inmates in various capacities since 1981, found "a tremendous amount of insecurity" in the treatment centre in KP. The letter has apparently had no effect. Low-security facilities are being built or have been built to take some of the female prison population as Prison for Women is closed. A healing lodge in Saskatchewan, which follows traditional Native healing practices and accepts Native and non-Native women, seems to be doing good work. There is another in Kitchener. Unfortunately, these are for people classified as minimum security risks. The advisory committee's unanimous recommendation was that the maximum-security women be kept in P4W until new facilities can be built, but such a move is apparently not being contemplated. Corrections Canada calls its move an "interim measure", but it has revealed nothing in the nature of an alternate long term plan, or a timetable for change. At the time of the 1994 incident, some 8 women were classified maximum- risk. This number has been rising: it is now 20 or 25, meaning that many more people ready to be injected into a population of violent males. Melissa Stewart, Director of Project Another Chance, says that Corrections Canada currently has more than 39 women slated for eventual transfer to KP. The classification process itself has made the women feel quite insecure. Upon entry into the prison system one is automatically classed as a maximum-security risk. Pat Tate, who works at the Kingston Native Friendship Centre, points out that anyone could become involved in a confrontation, willingly or not, and find herself reclassified as a result. One woman, she says, went to bed as a Medium risk and woke up as a Maximum. More unfortunately still, it seems that a disproportion of Native women are classed as high risk. Apparently the first seven women targeted for transfer have been identified, and it is also worth noting who they are. Six of the women are Native, and the seventh is Black. Pat Tate asks, "If this isn't racism, what is?" The first move is scheduled for April. One woman destined for KP, unless a halfway house can be found for her, is 7 months pregnant. Your response needs to get out soon. What you can do: write Solicitor-General Herb Gray and PM Jean Chretien. This is likely to be an election year, and Ottawa should be sensitive to public comment. A Habeas Corpus process is underway in court, but such actions are expensive and uncertain. Herb Gray's address is: Sir Wilfrid Laurier Bldg, 13th flooor 340 Laurier Ave W. Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0P8 tel 613-991-2924, fax 613-952-2240 http://www.sgc.gc.ca Prime Minister Jean Chretien can be reached at Prime Minister's Office, Langevin Block 80 Wellington St. Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A2 --------- "RE: Indians Achieve Landmark Decision" --------- Date: Thu, 6 Feb 1997 17:29:01 -0500 From: sonyarado@aol.com Subj: Indians Achieve Landmark Decision in Federal Court Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) NATIVE AMERICAN RIGHTS FUND 1506 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80302 MEDIA ALERT: For Immediate Release, February 6, 1997 CONTACTS: Jim McCarthy (202) 333-8810 and Keith Harper (202) 785-4166 INDIANS ACHIEVE LANDMARK DECISION IN FEDERAL COURT - Judge Makes Watershed Ruling for Class Certification - - Government Suffers Major Legal Setback Despite Vigorous Opposition in Breach of Trust Case - WASHINGTON, DC - In a first-of-its-kind ruling, a federal judge has decided to grant certification to a class of more than 300,000 individual Indian account holders suing the federal government for gross mismanagement of the Indians' multibillion dollar trust fund. The suit now becomes the largest ever brought against the government for financial mismanagement and the broadest such effort by American Indians. Class certification guarantees that past and present IIM account holders will be able to pursue in court, for the first time: - A full accounting of the trust funds - The establishment of new management systems that live up to standard accounting requirements - Full restitution for all monies lost or stolen over the entire term of the 160-year old trust "This is an historic accomplishment for Indian Country," said John E. Echohawk, Executive Director of the Native American Rights Fund. "We stand poised now to force the government to honor its legal obligation to manage our critical trust fund prudently. Century-old excuses and stonewalling have been rejected by the judge and will simply no longer work." Attorneys representing all individual Indian trust beneficiaries vowed to continue litigating this case vigorously despite relentless efforts by government lawyers to shield the Secretaries of Interior and Treasury from accountability to their trust beneficiaries. "The government fought tooth and nail to prevent class certification," said Elouise Cobell, the lead plaintiff. "That's because now that the court has affirmed us, we will be able to prove how irresponsible and damaging their handling of our money has been." The Department of Interior and Treasury are obligated to hold and reinvest individual Indian trust monies for account holders - revenue derived from oil, gas, timber and other leases. But Interior lacks even a basic accounting and accounts receivable system and perhaps tens of billions of dollars are missing or uncollected. --------- "RE: Assistance Needed to Rescue Graves" --------- Date: Mon, 3 Feb 1997 18:46:28 -0500 From: spikegritz@aol.com Subj: Legal Assistance Needed to Rescue Cherokee Trail-of-Tears Graves... Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) A Note from Runningbull! If you know anyone with Federal Lands Lease/Purchase Expertise please advise us: The Two Feathers Medicine Clan is a alliance of many First Nations, being found on Treaty Documents as early as 1866, but founded 20 or more years earlier by some very famous "old ones" whose names you know if you know native history. Ask Leonard Crow Dog about us if you wish. The Clan was charged with the responsibility of insuring the survival of Native Culture, Ceremony, Religion, and Land Base. It is recognized by Spiritual Leaders from all over this world - and beyond it! Led today by Spiritual Leader Duke Joseph Big Feather, the Clan is attempting to secure 1/20th of 1% of the Shawnee National Forest in Southern Illinois, near the town of Anna, where over 300 Cherokee graves are situated near the site of a old Cherokee Trail-of-Tears encampment. These graves need full-time protection from desecration, as does the new Sun-Dance site! The site was developed by the Federal Government as a Job Training Center, but is not in use as such anymore. The first annual Two Feathers Medicine Clan Sundance was held there this last summer, with dancers present from all over the world, including the Amazon Basin, where the Clan has many members. The Clan has use of the site for three weeks out of the year, but for the balance of the year is open to possible grave desecration. If the Federal Government should decide to sell this parcel, the Clan is imminently eligible for grants to cover the principle, but a down payment would be needed. A 99 year $1.00 lease is possible, but LEGAL ASSISTANCE IS NEEDED to follow through with the acquisition! Please step forward and render legal or other assistance to this worthy Native Cause, joining with many of today's prominent spiritual leaders! Unity and solidarity with Native Leadership from all walks of Native American Life is needed immediately! JOIN WITH US! If you would like to assist in their efforts in any way, or for membership information, please contact Duke Joseph Big Feather at: Fax: (708) 672-7672 Duke just returned from the Inauguration, where more political support was curried, but we need legal help! Or, you may pass messages through Runningbull: "spikegritz@aol.com" - 801-686-2568 (w/messaging) or 2567 (no message machine) --------- "RE: Support of Zapatistas" --------- Date: Wed, 5 Feb 1997 15:55:08 -0800 From: moonlight@igc.apc.org(National Commission for Democracy in Mexico,USA) Subj: signatures wanted in support of Zapatistas Mailing List: NATIVE-L (native-l@gnosys.svle.ma.us) PLEASE SIGN THIS LETTER IN SUPPORT OF THE ZAPATISTAS!! We plan to publish this as a letter to the editor in La Jornada on February 9, 1997. Send your signatures - of organizations and/or individuals by Saturday February 8th. If you wish for the zapatistas to know you are supporting them, please sign this letter and e-mail it to their US representative: Cecilia Rodriguez at: or fax it to: (915) 532-8382, or mail it to: NCDM, 601 N.Cotton St.#A103, El Paso, Texas, 79902 We also recommend sending copies to: Presidente Zedillo at e-mail: webadmon@op.presidencia.gob.mex or fax from US: 011-52-5-277-2376 and President Clinton: e-mail: president@whitehouse.gov fax: 202-456-2461 La jornada: e-mail: jornada@condor.dgsca.unam.mx fax: 011-52-5-521-2763 In solidarity with the struggle of the zapatistas, Susana Saravia-Ugarte for Nuevo Amanecer Press/USA -------------------------------------------- To the men and women of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation; To the families of the Zapatista communities; To the indigenous people of Mexico; To the people of Mexico; Brothers and