From gars@speakeasy.org Tue Apr 24 02:15:59 2001 Date: 28 Mar 2001 02:03:56 -0000 From: Gary Night Owl To: Internet Recipients of Wotanging Ikche Subject: Wotanging Ikche--nanews09.013 W O T A N G I N G I K C H E Otapi'sin Atsinikiisinaakssin KANOHEDA ANIYVWIYA O It-hah-pe-hah Ah-num pah-le Ha-Sah-Sliltha O o O ni-mah-mi-kwa-zoo-min Un Chota O o O Aunchemokauhettittea O o o o o O VOLUME 09, ISSUE 013 O o O Es'te Opunvk'vmucvse March 24, 2001 O o O Ximopanolti tehuatzin, Lakota dark red calves moon O inin Mexika tlahtolli Yuchi moon of the little summer ( N A T I V E A M E R I C A N N E W S ) ==>If you want your Nation represented in the banner of this newsletter<== email gars@nanews.org with the equivalent of "News of the People" in your tribal language along with the english translation +-----------------------------------------------------------+ | Much more happens in Indian Country than is reported | | in this weekly newsletter. For daily updates check | | http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm - also events | +-----------------------------------------------------------+ This issue contains articles from KOLA Newslist, NativeNews, owlstar.com, Indianz.com, ndn-aim, Our Red Earth and Hawaii Nation mailing lists; Newsgroup:alt.native; UUCP email; http://www.greatfallstribune.com/news/stories/20010320/localnews/388205.html http://community.centurytel.net/index.cfm?action=startpage&mode=article &articleid=wed/ab/Qmexico-chiapas-agree.R5ko_BMN.html http://www.indianz.com/SmokeSignals/Headlines/showfull.asp?ID=law/3222001 http://www.argusleader.com/news/Saturdayarticle5.shtml http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm cjonline.com/stories/032401/kan_kstribes.shtml IMPORTANT!! ----------- In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, all material appearing in this newsletter is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for educational purposes. <----<<<< >>>>----> 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@speakeasy.org ++ It is archived at http://www.nanews.org As historian Patricia Nelson Limerick summarized in The Legacy of Conquest: The Unbroken Past of the American West, "Set the blood quantum at one-quarter, hold to it as a rigid definition of Indians, let intermarriage proceed as it had for centuries, and eventually Indians will be defined out of existence. When that happens, the federal government will be freed of its persistent 'Indian problem.'" "My Elders say words are sacred. Every word we speak reaches the ears of the Great Mystery and our ancestors. They watch over us, helping us through the tough times if we are willing to listen." __ C. Duane Meat, Anishinaabe/Southern Arapahoe +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ | 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 +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ | Journey | In the summer and early fall | The Bloodline | of 1998 the Treaty Unity Riders | | rode a thousand miles on horse- | For all that live and live by law | back, carrying a staff and | We Stand, we Call, We Ride | praying each step of the way. | For All that fear and fear by sight | | We Hear, we Listen, we Ride | These prayers were offered for | For all that pray and pray by strength| each of us, and that the Unity | We Feel, we Move, we Ride | of all Peoples might happen. | For all that die and die by greed | | We Hurt, we Cry, we Ride | Tatanka Cante forwarded this | For all that birth and birth by right | poem on behalf of all the Unity | We Smile, we Hold, we Ride | Riders that we might stop and | For all that need and need by heart | ask if the next words we say, the | We Came, we Went, we Rode. | next act we make is for the good | | of the People or is it from ego | Treaty Unity Riders | for self. +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ O'siyo Brothers and Sisters! In the lead article, following notices of elders' crossings, in this issue I share with you a commentary by Hawaiian actor and playwright, Alani Apio, in which the assault on the Native Hawaiian is very accurately depicted. I have one small quibble, as defined in the following from that article: "Furthermore, America has a national and international history of racism and sexism that has kept land and power primarily in the hands of land-owning, white males." My one small change would be to note the source of this greed and power sickness is western Europe. These are, to be sure, the ancestors of the "American, land-owning, white males" Alani plants a staff against. I fully understand they are one and the same. I just want the picture to include the landscape of hate that was painted throughout Turtle Island before the brush reached Hawaii. My wife and I recently sat across from a man we had just met, who noted, "The western European has infected every inch of earth he has touched and left it sick and poisoned where before there was balance." Last weekend, at stomp grounds an elder lamented how to this day the open hate and hostility is so blatant in places like Texas where much of the local economy is made possible by local Indians. My elder was in a Wal-Mart (how I despise that grave desecrating chain) in Rapid City where a clerk tried to intimidate and humiliate her for daring to speak out when the clerk refused to honor a check written by a Lakota lady in her line when the bank could not be contacted for verification of funds, when in an adjacent line, a white woman's check for a similar amount was accepted without question. The clerk soon learned what happens when you mess with a Grandmother! The sad thing is, there should have never been the issue of different treatment. We cannot continue to allow the dominant, white society to tell us our languages and ways are invalid. Especially, when what they offer in return is so vile and destructive. Personal note to our daughter: We are very proud of you for planting your staff and speaking out against the racist celebration, as you did. The world may never know who you are, but we do and the ancestors do. Thank you. , , Gary Night Owl gars@nanews.org (*,*) P. O. Box 672168 gars@speakeasy.org (`-') Marietta, GA 30013, U.S.A. gars@olagrande.net ===w=w=== gars@sdf.lonestar.org ----------- News of the people featured in this issue ---------- - Venetie's Traditional Chief - Team Ipperwash '95 - Hawaiians Today are Defined Racist Memorabila as Just a Race - Native Prisoner - Tribute to Late Potter -- BIA renews inmate deal - Blackfeet Buffalo Horse Coalition at Miami jail Needs Help - History: Carlisle Indian School - Assembly of First Nations Statement - Rustywire: Shaa Alchin e' - Marcos Accepts Invitation - Poem: The Gift Of Morning to Speak to Lawmakers - Verse: Hawaiian Book of Days - Edmonton Inuk to sue Ottawa - Weeds May Provide - Interior: Trust Reform is Working Medicinal Treasures - No Trust Fund Settlement Just Yet - Native Language Revitalization - County/Tribe Find Accord Commitment - Kansas Tribes - Woman Brings Tribe's Face Housing Shortage Dead Language to Life - Camp Justice: Tom Poor Bear Speaks - Blackfeet Nation - Cree Take Logging Fight to U.S. - Kiowa - Poisoning of Indian People - Upcoming Events by Waste - Native America Calling --------- "RE: Venetie's Traditional Chief" --------- Date: Tue, 27 Mar 2001 07:29:18 -0600 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="ELDER CROSSING" Venetie's traditional chief, Abraham Christian, dies at 87 FOUNDER: Heart attack takes one of remaining elders. The Associated Press (Published March 26, 2001) Fairbanks -- Abraham Christian, Venetie's traditional chief, died Saturday at age 87. Christian was the village's traditional chief since the 1980s and gave advice to the Venetie Tribal Council, former tribal council member Pete Peter said. He had been ill for about a year and died at Fairbanks Memorial Hospital after a heart attack. Christian was one of the few elders left who helped form the Venetie Indian Reservation in 1943. "Back then they didn't have enough food and of course no airplane, but they walked to villages and traveled by dog team and got Arctic Village involved," Peter said. Christian helped gather signatures from villages in the Venetie area. The reservation, which consisted of 1.8 million acres, was one of a handful of reservations in existence at that time. Its reservation status was dissolved after the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971, when tribal members took full title of the land. When Venetie Tribal Government tried to tax a contractor building the Venetie school in 1987, a battle ensued. The fight ended unsuccessfully when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in February 1998 that the tribe couldn't levy taxes upon tribal nonmembers and the land was under state-regulated private business corporations. Peter said Christian was an advocate of returning the land to reservation status, giving the federal government trust of their land and the tribe sovereignty. Christian also campaigned to amend Venetie's existing constitution that was ratified when the reservation was formed in 1943, Peter said. "Abraham really believed in the future of the tribal codes," Peter said. Copyright c. 2001 Anchorage Daily News. --------- "RE: Hawaiians Today are Defined as Just a Race" --------- Date: 3/26/01 12:17:48 PM Pacific Standard Time From: info@hawaii-nation.org (Hawaii Nation Info) Subj: Kanaka lament: Once a proud nation... Mailing List: Hawaii Nation Kanaka lament: Once a proud nation, Hawaiians today are defined as just a race By Alani Apio Commentary Honolulu Advertiser Sunday, March 25, 2001 In my first letter, "1,000 little cuts to genocide" (Advertiser, Feb. 25), I spoke from my na'au, my guts. In this second piece I offer my opinion on how I got to a place of such sadness, anger and confusion. Understanding the roots of these problems won't be easy, but it will help us figure out what to do now. Briefly: By aiding in the overthrow, then annexing and colonizing the sovereign Hawaiian Nation, America oppressed a native people and culture and created an enormous legacy of pain. Then, using racism as a tool of power and control, America classified Kanaka (Hawaiians) as a race of people instead of citizens of an overthrown nation. This divided the Kanaka community within itself, and Kanaka from the larger Hawai'i community. Furthermore, America has a national and international history of racism and sexism that has kept land and power primarily in the hands of land-owning, white males. Finally, the ideals of America - truth, justice, equality, etc., do not match the reality of America. But they do provide the groundwork for the denial of any and all inequalities and discrimination. The intense emotions I have about being Kanaka - Hawaiian - and about sovereignty tie my na'au in knots. These feelings come from watching and experiencing the loss of my culture and people in many ways, from understanding that huge portions of my culture were lost before I was even born, and yet being told personally and publicly, by individuals and government that "Nothing's wrong, your sense of loss is simply the 'victims' mentality brought about by believing that revisionist history crap about the 'alleged' overthrow." This is the same ideology maintained by those who deny the reality of the Holocaust and by Japanese nationalists regarding Japan's role in World War II. The most dangerous thing to do is tell oppressed people they're not oppressed and that there is no pain. When the oppressor denies even the existence of oppression, oppressed people eventually implode via self-destruction, or explode in acts of violence. Young Kanaka males have had the highest rate of suicide in Hawai'i since the overthrow of the Hawaiian Nation. Likewise, Kanaka have had the largest percentage of population imprisoned. This implosion and explosion of rage is one of the sad legacies of the Kanaka's forced assimilation into American society. This legacy of pain, frustration, and anger has torn my own 'ohana apart. On my Kanaka family's side, two of my cousins committed suicide. Kanaka friends have committed suicide as well. 'Ohana and Kanaka friends have been, and still are, imprisoned. The constant, deafening barrage that this is just "coincidence," that it has nothing to do with the overthrow of the Hawaiian Nation, and nothing to do with lost culture, or, worse yet, the daily, subtle and infuriating implication that we as Kanaka are not capable of handling life, is why I write. If I didn't I'd erupt with rage, deep red and sorrowful over dead cousins and wars waged internally over how to be Kanaka as it has been defined for me, and how to live in a place that has become so foreign to me. The boys I fished with in the waters off 'Ewa Beach and Wai'anae chose to hang themselves rather than live in a place that did not value them, did not understand them, and did not offer them a tomorrow - all the while calling itself "home." Many people simply do not understand that there's been more than 100 years of violence here - only it's been almost completely internalized: We Kanaka have killed, continue to kill ourselves, either slowly (through alcohol and substance abuse, among many ways) or quickly through suicide, as a direct result of colonization. This is a world-wide problem faced by nearly all colonized indigenous peoples. Hawai'i citizens neither want to acknowledge that universal reality, nor recognize that everybody has a breaking point. A win for Barrett may be our breaking point (the Barrett v. Cayetano case seeks to find the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Hawaiian Homes Commission, and Native Hawaiian gathering rights unconstitutional). I don't want that. I'm writing so we can truly, honestly start dealing with Kanaka anger, pain, and confusion, work toward justice, and in doing so, help heal na Kanaka and Hawai'i citizens alike. Extremely important to note, though, is that there are many people of Kanaka descent who have assimilated (by force or choice) successfully into American culture here - and who want to continue that. Likewise, their children, because of the parents' assimilation, simply have not had the option or opportunity to identify with Kanaka culture. In either case, even if they are conscious of loss, they may not feel it personally, or the price of loss is minimal compared to the benefits, attained or perceived, of assimilation. The issue of a stolen nation and oppressed culture has been turned into an issue of race - not by Hawaiians, but by America. And in doing so, it effectively uses its own laws, ideology and mythology to confuse the issue and make it appear that even the half-hearted attempts at reparations, like OHA and Hawaiian Homelands, are wrong and racist. Racism is defined as "A doctrine that inherent differences among the various human races determine cultural or individual achievement, usually involving the idea that one's own race is superior." It is a Western, and later wholly American, import. The first overt, important, societal acts of racism in Hawai'i, in my opinion, came from the plantation owners who segregated imported contract laborers into ethnic "camps" for the express reason of pitting them against each other and not forming unions. The next major act of racism was the passage of the Hawaiian Homes Act. By setting a blood quantum instead of a "nationality" quantum, America employed "race" - defined by blood quantum - to pit us against ourselves over land. Equally important, it gave all non-Kanaka the grounds on which to call the program racist. The truly ugly legacy of that act is not that most Kanaka do not have access to the lands, or that monies and lands have been squandered or stolen from Hawaiian Homes, or even that it discriminates against non-Kanaka. The real atrocity is that it pits us Kanaka against ourselves, creates and perpetuates deep and jagged feelings of resentment, shame and confusion over self-identity (some are defined as "Native Hawaiian" and some are just "Hawaiian"), and as a result has allowed America to avoid blame for the overthrow. It changed the issue from nation and culture to one of race. This change in definition is key to understanding the whole issue: with Native American tribes, America defined them as overthrown nations made up of a homogeneous race. With Kanaka, though, America has defined us as a race seeking nation status - thus providing the groundwork for calling the Hawaiian sovereignty movement racist. America continues to recognize us solely by race because if it recognizes our Hawaiian nationality then they have to admit that the whole archipelago was stolen against its own and international laws at the time, and thus subject to the international laws of decolonization. Contextually, affirmative-action programs in America try to bring equality to oppressed minorities: immigrants and blacks who are oppressed by the dominant power structure, but who do not represent colonized nations. Thus America does not address issues of land - no grounds for it. Kanaka benefits and entitlements, like affirmative-action programs across America, are simply America's prima facie attempts to address its own deeply-ingrained racism. In the case of Kanaka, though, they are more: they are attempts to compensate for colonialism; the overthrow, subjugation and oppression of a sovereign nation. Land and power. America is willing to give up small portions of Hawai'i to "Native Hawaiians" (as with Hawaiian Home Lands). America still retains ultimate sovereignty and most important, its military bases. But to give up, or negotiate in an international arena, the whole archipelago? That's "natives" asking for too much land and too much power. Another reason for resistance from the American government is its critical need for a strategic military presence in the Pacific. Hawai'i is far more militarily crucial for America than any of the American Indian nations' lands. This is no small point. If the Hawaiian sovereignty movement ever threatens America's military presence here in a serious way, the ramifications for both sides will be enormous. Today there are numerous groups across America seeking to abolish any and all race-based governmental programs. These groups view federal Kanaka entitlements, programs, assets and Hawaiian sovereignty as a linchpin: denying Kanaka sovereignty sets a precedent for taking down not only all affirmative-action programs for African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, but the 500-plus Indian nations as well. If America denies sovereignty for the indigenous people of Hawai'i, then it brings into question why any nation based on race can exist within America at all. I am not implying that the effort to take down the Indian nations will be successful. Nevertheless, like last year's Rice decision, the Barrett case represents a potentially huge precedent. This is essentially the same strategy as the Hawaiian Homes Act: divide native peoples by making them fight over scarce resources and set the groundwork for calling all indigenous nations within America "racist." Anti-sovereignty activists often say that because the Hawaiian Kingdom wasn't race-based, therefore it's wrong under both nations' laws for America to acknowledge only indigenous Kanaka. Strictly speaking, they're right. But to stop there is to ignore the history of America and the legacy of colonialism racism. We should not view Hawaiian sovereignty in an isolated context. History shows a pattern of global thievery by America. In 1898, America "annexed" not only Hawai'i, but also Guam, Puerto Rico and the Philippines. There are sovereignty movements in Puerto Rico and Guam as well. America "granted" the Philippines independence on July 4, 1946, because America could not, without tremendous expenditures of money and lives, keep the Philippines. But the smaller, less powerful island nations have been "kept." The "ideal" of America is that all people are free and equal. The reality is quite different. Founders of America were white, land-owning males who defined black people as "chattel" who could be legally enslaved; indigenous North Americans as "savage Indians" who could be legally exterminated; and women as unfit to vote. The indigenous nations were granted quasi-sovereign status based on peace treaties. It took the Civil War to outlaw slavery. It took the women's suffrage movement before women gained the right to vote. These momentous acts, however, still did not provide freedom and equality in America. The civil rights movement of the 1960s and the women's rights movement of the 1970s were necessary because of America's continuous, insidious racism and sexism. Ideal versus reality: though governments can outlaw actions, they cannot change people's value systems, simply by enacting laws. The outcome of the Civil War made slavery illegal, but it did not make racist whites stop hating and hurting blacks. Likewise, though women were granted suffrage in 1920, it didn't mean they were then treated equally in business, education or pay. The ideal of a free and equal America espoused in the Declaration and Constitution has never matched the reality. It simply provides propaganda for the ongoing denial of any and all inequalities, racism and sexism. Why do I want the Hawaiian Nation restored? Because I have a deep love for Kanaka culture and I see from history that a sovereign nation is the most sure way of preserving and perpetuating that culture. I am a nationalist - though I never lived in the nation I dream of as my own, I have a fervent love for the independent, free nation that Pai'ea - Kamehameha I - created and Lili'uokalani strove to keep. I want the nation of our people restored because I love this 'aina, the very sand between my toes: it is who I am. This land was stolen. America, that grandiloquent champion of global human rights is a hypocrite and has been a global thief. Having said that, we, na Kanaka, are now complicit in the perpetuation of the problems. We have remained mostly silent while extreme voices from our community have advocated racism and racial separatism. We have accepted the absurdity of "blood quantum," continue to fight and divide ourselves and 'ohana over an arbitrary, baseless, racist notion of koko - blood. We have even come so far in embracing the racist ideology of blood quantum that we boast of how much koko we have. If your mo'o ku'auhau, your genealogy, says you're kanaka, then you're kanaka - pau, end of story. A shared genealogy means shared ancestors and common cultural roots. By framing the issue on racial grounds instead of overthrown nation and culture, we have all allowed for an illogical and incorrect context to foster the heated, angry, frustrated debates and diatribes we have seen over the past several decades. We, all of us, have been set up to fail in finding a solution by allowing ourselves to fight and debate over issues that are only the surface, not the problem itself: a nation was overthrown and its culture nearly destroyed. Many here would like to avoid and forget what has happened. Many would like to believe this is all made up. My dead and imprisoned 'ohana remind me it's not. Me, I say, "America, live up to your stated ideals. Do what is right: restore our nation." Next: On to dreaming of what we can become. Alani Apio of Kailua is a woodworker, playwright and actor. <<<>>><<<>>><<<>>><<<>>><<<>>><<<>>><<<>>><<<>>><<<>>><<<>>><<<>>> Note: the content of forwarded messages reflects the opinion of the authors, not necessarily that of the list maintainers. _________________________________________________________________ This list is provided as a free service. Donations may be made to: Aloha First, PO Box 701, Waimanalo, Hawaii 96795 _________________________________________________________________ Hawai`i - Independent & Sovereign info@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 _________________________________________________________________ Post message: mailto:hawaii-nation@yahoogroups.com Subscribe: mailto:hawaii-nation-subscribe@yahoogroups.com Unsubscribe: mailto:hawaii-nation-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com --------- "RE: Tribute to Late Potter" --------- Date: Wed, 21 Mar 2001 09:26:14 -0600 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="TRIBUTE" Wednesday, March 21, 2001 Domenici Pays Tribute to Late Potter Journal Staff Report Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., recently paid tribute to the late Margaret Tafoya, the famed Santa Clara Pueblo potter who passed away in February after a lifetime of pursuing her art and creating some of the most sought- after American Indian pottery in the world. Domenici issued his tribute in a statement read into the official Congressional Record. Domenici mourned the loss of Maria Margarita "Margaret" Tafoya, who died Feb. 25 at the age of 96 in her Santa Clara Pueblo home. Tafoya became famous for her black-on-black and red-on-red pottery. "New Mexico is comprised of imaginative people of many cultures who express their cultural values artistically and creatively," Domenici said. "The people of New Mexico will miss the guidance of the 'matriarch of Santa Clara potters.' "Respected and renowned throughout the pottery community, Margaret inspired others to take up pottery. She crafted many pots and other forms in the tradition of Santa Clara polished blackware and redware. Her art reflected the fine workmanship of highly skilled hands." Domenici noted that Tafoya earned many honors and awards over a remarkable career. She is the only American Indian ever awarded a Lifetime Contribution Award by the National Academy of Western Art at the Cowboy Hall of Fame and Western Heritage Center in Oklahoma City. In 1984, the National Endowment for the Arts awarded her the National Heritage Fellowship Award. In addition, her works were displayed on the national Mall in Washington, D.C., at the 1992 Folklife Festival sponsored by the Smithsonian Institute. "However, Margaret did not work for recognition. She worked to improve the quality of life for her family and children," Domenici said in a statement released Tuesday. "Her loss leaves a void for her family and the art community. I share the grief of the community of Santa Clara Pueblo, and my heartfelt condolences go out to her family." Copyright c. 2001 Albuquerque Journal --------- "RE: Blackfeet Buffalo Horse Coalition Needs Help" --------- Date: Wed, 21 Mar 2001 09:26:14 -0600 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="BLACKFEET COALITION" http://www.greatfallstribune.com/news/stories/20010320/localnews/388205.html Tuesday, March 20, 2001 Mustangs in danger of losing ranch Blackfeet Buffalo Horse Coalition needs $350,000 to stay put By JANE McFARLANE Tribune Staff Writer Time is running out for 60 head of Spanish mustangs and a program aimed at keeping kids on the Blackfeet Reservation off drugs and alcohol. A 633-acre ranch just west of Browning has been home to the Blackfeet Buffalo Horse Coalition, a nonprofit organization founded six years ago by Bob Black Bull. Its goal is two fold -- keep kids too busy to get hooked on drugs and create a thriving herd of rare horses. The program has been successful in terms of attendance and herd numbers. It started with just a handful of kids and seven horses. It now serves at least 20 youth and boasts a herd of 60 Spanish mustangs plus another eight herds on the reservation. But now BBHC board members are scrambling for money to purchase the land they leased in June 1999 with an option to buy. The lease runs out March 27 and they must vacate by April 16. But that would mean they will lose $30,000 earnest money. "We've got to keep this going," Black Bull said, recalling a list of 32 kids from the reservation whose deaths were related to drugs and alcohol. Black Bull sadly remembers one youth that he wanted to help, but who instead died in an accident. "I know we could have worked with him, but at 16 years old, his life was over," he said. The program involves having the youth work with the horses while learning horsemanship, veterinary and farrier skills. They also learn traditional native crafts at the site. Okan Hungry Wolf, a 27-year-old Blackfoot from the Blood Reserve in Canada, is president of BBHC and acting horse trainer. He has been with the program for a year and also serves as mentor. "Living on this reservation puts all kids at risk," Hungry Wolf said. He has seen how the program works by teaching responsibility and giving the kids an option of something to do with their time. Hungry Wolf said the youth learn to trust by working with horses -- something they need to form relationships with people, he said. "They take a chance on the horse, and the horse takes a chance on them," he said. Black Bull doesn't want to see BBHC return to the past. Before leasing the ranch, BBHC paid four different ranchers to pasture the special breed. Spanish mustangs came to North America in the 1600s. Indians used them for hunting and called them buffalo horses because of their ability to run with a herd of bison. This breed is the predecessor to what is now known as American mustangs. The Blackfeet are known to have used them in the 1700s. Today, there are fewer than 2,500 Spanish mustangs left. "What we got here is a pretty incredible bunch of horses," Black Bull said. It began with a stallion Black Bull was given as a gift and six mares he purchased through the sale of his art. In addition to the 60 owned by BBHC, another 90 Spanish mustangs are owned by kids on the reservation, including the youngest herd owner, 10-year-old Amerette Ground, who has 12 of her own. Aside from money Black Bulls generates from selling his art, the Horse Coalition relies heavily on private donations. To purchase the ranch, the coalition needs $350,000, a goal even at this late hour, Black Bull optimistically hopes to meet. "I have an obligation and responsibility and I can't fail," he said. "It's in the hands of God." To donate The Blackfeet Buffalo Horse Coalition was formed to promote and preserve the Spanish mustang horses and the Blackfeet horse culture by utilizing these horses to empower youth through mentoring and training programs that will continue their cultural heritage. To contact BBHC for more information or to donate, contact Bob Black Bull at BBHC, PO Box 1129, Browning, MT 59417 or phone (406) 338-7434. Copyright c. 2001 Great Falls Tribune. All rights reserved. --------- "RE: Assembly of First Nations Statement" --------- Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2001 09:34:41 EST From: AIMFL@aol.com Subj: AFN Statement Mailing List: ndn-aim ASSEMBLY OF FIRST NATIONS BULLETIN March 21, 2001 NATIONAL CHIEF DENOUNCES ATTITUDE OF ALLIANCE PARTY IN ACCOUNTABILITY DEBATE National Chief Matthew Coon Come strongly denounces the attitude of the Canadian Alliance Party in the on-going debate about accountability within First Nations communities. "We are Peoples and Nations by any and every international standard. We are already the most audited and verified group in this country. As of this moment, 98% of our communities have submitted audits, most of which have been accepted without qualifications. We do not object at all to accountability and transparency. In fact, we have been working for years to establish accounting standards and procedures that will allow our governments to be accountable directly to our citizens, not to the government or the Canadian Alliance. Our governments have been working to establish these reporting requirements and if the Alliance was serious in its attempts to have open and transparent First Nations governments, they would be working with the AFN and all First Nations governments to see that the processes are established quickly, not undermining us by slander and innuendo as they have become so proficient in doing. Their ignorance of our situation is an embarrassment to the parliamentary process", stated the National Chief. "The Canadian Alliance is guilty of using the most demeaning attitude towards our citizens and our governments. Under the guise of accountability, the party is painting all of our governments at best as irresponsible and at worse as fraudulent. We believe that the rate of default and imposed external management on non-.Aboriginal municipalities is ACTUALLY higher than the rate of First Nation default. Why is the Canadian Alliance Party not telling Canadians that First Nations administration is in the same or better shape that comparable non-First Nations situations? Such a double standard is totally unacceptable. Their only goal is to whip up anti-Indian sentiment in Canada for purely cheap political points", added the National Chief. "The Canadian Alliance Party and others make much of the fact that the federal government spends $7billion dollars or so on "Status Indians". If you were to examine the expenditures around the same number of non-Aboriginal people in any Canadian city, you would find that federal, provincial and municipal governments are spending even higher amounts to provide social and other programs and services to these Canadians." "Canadians have the right to expect these services and it is the responsibility of the governments to provide those services. The same criteria should also apply to First Nations citizens. Yet, because of the paternalistic Indian Act framework, much of the $7 billion is consumed at Indian Affairs and other federal ministries, by non-First Nations bureaucracies, before any benefit reaches First Nations peoples". "The Canadian Alliance is only able to inflame Canadians about these issues because First Nations peoples are an easily identifiable population. This is a form of racism, one that once Canadians know the facts, they will reject. However, the federal government has much to do to ensure that First Nations people receive funding that is equivalent to the larger per capita amounts being spent on non-Aboriginal Canadians, and to ensure that funds provided are delivered to First Nations people in an effective manner". "The double standard of this party is exposed for all to see. This party does not care one iota for the health and well being of our citizens. If it did, the party and its leader would be working with us to resolve the deplorable conditions in housing and health and pushing to improve the economic development opportunities and resolve outstanding land claims. They would be supporting and pushing the government to act quickly to resolve those issues. Their constant resistance to negotiated solutions to the issues shows that their attitude is not borne out of respect for us but by utter contempt. Their Aboriginal platform was bred by contempt, not by respect for our citizens and the law of the land", concluded National Chief Coon Come. For additional information, contact Jean LaRose at jlarose@afn.ca Subj: Zapatista rebels accept Mexican lawmakers' invitation to speak Mailing List: ndn-aim http://community.centurytel.net/index.cfm?action=startpage&mode=article &articleid=wed/ab/Qmexico-chiapas-agree.R5ko_BMN.html Zapatista rebels accept Mexican lawmakers' invitation to speak ClariNet story from C-afp@clari.net (AFP) Thu, 22 Mar 2001 23:00:07 PST MEXICO CITY, March 22 (AFP) - Zapatista rebel leader "Subcommander" Marcos announced late Thursday that he accepted an invitation to address the Mexican Congress and will postpone his return trip to Chiapas. "It looks like the door to dialogue is opening up," said the hooded rebel leader, reading from a statement at a faculty building where he and two dozen of his fighters have been staying since they arrived here March 11 after a 3,000 kilometer (1,900-mile) protest march from Chiapas. "The agreement," he added, "facilitates the Zapatistas' dialogue with lawmakers and their committees. The EZLN (Zapatista National Liberation Army) accepts this invitation to dialogue. "As a result, the EZLN has decided to postpone their exit from the Federal District (Mexico City)," he added Marcos and his fellow Zapatistas left Chiapas March 5 for Mexico City, to lobby for an indigenous rights bill in Congress, but were rebuffed by lawmakers. On Monday Marcos threatened to go back to Chiapas and rethink his strategy. Deputies in Congress Thursday voted 220-210 to allow a Zapatista leader to address members of legislative commissions in the plenary hall of Congress. The offer, however, fell short of Marcos' demand to speak before a joint plenary session. Several members of President Vicente Fox's conservative National Action Party (PAN) staunchly opposed the invitation, pointing out that the EZLN never withdrew the declaration of war it issued seven years ago. Copyright c. 2001 by Agence France-Presse (via ClariNet) ----- To subscribe to this group,send an email to: ndn-aim-subscribe@egroups.com Archived on line at: http://www.eScribe.com FREE LEONARD PELTIER --------- "RE: Edmonton Inuk to sue Ottawa" --------- Date: Wed, 21 Mar 2001 09:26:14 -0600 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="INUK LAWSUIT" March 16, 2001 Edmonton Inuk to sue Ottawa over Inuit rights Lawsuit will charge that Ottawa favors First Nations over Inuit. DENISE RIDEOUT Nunatsiaq News IQALUIT - Kiviaq knows discrimination. He's known it from some of the earliest moments of his life. When he was four years old, his mother's Qallunaaq boyfriend moved the family from Chesterfield Inlet to Edmonton, where he says he was forced to take on a Qallunaaq identity. "My name was changed. My identity was changed. I wasn't allowed to talk about being Inuit because I'd have the `beep' kicked out of me," he recalls. After he moved to the South, Kiviaq was forced to drop his Inuk name and was renamed David Charles Ward. In his school years he was beaten up again, this time for looking different than the other kids. Kiviaq says that later in life he learned that other Inuit felt discriminated against - and that the Canadian government was the culprit. Now, as a 65-year-old lawyer in Edmonton, Kiviaq is standing up against the unfair treatment. He's preparing a legal challenge on behalf of all Inuit that will see him sue the federal government for what he views as years of discrimination. Kiviaq argues that while First Nations people have been granted access to a host of federal programs, from medical benefits to housing, Inuit are denied many of the same benefits. Considering that he's fighting for Inuit rights, Kiviaq was hoping to get backing from some of the Inuit organizations. Inuit Tapirisat of Canada, the country's largest Inuit organization, has pledged support for Kiviaq - but ITC isn't going all the way. ITC is heavily supported by the federal government and isn't prepared to bite the hand that feeds it. "We've taken the position here that we support his initiative and we've written a letter expressing that to him," said Rob Martel, ITC's chief operating officer. "But at this point ITC isn't pursuing legal action or any legal support for Kiviaq." That hasn't deterred Kiviaq. "On a legal issue I don't need support from anybody. If there's something wrong in law then it should be corrected, whether one person says it or 50 people say it," he said. The fight Kiviaq takes issue with the fact there's no Canada-wide legislation defining Inuit rights. First Nations groups, however, have their rights spelled out in the Indian Act. The lack of an "Inuit Act" leaves Kiviaq to believe the Canadian government doesn't recognize Inuit. "We're not defined in law. We don't exist in law in our country," he said. Inuit are identified in the Constitution as one of Canada's three aboriginal peoples. The problem, Kiviaq says, is that Inuit were excluded from the Indian Act in 1939 and left without many of the benefits afforded to First Nations groups. First Nations people are provided medical and health benefits, as well as government money for education. Indians living on reserves are exempt from federal and provincial taxes. There's even a housing benefit where the federal government loans money to bands or individual Indians for the construction of houses on reserves. Kiviaq believes this is proof that Inuit are not treated as generously as other aboriginal peoples. He's hoping the courts will agree. To win that argument, he's enlisted the help of Dale Gibson, an Edmonton-based lawyer who specializes in aboriginal law and the Constitution. The pair are looking to the federal Court Challenges program to get money to pursue their lawsuit. The program, which provides funding for cases involving the Charter of Rights, has already given them $10,000 to conduct research. In an initial report to the program, Gibson sets out the arguments they'll make. The report opens with a critique of the creation of Nunavut. "The establishment of the new `Inuit homeland' territory of Nunavut has diverted attention from the plight of Inuit in other parts of Canada," the report reads. The pair charges that the Nunavut land claim agreement benefited the Inuit living in Nunavut, but does little for the thousands of Inuit in the South. They're fighting to have that changed. Kiviaq says he's been fighting for most of his life and he's ready for a long legal battle. "This is my biggest fight and I'm not going to quit on it," he said. Kiviaq and Gibson are now awaiting approval for funding from the Court Challenges program so that they can file a statement of claim in the federal court of Canada. Copyright c. 2001 Nunatsiaq News. --------- "RE: Interior: Trust Reform is Working" --------- Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2001 06:44:28 -0800 (PST) From: Paul Pureau Subj: Interior: Trust reform is working Mailing List: Our Red Earth Indianz.Com. In Print. http://www.indianz.com/SmokeSignals/Headlines/showfull.asp?ID=law/3222001 Interior: Trust reform is working MARCH 22, 2001 Amid pressure from his department, the courts, and the plaintiffs engaged in a billion dollar lawsuit against the federal government, the Department of Interior's top trust fund official on Wednesday assured members of Congress that his agency was well on its way to fixing the historically mismanaged system. But even though Special Trustee Tom Slonaker admitted a controversial memo criticizing the government's progress contained a number of truthful revelations, he refused to concede the trust reform project needed to be changed. Despite recognized problems in management and other issues, he instead echoed the words of his boss, Secretary of Interior Gale Norton, and said "substantial progress has been made." Members of the House Committee on Appropriations, however, were clearly skeptical. They focused on the memo in which Dominic Nessi, who became the Bureau of Indian Affair's first Chief Information Officer last spring, told Slonaker the government's trust fund project was "slowly, but surely imploding." "Up until last week, I thought we were making good progress," offered Representative Norm Dicks (Wash.), the committee's ranking Democrat who said he was "disturbed" by Nessi's recent admissions, particularly those regarding the Trust Assets and Accounting Management System. Otherwise known as TAAMS, the system is touted as the government's solution to over 100 years of mismanaging the trust assets of an estimated 300,000 American Indians throughout the country. Yet the system, formerly managed by Nessi, has suffered from a number of setbacks. Along with BIA Deputy Commissioner Sharon Blackwell, Slonaker acknowledged significant work needs to be completed before TAAMS is fully operational at all Bureau agencies. Blackwell also said some critical components of the project are still in the design phase, leaving Dicks to question why it won't be up and running until 2005. "This doesn't sound good to me," said Dicks. "I'm not an expert on this but if its going to take you four additional years before you have the confidence in this system and you've got these other systems that haven't been integrated, it sounds to me like you're going to have problems." "There's no reason for Congress to be very confident in this operation thus far," he added. Slonaker and Blackwell tried to reassure Dicks and others and said the system itself will be finished by 2003. The need to correct years of poor record keeping and lack of management means the system won't provide an accurate accounting until the later date, they said. "There's absolutely no reason why TAAMS can't work," said Slonaker. Armed with reports documenting problems with TAAMS and the knowledge of a BIA computer specialist who was assigned to home duty after criticizing the system, a lawyer representing the plaintiffs in the five-year-old Cobell v. Norton lawsuit disagreed with Slonaker's assessment. After the hearing, Dennis Gingold said simply: "TAAMS is a failure." Gingold agreed with Slonaker that the BIA needs better management but criticized Slonaker's refusal to admit the government's trust reform blueprint was inadequate. Slonaker said the nearly three-year-old document, known as the High-Level Implementation Plan (HLIP), was "pretty good" and told Chairman Joe Skeen (R-N.M) that it didn't deserve to be "overhauled." "I'd say the problem is management, money, and the absence of a competent strategic plan," said Gingold. "But for whatever reason, the trust documents, the trust money, and the trust data are not treated the way the United States treats is own money." "There's something wrong here." ===== Paul Pureau to subscribe to ndn-aim send a blank mail to: ndn-aim-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.com ndn-aim is now archived on line at Http://www.escribe.com/life/ndn-aim/ FREE PELTIER NOW! STOP ETHNIC CLEANSING OF THE LAKOTA! --------- "RE: No Trust Fund Settlement Just Yet" --------- Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2001 06:47:18 -0800 (PST) From: Paul Pureau Subj: no trust fund settlement just yet Mailing List: ndn-aim Indianz.Com. In Print. http://www.indianz.com/SmokeSignals/Headlines/showfull.asp?ID=law/3222001 No trust fund settlement just yet MARCH 22, 2001 At an oversight hearing before the House Committee on Appropriations, the Department of Interior's top trust fund official on Wednesday said he still hoped the government could settle its billion dollar lawsuit with American Indian account holders even after previous talks failed. "I firmly believe there should be initiatives on both sides to resume negotiations," said Special Trustee Tom Slonaker. "I believe Secretary [Gale Norton] feels the same way." But the plaintiffs in the five-year-old lawsuit, led by Blackfeet Nation of Montana banker Elouise Cobell, probably aren't going to make the first move. A lawyer for the group, Dennis Gingold, yesterday said settlement talks would only take place under one condition. "There is no way this case can be settled unless the Secretary of Treasury, Secretary of Interior, and the Attorney General do their job," said Gingold after the hearing. "Unless there are assurances that Cabinet officials will implement what they agreed to, we're not going to spend five minutes talking to them any more." Given admissions by senior Bureau of Indian Affairs officials that trust reform isn't working, regular reports that point out missed deadlines, and court investigations that reveal security breaches, the condition might not be met any time soon. And according to the government's projections, the key trust reform system that will provide automated access to the accounts of an estimated 300,00 American Indians throughout the country won't be fully operational with accurate data until 2005, nearly ten years after the lawsuit was initiated. Since the case's inception, it has seen the passing of one of the original plaintiffs, the departure of three officials who were slapped with contempt of court charges, and the resignation of the first Special Trustee. Yet as Slonaker agreed yesterday, the case has "probably sparked reform." But echoing an issue he has raised since taking the job last June, Slonaker said there is a "dark side" to the affair. Motions and cross- motions are filed just about every day by both sides and along with the continued investigation of the court's Special Master, the lawsuit has distracted from the "time and energies" of the people implementing trust reform, he said. For once, perhaps, Gingold wasn't moved. "Its very convenient for the Special Trustee to make bald statements," he said. "He doesn't like the scrutiny because he's not doing his job." Meanwhile, the clock is ticking on a number of potentially important events. The plaintiffs have requested an emergency status meeting to discuss apparent failures in reform and Judge Royce Lamberth still has to decide if he will hold a contempt trial to address retaliation against a BIA employee who criticized the reform project. If that happens and Lamberth finds the allegations true, Norton may soon follow in the footsteps of her predecessor and end up in contempt of court. Or worse, she may end up in jail. "If government officials do not obey [Lamberth's] orders, he will put them in jail or he will fine them personally," asserted Gingold. ===== Paul Pureau to subscribe to ndn-aim send a blank mail to: ndn-aim-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.com ndn-aim is now archived on line at Http://www.escribe.com/life/ndn-aim/ FREE PELTIER NOW! STOP ETHNIC CLEANSING OF THE LAKOTA! --------- "RE: County/Tribe Find Accord" --------- Date: Sat, 24 Mar 2001 09:13:34 -0000 From: "anne.bates" Subj: County, tribe find accord Mailing List: ndn-aim http://www.argusleader.com/news/Saturdayarticle5.shtml County, tribe find accord By LANCE NIXON Argus Leader published: 3/24/01 Officials for the Yankton Sioux Tribe and Charles Mix County have agreed on several ways to improve race relations, a U.S. Justice Department agency says. Their agreement is the latest step toward resolving tension in the county, which spent much of last year wrestling over accusations that law officers -- primarily from the Wagner Police Department -- were using "racial profiling." The contention is that officers were arresting or investigating American Indians based on the color of their skin. Contentions that police treated Indians roughly in two separate incidents in Wagner and Lake Andes added to the tension. In an agreement mediated by the Community Relations Service, an agency of the U.S. Department of Justice, tribal and county officials agreed to what one called a wish list of policies. The tribe and county say they will: - Form a permanent County-Tribal Relations Committee to help them share information and collaborate on issues. - Cooperate in developing day care and emergency placement of at-risk youth. - Explore ways to avoid racial profiling and improve relations between law enforcement officers and tribal members. - Develop and put into place a drug-court program and a support-aftercare program for youth. - Meet with school leaders in Lake Andes and Wagner to discuss improving school courses and programs about Indian culture. They'll also encourage districts to have an Indian counselor in each school, encourage tribal input into decisions affecting Indian youth and develop strategies for promoting self-esteem among Indians. - Explore economic development and tourism opportunities. Herman Peters, a Charles Mix county commissioner and one of the officials who signed the agreement, said the document isn't binding. He pointed out that some items depend on the cooperation of other governments. "It was brought out that they would like to have their culture taught in the schools," Peters said. "I don't have a problem with that. It sounds like it would benefit everybody, but it's still up to the school boards." Bruce Bakken, another of the county commissioners who signed the document, said he, too, believes better understanding of each other's cultures can help ease the tensions. "I think it would be a good idea to let the white kids know about the Indian culture," Bakken said. "I think it's a real good thing. As long as we live together we should get along." Jolene Arrow, one of the tribal members who helped work out the agreement, said county and tribal officials alike seem willing to work together. But she added that the agreement is just a first step. "It's a start. I don't think it goes far enough yet. We're hoping that this leads into more productive things that we can work on together. This is just kind of a wish list of what we'd like to do." Jack Soulek, chairman of the Charles Mix County Commission, said the agreement holds the promise of re-establishing the close relations the commission and the tribe had once. "We're sitting down now and talking, and we haven't done that in quite a few years," Soulek said. "We're trying to sit down and get the trust back between the county and the tribe." ----- To subscribe to this group,send an email to: ndn-aim-subscribe@egroups.com Archived on line at: http://www.eScribe.com FREE LEONARD PELTIER --------- "RE: Kansas Tribes Face Housing Shortage" --------- Date: Mon, 26 Mar 2001 08:41:29 -0600 From: John D Berry/grad/res/Okstate Subj: (FWD)Indian News 03-25-2001 ----- Forwarded by John D Berry/grad/res/Okstate on 03/26/2001 08:42 AM Kansas tribes face housing shortage CARL MANNING The Associated Press cjonline.com/stories/032401/kan_kstribes.shtml March 24, 2001 MAYETTA -- "Like many members of her tribe, Dawn LeClere would like to live on the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation reservation, but there is no housing available for her. After years of sharing space with her parents in their home, LeClere and her 4-year-old son, Jalen, moved into an apartment in nearby Holton in December. But LeClere, 23, dreams of her own place somewhere on the 121-square- mile reservation, closer to the family that is so important to her. "I'm still part of everything in this community," she said. "I still feel this is my home. It's just temporary living in Holton." For Prairie Band members, living on the reservation is as much about being among their own people as being on their own land. "A lot of people were raised in Indian ways and they want to return and practice those ways with other people," said Rey Kitchkumme, tribal council member. "Here, they can be part of the community that practices those ways." The reservation in Jackson County faces what the other three smaller reservations in northeast Kansas confront -- not enough housing for tribal members. The 2000 census figures show 518 American Indians living on the Prairie Band reservation. Tribal leaders say there are 850 members in Jackson County, 2,300 statewide and 5,000 nationally. "It's a major problem, in that people who want to live here can't. But you make do. There's a high demand for housing out here," Kitchkumme said. The sense of family is so strong that two or three generations often live under the same roof. Also, until recently, many simply couldn't afford to strike out on their own. The tribe opened a casino in 1998, and the resulting revenue and jobs created by the expanded tribal economy have improved conditions for many. The other tribes also have casinos on their land that generate income. "The economics are better than four years ago. The number of people on the reservation was higher then, but it went down because of the prosperity," Kitchkumme said. Faced with lack of housing, many tribal members could afford to leave the reservation and moved to nearby Mayetta, Holton or Topeka. Kitchkumme said there are 436 home sites on the reservation, but tribal leaders are working to increase that number. Already, a dozen three-bedroom homes are under construction on the reservation. But there is a waiting list of about 100 members wanting a home on tribal land. Kitchkumme said he would like to see different types of housing to cater to various income levels. He said the tribal council is surveying members to learn their housing needs. "This is really an important issue," he said. "Not only are we bringing housing for our members, but it also builds up the economic structure for the county." For other tribes in Kansas -- the Kickapoo, Sac and Fox Nation of Missouri and the Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska -- the story is similar. . On the 30-square-mile Kickapoo reservation in Brown County, the census head count shows 714 American Indians. Tribal membership is 1,600 nationally. "We have seen these casinos, and that has had a significant impact on opportunities for Native Americans to come back to the reservations," said John Kaul, Kickapoo housing director. Kaul said his office manages 86 houses on the reservation and that another 100 are privately owned. Still, he said, 40 families are on his waiting list. "We do have a housing shortage, absolutely," Kaul said, adding that there is a problem with inadequate housing, such as five people in a two- bedroom house. He said the Kickapoo are building another dozen homes, but noted the reservation continues to face a water shortage. "I am not even planning any more housing until we figure out what to do about the water shortage problem," Kaul said. Census figures show 40 American Indians living on the 25-square mile Sac and Fox reservation in Brown County and southeastern Nebraska. Kirby Robidoux, tribal council vice chairman, disagreed with the figures. He said there are 500 enrolled members and estimated that 80 live on the reservation. Don Bucky Pilcher, Sac and Fox Housing Board chairman, said the tribe has 49 houses -- 19 on tribal land and the rest off the reservation. He said about 15 families are on his waiting list and tribal leaders are surveying members to determine how much more housing is needed. "We have other tribes applying because they don't have housing on their reservations. We try to serve our people first," he said. The Iowa Tribe reservation has 86 American Indians on the 48-square mile reservation in northeast Kansas and southeast Nebraska, according to census figures. Tribal chairman Louis DeRoin said the census figures are too low, but declined to say what he thought the correct number is. He said his tribe has a housing shortage and built 10 homes last year, but he declined to discuss specifics." --------- "RE: Camp Justice: Tom Poor Bear Speaks" --------- Date: Mon, 26 Mar 2001 08:23:53 -0500 From: Jordan S. Dill Subj: Camp Justice - Tom Poor Bear Speaks For Immediate News Release, 3-26-2001 Please send this news release far and wide, especially to media sources. Thanks, Sandra Matchen From: Camp Justice, Organizers, Leaders and Supporters of "Camp Justice" and the "March for Justice" to White Clay, Nebraska Date: March 26, 2001 Contact: Spokespersons: Tom Poor Bear, or Loren Black Elk, Webster Poor Bear, Tom Clifford Phones: 605-462-6662, 605-867-2244 or 605-867-2669 Fax: 605-462-6518 or 605-867-2609 Address: Camp Justice, c/o Tom Poor Bear, P O Box 823, Pine Ridge SD 57770 -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tom Poor Bear Statement To Supporters Statement by Tom Poor Bear: First of all, on behalf of Camp Justice I would like to give a big Wopila from my heart to all our relatives of the Oglala Nation and our relatives from all other Nations...to the American Indian Movement, to our friends, supporters, volunteers and to all the people who came and camped and marched with us and to all those who shared their days and evenings with us, to those who brought or sent food, supplies and donations. We thank you for standing in solidarity with us. Your prayers and support will never be forgotten. We are now going into our 22nd month seeking justice for Wilson (Wally) Black Elk, and Ron Hard Heart, for their brutal murders. Our commitment is still very strong in demanding justice for the murder of Wally and Ron and Justice for all the other deaths of our relatives in Sheridan County, Nebraska and the Treaty lands west of the Missouri River which is now called Western South Dakota. We demand the return of 50 square miles of land that was illegally stolen from the Oglala Lakota which is also a clear violation of our treaties of 1851 and 1868. We have succeeded in bringing national and international attention to the murders of Wally and Ron and we have to continue to keep them in the forefront. We have advised former Attorney General Reno and are now advising Attorney General Aschcroff that we want a special team of investigators, other than the FBI, to investigate these murders but have received no response. We ask for this investigation because of these murders and the racial tension that continues to exist. We have given testimony before the U.S. Civil Rights Commission and the National Council of Churches. I remember our people giving testimony to these same organizations back in the 70's and it still continues to happen. I hope and pray for the day that my children will not go before them again to give testimony to murders and injustices. It has to stop now. There has not been one mysterious death in Sheridan County or the jails of Sheridan county in the last twenty two months. I feel that the March for Justice and the physical presence of Camp Justice has shown the people of these boarder towns and Sheridan County that we are not going to stand by and look anymore. We have asked for a through and adequate investigation, but what has resulted is an incompetent and inadequate investigation of the murders of Wally and Ron and clear violations of our human and civil rights. From day one when Wally and Ron were first found on June 8th 1999, the crime scene was not roped off, twenty to thirty people were allowed to trample all over the area where our brothers were found, destroying evidence or not picking up evidence to be turned over to the proper authorities. Tracks were trampled all over, and destroyed. The FBI did not come to the murder scene until a day later and evidenced gather by BIA investigators mysteriously has been lost. If two white people were murdered we would have been surrounded by the FBI. We would have been terrorized and fear would have been placed in our peoples eyes again as it was in the 70's during the reign of terror against us. The FBI sent more agents down to seize our property and terrorize our families than they do for helping find murderers of the people. We have gained support from political, social, educational, civil rights and religious organizations both nationally and internationally in our efforts and commitment to stand and fight the injustices of our people. Now six of us, the "White Clay 6," are facing jail for exercising our rights to seek justice for the murders of our people. The only thing we are guilty of is standing up for our peoples rights, the rights to live as Lakota. The "White Clay 6" is standing in solidarity with one another. We were offered a Russell Means deal, but we all refused. Personally, I will not give the state of Nebraska $100 like Russell did for standing up and marching peacefully in protest of the treatment and murders of our people. I will not give the state of Nebraska $100 every time I exercise my human and civil rights and those of all the indigenous peoples... The state of Nebraska needs to drop all charges like Denver did for the Columbus day parade protesters. In the past 22 months we have experienced sadness, anger and frustration almost to the limit of our patience. But, with prayers and support, we stay focused and consistent with our efforts to seek and fight for justice and to find the murderers of our people. At a time of political turmoil and division our people we have stayed focused on the issues and we attack our real enemies. While at one time the oppressed almost became the oppressors, we stay focused on the issues and attack the real enemies; oppression, control, racism, the state of Nebraska, the FBI and discrimination of our people. Camp Justice organizers and supporters pray for unity and peace. We will stand together as a nation and face the common enemy together. On a personal note, I never had the chance to let my brother Wally know how much I appreciated him. I really appreciate my family and all the support and volunteer work done in a good way for Camp Justice. I really feel that all of us working on behalf of our people need to appreciate one another and respect one another. In order to do that we must mend the sacred hoop and create true unity and protection among us. Once again we are fighting for Truth, we are fighting in the court rooms, fighting for our freedom and fighting among ourselves takes away from our own issues and needs. At Camp Justice we have a American flag which is flying upside down. We do not mean to be disrespectful to our veterans that we respect and honor very highly. We fly the upside down flag to let the world know we are in distress. To be in distress has made us stay strong and fight harder for our beliefs and responsibilities. I look at Camp Justice as I look at the memorial wall of the Viet Nam Veterans which has all the names of soldiers and warriors who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their people and their country. So too we have the right to stand up for what we believe in. I look at Camp Justice and I see Wally, I see Ron, I see the great Chiefs: Crazy Horse, Red Cloud, Sitting Bull, Gall, I see Geronimo, Red Shirt, Black Elk, Crow Dog, Spotted Tail, Fools Crow, Big Foot, Black Kettle, Cochise, Joseph and Seattle. I see our strong Warriors: Buddy Lamont, Pedro Bissonette, Milo Goings, Agnes Lamont, Nelly Red Owl, Lou Bean, Anna Mae Aquash, and all the others who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our people. If it takes the rest of my life I will continue to seek justice for Wally and Ron and only when the murderers are caught and held responsible shall I rest. I accept that they are in the spirit world and move on with my life and stay strong and involved in the struggles of our people. In the Spirit of Justice, Tom Poor Bear on behalf of Camp Justice -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Camp Justice supporters will reunite for a March for Justice and Memorial on Saturday, June 9th. We invite all those who want to stand in solidarity with us to join us on this day... Camp Justice will continue to stand United and Strong in our efforts to obtain the Justice and Accountability our Nation deserves and expects. In the Spirit of Human & Civil Justice, Camp Justice Organizers -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Presented on behalf of: Camp Justice Organizers, Volunteers and millions of Supporters protecting and praying for the Lakota Nation. Camp Justice & March for Justice Lakota Oyate Organizers Spokespersons: Tom Poor Bear, Loren Black Elk, Webster Poor Bear, Tom Clifford Elder Spokesperson: Johnson Holy Rock Other Organizers: Ben Black Elk, Wayne Black Elk, Reggie & Faye Cedar Face, Ede Sherman, Dave Clifford, Jun Little, Alberta Black Bear, Chaz Little Bear, Moses Thunder Hawk, Lloyd Fire Thunder, Billy & Rose Beane, Robin Mesteth, Tony Brave, Lyman Red Cloud, Guy George Janis, Tuck LeBeau, Steve Little Sky, Vicky Thunder Hawk, Gary Moore and Sandra Matchen. Legal Advisors: Jerry Matthews, NSBA, 155517, Abourezk Law Firm, Native American Rights Fund Send Letters of Support, Donations and Supplies to: Camp Justice c/o Tom Poor Bear P.O. Box 823 Pine Ridge, SD 57770 --------- "RE: Cree Take Logging Fight to U.S." --------- Date: Fri, 23 Mar 2001 08:55:23 -0600 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="CREE/OTTAWA" ottawa.cbc.ca N e w s Evan Dyer reports for CBC Radio Cree take logging fight to U.S. WebPosted Mar 20 2001 2:47 PM EST OTTAWA - Politicians in Washington are seeing the latest chapter in a campaign by the Cree of Northern Quebec, to stop clear-cut logging. The Cree have taken out a full-page ad in a congressional newspaper, accusing Quebec of wrecking the environment and cheating U.S. competitors in the softwood lumber industry. It's the latest front in a battle that's also being fought at the Supreme Court of Canada. In the '80s and '90s, the Cree of James Bay took their cause to Washington and New York in an attempt to halt the Great Whale River hydroelectric power project. Now they're back, arguing the threat comes not from hydro but from logging. "If you were to fly over it you'd see a spider web network of logging roads," says Geoff Quayle, an environmental analyst with the Grand Council of the Cree. "Up to 80% of these areas have been clear-cut. So finding small game, moose and large game, and birds in these areas is very difficult." The Cree have satellite maps they say show 18,000 kilometres of new roads pushed into their hunting grounds by logging companies. They say Quebec is giving away their land at stumpage rates as low as 20 cents an acre because the good forests in the south are already cut. And some in the logging industry agree, at least partly. Frank Dottori, the president of Tembec Forest Products, says the Cree are wrong to take their campaign south of the border. But he agrees that logging companies in the north risk overharvesting themselves right out of business - just as many already have in the south. "We should be smart enough to learn from that. Because of those false policies that existed in the past, there has to be a reduction in the amount of forest that we cut today," says Dottori. The Cree are hoping that if their moral and legal arguments fail in Canada, then the U.S. Congress will take action against Quebec's softwood lumber industry. With the softwood lumber agreement set to expire in just two weeks, U.S. politicians are demanding tighter controls on imports of Canadian lumber. Copyright c. 2001 CBC online --------- "RE: Poisoning of Indian People by Waste" --------- Date: Wed, 21 Mar 2001 01:44:59 -0000 From: gaia_2k@yahoo.com Subj: Poisoning of Indian People by Waste Mailing List: Our Red Earth GM threatened with NY lawsuit over PCB site (UPDATE: Adds GM comment, details, paras 5-8) DETROIT, March 15 (Reuters) - The New York state attorney general has threatened to sue General Motors Corp. (NYSE:GM - news) over chemicals linked to cancer found at dump sites at a GM plant, saying the company was not doing enough to clean up the area. In a letter to the world's largest automaker dated Wednesday, N.Y. Attorney General Eliot Spitzer said the sites at GM's casting plant near Massena, N.Y., pose "an imminent and substantial danger to public health and the environment." He said he would file a federal lawsuit if no progress is made in 90 days on cleaning up the 270-acre (110 hectares) site in northern New York, bordering the St. Lawrence River and the St. Regis Mohawk American Indian reservation. The site is contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls, (PCBs), chemicals linked with cancer and other chronic illnesses, that GM used in making engine parts from 1959 to 1974. Tests have found PCBs in the breast milk of nursing mothers on the Mohawk reservation and in the tissues of animals near the river. A spokesman for GM, which has been wrangling with federal and state officials over the site for two decades, said the company was moving as fast as possible to clean the site. "We're surprised and disappointed with the (attorney general's) release, considering that we've been as responsive as we can under a process and under a law that wasn't designed for speed," said GM spokesman Greg Martin. A U.S. Environmental Protection Agency spokeswoman said GM was in compliance with federal cleanup orders that were put into place last year. GM agreed to dispose of 23,000 cubic yards (17,585 cubic meters) of PCB- laced soil and sediment, out of about 800,000 cubic yards (611,644 cubic meters) of contaminated material at the sites. The EPA had been negotiating with GM and the reservation over other ways to clean the site, including whether to remove more material or seal it off. The total cost of the cleanup is currently estimated at more than $100 million. The EPA proposed last year that General Electric Co. (NYSE:GE - news) spend $490 million to dredge PCBs from part of the Hudson River, but the diversified giant vowed to fight the project. ----- Thank you for your participation at Our Red Earth. --------- "RE: Team Ipperwash '95 Racist Memorabila" --------- Date: Fri, 23 Mar 2001 13:12:08 -0500 From: KOLA Subj: "Team Ipperwash '95" Racist Memorabila <+>=<+>KOLA Newslist<+>=<+> ---------------------------------------------------- Please reply directly to Pierre George at Thank you. Elsie === Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2001 20:22:34 -0500 From: Pierre George Boozhoo... My name is Pierre George. On September 6, 1995, my brother Dudley George was shot by the Ontario Provincial Police, he died from his wounds. At the time of the shooting, Dudley was one of many Stoney Pointers defending sacred burial grounds of our ancestors in Aazhoodena Territory-Stoney Point. On Monday, September 4, 1995 after the Ipperwash Provincial Park (which had been occupying Aazhoodena Territory and contained the site of sacred burial grounds) had closed for the season, many Stoney Pointers moved to occupy the Provincial Park. Over the next 2 days there was a huge build-up of police. They set-up checkpoints on all roads leading into the area, and evacuated the residents of the cottages and homes in the area. The police were heard to yell racial slurs at the Anishnaabe people occupying the park. On September 5, 1995, they targeted Dudley in particular by telling him that he'd be "the first to get it". Dudley just shrugged their threats off, as he knew the Stoney Pointers were not armed and he never thought that the police would shoot at unarmed people. After darkness fell, on the night of Wednesday, September 6, 1995 the police had the streetlights in the area shut off, and, under the cover of darkness approached the unarmed Stoney Pointers in the park. In the skirmish that followed, many rounds of shots rang out. When it was over, Dudley lay mortally wounded with three gunshot wounds. Dudley was the only Stoney Pointer to actually be hit by the gunfire. Seargeant Kenneth Deane was armed with a Heckler Koch MP-5 submachine gun. The cops had made good on their threats! If it wasn't enough that the Ontario Provincial Police had launched a paramilitary style assault on the unarmed people of Aazhoodena Territory, leaving several injured and resulting in Dudley's death, some of the OPP took the murder of my brother Dudley to an even lower level. Six, still unidentified OPP officers took it upon themselves to design and have made some souvenirs of their time at Stoney Point. They called themselves "Team Ipperwash `95" and had mugs and T-shirts made as souvenirs to take home. This racist and highly offensive memorabilia consisted of a graphic with an eagle feather laying on its side, signifying the killing of a native warrior. They made souvenirs celebrating the fact that they had killed Dudley. There was also another graphic showing the OPP crest with an arrow through it. Some of the T-shirts sported TRU team and ERT team initials. I find this racist memorabilia highly offensive, and what bothers me most is that my brother Sam actually accepted an apology from the OPP! People, I am of the opinion and knowledge that these officers conducted themselves in an highly offensive manner. It is my opinion that the "Team Ipperwash `95" racist memorabilia is evidence of police wrongdoing. Therefore, in honour of my brother Dudley, I am going to push that these six unidentified police officers be brought up on charges of conduct unbecoming of a police officer. I am asking for all thoughts, comments and opinions of you the readers of this list as I am interested in your input regarding this matter. Please reply by email to czavitz@xcelco.on.ca or by phone (519)786-4603 or by fax (519)786-1151. If you respond, please specify if you wish to have your response kept confidential. I wish to take this opportunity to say chi-miigwetch to KOLA and all of you who are continuing to support our struggle and the many other struggles of Indigenous peoples across our Mother Earth. In The Spirit Of Dudley, Pierre George Aazhoodena Territory-Stoney Point --------- "RE: Native Prisoner" --------- Date: Mon, 26 March 2001 20:55:07 -0530 From: "Janet Smith" Subj: Native Prisoner News Tell a Native American Prisoner someone cares! -- - - - Peltier, Leonard #89637-132 Box 1000 Leavenworth, KS 66053 Birthday: 9/12/44 Ancestry: Ojibwa-Lakota -- - - - Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 10:19:18 -0600 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="BIA JAIL" BIA renews inmate deal at Miami jail 2001-03-20 By Sheila K. Stogsdill State Correspondent, The Daily Oklahoman MIAMI, OK -- Ottawa County commissioners have renewed a contract with the U. S. Bureau of Indian Affairs for the county jail to house the agency's prisoners. The contract allows the county jail to house inmates based on availability of space at a rate of $24 a day, with the BIA picking up medical expenses, Sheriff Dennis King said. The contract is until June 30. The agreement comes two years after a second-degree rape charge was filed against a former Ottawa County jail janitor, prompting the state Corrections Department to cancel its contract with the county to house prisoners. The state in October renewed its contract with the county after policies and procedures were established. Ottawa County prosecutors ultimately dismissed the charges against the jailer because of inconsistent statements made by two inmates. David Johnson, BIA assistant district commander, confirmed the BIA had contracts in the past with Ottawa County and housed prisoners at the jail at the same time the state pulled its contract. It's common practice to extend contracts with the BIA and other municipalities in the area to hold prisoners, Ottawa County Undersheriff Fred Booth said. The jail holds 125 prisoners. On Monday it had 101 inmates, including 21 state Corrections Department prisoners. The Ottawa County jail houses state inmates separately from others, King said. Copyright c. 2001 The Oklahoma Publishing Co. --------------------------------- Please especially remember Leonard. Leonard Peltier #89637-132, Box 1000, Leavenworth, KS 66053 --------------------------------- Dear Janet, Eddie Hatcher was moved from Central Prison in North Carolina to a county jail. His new address is: Eddie Hatcher, Robeson County Jail,122 Legend Road, Lumberton, NC 28358. Thanks, Marsha Shaiman On Indian Land, PO Box 2104, Seattle WA 98111 --------------------------------- Standing Deer's new address: Robert H. Wilson #640539, Estelle Unit, 264 FM 3478, Huntsville, TX 77320-3322 --------- "RE: History: Carlisle Indian School" --------- Date: Sun, 11 Mar 2001 23:23:37 -0500 From: Barbara Landis Subj: History: Carlisle Indian School - March 9, 1888 INDIAN HELPER [Editorial Note: These reprints are being included in this newsletter so that you might know the mind of those who ran institutions like Carlisle.] THE INDIAN HELPER ----------------------------- ~~ FOR OUR BOYS AND GIRLS ~~ ----------------------------- VOLUME III CARLISLE, PA. FRIDAY, MARCH 9, 1888 NO. 30 --------------------------- THE MINUTES. --------- We are but minutes - little things, Each one furnished with sixty wings, With which we fly on our unseen track, And not a minute ever comes back. We are but minutes - yet each one bears A little burden of joys and cares, Patiently take the minutes of pain - The worst of minutes cannot remain. We are but minutes - when we bring A few of the drops from pleasure's spring, Taste their sweetness while we stay - It takes but a minute to fly away. We are but minutes - use us well For how we are used we must one day tell: Who uses minutes has hours to use - Who loses minutes whole years must lose. Selected. ------------------- FROM CALIFORNIA. -------- NATIONAL CITY, Cal. Feb. 24, 1888. My DEAR MAN-ON-THE-BAND-STAND: - While enjoying the spring-like freshness of the vegetation in Southern California, the fragrance of blooming wild-flowers, the songs of summer birds, and the warmth of the pleasant sunshine, I cannot bear to think of you standing on that cold band-stand and shivering in the north-west winds. I have heard of the deep snow you had at Carlisle; how the Indian boys gladly turned out to dig the railroad trains from high snow drifts. I hear what pleasant times some of the people there are having, sleigh-riding but I cannot help feeling sorry for you while the others are having good times. Here the grass is green. Here the trees are thick with summer foliage and hanging with golden fruits. Here people are working in their gardens. Here we have fresh garden vegetables to eat - new potatoes, onions, lettuce, radishes and other things. Here green fields of grain wave in the soft breeze and add beauty to the landscape. My friend, bring your band-stand over here. Carry it across the Rocky Mountains and let it rest on one of the sunny hill-tops overlooking our two cities, National City and San Diego, and this beautiful bay and lovely ocean. Here you would not need an overcoat in winter to keep you from freezing, nor a fan in summer to keep you from melting. Here in this delightful climate where blizzards are unknown and thunder showers rarely experienced, here where the sun shines nearly every day in the year, here where Eastern people come to rid themselves of the heat of summer as well as the cold of winter, this is the place for old gentlemen like you. I hear you sigh. I see you wipe your eyes with that large red handkerchief. I see you shake your head sorrowfully and say "It cannot be! I cannot go! My duty keeps me at Carlisle." True! You must not move your place! Dear old Carlisle is the place for you. The Indian boys and girls need you there to help keep them straight, and to tell them the news of the school. They do not always like what you say about them, but they like *you*. You are their friend and they know it. Yes! Yes! You must stay there! You have many nice things there to enjoy, and it is a grand place to do good. Do not get discouraged! Do not let those careless girls who break so many dishes make you feel badly. Keep a good heart, and believe me, Sincerely your friend and chief clerk, M. BURGESS. --------------------- Extract from a Composition. "There are great many people who can make books, and some people can paint nice pictures in them. Some Books are guilt with silver color. There is one book that tells about the world and you see that book is very interesting to read. I wish I know how to make nice books and put some interesting story like some people." ------------------------------------------ (p 2) The Indian Helper. ----------------------------- PRINTED EVERY FRIDAY, AT THE INDIAN INDUSTRIAL SCHOOL, CARLISLE, PA. BY THE INDIAN PRINTER BOYS. ----------------------------- Price: - 10 cents a year. ---------------------------- Address INDIAN HELPER, Carlisle, Pa. Miss M. Burgess, Manager. ----------------------------- Entered in the P.O. at Carlisle as second class mail matter. ------------------------------ THE INDIAN HELPER is PRINTED by Indian boys, but EDITED by The-Man-on-the-band-stand, who is NOT an Indian. ------------------------------ The INDIAN HELPER is paid for in advance, so do not hesitate to take the paper from the Post Office, for fear a bill will be presented. ------------------------------- Tuesday evening we had in the chapel a very interesting talk from Mr. Kanzo Uchumiura, a Japanese student, who has been studying three years at Amherst, Mass. He is going back to Japan now but he wanted to see Carlisle first. He spoke of the belief that some people have that the Japanese and the American Indians are of the same origin, that the Japan current in the Pacific Ocean, which is like the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic, may have brought the Japanese over here hundreds of years ago, because this current sometimes now drifts Japanese fishing vessals from their own coast across the Pacific Ocean to the coast of America. He spoke of his own likeness to the Indians. He pointed out on the map the Islands of Japan lying on the eastern coast of Asia, and told us of their high mountains, their roaring torrents, their grand and beautiful scenery. He told us how much Japan had gained since 1853 when through the influence of the Americans it had opened its ports to commerce and had begun to open its heart to Christianity. When the Japanese first saw the American steamers, they thought they were travelling volcanoes. Mr. Uchimura wrote upon the blackboard some of the signs that the Japanese, like the Chinese, use for words. Here are a few: [3 Japanese characters followed by the words, "mouth, tree, to point."] The monthly sociable Friday night passed off very pleasantly. Everybody had a good time, but all missed Capt. Pratt, who was detained at home by a heavy cold. Strains of sweet music from one corner of the gallery soon started a long line of promenaders. It was a pretty sight to watch, as group after group paired off, and joined on, till it looked a triumphal procession, heralding the new social and family life that is dawning on the dark "Indian Problem" of past years. Then came the usual mingling of boys and girls with games and chat. A merry laugh here and there, bright faces and the quiet talk of friendly couples showed that all were happy. The little folks filled quite a large space with their great circle of joined hands as they enjoyed a singing play. Later on we were interested watching eight active boys, four contesting at a time, each pick up a row of a dozen Indian clubs, one by one, carrying and placing them on end at the starting point. It grew quite exciting, cheers rang out for John D. Miles of the first hour, and George Nyruah of the second, as they gained on the others, and won. At closing time the whistle gathered those from the "Little Boys Quarters" and they filed out. The girls followed. Then the four companies of the large boys were formed and marched out by their sergeants in good order. The sociable was over. --------------- One of our subscribers asks this question: "Will you please explain why you are called "The Man-on-the-band-stand?" If the questioner were at Carlisle, he would know why. The Band-stand commands the whole situation. From it he can see all the quarters, the printing office, the chapel, the grounds, everything and everybody, all the girls and the boys on the walks, at the windows, everywhere. Nothing escapes the Man-on-the-band-stand. And it must be only because the bills shut in his post of observation that he does not look that he does not look down upon all the doings of all his subscribers as he does of the Indian boys and girls. But don't be too secure. There may be a flag staff on the Band-stand some day and the man may buy himself a spy glass. It is not safe to predict that one day his vision may not extend much farther. Already he sees into the homes of the boys and girls who go out upon the farms; and - but let us wait until that "someday" comes. -------------- "Never fear that you have done well enough, while you can still do better." ------------------------------------------- (p. 3) Pictures of the "Apache babies" for sale. ------------- Miss Ely and Miss Burgess leave National City, Cal. for Carlisle on the 15th inst. ------------- The Man-on-the-band-stand is happy to know that his chief clerk is coming back soon. ------------- Mr. Uchimura says his country, Japan, pays the State of Pennsylvania $3,000,000 a year for coal oil. ------------- Ira Yowicee, Egbert Eskeltah, Chas. Mann and Kitemi, have returned to Carlisle from country homes. ------------- A Japanese tailor holds his cloth with his toe; a carpenter holds and turns his wood about with his feet. ------------- Questions for the boys and girls to answer: Do stones grow? What is the difference between stones and plants? ------------- The girls say : "Thank you" to Miss Shears for her kindness in adding "The Youth" to their Reading Room files. ------------- Dr. Norcross talked this Sunday P.M. in place of Dr. Rittenhouse, who was away at Conference in Philadelphia. ------------- "Look out for pure air, sunshine and good company in your play. Get all the run out of it you can. Don't catch cold." ------------- Mr. Standing returned Saturday night. He reports great snow drifts in Columbia and the other counties north, where our boys are placed. ------------- A step forward. A mission band is to be organized by our boys and girls to help the Alaska schools, and to correspond with the lndian students. ------------- That was a polite boy who offered to carry his teacher's package home from town. Keep your eyes open to see how many polite, gentlemanly things you can find to do. ------------- A worthy Quaker wrote this; "I expect to pass through this world but once, if there be any kindness I can show, or any good I can do, let me do it now, for I shall not pass this way again." ------------- Don't throw sticks and stones at the birds. How would *you* like to have some great giant throw rocks and pieces of wood at you? Treat the dear little birds kindly and they will repay you with their sweet songs. P. I. society entertainment very soon? ------------- One of the boys thanked Mr. Campbell for circus-board instead of checker-board the other day. ------------- Some of the printers say that they know what, the "P.I." means in the P. I. Society. We will not tell. ------------- Louis Hoffman, of Chicago, Ohio, a little eight year old subscriber to the INDIAN HELPER, the "baby of the family," was instantly killed by a railroad train last week. ------------- One of the old Carlisle boys writes: "I have been asked and urged to drink many times, but always could say "No." My aim is to do that which is right if I possibly can." It takes the best kind of courage to say that little word "no." All honor to our boys who bravely say "no" to all wrong doing. ------------- The mother of one of our little girls in Carlisle is going to school at Albuquerque because she wants to keep up with her daughter in her studies. How could there be better evidence of the influence of schools upon the Indians? The mother writes from Albuquerque: "MY DEAR LITTLE DAUGHTER:--I received two letters from you. I like to hear from you to know that you are well. My brother, your uncle, has a little baby girl. My other brother Ce-at-zirn Powattie has one little girl and one little boy. I have four horses. Jennie Keswi and Ni-o-aya and I send much love to you. I make bread in the kitchen. Your loving mother, _________ ." ------------- Healthy Bodies. A young working man fell on an old, dirty, rusty cotton-hook. It went through the palm of his hand, hurting it very badly. He was taken to a hospital. The surgeon kept the wound open to throw off all the bad matter in it. The hand became much swollen. The surgeon watched it carefully, afraid he might have to take it off. After a time it began to mend, and then he thought he would have to take all off but the thumb and two first fingers. By and by, while he waited, it began to heal and after a time it was healed. The surgeon was surprised and said to the young man. "Do you use alcohol in any form?" "No, sir" "Do you use tobacco?" "No, sir" "Do you use coffee?" "No, sir" "Do you use tea?" "No, sir" The surgeon nodded his head and said: "That is what has saved your hand." The tissues of our bodies are spoiled by using stimulants and cannot resist disease like tissues that are made only of good wholesome food. -[Selected. ---------------------------------- (p. 4) HOME LETTER. ------- DEAR MOTHER-SKAH-RU-RAH-WAH-KEE: -Today is home letter again I want to tell something about our school. I think our school house will be torn down in this spring and rebuilt because Congress has promised to have new school house this coming spring, and I hope may be as large as our Quarters. It seems too that the Carlisle is going on and on, as you know that I left you in 1883. And I came at this school, and saw the old dining room was too narrow and there was but one story high. The tables were standing close together, and the boys' Quarters were only two stories high one great big doors on big hinges too, like horse stable. The boys were sleeping in the same room sometime sixteen or eighteen boys each room. They made great noise and could hardly think something to study because too much noise. I don't like it at all and so I did not stay a great while I went out on the country, and there I spent one year and an half. I returned in 1885 and I got back and I saw a great big dining room which had been built up since I was away. Again I went out and stayed only six months and came back again. That was in 1886 Capt. Pratt and us boys began to think about it that our boys spent so much money foolishly and so Capt. Pratt's disciplinarian called attention and all the boys were present, all the boys put some money in that collection. Again I went into the country. I was very much surprised that when I came back and saw a great big building extending toward west to east three stories high. Hallo! New Quarters I said, and I saw Little Boys' Quarters, they just starting to build and was finished both Little Boys' Quarters and a new Gymnasium last Nov. 1887. Now we are comfortable every thing is going on all right. Big new Gymnasium I think all the boys and girls like it because we are going to have sociable once a month. LUTHER KUHNS. --------------- A Geographical Puzzle. One day as a (cape of Massachusetts) and her brother (a river in Virginia) were on their way to school, they saw a (lake in British America) coming along the road led by two men. The children were much frightened, until one of the men said, "Do not be afraid, he will not hurt you." They stopped and looked at the great animal, who was so (a lake bordering on Minnesota) to any they had ever seen. "Where did you get him?" asked (river in Virginia.) I caught him in a (river in Wisconsin) trap up in the mountains of (where the Crow Indians live.) "Tell us all about it," said (cape of Massachusetts) "Well, said the man, "I had been out on the plains hunting for (city in New York,) and finding none, went up into the mountains, and set some traps there. Sometimes I found a (another river in Wisconsin,) and sometimes I was lucky enough to shoot a (part of a river in Massachusetts.) But one morning as I was going out to fish for (a river in Idaho) I thought I would go and look at a trap I had set beside a (city of Arkansas.) As I passed through the (bay of Wisconsin) bushes near the place I heard a sound, and I laid aside my rod and line and looked at my gun for I did not know what I might find. As I came around the (river of Illinois) I saw this (lake in British America.) caught by both front paws. Knowing that I could not capture him alone, I hurried back to the miners' cabin where I had been staying, and got them to come and help me. We took him down with us and kept him until he seemed quite tame then we started out to show him in the cities and towns. But we do not think this life is a good one, and so we are taking him down to the Zoological Gardens in (city of Pennsylvania) where we will leave him, and then go to work. "Thank you," said the children, and seeing their schoolmates, (cape of New Jersey) (city of (Georgia), (cape of Virginia), and (city of Texas) coming toward them, they ran on to tell them what they had seen and heard. -------------- Enigma. I am composed of 17 letters. My 5, 12, 13, 9 is what the little boys and girls who study Geography use. My 14, 6, 15 is what we must use to open a lock. My 2, 16, 17, 9 is the way we should read. My 11, 3, 4, 1 is a pile of anything. My 7, 8, 10 is a little insect. My whole is something we must not forget to say. ANSWER TO LAST WEEK'S ENIGMA: Our new Gymnasium. ----------------- Answer to Conundrums. Because he distributes the letters. Up the stairs if they are away (a way). Because they always have elm on hand. Because its Burgess is away. --------------------------------------- STANDING OFFER: - For FIVE new subscribers to the INDIAN HELPER, we will give the person sending them a photographic group of the 13 Carlisle Indian Printer boys, on a card 4 1/2 X 6 1/2 inches, worth 20 cents when sold by itself. Name and tribe of each boy given. (Persons wishing the above premium will please enclose a 1-cent stamp to pay postage.) For TEN, Two PHOTOGRAPHS, one showing a group of Pueblos as they arrived in wild dress, and another of the same pupils three years after, or, for the same number of names we give two photographs showing still more marked contrast between a Navajoe as he arrived in native dress, and as he now looks, worth 20 cents a piece. Persons wishing the above premiums will please enclose a 2-cent stamp to pay postage. For FIFTEEN, we offer a GROUP of the whole school on 9x14 inch card. Faces show distinctly, worth sixty cents. Persons wishing the above premium will please send 6 cents to pay postage. --------------- For a longer list of subscribers we have many other interesting pictures of shops, representing boys at work, schoolrooms and views of the grounds, worth from 20 to 60 cents a piece, which will be sent on request. ------------------------------ At the Carlisle Indian School is published monthly an eight-page quarto of standard size, called THE RED MAN, the mechanical part of which is done entirely by Indian boys. This paper is valuable as a summary of information on Indian matters and contains writings by Indian pupils and local incidents of the school. Terms: Fifty cents a year, in advance. SAMPLE COPIES SENT FREE. Address, THE RED MAN, Carlisle, PA. For 1, 2 and 3 subscribers for THE RED MAN we give the same premiums offered in Standing Offer for the HELPER. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Transcribed weekly from the newspaper collections of the US Military History Institute, Carlisle Barracks, Carlisle, PA. For more info see http://www.carlisleindianschool.org. - Barbara Landis --------- "RE: Rustywire: Shaa Alchin e'" --------- Date: Wed, 09 Feb 2000 08:20:49 GMT From: "rustywire" Subj: shaa alchin e' Newsgroup: alt.native Shaa alchin e' means my children. It was a night unlike this one when I sat up after feeling the movement of something tiny and small moving against the wall of my wife's stomach it seemed like. We were young, and had no money, just two rez kids starting out in life, but the fleet soft flicker of life made me sit up in bed. My young wife, this Indian girl who took my hand sat against the headboard with her long hair streaming down. Her eyes twinkled at the feel of this child, my child moving around inside her. I reached out and touched her, she is a shy person and felt awkward that I was trying to feel the movement and we laughed a little at one another. It was a cold winter night, and we were alone together, no one but us. I felt like I had never been before, to know that this small tiny person growing was reaching out and letting us know he was there and making his presence known. I remember it well, this was not like any other night, this was our life growing. What will the future hold, where will we be, how will things be as he gets older. How can such a thing be, a miracle, this young life growing. I find myself this evening waiting to hear the sound of a baby's cry, a small voice sounding out that a new century, a new life has taken root. My children have grown, the eldest has a new daughter in the past few days and my only daughter is just now waiting to hear the sound of her own child making his way into the world. Where will they go and what will they be, I am not sure, but looking back I stand with my father, and his father and his father all the way to the time we began just like a small voice, a new born held by a woman, our mothers who took great pains to care for us from then to now. It begins again and though I have not seen him yet, I know a little about him. I live a little through him, though he has no name yet, but then he is one of my children, a part of myself. My daughter spoke with me a little while yesterday and said she needed some leather, some buckskin to make the cradleboard fit him. When he is placed in it, he will be surrounded by zig zag lightning from his feet to his head, which will be protected by a rainbow and shaded from the sun. The long boards come from a tree, not too far from where we have always lived. This young woman, my daughter now grown sat at the feet of her grandfather, I remember them talking and he told her the story of how the cradle board is made and how the child is wrapped, that from pain comes life, that in this a red sash belt is needed to hold on to, and that when all was done, that the child would be protected and blessed by the Twin Heros, that such is the way it has been and will always be. I can see him, my father as he took her small hands and showed her how it was done when she was just a child. Now she came to me and said tell me again how it is with such things. We talked a little bit and it was repeated word for word just like she knew, but these are the things you do in times like this. My daughter is no longer a child, but will be mother on the morrow, and she will sing, and dance in the places of her mother, and know the places of her father. He does not have a name yet, but he carries the stories of his people, my wife's people and those of my own. The song of his cry will carry to the valley and to mountain top, it will not be loud but it will be voice of ages and lives lived in these places, we call it Dinetah, and her people say Nooravoop, it is about life, land, air, and all that goes with it, the past and future tied together. Tonight I can find no rest, I feel the earth and see the stars haven't changed their place, but yet I know I will go on from this day and so will continue on. How strange it is to know that for all the struggles, cares and woes that have come to us, we continue to survive, to go on and to hope for long summer days, cool water and to hear the laughter of children playing not too far off. So it goes with such things.... --------- "RE: Poem: The Gift Of Morning" --------- Date: Wed, 4 Oct 2000 07:24:19 -0400 From: "Dreamwalker" Subj: New Poems The Gift Of Morning Coffee and Blessings in a worn cup soft memories encompass me I am moved to go outside to walk barefoot with the dew the stillness of Dawn There is something about sitting on Maka Ina feeling the vibrations of the One Drum To watch as Grandfather Sun moves slowly and with purpose across the sky painting glorious colors To hear the Winged_Ones stir beginning their morning prayers their voices lifting on high praising the Great Mystery for another day A day to fulfill for the Highest good for the continuation of Spirit Watching as Grandmother Spider builds anew her web glistening in reds and blues lit by Creators hand Laying back watching Grandmother paint pictures in clouds of yellow-orange ever changing patterns on a blue sky I am reminded of the continuation of life always changing shifting patterns Each day is like that no two ever the same and how we live them with hope or regret Plays into the pattern we chose for ourselves I chose to Honor Blessings and not regrets For if I live each day with Honor for the People there can be no regret Creator blesses me with laughter this special morning as I watch a Mother Goldfinch teaching her young to fly Such fuzzy fat little ones so eager so ready to experience life Would that we all could live for each moment not getting lost in the maze we have created To remember purpose to Honor life in all the many ways gifted us To stand against the Sunrise and know deep in our Hearts we are never alone for Creator moves within us all Comforting reassuring holding us close our Hearts echoing Mother's One Drum Crys The Tears/Dreamwalker~Lakota copyright 2000 --------- "RE: Verse: Hawaiian Book of Days" --------- Date: Mon, 19 Mar 2001 06:19:40 -1000 From: Debbie Sanders Subj: Hawaiian Book of Days A HAWAIIAN BOOK OF DAYS, week of April 1-7 APELILA (April) (Welo) April was the last of the 6 months in the Hoo-ilo, or Winter, period of ancient times, which ran from November through April. 1 The earth's magic is a gift of wonder. 2 Never abandon your dreams. 3 Memories dwell within the soul. 4 Return to the places of childhood -- there is your cycle renewed. 5 Happiness and fulfillment are found only in our own hearts. 6 Age cannot hinder the joyful spirit. 7 Alone, we are restored; with others, we are fulfilled. (c) Copyright 1991 by D. F. Sanders Me ke aloha i ka nani, ... Moe'uhanekeanuenue (With love and beauty, ... Rainbow Dream) --------- "RE: Weeds May Provide Medicinal Treasures" --------- Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2001 07:17:32 -0600 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="WEEDS" http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm WEEDS MAY PROVIDE MEDICINAL TREASURES ATHENS, Georgia, March 19, 2001 (ENS) - Conservationists have long pointed out that primary tropical rainforests may contain undiscovered medicinal plants. New research by an anthropology graduate student at the University of Georgia (UGA) has found that weeds in easy to reach disturbed areas may be even more important. The study, by John Stepp at UGA and Daniel Moerman of the University of Michigan-Dearborn, appears to turn some theories of medicinal flora on their heads. Working with the Highland Maya in Chiapas, Mexico, Stepp found that almost all the medically important plants being used grow as weeds in disturbed areas not far from their houses or villages. "What we found is that people use what they have nearby, except on rare occasions," said Stepp. Weeds include plants that thrive in sunlight and disturbed areas, establish their presence fast, and grow where other plants can not. "The Highland Maya of Chiapas rely almost exclusively on disturbed areas for medicinal plants," said Stepp, "even in communities that are adjacent to stands of primary forest." The scientists analyzed the discoveries by comparing the collected medicinal plants to a known database of some 9,000 plants found in Chiapas. Of these 9,000, 1,178 are considered weeds, or about 13 percent. In contrast, about 35 percent of the medicinal plants collected were weeds. An analysis of medicinal plants used by Native North Americans reveals similar numbers. While 9.6 percent of the plants in North America are considered weeds, 25.8 percent of those used by Native Americans for medicinal purposes are weeds. Plants in disturbed areas may have more chemicals in them for defense, which could make them useful as medicines, said Stepp. "The rainforests should be conserved for many intrinsic and economic reasons," said Stepp. "But the reason that we should save them primarily to use the medicinal plants found there is not a very good one." The research appears in the "Journal of Ethnopharmacology." --------- "RE: Native Language Revitalization Commitment" --------- Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2001 07:57:12 -0600 From: John D Berry/grad/res/Okstate Subj: (FWD)Grotto commits to Native Language Revitalization ----- Forwarded by John D Berry/grad/res/Okstate on 03/22/2001 07:57 AM Peg Thomas 03/19/2001 12:23 PMPlease respond to Peg Thomas Grotto commits to Native Language Revitalization -------------------------------------- Date: 3/19/01 9:17 AM March 15, 2001 For immediate release Contact: Gordon Regguinti, 651-225-0777 ext. 12 Grotto Foundation approves $258,500 in Native-American language revitalization grants After first assessing how it could best serve language revitalization efforts in Minnesota's Native-American communities, the Grotto Foundation Board of Directors recently approved nine grants totaling $258,500. "The seeds are now being planted," said Margaret "Peg" Thomas, Grotto's executive director, "in the Native language restoration field?carefully tilled in the past 18 months by Native language activists. When these seeds mature, the resulting garden will be the restoration and sustenance of a community's well-being and language." This is critical work?evidence shows that children who learn the formal structure of their heritage language also do better academically in English and math, Thomas reported. The language projects, diverse and far-reaching, exhibit the breadth of work that language activists are undertaking in their efforts to revive Native languages in Minnesota and the region. Taken together, the projects build toward a critical mass of speakers and materials that will reverse the spiral of language loss. Following are brief descriptions of the nine projects funded by the Grotto Foundation. A Collaborative Effort to Revive Ojibwemowin is a statewide Ojibwe language revitalization effort that brings together three organizations?Native American Education Services, the College of St. Scholastica, and Anishinaabe Wi Yung. Their vision is to create a replicable, comprehensive, tribal language education and training program whose primary outcome will be the creation of K-12 language immersion schools. Their primary areas of research include policy, teacher education training programs, curriculum development, and solutions for creating, financially sustaining, and governing language immersion schools?all within the context of a 15-year-long Ojibwe language revitalization effort. The Ojibwe Language Immersion School on the Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe Reservation in northern Wisconsin is gradually expanding its kindergarten language immersion school to serve K-12 students. The school has joined with neighboring Hayward Community School District to actively pursue Wisconsin charter school status, with the hope of opening the K-12 Ojibwe language immersion school in the fall of 2001. White Earth Land Recovery Project in northwestern Minnesota and the Ojibwe Language and Culture Project at Elk River, Minnesota, are building infrastructure to enhance Ojibwe language instruction to their respective students. These projects also have built-in curriculum components to address the need for language materials sorely needed by language activists and teachers across Minnesota. Three other Ojibwe language projects can be described as the fertile soil that creates positive language environments. The Duluth PBS-8 television project, called "Ojibwemowin?The Ojibwe Oral Tradition," provides a timely, powerful complement to language revitalization in the state and region. The Bemidji State University publication, Oshkaabewis Native Journal, provides Ojibwe language scholars, students, and elders with both an outlet for their academic and research work and a tool with which to teach. This quarterly journal provides tapes of stories by elders and other first-language speakers, transcriptions of the stories, dictionaries, glossaries and language lexicons, and analyses. Anishinaabe Center, Inc., in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, is initiating the mid-winter tradition of Anishinaabe storytelling to area youth through which the history and culture of their community is passed on by elders using the Ojibwe language. Like their Ojibwe counterparts, Dakota language activists understand the importance of community dialogue as a means to create strategies for the revival of their language. The Dakota Language Revitalization Initiative calls together the four Minnesota-based Dakota communities in a series of annual meetings as a means to devise strategies to ensure the survival and vitality of their language for the benefit of future organizations. The Dakota Media Art Fund will build organizational capacity and begin development of video productions using the Dakota language. The Grotto Foundation mission is to benefit society by improving the education and the economic, physical, and social well-being of citizens, with a special focus on families and culturally diverse communities. Grotto is further interested in increasing public understanding of American cultural heritage, the cultures of nations, and the individual's responsibility to fellow human beings. --------- "RE: Woman Brings Tribe's Dead Language to Life" --------- Date: Sat, 24 Mar 2001 5:50:37 PM Mountain Standard Time From: senior-staff@nativenewsonline.org (Senior Staff) Subj: Woman Brings Tribe's Dead Language to Life Mailing List: NativeNews from Maureen..thanks! http://www.latimes.com/editions/orange/ocnews/20010324/t000025387.html Woman Brings Tribe's Dead Language to Life Saturday, March 24, 2001 Heritage: Jessie Little Doe Fermino says she heard the language of her Wampanoag ancestors in a dream. Inspired to learn it, she now works full-time to teach it to her fellows. By GREG SUKIENNIK, Associated Press BOSTON--It started with a dream. Jessie Little Doe Fermino saw Indian ancestors she didn't recognize, speaking a language she knew but couldn't understand. It was Wopanaak--the Wampanoag language that hadn't been written or spoken for almost 150 years. "I got these feelings in me of wanting to know what Wopanaak was, how it was used," Fermino says. Seven years after she had that dream, the 36-year-old former social worker is working full-time to teach fellow tribal members what she learned. "I started looking around for documentation, thinking there was none, and instead I found a huge body of native written documents," says Fermino, who earned a masters in linguistics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The Wampanoags' legacy includes a letter to Massachusetts' colonial legislature, written June 11, 1752, pleading with lawmakers to keep white settlers from taking their land. The first Bible printed in the New World was a Wopanaak translation of the King James Bible, printed at Harvard in 1663 by John Eliot. The Wopanaak language was translated into phonetic English by missionaries such as Eliot, who believed it their duty to convert the Indians to Christianity. The different spellings of the tribal name and the language are a result of trying to write down the distinct Indian vowel sounds using the highly irregular English spellings of the 1600s. Wopanaak reflects the Wampanoags' own beliefs about their relationships with one another and the world around them. "In a lot of ways, it's the essence of being part of a circle or a tribe," Fermino explains. "You place someone else first, not always yourself. . . You are responsible to your whole people, and that's reflected in the language." For example, in statements addressing other people, the speaker comes last, not first. So the word order of "I see you" is changed to "You see I." In Wopanaak, that's kunaush [pronounced kuh nah'sh]. Kinship is also distinctively expressed. The word for a sister or a father or a mother cannot stand alone; it requires a possessive attachment indicating relationship to another person, such as "my sister" or "your father" or "her mother." "The point," says Fermino, "is that for all kinship terms every human being is one individual who is part of a larger circle, and that relationship to the rest of the circle is expressed through the language." The stem for "mother" is -8hkas, pronounced "oo' kas." The "8" is not a typo: It's a letter for the "oo" sound in the Wopanaak language. But that stem is not a word on its own. It needs to belong to someone. To say "my mother," for example, it would be n8hkas (noo' kas). Fermino's classes are restricted to Wampanoags. They are held in Mashpee, where she lives, and in Aquinnah, on Martha's Vineyard. Her students want to learn enough Wopanaak to converse, write poetry, read the writings of their ancestors and sing and pray in their own language. "As a tribal people, we know we always had our own language," says Tobias J. Vanderhoop, 26, of Aquinnah, a member of the Gay Head Aquinnah Wampanoag tribal council. "For a lot of us there has always been a wish we could speak our own language." To hear the language evokes strong emotion, Vanderhoop says. "Chills just overtake you," he says. "Not only are you hearing your language, but you can understand it, and you know your ancestors can understand it. So it is a very powerful thing." The Wampanoags, whose name means "People of the Light," are one of a number of American Indian tribes who are taking steps to revive or reclaim their languages, spurred by the dropping numbers of fluent speakers. Scholars believe some 300 native languages were spoken in North America when European colonization began. That has dwindled to about 155 languages today. Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head Aquinnah: http://www.wampanoagtribe.net/ Plimoth Plantation museum library: http://www.plimoth.org/library/wampanoag/wampnow.htm <<<<<>>>>> Native News Online a Service of Barefoot Connection FREE LEONARD PELTIER!! " YOU ~ARE~ THE MESSAGE" List info at: http://nativenewsonline.org/ --------- "RE: Blackfeet Nation" --------- Date: Fri, 23 Mar 2001 08:55:23 -0600 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="BLACKFEET NATION" Acknowledged as one of the most powerful tribes in the American northwest, the Blackfeet are a confederacy of three independent tribes presently living in Montana and Alberta, Canada. The name "Blackfeet" originates from the distinctive black hue of their moccasins, either painted that color or perhaps darkened by prairie fires. Modern scholars believe that the Blackfeet migrated westward over three centuries ago from the northern Great Lakes region; their language belongs to the Algonkian linguistic family (centered in that region) and other aspects of their culture, i.e., utensils, pottery, etc. This westward migration is thought to have been caused by the competitive nature (among Indians in the region) of supplying French traders with sufficient animal furs and pelts. The Blackfeet quickly assimilated in to a nomadic type of existence in the northern plains; plentiful buffalo assured them of a strong future. A shaman or medicine man aided the hunt through the powerful use of the talisman to help lure the buffalo to the fall. By the early 1700's, extensive trade was going on with the Midwest and east coast settlers. Buffalo hides were traded for many different items, not the least of which were horses and guns. These two items radically changed the nature of the buffalo hunt; thus there was more time to develop more ornate cultural items, rituals, and myths to tell their stories and educate their young people. The most sacred yearly event was the sun dance, or Medicine Lodge Ceremony. As a communal event, the Blackfeet and other Plains tribes would gather in mid-summer to fulfill vows to assure the well-being of the community through the continued abundance of the buffalo. This time of prosperity and growth was soon cut short by the invasion of white settlers into Indian territory. Undoubtedly, the greatest devastation to the Indian people was the near extinction of the buffalo by the white settlers. Their main food source gone and not having yet taken up the concept of farming, the Blackfeet were forced with total dependence upon the Indian Agency for food. The winter of 1884 was a cruel one; over 600 Indians starved to death reducing the tribe to some 1,400 people. To help the tribe live in the whiteman's world, the government and religious organizations setup schools and other programs to educate the Blackfeet children and help create jobs on the reservation. The aim of these ventures was to educate the Blackfeet people so that the can have their own governance and self-determination. Many of the Blackfeet have served with honor and distinctions in the armed services; their example and leadership have been example to younger generations here on the reservation. Of an estimated 14,000 Blackfeet in the world today, approximately 8,500 live on the reservation. The town of Browning is the seat of the tribal government as well as the site of the annual North American Indian Days celebration in mid-July. Source=http://www.blackfeetnation.com/ Official website of the Blackfeet (Pikuni) Nation --------- "RE: Kiowa" --------- Date: Fri, 23 Mar 2001 08:55:23 -0600 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="KIOWA" The Kiowa Indians were originally dwellers of the Columbia River in the Kootenay Region of British Columbia, Canada. Their first interaction with the white man came in about 1700, when British and French traders happened upon them. Around 1700 the Kiowa moved to the Upper Yellowstone, in what is now western Montana. Shortly thereafter a dispute between two prominent chiefs resulted in one band withdrawing from the main body and going to the northwest. The main body of Kiowa travelled to the southeast, where they came into contact with the Crow Indians. Forming an alliance with the Crow, the Kiowa acquired two things which were to become indispensable in the future life - the horse and the sacred Sun Dance. The Kiowa settled to the east of the Crow in the Black Hills around 1780. The Kiowa, however, were a migratory people. After a time they continued to move through the Western States. They ended up on the southern plains and became allies to the Comanche. Like most native American peoples the Kiowa were deeply religious. After acquiring the Sun Dance from the Crows, this ceremony became the center of their worship. The Sun Dance was celebrated once per year. It would bring together all of the Kiowa people, who, up until then, would live in small autonomous bands. The Sun Dance, then, served as the catalyst for an annual renewal of tribal connections. It would be accompanied by marriage ceremonies, tribal councils and family reunions. The Sun Dance would be preceded by a great tribal bison hunt. Into the traditional Sun Dance ceremony the Kiowa incorporated a sacred aspect of their pre Crow religion - the `Ten Bundles' Medicine Bundles. Each of these sacred bundles would have its own tipi erected for the duration of the Sun Dance. The Kiowa also had a sacred medicine doll, or `tai-me', which also featured prominently in the Sun Dance. Prior to their removal to reservation life as a result of the Medicine Lodge Treaty, the Kiowa were separated into northern and southern divisions. Among each division were six sub-tribes. These were organised according to family divisions. Each tribe had its own leader and would operate as an independent body. Their was a