From gars@speakeasy.org Tue Aug 12 21:21:44 2003 Date: 12 Aug 2003 23:37:44 -0000 From: Gary Night Owl To: Internet Recipients of Wotanging Ikche Subject: Wotanging Ikche--nanews11.033 _ __ _____ __ _ __ ___ ____ _ __ ___ ' ) / / ') / / ) ' ) ) / ) / ' ) ) / ) / / / / / / /--/ / / / ___ / / / / ___ (_(_/ (__/ ( / (_ / (_ (___/ '__/_ / (_ (___/ ' ____ _ , ___ _ , ___ / ' ) / / ) ' ) / / ' VOLUME 11, ISSUE 033 / /-< / /--/ /-- __/_ / ) (___/ / ( (___, WOTANGING IKCHE - Lakota - Common News Wotanging Ikche and Native American News Copyright c. 1996-2003 nanews.org Aboriginal/AmerIndian Perspective about the First Nations of Turtle Island August 16, 2003 Abenaki temezowas/cutter moon Cree opunhopizun/moon young ducks begin to fly +-------------------------------------------------------+ | Much more happens in Indian Country than is reported | | in this weekly newsletter. For daily updates & events | | go to http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm | +-------------------------------------------------------+ Otapi'sin Atsinikiisinaakssin -- Blackfeet -- News for All the People Ni-mah-mi-kwa-zoo-min -- Ojibwe -- We Are Talking About Ourselves Aunchemokauhettittea -- Naragansett -- Let Us Share News Kanoheda Aniyvwiya -- Cherokee -- Journal of the People O Es'te Opunvk'vmucvse -- Creek -- People's New News O o O Acimowin -- Plains Cree -- Story or Account O o O Tlaixmatiliztli -- Nahuatl -- News O o o o o O Agnutmaqan -- Listuguj Mi'kmaq -- News O o O Sho-da-ku-ye -- Teehahnahmah -- Talking Birchbark O o O Un Chota -- Susquehannic Seneca -- The People Speak O Ha-Sah-Sliltha -- Ditidaht Nation -- News of the People Ximopanolti tehuatzin, inin Mexika tlahtolli -- Nahuatl -- For you we offer these words It-hah-pe-hah Ah-num pah-le -- Chickasaw -- Together We Are Talking Dineh jii' adah' ho'nil'e'gii ba' ha' neh -- Navajo Nation -- What's Happening among The People News Okla Humma Holisso Nowat Anya -- Choctaw -- People(s) Red Newspaper Hi'a chu ah gaa -- Pima -- The stories or the talk of the People Native American News -- Language of the Occupation Forces ==>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 <================<<<< >>>>================> This newsletter is produced in straight ASCII text for greatest portability across platforms. Read it with a fixed-pitch font, such as Courier, Monaco, FixedSys or CG Times. Proportional fonts will be difficult to read. <================<<<< >>>>================> This issue contains articles from www.owlstar.com; www.indianz.com; www.pechanga.net; News Gathering, Chiapas95-English, Frostys AmerIndian and Native American Poetry ; Newsgroups:soc.culture.native, alt.native; UUCP email 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 | | Once a language is lost, it is | | Limerick summarized in "The | | gone forever | | Legacy of Conquest: The Unbroken | | * Of the 300 original Native | | Past of the American West... | | languages in North America, | | "Set the blood quantum at | | only 175 exist today. | | one-quarter, hold to it as a | | * 125 of these are no longer | | rigid definition of Indians, | | learned by children. | | let intermarriage proceed as | | * 55 are spoken by 1 to 6 elders;| | it had for centuries, and | | when they die, their language | | eventually Indians will be | | will disappear. | | defined out of existence." | | * Without action, only 20 | | "When that happens, the federal | | languages will survive the next| | government will be freed of | | 50 years. | | its persistent 'Indian problem.'"| | Source: Indigenous Language | +-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --+ | Institute | |http://www.indigenous-language.org| This issue's Elder Quote: + -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- + ======================== "An Indian scientist is not only someone who interprets data but is someone who has insight - and that requires more than intellect." __ Professor Phil Duran, Tiwa Pueblo, Senior faculty member in the division of science and mathematics at Northwest Indian College +- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+ | 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! Not long ago I read with more than a little dismay of an event where wheelchair bound relatives were removed from the dance circle. I don't know the rationale for denying respect for an elder in this way, but nothing seems to me to be an adequate reason. This past weekend we were at a Native American festival hosted to benefit volunteer fire fighters. A 91 year old Choctaw Grandmother mentioned she had never gone into the circle, and that it would mean much to her if she could do so. She just happened to be wheelchair bound. Not only was she escorted into the circle by veterans, she was given an honor song to welcome her, and greeted by dancer after dancer with a sincere, "Welcome home!" I don't know what the circle was like where a relative in a wheelchair was asked to leave, but I know how beautiful a circle became for all of us when a 91year old Grandmother was welcomed into it. For myself, I pity those who escorted someone in a wheelchair out of their circle; and send my thanks to Creator I was where a grandmother who was unable to walk was welcomed and loved. Dohiyi Ani Oginalii , , Gary Night Owl gars@nanews.org (*,*) P. O. Box 672168 gars@speakeasy.org (`-') Marietta, GA 30008, U.S.A. ===w=w=== ----------- News of the people featured in this issue ---------- - GIAGO: Power in the - Native-only Fisheries Hands of a Tribal President struck down by B.C. Court - GIAGO: S.D. Tribes - Fox calls for Nault's ouster know about Death, but Taxes? - Parents, Estate - YELLOW BIRD: Spirit Lake given $162,000 in Tot's Death pursues Lake Ownership - DeSersa Shooting - YELLOW BIRD: Society brings Anger and Fear bridges Race at Camp - Osage Man falsely accused? - Editorial: Tribes sacrificed - Southern Ute Tribal Member for Political Gain charged with Murder - Oneida Nation destroying Homes - Native Prisoner as Punishment -- NA Brothers and Sisters - Navajos fortifying seeking Pen Pals West Nile Defenses - Rustywire: - Zunis celebrate His name was David Red Elk end of SRP Coal Mine bid - Poem: Inipi - Tribal Enhancement Act of 2003 - Verse: Hawaiian Book of Days - Director of Institute - Tlingit-oriented Classes for Pueblo Studies Retires give Students a Boost - Indigenous Opposition - BOOK REVIEW: Red Thunder to Plan Puebla Panama - National Native Radio News - Students and Police Program moves to KUAC clash in Chiapas - Taos Pueblo Powwow - Fishing closure canceled this Year puts burden on Carrier - Gathering of the Good Minds - B.C. Fish Wars heat up again - Upcoming Events --------- "RE: GIAGO: Power in the Hands of a Tribal President" --------- Date: Thu, 24 Jul 2003 08:13:17 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="TRIBAL PRESIDENT" http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm http://www.yankton.net/stories/072403/opE_20030724043.shtml There Is A Lot Of Power In The Hands Of A Tribal President By Tim Giago (Nanwica Kciji) Copyright c. 2003, Lakota Media Inc. July 24, 2003 In Indian country the word "politician" rates in unpopularity about one notch above a used-car salesman and about two notches above a journalist. Just kidding about the journalist rating. We actually are one notch above "politician." Every resident of an Indian reservation knows when the primary election is approaching. Candidates who haven't smiled in years are about breaking their faces with toothy displays as they drive down the main street of tribal communities waving and a-grinning. After a few weeks of this, reservation residents try to duck into a convenient corner whenever they see one of the candidates because they know they are about to get a much-too-firm handshake or an unwelcome hug. Former U.S. Sen. Jim Abourzek, D-S.D., once said that there were only two jobs in America he would not wish on anyone; one was president of the United States and the other was president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe. He could have easily added president of the Navajo Nation. One of the most powerful Indian politicians in America was a former four-term president of the Navajo Nation. His name was Peter MacDonald. He was caught up in a kickback scheme and a reservation riot and ended up in federal prison. Pete, now in his 70s, was released not too long ago. It should not be surprising that most of the people on the other end of the crime, the non-Indians, walked away with clean skirts. Pete paid the price for all of them. Peter MacDonald was a politician of the old school. He had no fear of political enemies and he was outspoken about the many rip-offs he saw in Indian country and particularly on his own reservation. It was Pete who said, "This land will no longer be called an Indian reservation. We are a sovereign people and our lands from now on will be known as the Navajo Nation." If one was to tally all of the good this man did against any of his misdeeds, the good would far outweigh the bad. A powerful politician can make an inviting target. The U.S. interior and justice departments, plus many local corporate vultures, had painted a nice target on Pete's back. When he stumbled they pounced. I was at the inauguration of Albert Hale when he assumed the role of president of the Navajo Nation. I was there because I had been invited by his press secretary. The press secretary was a very attractive lady and it didn't take long for the rumors to start flying that President Hale was using her for more than his press releases. President Hale's wife, a Navajo woman of traditional values, was also privy to these rumors. It is said in Navajo country that she walked into a room where a wake was taking place, spotted the press secretary seated at a table near her husband, grabbed her by the hair and dragged her across the room. Where there is smoke there are smoke signals, and President Hale was soon walking into divorce court thoroughly singed. To make matters worse for President Hale, things got so ugly that the Navajo Nation started clamoring for his impeachment. And, impeached he was. He is now a practicing attorney living in Albuquerque, N.M., with his beautiful wife. You guessed it. She's his former press secretary. Kind of sounds like the things that can, and do, happen around the White House. Last week I said that tribal politics are microcosms of the larger political arena. Ain't it the truth. The tribal elections on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota were quite interesting last year. Russell Means, of "Last of the Mohicans" movie fame, thought he could transfer some of his movie persona into votes. He ran for the presidency of the Oglala Sioux Tribe against the incumbent, John Yellow Bird Steele. Russell was also one of the legendary occupiers of Wounded Knee in 1973 who showed up in baubles, bangles and beads to challenge the U.S. marshals. After a three-month standoff, the occupiers emerged, went their separate ways and left the peaceful village of Wounded Knee in shambles. It has never been rebuilt despite the millions of dollars raised by Russell and his cohorts in the American Indian Movement. Means won the primary election handily over Steele and thought he was well on his way to occupying the seat he had always wanted. However, Steele proved to be an extremely worthy politician. Russell soon discovered that many young voters were born long after Wounded Knee II and did not recognize his fame as an occupier and only vaguely remembered him from the movies. Yellow Bird Steele trounced him in the general election. Pine Ridge is that kind of place. It is the here and now that matters to the people. Perhaps that is why so many corrupt politicians can simply lie low for a few years and then make a comeback, much in the fashion of a Richard M. Nixon. After all, Pine Ridge was also the home of the man made notorious by the media, Dick Wilson, who served as president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe during the days when Russell Means was busy occupying Wounded Knee. Means also ran for the presidency of the Oglala against Wilson and lost that election. The Pine Ridge Reservation is now rampant with rumors about President John Yellow Bird Steele. He is a drug runner, he stole most of the money intended for the victims of the tornado that struck the community of Oglala a couple of years ago and so on and so forth. He stands accused of everything but being a rapist and wife beater. Those outrageous allegations will probably grow as we get closer to Election Day. Rumors usually are spread by "scandal sheets," anonymous and extremely libelous papers filled with unsubstantiated rumors, fabrications of a very personal nature and outright lies. They are also spread by word of mouth through the extremely rapid "Moccasin Grapevine." It is all based upon political power. Tribal presidents wield unbelievable power. I recall when Elijah Whirlwind Horse became president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe in the 1970s. He sat in his new office a few days after winning and just shook his head as tribal employee after tribal employee showed up at his door with hat in hand wondering if they would remain as employees of the tribe. Elijah said in amazement, "I never realized how much power the tribal chairman had." ----- Tim Giago, an Oglala Lakota, is editor and publisher of the weekly Lakota Journal. He is author of "The Aboriginal Sin" and "Notes from Indian Country" volumes I and II. He can be reached at editor@lakotajournal.com or at P.O. Box 3080, Rapid City, S.D. 57709. Copyright c. 2003 Yankton Daily Press & Dakotan. --------- "RE: GIAGO: S.D. Tribes know about Death, but Taxes?" --------- Date: Wed, 6 Aug 2003 08:26:03 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="GAS TAX" http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm http://www.yankton.net/stories/080603/opE_20030806041.shtml South Dakota Tribes Know About Death, But What About Taxes? By Tim Giago (Nanwica Kciji) Copyright c. 2003, Lakota Media Inc. August 6, 2003 The headline in the local daily read, "Gas-tax plan could benefit state tribes." This raises the question, are taxes a benefit or a detriment? The state of South Dakota found itself pushing the tribes to tax gasoline because of its own stupidity. For 80 years the state collected gasoline taxes on the Indian reservations illegally. The state had no jurisdiction to collect these taxes, and yet went ahead and did it anyway. It all started when Bat Pourier, an Oglala Lakota businessman, challenged the legality of gasoline taxes on Indian reservations. Pourier owns a convenience store and gas station on the Pine Ridge Reservation. In the suit he sought a refund of $940,000 for taxes he paid under protest for fuel he trucked onto the reservation from July 1995 to January 2000. An article in Lakota Journal reported that the state Supreme Court agreed that a state fuel tax couldn't be imposed upon tribal members living on reservations. But instead of refunding the illegal tax money to Pourier, they ruled that it was his customers who deserved the refund. State lawyers have said that the state would go bankrupt if it had to pay refunds to all tribal members who bought gasoline or diesel fuel since the state fuel tax was first imposed in 1923. It seems to many Lakota that when an illegal tax is imposed and then found by a court to be illegal, someone must pay. State lawyers have been jumping through hoops in an effort to diminish the wording of the refund. They contend that under state law, refunds should be given only for claims within 15 months of the time the fuel was purchased. They said that giving refunds for earlier purchases could hurt highway construction projects by removing a lot of tax money from the highway fund, according to the article by Dottie Potter in Lakota Journal. But Pourier, who initiated the suit, said, "They took it illegally and they've been put on notice since September 1994. The money should have been put aside each year for payback. They've been doing a wrong thing for a long time." He added, "If the tribes owed the state money, the state would be collecting without any concern whether it bankrupted the tribe or not." And now comes the state, with hat in hand, with what it believes to be a generous offer: Let the tribes collect the gasoline tax. Why the sudden concern? It would be an accountant's nightmare for the state to compute who is a tribal member and who is not -- who would pay the gasoline tax on the reservation and who would not. The state would have the tribe collect, with the state's assistance (the state considers the tribe too stupid to collect the tax themselves), a fee of 22 cents a gallon. "It's quite a revenue opportunity for tribes. We're very hopeful the tribes will see the benefit of imposing the tax," said Gary Viken, the state secretary of Revenue and Regulation. He said the state sent letters to tribal leaders in May asking to consider imposing the tax. I know Viken and consider him to be an honorable man, but like most South Dakotans, he just does not understand Lakota psychology. Tribal leaders do not like to tax their tribal members. Although the state has had an agreement with at least four Indian tribes within its boundaries to collect taxes since the 1970s, these four tribes have been taking a second look at the agreement. They believe that if taxes are to be imposed, there should be a way they can do it without hurting their people. A Lakota man appointed by Gov. Mike Rounds, state Senator Michael LaPointe of Mission, said, "The tribes should be using these funds to maintain their roads." Duh? Most roads on the Indian reservations in South Dakota are supposed to be maintained by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Why are they not held responsible for the bad roads? LaPointe, a Republican, was appointed after the death of Richard "Dickie" Hagen, a Democrat and also a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe. Many Lakota from the Pine Ridge Reservation, the home of Hagen and the district from which he was elected were extremely disappointed when Rounds nominated a Republican from the Rosebud Reservation to replace him. Tribal members who purchase gasoline on Indian reservations have always paid the taxes imposed by the state and federal government. They will continue to pay the federal taxes. However, if they choose not to adopt the 22 cents per gallon tax requested by the state, they can then establish gas stations near the border towns and sell gasoline at a much lower rate than that offered by their non-Indian competitors. This would give the tribal governments a new form of revenue that would bring badly needed dollars to the reservation economy. It would also create jobs where the unemployment is as high as 85 percent. I believe it is high time for the tribes to begin negotiations with the federal government about the gasoline taxes the government now imposes on Indian reservations. In order to help the economies of the badly depressed Indian reservations, the federal fuel tax should be eliminated. These are some of the things the government can do to turn the economies of the Indian reservations around without costing themselves a heck of a lot of money. As a matter of record, where in the hell were the federal trustees of the Indian people while the state of South Dakota was imposing an illegal tax on them? I suppose that every week when Americans look at the taxes taken from their paychecks they see it as more of a detriment than a benefit. The old saying about death and taxes still rings true. So why did the chicken cross the road? Because he was paying too many taxes on the other side. --- Tim Giago, an Oglala Lakota, is editor and publisher of the weekly Lakota Journal. He is author of "The Aboriginal Sin" and "Notes from Indian Country" volumes I and II. He can be reached at editor@lakotajournal.com or at P.O. Box 3080, Rapid City, S.D. 57709. Copyright c. 2003 Yankton Daily Press & Dakotan. --------- "RE: YELLOW BIRD: Spirit Lake pursues Lake Ownership" --------- Date: Tue, 29 Jul 2003 08:25:17 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="YELLOW BIRD: SPIRIT LAKE" http://www.grandforks.com/mld/grandforksherald/news/local/6388472.htm DORREEN YELLOW BIRD COLUMN: Spirit Lake Nation patiently pursues lake ownership issue July 29, 2003 Many of the Dakota people of the Spirit Lake Nation assert that Devils Lake or Spirit Lake is their responsibility. The Nation remains at odds with the U.S. government over lake ownership. The Nation's boundary lines are according to the 1867 Treaty, they say. The Federal Court, however, dismissed the tribe's lawsuit for ownership. The tribe then appealed to 8th Circuit Court of Appeal, and this Court affirmed the dismissal of the lawsuit. The tribe then asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn that decisions. The U.S. Supreme Court declined the case. For the past three years, the Dakota people of Spirit Lake have walked along the lake to their Treaty boundary line. They placed a tobacco offering and prayed at the site. Their hope is that one day they will again be keepers of the lake's good health. The first year they placed an eagle feather staff at their boundary. Early the next day, as I was returning home, I was amazed at how fast the staff was desecrated. It was broken in half and leaning with the long, colored ribbons touching the ground. The group didn't attempt to place anything at the boundary line this year. They just offered tobacco and Ephriam and Mary Hill, tribal elders, prayed for the people. Their boundary line is four miles north of the casino, they say. During the walk, one of the elders told me the lake belongs to no one group. But the responsibility for its upkeep and health falls to the Dakota people. As we moved along the highway that day, two men in a silver boat bobbing up and down on the rough water turned full faced toward the group and stared at the procession. On the right side of the lake, two blonde women stopped casting their lines into the lake and watched the group. Cars with fishing boats in tow, and lines hanging out of the boat, passed the group with only a glance as they headed for their favorite fishing spot on the lake. The lake covers more than 90,000 acres and shoreline stretches more than 200 miles. Devils Lake is vying with Red Lake as second largest lake in the Red River Basin. Lake Winnipeg is the largest. The issue of ownership of the lake is complex. But one thing is certain, the lake has become big business for the area. Many locals make their living catering to fishermen and water enthusiasts who pay the state for fishing licenses and support local businesses. The state planned an outlet for the lake to prevent flooding. The lake already has moved into areas where houses, resorts and crops grew. But the Dakota people don't want the lake to be drained. They say the lake ebbs and flows, and it is natural for the lake to be high. It is then that the lake cleans itself, they say. They want the lake to follow its natural course. The lake is sacred they say. Years ago, one of the local spiritual leaders told me, the people would come from long distances - South Dakota, Montana, Minnesota and all the plains area - for the water. It was used to heal, he said. But today, he told me, the water is polluted with refuse, drainage from croplands and other contaminates from the surrounding area. He doesn't know if it retains any of its healing powers, but the spirit of the lake still lives, he maintains. There are tales and stories of this spirit. Some say it looks like fish as big as a whale. Others said it is more like the Loch Ness Monster of Scotland. The spiritual leader that he talked to talked to people who have seen the spirit of the lake. One young Dakota child dreams of it, and the spirit talks to her regularly, but none of those people would come forward because they were afraid that they would be laughed at. He said they were told to pray and feed the spirit of the lake and that it will go back to the way it was for them. The Dakota people are a patient group. They seem to take things in stride and make do. They are the "David" and the state and federal government are the Goliath in this quiet tug of war. State government is powerful, and they have brought their resources to the table, including the departments, agencies and all the legal assistance they can muster to maintain their right of ownership to the lake. The tribe has prayers and tenacity. They have lived near the Spirit Lake for many more years than state and federal governments. It is their land. So even though the U.S. Supreme Court and all the courts in the land, it seems, have turned a deaf ear to their statement of ownership, they wait for the counsel and support of the Creator. Yellow Bird writes columns Tuesday and Saturday. Reach her by phone at 780-1228 or (800) 477-6572, extension 228, or by e-mail at dyellowbird@gfherald.com. Copyright c. 2003 Grand Forks Herald/Grand Forks, ND. --------- "RE: YELLOW BIRD: Society bridges Race at Camp" --------- Date: Tue, 29 Jul 2003 08:25:17 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="YELLOW BIRD: BRIDGING RACE" http://www.grandforks.com/mld/grandforksherald/news/local/6388472.htm DORREEN YELLOW BIRD: Society bridges race at camp near old cabin of Sitting Bull July 26, 2003 For several years, I have been aware of a group that comes each year to the Sitting Bull Camp in South Dakota where I camp. This year, I became acquainted with this society called Takola Akicita (Kit Fox Warriors). They are a Native and non-Native society that seemed to be a bridge between ceremonies of the Native Americans and non-Natives. Society members come from all over the nation - big cities such as Dallas and New York. Places where the spirits of individuals are in masses, and they live shoulder to shoulder. When they arrive in South Dakota, they begin to spread out and breathe deeply. The road to the camp starts with gravel, then turns to a graded dirt road that is best traveled before any rain softens the tracks into deep and mushy mud. From there, the road gets primitive and turns into a two-wheel prairie dirt road. Finally, after what seems like miles across the rough prairie road, the trail drops off into a deep valley. Standing on top of the high cliff, you can see the Grand River winding among ash, willow and cottonwood trees. Nestled in the trees below is the old log cabin of Sitting Bull. It is where he lived after returning from Canada. It is the place where he died at the hands of tribal police. They were afraid the old man might incite another incident such as the Little Big Horn. It is here where the camp was established many years ago. I have made the journey to this camp for 11 years now. When I was there, it was in the low 100s one day. The next day, the valley reached about 110 degrees. The grass was hot to the touch, and the sand burned your feet. It was like dancing on a stove stoked with hot, burning wood. Those days of too much heat rewarded us with cool evenings and a magnificent sunset of deep reds and purples. The early evenings were topped with the howling and yapping of the coyotes and a full moon. I arrived Friday. Camp was just beginning to bustle. People were building fires and setting up their camps. The smell of burning woods, sweet grass, sage and cedar were mixed with the smell of coffee and stew cooking over an open fire. As I sat there resting after putting up my tent, I saw a man scooting across camp in a wheelchair. He was looking for volunteers to help with camp. His name is Jimmy "No Legs." I was shocked at first and thought they were impolite calling him "no legs." He lost his legs in Vietnam, I was told. During the next six days at Sitting Bull, he was everywhere - taking down and putting up. He was more active than men with two legs. His last name is Dawson, and his Indian name is Red Hawk, but everyone calls him Jimmy No Legs, and he doesn't mind, one of his relatives told me. That name was given to him by his 2-year-old nephew. He is a member of Takola Akicita. They mainly are Vietnam veterans like their founder, Sam DeCory. He began the society in the 1980s, with the help of "Grampa" Fools Crows, a Pine Ridge Lakota. DeCory incorporated other war veterans and expanded the group to included non-Natives. These non-Natives follow the "Red Road" or the Way of the Pipe, which means they live a good and honorable life. Their role is to protect the people, environment, land (especially the Black Hills) and follow the ways of the Sacred Pipe, Jace DeCory told me. She is Sam's widow. He died last year. The women also have a society called Katala Okalaki kiciyewinyan which means "protects the camp when the men are away." They are advised and mentored, she said, by elders Nellie Two Bulls and Florine Debray. There have been stirrings in Indian Country this year that could disturb the society because the Takolas includes non-Natives. Meetings about protocol for ceremonies were held by spiritual leaders of Indian Country including Arvol Looking Horse, keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo Calf Peace Pipe. Those protocols suggest that non-Natives' role in ceremonies should be limited or banned. I wondered how it would affect the Sitting Bull ceremony this year. But the leaders of the camp held firm with their ways. It has been the policy of the leaders at this camp that skin color is not a consideration. The Creator looks at people like water, they don't have a color, one of the leaders told us. The Takola Akicita take a respectful, helping role in these ceremonies and seem to be a bridge between the non-Natives and Natives. Yellow Bird writes columns Tuesday and Saturday. Reach her by phone at 780-1228 or (800) 477-6572, extension 228, or by e-mail at dyellowbird@gfherald.com. Copyright c. 2003 Grand Forks Herald/Grand Forks, ND. --------- "RE: Editorial: Tribes sacrificed for Political Gain" --------- Date: Wed, 6 Aug 2003 08:26:03 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="BUSH WATER SCAM" http://www.indianz.com/News/ http://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/06/opinion/06WED3.html?pagewanted=print Karl Rove's Water Policy August 6, 2003 It's hardly news that Karl Rove, President Bush's political strategist, keeps a hawklike eye on domestic policies emerging from the executive branch, the better to make sure that everything meshes with his boss's political interests and those of the Republican Party. Yet rarely have Mr. Rove's efforts to bend policy to politics been more transparent than his intervention in a seemingly remote dispute involving water rights in Oregon's Klamath River basin. As detailed in a Wall Street Journal report last week, Mr. Rove has worked almost obsessively behind the scenes to ensure that the outcome satisfies the party's agricultural base at the expense of conservationists and Indian tribes. At issue is a long-simmering dispute over water flows in the Klamath River, which runs through southern Oregon and Northern California. Even in good years these flows can barely satisfy rival claims. Farmers want water for irrigation, while conservationists and Indian tribes want it for endangered fish species, including downriver salmon. The farmers have prevailed at almost every step of the way. In March 2002, the administration staged an elaborate ceremony in Klamath Falls to release irrigation water that had been held back to help the fish. In May, it unveiled a 10-year plan widely seen as pro-farmer. The fish have done less well. Last year, 33,000 salmon died in the lower Klamath, in one of the country's biggest fish kills. A subsequent report by the state of California blamed federal policies. Two weeks ago, a federal judge ruled that the 10-year plan itself contained flawed science. The farmers clearly owe a considerable debt to Mr. Rove. He has journeyed to Oregon twice in the past 19 months to solicit their views, and early last year he showed up at a Fish and Wildlife Service retreat to make clear that agricultural interests came first. The Interior Department insists that Mr. Rove did not order any particular "outcome," though it would have been hard to miss the message. The distressing thing here is that the administration is spending so much time on politics that it is ignoring obvious win-win solutions that could benefit all stakeholders. One idea is to have the federal government buy land from willing sellers, thus reducing agricultural demand for water and freeing up reliable supplies for everyone. That could provide a more lasting gift to the region than Mr. Rove's shortsighted politics can possibly confer. Copyright c. 2003 The New York Times Company. --------- "RE: Oneida Nation destroying Homes as Punishment" --------- Date: Wed, 6 Aug 2003 08:26:03 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="HALBRITTER/ONEIDA" http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm http://www.nativetimes.com/index.asp?action=displayarticle&article_id=2699 Dissenters say Oneida Nation destroying homes as punishment Tribal officials say dwellings are health hazards ONEIDA NY Sam Lewin August 5, 2003 Four families living on the Oneida Indian Nation reservation in upstate New York say tribal leadership is targeting them, and that's why they face eviction and the destruction of their homes. Tribal officials counter the homes are health hazards. The Oneida Nation is located 30 miles east of Syracuse, and operates a lucrative casino on their 32-acre ancestral home. The families slated for eviction say opposition to the pro-gaming policies of Chief Operating Officer Ray Halbritter is what got them in hot water in the first place. The Turning Stone Casino has reportedly grossed hundreds of millions of dollars in the past five years. Victoria Halsey is one of those facing eviction. She says she opposes Halbritter because he has "abandoned traditional ways." She received notice in late July that she had to move out. "They busted into my home while I was in the shower and I felt very violated. We had armed policemen violating the sanctity of our home," Halsey told the Native American Times. "We have been a target of Ray Halbritter. The tribe announced a home beautification program that was developed to forcibly inspect, condemn and demolish any home that they don't like. Our homes are being confiscated." Another woman, according to published reports Danielle Shenandoah Patterson, was arrested and charged with assaulting an officer when she refused to allow housing inspectors into her home. Tribal officials say the homes are in an extreme state of disrepair. "One had a roof partially pushed in. You could reach through it and touch a bird's nest. The Oneida Nation based its decision on safety and health concerns and once again acted in the best interests of all involved-especially the children," said Oneida Nation spokesman Mark Emery. The families have hired a lawyer to pursue the case, but again the situation becomes sticky. Last November, attorney Donald Daines filed for a preliminary injunction in federal court seeking a halt on future demolitions. Daines alleged the tribe was violating the Indian Civil Rights Act. The judge refused to issue an injunction, saying he didn't think he had the authority to act. Meanwhile, Oneida Nation attorneys are working in tribal court to continue with the demolitions. Daines says he is looking at alternate ways to help the families, and a website, www.oneidasfordemocracy.org, has been set up to provide financial relief. Native American Times is Copyright c. 2003 Oklahoma Indian Times, Inc. --------- "RE: Navajos fortifying West Nile Defenses" --------- Date: Sunday, August 10, 2003 09:20 pm From: Chris Milda (_Akimel O`odham_) - - - - - - -- - - - - - - Tucson, Arizona Thursday, 7 August 2003 Navajos fortifying West Nile defenses THE ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOENIX - In an effort to stave off the appearance of West Nile virus on the reservation, the Navajo Nation's Tribal Council appropriated more than $131,000 to vaccinate horses and for a public-information campaign. While there have been no reported cases of the disease on the reservation, there have been several cases in nearby towns and cities within 70 miles of the reservation. Tribal officials are concerned that if nothing is done, the mosquito- borne disease could spread quickly among an estimated 50,000 horses on the reservation, which covers parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. The disease is most easily spread from mosquitoes to horses, according to federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention statistics. It is normally carried by infected birds and then spread locally by mosquitoes who bite the birds. "This is all just preparation," George Joe, a spokesman for the Navajo Division of Health, said of the campaign. However, recent heavy rains have left many pools of water on the reservation, making conditions ripe for the disease, he said. Tribal health officials intensified the campaign this week with newspaper ads and radio announcements. Horse vaccinations will begin Monday, and each animal will have to be vaccinated again three weeks after the first shot, said Glenda Davis, spokeswoman for the Navajo Nation veterinary and livestock program. Over the next month health officials plan to visit all 110 communities on the reservation and aim to vaccinate about 5,000 horses. The disease, which has been blamed for nearly 300 deaths in humans in the United States since it first appeared on the East Coast four years ago, causes flulike symptoms and swelling of the brain in humans. There have been confirmed cases of horses with the disease in Aztec and Farmington, N.M. In southwest Colorado, the cities of Durango and Cortez also have confirmed horse cases, state and tribal health officials said. Colorado has the most human West Nile cases of any state and more than a third of the country's total, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. On Tuesday, the Colorado Health Department confirmed its first human death attributed to West Nile. Copyright c. 1999-2003 AzStarNet, Arizona Daily Star and its wire services. --------- "RE: Zunis celebrate end of SRP Coal Mine bid" --------- Date: Sunday, August 10, 2003 09:18 pm From: Chris Milda (_Akimel O`odham_) - - - - - - -- - - - - - - Zunis celebrate end of SRP coal mine bid Angela Cara Pancrazio The Arizona Republic Aug. 7, 2003 12:00 AM ZUNI PUEBLO, N.M. - On Monday, Arden Kucate stood at the edge of Zuni Salt Lake and made an offering of turquoise and bread to the Salt Mother and said his prayers. That night, the tribal councilman was met at the pueblo with news that Salt River Project had pulled its bid to mine coal near what the tribe considers a sacred lake, ending a 20-year battle with the utility. When tribal members hoisted a banner that read "Zuni defeats SRP," Kucate told the sign painter to add "Elahkwa," meaning "thank you." In their effort to protect their sacred lake and surrounding burial grounds, the Zunis say they had spent millions over the past 20 years on legal help and scientific data to prove the potential damage posed by the proposed Fence Lake Coal Mine. SRP denied the mine would do any damage and said it could have been an economic boon for the state. The Zunis believe the lake gives life to one of the tribe's central deities, the Salt Woman, and it has been a source of salt for ceremonial use and domestic use for thousands of years. The Zuni Pueblo, which covers more than 700 square miles in northwestern New Mexico and cuts into eastern Arizona, has a population of more than 10,000. SRP had planned to strip-mine coal on 18,000 acres of public and private land and build a 44-mile rail line from the mine to the Coronado generating station in St. Johns, Ariz. A spokesman for the Arizona power company said the utility had always planned to closely monitor the environmental impact of the mine and would have stopped production if there was a negative influence on Zuni Salt Lake. SRP also pointed to the financial benefit the mine would have provided for the economically distressed area. "The mine would have employed upwards of 175 people, with an annual payroll of $13 million," said spokesman Scott Harelson, adding the mine would have generated millions in taxes and royalties for the state. The railroad would have cut across the Zuni Sanctuary zone, where several burial grounds and pilgrimage trails are used by the Zuni, Navajo, Hopi, Acoma and Laguna people. The Zuni feared that groundwater pumped from the mine would dry up the spring-fed lake. Recently, the National Trust for Historic Preservation named New Mexico's Zuni Salt Lake and the surrounding 182,000-acre Sanctuary Zone one of America's 11 most-endangered historic places. When the SRP mine seemed imminent, grass-roots groups in the Valley and across Arizona banded together. The Zuni Salt Lake Coalition organized efforts in the Valley and was joined by the Sierra Club in Flagstaff and the Center for Biological Diversity in Tucson. SRP's decision to abandon its plan and instead purchase coal in Wyoming was unexpected. "We were preparing ourselves for the long battle," said coalition member Tupac Enrique. "The sacred sites are like organs, like eyes to the human body." The eight-person Tribal Council was equally delighted. "The whole burden seemed like it was lifted from my heart and my shoulders," said Carmelita Sanchez, the tribe's lieutenant governor. She said it's difficult for non-natives to understand the importance of their sacred site. "It doesn't have to have four walls and a ceiling, you don't have to have a cathedral," she said. "It's a feeling you have when you come into a pristine area like Salt Lake." Zuni tribal Gov. Arlen P. Quetawki vowed to be vigilant against future threats. He said the tribe will continue to gather data so that the expansive, shimmering lake that is filled with salt and feeds the Zuni people will remain whole and sacred. "I guess SRP realized this small band of Indians, however they could do it - they stopped it," Quetawki said. --------- "RE: Tribal Enhancement Act of 2003" --------- Date: Wed, 6 Aug 2003 08:26:03 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="MAJOR LEGISLATION" http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm http://www.nativetimes.com/index.asp?action=displayarticle&article_id=2698 Tribal Enhancement Act of 2003 Legislation introduced in congress WASHINGTON DC Sam Lewin August 5,2003 A South Dakota Senator has proposed a massive legislative package designed to relieve the housing crunch in Indian County and spur economic development. Senator Tim Johnson says congressional findings show Native American/Alaskan Native communities lag far behind the rest of the nation when it comes to economic development, with unemployment and poverty rates far outpacing that of the general population. Johnson's proposal includes tinkering with the U.S Internal Revenue Service Code to improve access to financing tribal housing. "You can be certain that the ripple effect from this bill will benefit not only Indian Country, but surrounding communities," Johnson said. Officials working on housing issues agree. "This act would really allow tribes an opportunity to develop their economic ability to provide for housing and stimulate badly needed growth," Raven Miller, communications specialist with the National American Indian Housing Council, told the Native American Times. Johnson's legislation comes in two pieces. The first portion was introduced last week and the second comes in September. - Tax exemption for interest from tribal bonds. Would allow interest accrued from certain bonds issued by tribal governments to be tax-exempt. - Exemption of Indian tribes from volume cap limits of private activity bonds. This legislation exempts tribes from section 146 of the internal revenue code, eliminating the need for tribes to compete with other issuers for a private activity allocation from a state government. - Low income housing credit consideration. Mandates that states consider Indian housing needs when allocating their credits by modifying the housing credit statute's qualified allocation plan selection criteria to include Indian needs. - Native American set-aside for New Markets Tax Credit. Sets aside five percent of new markets tax credits to be allocated to qualified community development entities for Native Americans. Native American Times is Copyright c. 2003 Oklahoma Indian Times, Inc. --------- "RE: Director of Institute for Pueblo Studies Retires" --------- Date: Wed, 6 Aug 2003 08:26:03 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="JOE SANDO RETIRES" http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm http://www.santafenewmexican.com/main~SectionID=2&SubSectionID=7 Director of Institute for Pueblo Indian Studies Retires Associated Press August 5, 2003 ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - The director of the Institute for Pueblo Indian Studies has retired, on his 80th birthday. Jemez Pueblo native Joe Sando, the voice of pueblo history, spent his last day at work Friday in his small basement office in the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, ending an 18-year career as keeper of the institute's library of history, archaeology and anthropology texts on pueblo people. About 100 people gathered Monday at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center to honor him. "He's been a fantastic resource to the pueblo community," said Ron Solimon, a Laguna Pueblo native and president of the cultural center. "He's lived through a lot of history and he brings a lot of life to a lot of facts and figures." Sando, a member of the Sun Clan, barely spoke English as a freshman at the Santa Fe Indian School. After graduation, he joined the Navy, an experience that took him to the Marshall Islands in World War II. When he wrote about the experience years later as a student at Eastern New Mexico University in Portales, his teacher took him aside and asked, "Did you know you could write?" Sando pursued a degree in education. He taught in Sedona, Ariz., and eventually at Albuquerque Indian School. There, he started researching and writing "The Pueblo Indians," one of his five books. "I started looking around for books and everything was anti-Indian," Sando said. "I couldn't find anything for the kids to read." He did graduate studies at Vanderbilt University, became a college professor and spent that career teaching pueblo history at the University of New Mexico and ethnohistory at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe. He had retired from teaching when he settled into the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in 1986 and created the Institute for Pueblo Indian Studies. Sando said 80 is a good time to stop going to the office every day and to begin reading for pleasure. To start with, he will take another crack at Homer. "I didn't understand it much when I read it years ago," he said. "I was younger then." Content c. 2003 The Santa Fe New Mexican, All Rights Reserved --------- "RE: Indigenous Opposition to Plan Puebla Panama" --------- Date: Thu, Aug 7, 2003 12:23 AM From: tlagiloi Subj: Fwd: En;ZNet,Indigenous Opposition to Plan Puebla Panama,Aug 06 Newsgroup: soc.culture.native This message is forwarded to you by the editors of the Chiapas95 newslists. Date: Wed, 6 Aug 2003 21:41:18 +0200 From: "Dana" Subject: ZNet,Indigenous Opposition to Plan Puebla Panama,Aug 06 Indigenous Opposition to Plan Puebla Panama by Bill Weinberg August 06, 2003 ZNet Magazine http://www.zmag.org/ On July 21, leaders of indigenous, campesino and grassroots organizations from throughout the Central American nations and Mexico gathered in Tegucigalpa, capital of Honduras, for the Mesoamerican Forum, fourth in a series of meetings aimed at defending ecological culture throughout the isthmus--and opposing the Puebla-Panama Plan (PPP), an isthmus-wide mega- development scheme aggressively promoted by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). Meanwhile, in the Honduran countryside, three peasant ecologist leaders were assassinated just days before the Forum opened --casting the issues addressed at the meeting in a stark light. In the southern province of La Paz, two Lenca Indian campesinos involved in an occupation of contested lands were killed in a dawn attack by presumed hired gunmen of a local landlord. In northern and remote Olancho province, a peasant leader who had been opposing illegal timber exploitation on communal lands was cut down at his home by an unknown pistolero. A banner above the check-in desk at the Forum read REMEMBER THE MARTYRS OF LA PAZ AND OLANCHO. There was an irony that the Forum was held in a city dominated by the ubiquitous icons of corporate culture--Burger King, McDonalds, Pizza Hut. In contrast, the banner above the stage at Tegucigalpa's Universidad Pedagogica, where the Forum was held, pictured a traditional Maya Indian design of a maize god. The first Mesoamerican Forum was held in Spring 2001 in Tapachula, Chiapas, after the IDB and Mexican President Vicente Fox announced the PPP, which calls for new hydro-electric projects, trans-isthmus trade routes and industrial zones. The Forum convened again in Fall 2001 in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala; and in July 2002 Managua, Nicaragua. At the Tegucigalpa meeting, the agenda was topped by the issues of breakneck resource exploitation privatization of national resources and infastructure--especially water. A water privatization law currently pending in the Honduran national legislature would mandate that local municipalities allow private contracts to run their water systems. Honduras' second city, San Pedro Sula, already has such a contract with an Italian firm. Such privatization moves are IDB and World Bank prescriptions--but, as representatives from throughout the Mesoamerican subcontinent pointed out, they are taking place in atmosphere of lawlessness, in which public oversight is meaningless and opponents are targetted for assassination. "ANOTHER MESOAMERICA IS POSSIBLE" A featured speaker at the Forum was Mexican writer Armando Batra, author of The Heirs of Zapata, a study of post-revolutionary Mexican campesino movements, who called the PPP an example of "savage capitalism," and claimed that it is dividing Mexico. "It serves the interests of the northern, white part of the country which is a neighbor to the US, and condemns to poverty the southern, indigenous part which is a neighbor to Guatemala." But, echoing a frequent slogan at the Forum, he asserted that "another Mesoamerica is possible." As an alternative development model, he called for "rebuilding the links between rural and urban sectors, with agricultural production for internal consumption based on local cooperatives." Indigenous representatives from Guatemala at the Forum included opponents of the planned massive hydro-electic project on the Usumacinta River, which forms the border between Guatemala and Mexico. Juan Ixbalan of Guatemala's National Indigenous and Campesino Coordinator (CONIC) called the IDB-backed project, which would flood vast areas of rainforest, "a new conquest of Maya territory." Even as technocrats portray privatization and mega-development proposals as part of an inevitable march towards democracy and modernization, ghosts from Central America's violent recent past are returning to haunt the isthmus. Guatemalan indigenous leaders are currently preparing a case against former military dictator--and current presidential candidate-Rios Montt on genocide charges for his 1980s "scorched-earth" campaign against Maya Indians. The indigenous-led Justice &Reconcilation Association (AJR)is coordinating witnesses to 1980s massacres from 24 communities in the departments of Quiche, Huehuetenango, Chimaltenango and Alta Verapaz. Said Neela Ghoshal, a New York City shcoolteacher who recently served as a human rights observer with the AJR and attended the Forum: "The Guatemalan courts probably won't hear the case, so they will have to go to the Inter- American Court of Human Rights. But they are really committed to seeking justice." On July 25, just days after the Forum ended, violent riots rocked Guatemala City as supporters of Rios Montt--mostly former members of his paramilitary "civil patrols"--took to the streets to protest a court ruling that barred his candidacy under a law blocking former coup leaders from the presidency. The protesters erected barricades of burning tires and attacked random pedestrians, leaving one television reporter dead of heart failure. Five days after the riots, Guatemala's top Constitutional Court would overturn the ruling, allowing the ex-dictator's presidential campaign to proceed. US State Department spokesman Richard Boucher quickly assured that US relations with Guatemala would not be disrupted if Rios Montt is elected. Another speaker at the Forum, Raul Moreno of El Salvador, representing the rural development group Sinti Techan (Nahuatl for "maize for the people") condemned the pending Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) and Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), asserting that these agreements would "modify the judicial order, subordinating the labor code, environmental laws and human rights. The PPP is not neutral--it benefits the US and its giant corporations. The PPP is not reformable." Nor, he asserted, is it inevitable. "We can resist. Electricity and the national health system remain public in Costa Rica, despite the desire of the government and the World Trade Organization to privatize, because the people don't want it." Magda Lanuza of Nicaragua's International Study Center noted that plans for water privatization are even more advanced in her country than in Honduras. Several Nicaraguan departments--including Leon, Chinandega, Jinotega and Matagalpa--already have private contracts to manage their water systems with such firms as the French water giant Suez (whose contracts with local governments in South Africa have won international criticism as soaring water rates have left many poor communities without access). Now, as in Honduras, the water privatization program is to be instated nationwide--as a condition of a loan from the IDB. But Magda predicts a political battle. "Local communities are prepared to defend their water resources," she says. "They understand that water is life." Hydro-energy is also being privatized in Nicaragua. The private firm Hydrogesa has won a contract to manage the Apenas dam in Jinotega, and the scandal-ridden Enron actually bid on it in 2002. But following public protest, the contract now suspended pending a national law on water privatization. Local Matagalpa Indians were relocated when the project was first built in 1960s, and now oppose its privatiztion. HEIRS OF LEMPIRA STRUGGLE FOR THE LAND The two Lenca Indians killed at La Paz, Fabian Gonzalez and Santos Carrillo, were part of a land occupation led by the National Center of Rural Workers (CNTC), one of the largest campesino unions in Honduras. The killers opened fire with AK-47 rifles in dawn attack on their encampment July 19. In an eerie coincidence, the very next day, July 20, is Dia de Lempira, a national holiday commemorating the death in 1536 of the Lenca warrior who resisted the conquistador Francisco Montejo. The land in question had been first occupied in 1985, under a provision of the Honduran agrarian reform law allowing peasants to move on to unused private lands, and begin a process for their eventual expropriation and title transfer to the campesinos. But the agrarian reform law has now been almost completely repealed in Honduras. Lenca leader Berta Caceres notes an irony that Lempira has become a symbol of national pride even as Lenca land rights and culture have been lost to modernization. "The indigenous context has been invisible in Honduras for too long," she says. "But there has been a new process of struggle since the 500 Years of Resistance campaign in 1992 and the Zapatista revolt in Chiapas in 1994. We are organzing to defend Lenca territory." Caceres is the coordinator of the Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH), representing 47 communities in the Lenca heartland of La Paz, Intibuca and Lempira departments. It was founded in 1993, and has been at the forefront of a Lenca cultural and political renaissance. After the Forum, I visited COPINH's modest office in the village of Itibuca. The Lenca are among the northernmost Chibcha Indian groups, whose cultual sphere begins just south of that of the Maya and extends into South America. Their language only survives in some 45 words--mostly referring to animals and places, such as the local Sierra de Puca Opalaca, which means "high mountain" in Lenca. They have also adopted Nahuatl, the lingua franca of the Aztec-Maya cultural sphere, to communicate with neighboring peoples. Since 1993, COPINH has organized a series of 4,000-strong "indigneous pilgrimages" to local sacred sites associated with saints and virgins (and, earlier, with Lenca deities and earth-spirits)--such as the Virgin of Lourdes in Ilama, Santa Barbara department, and the Virgin of Remedios in Tomala, Lempira. Caceres says these pilgrimages "linked the spiritual and cultural traditions of the Lenca with our political demands." COPINH has also resorted to more militant tactics, such the 1993 occupation of local timber mills to protest deforestation. COPINH's demands have won some results--such as the redrawing of municpal borders to give local Lenca communities legal contol over their territories. In 1994, the first new municipality was created, San Francisco Opalaca in Intibua department--the only municipality in the country where all land is collectively owned and managed by an indigenous land council. Six other new municipalities followed in the ensuing years. Under the Honduran agrarian reform, some national lands were transfred to peasant collectives, which held them privately, but not for resale. Under the 1992 Agrarian Modernization Law--known as the "contra-reforma"- they can now be resold. The "contra-reforma" also overturned provisions for expropriation of unused private lands for redistribution to peasant squatters. In addittion, the National Agrarian Institute (INA) started privatizing national lands and even "ejidos," the traditional communal lands accruing to municipalities that had been protected since the colonial era. Salvador Zuniga, a member of COPINH's executive committee, notes the shift from the "populist" policy of the 1960s, when the agragian reform was initiated, to the "neoliberal" policy of today, which is supported by the US, World Bank and IDB, and calls for a return to the 19th-century Liberal ideology of privatization of public or collective lands and resources. In between was the harsh repression of th 1980s, which--if less severe than that in neighboring El Salvador and Guatemala--still saw the assassination and "disappearance" of hundreds of peasant leaders, and the decapitation of peasant cooperatives. "The neoliberal policy of today is the fruit of the low-intensity war of the 1980s," says Zuniga. And that war continues, as indigenous leaders are still marked for death. On May 17 of this year, Teodoro Martinez, a Tolupan Indian leader in the central department of Fracisco Morazan who had been leading a campaign against illegal timber operations, was assassinated. Martinez had been a leader of another indigenous alliance, the Confederation of Autochthonous Peoples of Honduras (CONPAH)--whose founder, Vicente Matute, was assassinated in 1989, the same year the organization was launched. OLANCHO: TROUBLE ON THE WILD FRONTIER In another trip into the Honduran countryside after the Forum, I joined a delegation to Olancho, organized by the country's foremost human rights group, the Committee of the Families of the Detained and Disappeared of Honduras (COFADEH), founded during the repression of the 1980s. The largest department in Honduras by territory, Olancho is largely inhabited by mestizo settlers from the central and southern zones of the country who were encouraged by the government to colonize the wild fronteir to the north in the 1960s and '70s. But, as always, economic interests followed the settlers, and today the pine-clad mountains of Olancho are being rapidly denuded by local timber barons. On the road, we pass numerous trucks loaded with huge pine logs, heading south towards the Panamerican Highway and foreign markets. We also pass several timber mills cutting the big logs into boards. On the night of July 18, Carlos Arturo Reyes was shot down by an unknown pistolero at his home in Olancho's El Rosario municipality. Reyes had founded the local Olancho Environmental Movement (MAO)in 2001, and had led a cross-country March for Life in June 2003, in which 30,000 marched from Olancho to Tegucigalpa to demand a crackdown on outlaw timber operations. MAO used marches, community meetings and finally--in February of this year--physical blockades of logging roads to press thier demands for community participation in drafting what the group calls a "rational plan of exploitation." Twenty other MAO members are now said to be targetted for death. Other peasant ecologists have likewise been assassinated in Olancho in recent years. On June 30, 2001, Carlos Flores of La Venta, a village in Gualaco municipality, was gunned down in front of his home by AK-47 fire. As a leader of the local Heritage Center of La Venta, Gualaco (CEPAVEG), he had opposed a hydro-dam being built on the nearby Rio Babilonia by the private firm Energisa under contract to the Honduran government. Two of Energisa's guards were eventually arrested in the case, but Gilberto Flores, Carlos' cousin, says "the intellectual authors remain free." Gilberto, still involved in opposition to the hydro project, is now facing death threats himself, has a National Police officer assigned to protect him in La Venta. Gilberto reports that on June 14 he had a an AK- 47 levelled at him from a passing car in Juticalpa, capital of Olancho department. Gilberto emphasizes the necessity of halting Olancho's deforestation and fighting to maintain public control over water resources: "In many municipalities in Olancho, there is no water. We dig wells and we find none. The department is going dry. This has happened over the last 20 years, along with the exaggerated exoploitation of our forests. There are around 100 trucks full of timber leaving Olancho each day for Trujillo," the northern Caribbean port. Also apparently targetted for death is Rafael Ulloa, former mayor of Gualaco. Ulloa protests that the appropriation of the Rio Babilonia for the hydro-dam represents a reversal of national priorities. "Officially, water is to go first for muncipal use, then for irrigation, and then for electrical generation. But downstream communities will lose thier access to the river by this project." The small Rio Babilonia plunges down from the mountain of that same name in a series of cascades, and eventually joins the Rio Tinto Negro that drains to the Caribbean to the north. The site of the dam is officially within the Sierra de Agalta National Park, and but for the construction activity the forest-cloaked mountain is indeed beautiful. From La Venta, we set out on horses and mules up the steep and muddy trail which is also used by the Energisa workers. This area is too rugged and inaccessible for heavy equipment, and the workers carry the plastic tubing up the mountain on their backs, or slung between makeshift wooden poles. The trail follows the ditch cut in the mountainside which will re-route the river through the plastic pipes to the power station below, still yet to be built. At the top, the dam itself is alrady intact, standing astride the first cataract, but the gates have yet to be closed and floodplain which has been dug off to the side yet to be filled. An Energisa guard with a shotgun stands on duty. The campesinos at La Venta also take us to nearby Las Delicias in neighboring San Estaban municipality--where national police and private gunmen evicted some 20 families from 83 manzanas of land on July 23. Across the barbed-wire fence we can see the remains of recently-razed homes. The families, settlers from Choluteca department in the south, had been on the land for over 20 years. They are now living in an overcrowded one-room schoolhouse and makeshift bivuoacs on adjacent municipal land. They say that the courts ruled for the local Calderon ranching family in the land dispute despite the campesinos' title to the land. The case is pending before INA, but the families, who worked their land as a peasant collective, have little hope the decision will be reversed. They say their meager cattle were stolen in the eviction as well, and probably wound up on the already-expansive lands of the Calderon family. Says evicted grandmother Heribeta Aguilar: "We came here for a better life-now everything is gone." Added evicted farmer Silverio Molina: "We will die fighting for land and water." The evicted campesinos show us a beat-up Toyota pick-up truck parked near thier bivouacs. It is riddled on the driver's side with bullets from an AK-47 attack in the prelude to the eviction--allegedly by Calderon gunmen. The driver, Candido Cruz, lost his leg in the attack, and now hobbles on crutches. Another environmental crusader facing death threats in Olancho is Padre Jose Andres Tamayo, a Salvadoran-born priest who now leads the parish that covers both Salama and El Rosario, where Carlos Reyes was killed. He too notes a dramatically declining productivity in Olancho's land as a result of erosion and aridification related to destruction of the region's forests. "Just five years ago, the campesinos here got 30 sacks of maize for every manzana," he says. "Now they usually get twelve." On the road between Salama and El Rosario, Padre Tamayo points out a large expanse of mountainous and forested land owned by a local "cacique"- a land baron and political boss favored by the corrupt bureaucracy. He says trucks leave the cacique's land hauling out timber frequently, and the mountainsides are rapidly being denuded. Across the road, more forested slopes form the opposite wall of the valley. These, Tamayo says, are the communal lands of local peasant communities. But they are also being denuded by the local timber barons, as campesino leaders are bought off with cash or alcohol. Tamayo asserts that 80% of the wood cut in Honduras is felled illegally. On March 2, 2002, the Honduran daily El Heraldo reported that ex-head of the national forestry agency, COHDEFOR, Marco Vinicio Arias, faces corruption charges for illegally allowing the felling of trees in the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve, which stretches north from Olancho into the extremely remote lowland tropical rainforests of the Miskito Coast. Tamayo says that six companies control the Olancho timber trade in a shady network that overlaps with that of the narco-gangs who use Olancho as an artery for US-bound cocaine between clandestine ports on the Miskito Coast and the Panamerican Highway. Timber revenues are used to launder narco-profits, and both go to arming paramilitary-style mafia enforcement gangs. Tamayo refers to the timber gangs as "narco-madereros." Tamayo claims that the timber is largely resold to US-based companies for export, and much of it is off-loaded in New Orleans and other US ports. Once again, corporate power appears to have an incestuous relationship with the criminal and paramilitary gangs that terrorize the isthmus. "This is the second conquest of Mesoamerica," says Tamayo. Our delegation to Olancho ended with an ominous coda. On July 29, the day after our return to Tegucigalpa, the daily La Prensa ran a front-page photo of masked men carrying rifles in a dense pine grove, claiming they were a group of radical environmentalists who were arming themselves to defend Olancho's forests. Their supposed leader, "Comandante Pepe," claimed to have 10,000 men under his command. In an accompanying article, Honduran President Ricardo Maduro was pictured looking in dismay at photos of "Pepe" from the same newspaper. He was quoted as saying, "They are doing a great damage to the country," noting that the presumed eco- guerillas look like "Zapatistas or members of Sendero Luminoso." He was also quoted pledging a crackdown: "I am not going to permit the existence of any armed groups that generate violence. I don't care whose side they're on, because in this case there is no justified reason." Padre Tamayo was also quoted, saying that the mysterious Pepe and his followers were actually a creation of the timber gangs "to discredit the movement." -- To subscribe to this list send a message containing the words subscribe chiapas95 (or chiapas95-lite, or chiapas95-english, or chiapas95-espanol) to majordomo@eco.utexas.edu. Previous messages are available from http://www.eco.utexas.edu/faculty/Cleaver/chiapas95.html or gopher to Texas, University of Texas at Austin, Department of Economics, Mailing Lists. --------- "RE: Students and Police clash in Chiapas" --------- Date: Friday, August 08, 2003 01:29 pm From: Chiapas95-english Subj: En;AP,Students and police clash in Chiapas;20 injured Mailing List: Chiapas95-english This message is forwarded to you by the editors of the Chiapas95 newslists. To contact the editors or to submit material for posting send to: . ----- Original Message ----- From: "Dana" (08-07) 10:12 PDT TUXTLA GUTIERREZ, Mexico (AP) -- Police lobbed tear gas from helicopters and hundreds of student protesters attacked officers with clubs, stones and machetes in a clash that left more than 30 people injured and more than 200 detained in southern Chiapas state. The confrontation began late Wednesday in the capital, Tuxtla Gutierrez, when police tried to take back 16 trucks the students commandeered from the government and private businesses to protest new regulations for obtaining teaching positions. The students occupied the teaching school on Monday to protest rules requiring that they take competitive exams to get teaching positions; until last year, the students automatically received the jobs. The protests escalated when the students began to take over government and private business vans. When hundreds of police arrived on Wednesday, students tried to block their entry by throwing rocks and sticks and lighting one of the vehicles on fire, said a state police official spokesman on customary condition of anonymity. Students held seven officers hostage inside the school while they presented their demands. The officers were released unharmed Thursday morning after the students and government officials agreed to negotiate a solution to the dispute. More than 30 students and eight police were lightly injured. Police arrested 218 students, parents and sympathetic farmers who joined the protests. -- To subscribe to this list send a message containing the words subscribe chiapas95 (or chiapas95-lite, or chiapas95-english, or chiapas95-espanol) to majordomo@eco.utexas.edu. Previous messages are available from http://www.eco.utexas.edu/faculty/Cleaver/chiapas95.html or gopher to Texas, University of Texas at Austin, Department of Economics, Mailing Lists. --------- "RE: Fishing Closure puts burden on Carrier" --------- Date: Friday, August 08, 2003 01:36 pm From: Frosty Subj: Fw: Fishing closure puts burden on Carrier Mailing List: Frostys AmerIndian ----- Original Message ----- From: Russell Diabo ----- Original Message ----- From: Don http://www.mytelus.com/news/article.do?pageID=community/fort&article Wednesday, Aug 06, 2003 Fishing closure puts burden on Carrier "I will not be asking our people to pull their nets out of Stuart Lake." The words of Chief Leonard Thomas, Chief of the Nak'azdli Band, as yet another conservation closure was announced by the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans, (DFO). The closure affects the early-runs of sockeye salmon on the Fraser River and its tributaries which include the Stuart and Nechako Rivers and the chain of many lakes connected to them. For centuries the Aboriginal peoples have depended upon the salmon resource as a mainstay of their food supply. "We are tired of bearing the burden of yet another closure." explained Chief Thomas, "Carrier people throughout the Fraser watershed are very upset. Many are fed up with hearing the same old, same old." The Chiefs of the Carrier-Sekani Tribal Council have even asked that other Fraser River First Nations stop fishing on the main stem of the river to let as many fish as possible run through to the higher reaches of the watershed. "We have always practised conservation in our use of natural resources," confirmed Chief Thomas, "and we support the concept of conservation. It is not a new concept to Aboriginal peoples. But the decline in fish stocks throughout the Fraser watershed is due to heavy commercial fisheries at the mouth of the river." The first of several runs of sockeye has already passed through the Nechako/Stuart River system, but they have travelled hundreds of miles to get here. "Putting a closure on a fishery this far up the river system does not make good sense." said Chief Thomas, "Already thousands of fish have been caught further down on the lower reaches. It has to be in effect at the mouth of the river. But our people are asking why do we, who have not created the problem, have to bear the burden." In 1990, the Supreme Court of Canada issued a landmark ruling that defined Aboriginal peoples' right to fish for food, and for social and ceremonial purposes. The decision confirmed that this right takes priority over all other uses of the fishery, subject to certain overriding considerations such as conservation of the resource. The Supreme Court also set out the necessity of consulting with Aboriginal groups when their fishing rights might be affected. The Aboriginal Fisheries Strategy, which was launched in 1992 and followed on from the Supreme Court's decision, outlined a framework for the management of the fishery and for participation in it by Aboriginal groups. "We have kept our word in the past when previous closures have occurred, said Chief Thomas, "and our people have stopped fishing but we cannot do this year after year. A few band members have asked if they could fish and we have not prevented them from doing so." Copyright c. 2003 fort --------- "RE: B.C. Fish Wars heat up again" --------- Date: Mon, 4 Aug 2003 08:45:49 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="FISH WARS" http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20030803.wfish803 B.C. fish wars heat up again By AMY CARMICHAEL Canadian Press August 3, 2003 Vancouver - A pair of B.C. court rulings that outlawed federally mandated fish-sales programs for some B.C. native bands has reignited a deeply divisive battle over how the province's salmon stocks should be shared. Non-native fishermen had long complained about the pilot-sales program, with some participating in protest fisheries that landed them in court. Their complaining that aboriginals were getting special treatment saw some shunned as politically incorrect, even racist. But the recent provincial court rulings, including one last week that concluded the federal programs were discriminatory has tempers flaring again. "We have been denied opportunities to fish when there were fish available," said Alliance MP John Cummins who himself holds a fishing commercial licence and has been in past protest fisheries. Under the pilot-sales program, Fisheries negotiated special, native-only commercial salmon openings with some B.C. bands. "The openings went to the natives and we'd be left standing on the beach," said Mr. Cummins. "By the time the commercial fleet was let in there was nothing left. Finally a judge has realized that's wrong." Provincial Judge William Kitchen's granted a stay of proceedings last week against 140 fishermen accused of illegal fishing in August 1998 when they protested the exclusive native commercial fishery. Judge Kitchen said the program was equal to racial discrimination against commercial fisherman and was a violation of their rights. Earlier this summer, provincial Judge Brian Saunderson granted an absolute discharge to 40 commercial fishermen who took part in a protest fishery against the policy last summer. Ottawa is appealing that ruling, in which the judge criticized the Fisheries policy. The court decisions followed release of a Commons committee report that branded the program a "dismal failure," saying it had not brought order to aboriginal fisheries. Lawyers for the natives said however, Judge Kitchen's ruling only inflamed racial tensions over an issue that has nothing to do with race, but rather the legal claims certain bands have to the land. "Indigenous people have legally recognized rights to the land, in this country and around the world," said Lydia Hwitsum, a legal expert with the First Nations Summit, represents aboriginal groups across the province. "When someone boils it down to a question of race that just reflects their own bias, their own racism." Chief Stewart Phillip of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs blamed the judge in the case, saying he let his personal opinion colour the decision. "I think everyone is extremely upset about the tone of the decision," he said. "The language used in the decision was very opinionated to point of being inflammatory and given sanction to a flurry of racist commentary." The separate native commercial fisheries, which don't exist elsewhere in Canada, were created after a 1990 Supreme Court decision said natives must be given access to the resource. The rest of the country is covered by treaties that had established deals for fisheries access. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans created in British Columbia a separate fishery for natives that gave several bands an allocation number of fish they could catch and sell commercially. This was in addition to quotas that allow natives to fish for food. British Columbia is still in the process of negotiating treaties and Ms. Hwuitsum said that based on other deals it's safe to assume pieces of the fishery will part of them. "So it doesn't make any make sense to cancel the current program all together," she said. Fisheries Department spokesman Don Radford said before the separate fisheries were created, poaching by aboriginals was a serious problem and relations between the bands and the government were rancorous. "That's not the case now," he said. "We have had improved relations with the First Nations over the period of the pilot sales program. "It was uncontrolled before, but when a mechanism is in place for them to fish legally, people generally respect it." Mr. Radford admitted poaching still goes on, clarifying that natives "generally respect the system - just like people generally don't speed." Mr. Cummins said Mr. Radford is way off and that poaching is rampant. "What happens now is natives fish under their food, social and ceremonial rights catching spring salmon, put them in cold storage and sell them when the native fishery opens in August," Mr. Cummins alleged. He said the system put commercial fishermen at a disadvantage and wrecked lives. "Some people lost their boats, their homes. Families broke up over this." Ms. Hwitsum said poaching happens, but that everybody does it. "It's a fact of life and the full spectrum of society is involved. You can't put the blame just on natives." Copyright c. 2003 Bell Globemedia Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. --------- "RE: Native-only Fisheries struck down by B.C. Court" --------- Date: Saturday, August 09, 2003 11:01 pm From: Frosty Subj: Fw: Native-only fisheries struck down by B.C. court Mailing List: Frostys AmerIndian ----- Original Message ----- From: Russell Diabo Native-only fisheries struck down by B.C. court But AFN leader faces a mountain of work to win back relevancy By Len Kruzenga A B.C. court has ruled that an 11-year program by the federal Oceans and Fisheries department restricting salmon fishing on the Fraser River to natives is unconstitutional and discriminates against other commercial fishermen on the basis of race. Provincial Court Justice William Judge Kitchen's ruling resulted in the Department of Fisheries and Oceans calling an immediate halt to its pilot sales program, which was instituted to satisfy the inherent aboriginal right-upheld in the Sparrow case- to catch salmon for food and ceremonial purposes and include the right of natives to sell their catch from fisheries closed to non-native fishermen. The court's decision and the move by the federal government has incensed many native fishermen, according to Arnie Narcisse, chairman of the of the province's Aboriginal Fisheries Commission. "It's a blow to our people's rights and sets back all the progress made over the last decade," he said. "Feelings are going to be hot because it's frustrating to be an Indian with this type of political climate. But fears that the ruling and cancellation of the program could create tensions and conflict similar to Burnt Church nearly three years ago are premature at this point, says Bob Hall, a fisheries spokesperson for 21 bands comprising the Sto'lo Nation that border on the banks of the Fraser River. "The majority of our chiefs have instructed me to say that we are not going fishing 24-7. We are not prepared to resort to violence but there is tension building, especially among our young fishermen so I hope it just doesn't come to anything that gets out of hand." But some bands, including the Soowahlie say they intend to fish despite the ruling. "Once a fish is caught, who cares whether we eat it or sell it. It's gone and it's not going to spawn and it doesn't matter whether it's my food or your food, said Chief Doug Kelly. "More than likely are people are going to go out and catch fish. We were some of the very first commercial fishermen here and sold fish to the Hudson Bay Company at Fort Langley as far back as the 1840s." Newly elected AFN National Chief Phil Fontaine has entered the fray demanding that the federal government appeal the court's ruling. "Fishing is an essential part of our relationship with the land and its resources. It is integral to our history, our culture, our economies and ultimately our self-sufficiency. Our right to share the fishery resources of Canada has been affirmed in other court decisions such as Marshall, Gladstone and Smokehouse. It is unfortunate that they precedents were not considered in this decision," said Fontaine. "While the Aboriginal Fisheries Strategy is not a full acknowledgement and implementation of our Constitutional and treaty \rights, it is a recognition of those rights and an attempt to implement them in a balanced fashion. We have to continue to work together to pursue strategies that implement our rights and jurisdiction. The federal government has 30 days to decide on an appeal. Copyright c. 2003 The First Perspective. --------- "RE: Fox calls for Nault's ouster" --------- Date: Saturday, August 09, 2003 11:02 pm From: Frosty Subj: Fw: Fox calls for Nault's ouster Mailing List: Frostys AmerIndian ----- Original Message ----- From: Russell Diabo Fox calls for Nault's ouster Chiefs of Ontario leader Charles Fox has appealed to Prime Minister Jean Chretien to dismiss INAC minister Robert Nault from his post. Citing the mismanagement of INAC and his proposed suite of first nations legislation currently before the house, Fox labeled Nault as a "rogue minister." "He's out of control. He's abused his power, misappropriated and misspent taxpayer's money and tried to indirectly interfere in first nations' elections. That's absolutely unacceptable," said Fox. And he cited his opposition to the FNGA as well as that of other Ontario first nations' groups as the reason Nault has withheld funding to many groups and organizations. And reports that members of Nault's communications' team had attended a recent ant-FNGA protest in Kenora to monitor and institute surveillance on first nations opposition have also raised Fox's ire. "Nault regards first nations as subversive groups instead of sovereign partners with the government of Canada. Can you imagine how another country would feel towards Canada if it found out that it had special surveillance teams in place there?" "Nault has achieved a notable record. In recent memory no Indian Affairs Minister has so blatantly misused his authority and betrayed the Canadian and first nations. Grassy Narrows escalates logging blockade A second logging route has been blocked by protestors from the Grassy Narrows First Nation who have been attempting to draw attention to clear- -cut logging on their traditional territories since last December. While efforts in blocking the access of logging trucks has been somewhat successful the second blockade was undertaken to hamper the flow of logs from the are to Abitibi Consolidated's Paper Mill in Kenora. And a series of alternating blockades in the area has also managed to reduce the flow of logs, according to protestors. But despite their efforts logging continues in the area negotiations between the first nation and the province and Abitibi on the issue have not occurred. Copyright c. 2003 The First Perspective. --------- "RE: Parents, Estate given $162,000 in Tot's Death" --------- Date: Wed, 6 Aug 2003 08:26:03 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="ALASKAN NATIVE" http://www.indianz.com/News/ http://www.adn.com/front/v-printer/story/3604528p-3636413c.html Parents, estate given $162,000 in tot's death BETHEL: 2-year-old Frank Sam didn't get proper care, judge rules. By NICOLE TSONG Anchorage Daily News August 6, 2003 A federal judge has awarded $162,000 to the parents and the estate of a 2-year-old boy who failed to get proper medical attention at the Yukon- Kuskokwim Health Corp. in Bethel three years ago. His mother sought help for Frank Sam, 2, at the YKHC-operated clinic and hospital three times on March 9, 2000, cycling through a clinic, nurses and doctors over nearly seven hours as the toddler's symptoms grew worse, said U.S. District Judge John Sedwick. Frank died at an Anchorage hospital the next day. A doctor saw Frank a little more than two hours before he was taken to the emergency room the evening of March 9, but there is no record of what the doctor observed, Sedwick wrote in his July 16 ruling. Sam's family needed that document, and others, to demonstrate that YKHC was negligent, the judge said. Because YKHC couldn't produce those documents, the hospital had to prove it wasn't negligent. It failed to do so, Sedwick wrote. Christopher Cooke, an attorney for the Sam family, said the hospital made mistakes in treating the toddler. "This wasn't about the wrong thing being done, it was about what should have been done and what was not done and the absence of records to document what was or was not done," he said in a telephone interview from Bethel. But government attorneys representing YKHC disagreed with the verdict and have asked the judge to reconsider his decision. Lane Tucker, an assistant U.S. attorney, said Sedwick required the government to meet an inappropriate burden of proof. Tucker said the federal government is liable for claims made against Native health care corporations like YKHC, under the federal Indian Self-Determination Act. A YKHC spokesman said the agency wouldn't comment on pending litigation. According to court documents, Martina Sam first took her son to the YKHC emergency room around 10 p.m. on March 8 because the toddler was feverish, vomiting and wheezing. His temperature was 103 degrees. A doctor treated him for fever, dehydration and other ailments, and he was discharged about 41/2 hours later with instructions to return to a clinic later that day, according to the judge's written judgment. Sam took Frank to the Bethel clinic on the afternoon of March 9. A nurse who initially examined him gave him Tylenol, and a nurse practitioner diagnosed him with viral bronchitis. The practitioner said he should be checked again the next morning, according to court records. That was about 3:15 p.m. Sam went to fill a prescription for Frank. Shortly after the prescription was filled, the boy became ill and vomited again. Sam returned to the clinic with Frank and asked a doctor to look at him. The nurse practitioner, however, said she had examined the boy and the doctor said to proceed with the treatment she had prescribed. Frank was given more medicine, but he seemed to be getting worse. Sam took him back to the clinic, but it was closed and she was sent to the hospital's emergency room. Sam told an emergency room clerk that her son was getting worse and asked to have his temperature checked. But the clerk just asked her to sign in like everyone else and wait her turn. According to court records, she and Frank waited for an hour while people with lesser ailments -- a boil, lice and so on -- were seen. When a nurse finally saw Frank, the boy was vomiting the oral drugs he had been given. His temperature was 107. During his examination, Frank had a seizure, according to court documents. After trying unsuccessfully to control his temperature, doctors had Frank airlifted to Anchorage. He died the next evening at Providence Alaska Medical Center, court documents say. Frank's father, Bernard Sam, said from Bethel Tuesday that it was a relief to get the verdict. He said he and Martina had adopted Frank and two of his four daughters. "It was emotional at the same time," he said. "He was our only boy in the family. I have four girls and that boy was named after my dad." The verdict is "part of healing, letting go, knowing the truth," said Sam, who works as a truck driver for the city of Bethel. "I hope they learn from their mistake because we're all human, we all make mistakes and learn from it." Dan Winkelman, general counsel for YKHC, said the emergency room now has signs that say patients are seen in order of urgency of their condition and that patients should notify nurses if they have a change in condition. Winkelman said he didn't know if the signs are the result of the lawsuit. The judge awarded $65,000 to the child's estate, and $48,500 to each of his parents. Daily News reporter Nicole Tsong can be reached at ntsong@adn.com or 257-4450. Copyright c. 2003 The Anchorage Daily News. --------- "RE: DeSersa Shooting brings Anger and Fear" --------- Date: Tue, 12 Aug 2003 08:11:31 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="SHOOTING" http://www.lakotajournal.com/front.htm DeSersa shooting brings anger and fear By Melanie Grinnell Lakota Journal Staff Writer August 8, 2003 PINE RIDGE - To those who knew him, Alex DeSersa was full of life and shared his vitality with those around him, DeSersa would pick you up if you were down and was known to greet and shake the hands of his elders as a display of his respect for them, according to his mother, Cherry Clifford-Hansen. Alexander Raymond DeSersa was born at Pine Ridge, on February 5, 1981 to David DeSersa, and Cherry L. Clifford (Hansen). His respect for elders stemmed from the values he learned from his grandparents, Melvin Clifford and Thelma Red Feather. Like his father, DeSersa became a sculptor. His first pieces were sculpted figures of chiefs that were later purchased and displayed in Oglala Sioux Tribal offices. "He wanted to do a chess art of all different chiefs. Thats what he was starting on and I'm not sure if he finished that but I guess that's why they (buyers) ordered," Hansen said. On July 19, Hansens's life was changed forever when she learned that her son's life was ended when he was shot by a police officer of the Oglala Sioux Tribe. Details of what actually ensued during the incident are still unclear. Hansen doesn't believe the story that was given to her from the law enforcement officials. According to the BIA Criminal Investigator, Charles "Festus" Fischer, at about 11:45 p.m., tribal officials responded to a report of gunshots fired in the North Ridge housing area in Pine Ridge Village. Officers John Mousseau and David Whery arrived on the scene and found a male and female standing outside a residence there. Fischer said that as the officers approached the people, the male set a can of beer on the ground and ran toward another residence when Whery attempted to arrest the man. Officer Whery pursued the man on foot while Officer Mousseau questioned the female. About this time, Fischer said that a third person began firing gunshots from inside the abandoned home where the officer and girl stood. Both Whery and Mousseau responded by returning the gunfire. Fischer said the female was shot in the back by a bullet that came from insid the abandoned home. He said moments later, the body of Alex DeSersa was discovered in the home next to a gun and a bag of ammunition. The female was wounded and airlifted to the Rapid City Regional Hospital where she remains in critical condition. The incident sparked outrage from Pine Ridge residents. Those who knew the officers wanted reprieve for their actions. Those who knew DeSersa believe that he was not capable of such animosity toward another human being. DeSersa's mother in trying to make sense of the whole situation in the aftermath. "He will be missed," she said. "He didn't mean to hurt anybody. I know my son. He didn't mean to hurt anybody." Hansen is dealing with her grief in her own way, but said that her father, Melvin Clifford, is having much difficulty with the loss of his grandson. The death of Alex is the second grandson that Clifford had lost within the past two years. DeSersa's younger cousin, Jonathon, was killed two years ago when he was riding a bike and hit by a police vehicle that was driven by an officer. Hansen said, "They really need to look into this police force now. They need to have proper training. They need to do be drug tested because there's too much corruption down there right now." She explained, "Too many kids are being abused by the police officers when they get incarcerated by them. They're a little too rough on them. These are our youth. They don't need to be treated that way. The cops are supposed to be here to protect and serve, not serve and kill. Not to serve and kill our youth but to protect and serve them. I will stand by my ground on that until I see something done." Fischer said that because of the lack of witnesses and insight of the incident that it is unclear as to why DeSersa had a gun and ammunition. He disclosed that the testimony that will be given by the 17-year old female who was shot will be the most important account they will have. However, because of the damage done by the gunshot she is unable to give a statement, he said. Because of the uncertainty of the actual causes and events that occurred, there is a lot of speculation and rumors about what happened, Fischer said. "If there's people out there who are witnesses, we'd like to interview them," Fischer said. "I hope nobody reacts to rumors. A lot of times, a large part of our job is dealing with rumors before they get out of hand. Hansen is currently seeking legal advice in her search for the truth about what happened to her son. "He has some uncles who are police officers in Washington. They're saying that something is really fishy about this. They want me to pursue it. I haven't yet. We're going to get down to it. I wanted to bury my son first. Then I'll deal with all of this," she said. DeSersa was laid to rest on July 25, at the Holy Rosary Mission Cemetery in Pine Ridge. His life was tragically ended, Hansen said the memories of his life, talent and humor give his family strength. "He had a big, big heart. He was always giving somebody hugs. I don't think it really hit me yet. I sit there and think he's going to be walking in that door any minute now," she said. Hansen recently relocated from Spearfish to Rapid City in search of a home for herself and her two sons. She said, "I was going to get a place up here in Rapid City with him and his brother. I wanted us all together." Hansen said that people from as far away as Washington, Colorado and Wyoming attended her son's funeral. "There was so much people there for him. He was well known. People cared." At the time of his death, DeSersa was living in Pine Ridge with his father. Hansen said that he was beginning to expand his artistic talents. He grew up on the Pine Ridge Reservation and graduated from the Job Corps in May 2000 with a certificate in Automotive technology. "I think he wanted to do something with his artistic abilities. He was really getting good at it too," she said. DeSersa is also survived by a sister, Brie Jumping Bull and his five- year old daughter Jaden. "He loved his little girl so much, Hansen said. "She has his eyes and she's pretty like him." His brother Derek, kept much of the artwork that he left behind. His mother also kept some of his drawings along with some of his sculptures. Hansen understandably released to comment any further on the death of her son, but said she will continue to search for answers about it. The families of the officers involved maintain that they are being threatened by what they said are "gang members, yet Hansen's family and her son's friends are also being threatened by police officers, she said. The shooting is still under investigation by the FBI and tribal police. Of all the mothers on the Pine Ridge Reservation, none is more frightened for her son's safety than Oletha Mousseaux. Her son, John Mousseau, was one of the officers directly involved in the shootout on July 19 in which DeSersa was killed by either him or another officer, David Whery. Because the shooting is still under investigation, Officer Mousseau was unable to comment on the events of that evening. His mother contacted Lakota Journal because her son had received death threats since that night from gang members. "Emotionally, he's doing okay," Mousseau said, "He was nearly shot by his ear and it kind of effected his hearing." She continued, "But, we are afraid of these gangs because we heard of different things they're supposed to do to us. We have to look over our shoulder. It's hard on us. They're saying revenge is in the air." See Volume 4 Issue 33 of the Lakota Journal for the rest of the story. Copyright c. 2003 Lakota Journal. --------- "RE: Osage Man falsely accused?" --------- Date: Tue, 12 Aug 2003 08:11:31 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="TESTIMONY RECANTED" http://www.owlstar.com/dailyheadlines.htm http://www.nativetimes.com/index.asp?action=displayarticle&article_id=2724 Osage man falsely accused? Victim recants testimony Sam Lewin 8/11/2003 A man who is days away from being sentenced on burglary and sexual abuse charges may have a new trial. The reason: the victim in the case now says she lied. 23-year-old Maurice Kent is a member of the Osage Tribe. Another Osage, Crystal Sweeden, accused him of a sexual assault in an incident that allegedly happened November 3, 2002. She took the stand during Kent's trial and a jury apparently believed her. "Kent was tried and convicted back in March of first-degree burglary and aggravated sexual abuse," said U.S. Attorney Danny Clem. A federal court tried the case because the supposed crime happened on Indian land, near Pawhuska. Problem is, Sweeden now says, Kent never attacked her. In a letter to officials involved in the case and obtained by the Native American Times, Sweeden says any sex was consensual, and she made up the story to get back at Kent. "I was entirely willing to let Mr. Kent go to jail, after all, I spent the previous two years getting abused and mistreated and believed that if nothing else he should go to prison for the hurt he caused to me and my children," Sweeden wrote. "...I suppose the underlying cause was that I found out Maurice had been cheating on me." Sweeden says she understands she now faces perjury charges, but says guilt made her come forward. Sweeden and Kent have a child together. "Mr. Clem, I assure I am terrified of what may be done to me for lying under oath. Yes, I have been advised by an attorney of what may come to me, and there was no mention of probation in my consultations. I can't live with myself or look into the eyes of my daughter to know that I have falsely imprisoned her father because I was angry...." Sweeden writes. Julia O'Connell is the public defender handling the case for Kent. Monday she filed a motion for a new trial, based on Sweeden's latest comments. "She says she did not tell the truth at the trial, showing she was raped, " O'Connell said. Kent's sentencing is still scheduled for this Thursday. He faces more than ten years in prison. "In this instance, the best you can do is have a hearing. She [Sweeden] has to tell the judge her story and the judge decides if it's reliable and if it matters," said O'Connell. Native American Times is Copyright c. 2003 Oklahoma Indian Times, Inc. --------- "RE: Southern Ute Tribal Member charged with Murder" --------- Date: Tue, 12 Aug 2003 08:11:31 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="MURDER CHARGES" http://www.indianz.com/News/ http://www.daily-times.com/artman/publish/article_1519.shtml Ignacio man charged in killing By Carol Cohea/The Daily Times Aug 12, 2003, 08:24 Romantic tryst ended in violence for Aztec woman DURANGO, Colo. - A 30-year-old Ignacio, Colo., man remained in custody Monday after being officially charged with the death of an Aztec-area woman in February 2001. Carlos Herrera, a member of the Southern Ute tribe, was arrested without incident Sunday in connection with the murder of Brenda Chavez, 40. According to officials with the Southern Ute tribe in Ignacio, Herrera surrendered at the Durango office of the FBI on Sunday. He was aware there was a federal warrant for his arrest, officials said. Herrera is charged with second-degree murder and faces up to life in federal prison. He made his initial appearance Monday before U.S. Magistrate James M. Robb in Durango and was advised of the charges. He is scheduled to have a preliminary hearing and detention hearing on Thursday at 1:30 p.m., in federal court. Until then he remains in La Plata County Jail on a federal hold. Chavez's partially decomposed body was found in her car May 9, 2001, by three children on four-wheelers, who had come upon her green 1995 Toyota 4-Runner. It was found down a steep embankment about 200 feet off County Road 321 about 1.5 miles outside of Ignacio. After an autopsy, the death was ruled a homicide from blunt force trauma to the head. She had last been seen Feb. 9, 2001, at her place of work at the Environmental Programs Department in Ignacio. She was reported missing by her husband Ruben Chavez on Feb. 10. At the time of her disappearance, missing person posters were distributed throughout the area by her family. Air and ground searches were conducted and a reward was offered for any information leading to her whereabouts. According to the arrest warrant, Herrera repeatedly struck and kicked Chavez. Information in the affidavit for the arrest warrant, drawn up by FBI agent Jane A. Quimby, states Hererra was originally interviewed in 2001. At that time, he acknowledged that a sexual relationship existed between he and Chavez and that she had become pregnant. Also at that time he failed to take responsibility for the pregnancy, according to information in the arrest warrant. Herrera also told investigators that the two would routinely meet in the area of the Southern Ute Sand and Gravel pit located near where her body was found. Two and a half years later, on Aug. 7, Herrera voluntarily appeared at the FBI office in Durango and gave investigators detailed information about the relationship. At the time of the interview he brought with him an unnamed mutual friend and spiritual leader/advisor. "As a result of this sexual relationship, an unwanted pregnancy presented itself to Herrera and Chavez which nearly destroyed both respective marriages," Quimby wrote. Herrera told investigators of a late afternoon rendezvous between he and Chavez at the gravel pit. "This meeting happened on Feb. 9, 2001, between 5:30 p.m., and 5:45 p.m. Herrera told investigators that his reason for meeting with Chavez was to break off the relationship permanently," Quimby wrote. "Herrera said while discussing the relationship with Chavez, a physical confrontation broke out between Herrera and Chavez. This physical confrontation led to Herrera admitting that he beat Chavez to death and disposed of her body and vehicle by running the vehicle off a steep embankment into pinon and juniper trees," Quimby wrote. She said the statements were consistent with physical evidence found at the crime scene and facts uncovered by investigators during the course of the investigation. According to a release from the Southern Ute tribe, the arrest of Herrera is the result of interviews and investigations jointly conducted by Southern Ute Tribal Criminal Investigator Hal Koenig and FBI Special Agent John Wallace. The case was investigated by the Durango Office of the FBI and the Southern Ute Police Department. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation provided forensic support. Carol Cohea: carolc@daily-times.com Copyright c. 2003 Farmington Daily Times, a Gannett Co., Inc. newspaper. --------- "RE: Native Prisoner" --------- Date: Mon, Aug 11 2003 19:18:40 -0700 From: Janet Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="NATIVE PRISONER" ===== Below are some NA brothers and sisters seeking pen pals. Many more can be found at... http://members.tripod.com/~foltz.k/napnlist.html Thanks to Kim Foltz for keeping this fire. -=[MEN]=- MICHAEL YELLOW Inmate Number 18863-008 Birth Date June 2 Mailing Address FCI - E-L P O Box 5300 Adelanto, CA 92301-5300 Nation/Tribe Dine Comments: I am ISO someone who is sincere, faithful, honest, intelligent, serious, loving, caring, understanding, outgoing, professional, academically inclined, ambitious, artistic, one-man woman, because I am a one-woman man. I am a non-smoker, non-drug user and non-alcoholic so I require the same standards in return. "Please no headgames" I am a member of Native American Church of North America (NACNA) and am a strong believer and practioner of my Dine traditional ways. I come from a long line of NAC roadmen and Dine spiritual elders so everything I practice was taught to me by family and relatives. I did not learn through literature or videos. I do not mind exchanging or enlighting one with my traditional/spiritual sacred ways of life. Any Indigenous nation member welcomed. Also kids okay. Age and race is open. [NOTE: NAPN requires visitors to the site to be 18 years or older] Do you have a good heart? Please send photos and phone number with first letter. I am a former bull rider and bareback rider and yes, I enjoy riding horses, do you? I also have various artistic talents ranging from drawing, painting, beadwork, and wood carving. Do you enjoy reading? Me, I enjoy reading very much so magazines and soft back novels are welcomed. Do you enjoy rodeos, PBR events, and pow wows? Are you a pow wow dancer? My release date is currently February 2006, but I could be out sooner if all goes well. ----- RICK ANTHONY Inmate Number 812277 Birth Date October 19, 1955 Mailing Address Lockhart Work Facility 1 C-101 P O Box 1170 Lockhart, TX 78644-*1170 Nation/Tribe Cherokee Comments: I have spent 11 years in the Army, and when I get parole I want to go back into small business. I am divorced, and a member of American Indian Religous Rights and Pan-American Indian Association. Interests: I like to go camping, fishing, hiking, and bike riding. I like to listen to Native American music. I enjoy dancing to country music. I am trying to learn to speak Cherokee. ----- ROBERT L. JARAMILLO Inmate Number 39278 Birth Date December 9, 1958 Mailing Address ASPC Eyman - SMU II P O Box 3400 Florence, AZ 85232 Nation/Tribe Navajo Comments: I am a 5'6" tall, medium complexion, 44 year old inmate, with long dark hair and big deepset brown eyes, presently confined in the Arizona State Prison's most secured unit, serving a 25 year to life sentence consecutive to a 10 to 35 year sentence. I have been in prison going on 24 years straight. I am looking for someone to exchange thoughts and laughter with through letters. I can be witty and funny, I like to laugh and joke and have a good time, but at the same time I like to be serious because I like to be taken serious and at my word. I believe there is a time and place to laugh and joke, and a time and place to be serious. I don't play games nor play with people's feelings cause I disklike very much for people to play games or play with my feelings. I like to meet new people and make new friends, and keep my old friends as well. I do not take friends for granted. Interests: I like to read and exercise on a daily basis, to read and write letters, and to read about Native American history - actually all history. I like to learn of all people's history and culture. I feel that in order to really know people, one needs to understand people and their culture. I also like to read and study the law, criminal as well as civil. ----- ADRIAN G. BLACK BEAR Inmate Number 38755 Birth Date August 18, 1977 Mailing Address South Dakota State Penitentiary Box 5911 Sioux Falls, SD 57117 Nation/Tribe Oglala Sioux (Wanblee, SD) Comments: Well, I ain't into too much stuff right now, but I like to write letters and try to draw. Interests: I listen to all types of music, like to go to pow wows when was on the other side of these walls, and enjoy reading Stephen King and Dean Koontz books. ----- Stuart L (Boyd) Crazy Bull ("Stu") Inmate Number 6952044 Birth Date Mailing Address Oregon State Penitentiary 2605 State Street Salem, OR 97310 Nation/Tribe Dakota Sioux Comments: I am a 35 year old enrolled member of the Fort Peck Dakota Sioux tribes of Poplar, MT. Interests: Spirituality; drums, sings and dances traditionally; creates traditional/cultural arts and crafts. I draw a little, enjoy walks, reading, beading, and writing/receiving letters ... Release Date 2012 -=[LADIES]=- PATRICIA "CRYING WIND" CARMAN Inmate Number 668446 Birth Date November 17, 1958 Mailing Address Gatesville Unit - Riverside [NOTE corrected address] 1401 State School Road Gatesville, Texas 76599 Nation/Tribe Crow/Cherokee Comments: I am a College Graduate with an AA in General Studies, AA in Psychology, Minor in Sociology, BS in Elementary Education, and currently enrolled in a BS Program in Business. I am a certified paralegal. I am single with one grown daughter. And I am an Elder here in the native community. Interests: I enjoy Basket making, beadwork, painting, and leatherwork. I am involved in prisoner and Native American rights. I enjoy reading true crime, religions and spiritual books. I love old rock n roll (60-70's), Country Music, and Traditional and Contemporary Native music. I am currently involved with the plight of the wrongly and unjustly convicted, of which I am one, and I hope to one day clear my name and help others like myself. ----- LORI WOODS Inmate Number W-80301 Birth Date August 18, 1960 Mailing Address Valley State Prison for Women B4-1-4L P O Box 92 Chowchilla, CA 93610-0092 Nation/Tribe Choctaw - Oklahoma Comments: I worked for the University of California, Davis, for over 10 years. I worked in a laboratory and love science. I am also a licensed Animal Health Technician. I am a first time offender who would love to have a loyal, honest, and sincere friend to correspond with. I have an A. S. and B. A. degree. Interests: I love to read, read Popular Science and Psychology Today magazines. I also love romance novels, especially historical ones in exotic places. I love animals and the outdoors. I especially love horses, cats, and dogs. I also love the sound of waterfalls and rivers. Nature is my escape and haven in this world. ----- AMY MUFFLEY Inmate Number DE 3937 Birth Date February 28, 1968 Mailing Address S C I Muncey P O Box 180 Muncy, PA 17756-0180 Nation/Tribe Seneca Comments: I am bi-sexual and follow the native religion. Interests: X-stitch, crocheting, camping, fishing, football, basketball, hacky sack, taking long walks on the beach or in the forest. --------- "RE: Rustywire: His name was David Red Elk" --------- Date: Tue, July 29, 2003 1:25 AM From: rustywire@yahoo.com (john rustywire) Subj: His name was David Red Elk she heard him say Newsgroup: alt.native Toe Jams thought about the wonders of home the high mountains of the North Country way up high beyond Yellowknife and the other place windy streets, asphalt and noisy cars what was it called John Marshall that place where words become like iron made from scraps of paper honed on the edge of truth and in old yellow pages thoughts of old men, with twisted whiskers and knowing eyes Toe Jams stood far from his world way up north Tonight he stood in the Rocky Mountains the Uintahs having driven a day and a night to sing the old songs letting the cares of the world slip away for juat a bit hitting the high notes and learning new songs how they can sing those boys from White River and Rock Boy banging their drums and pounding out their hearts singing as one just a pow wow some say but no more than that He came to sing and found that words of iron and scrap paper were not all there was in the world of men that the sway of buckskin and a gleem in the eye of girl from a place called Anadarko with glistening black hair with a laugh that he would hear all the days of his life she was just over there standing with her mother he met her two hours ago and the dancing was soon to be over she would be gone by morning headed back to the Red Earth people He looked her way and she was seeing him gazing at her she waved him over and he counted each step wondering what to say her mother was standing there, a Southern Cheyenne mother in buckskin He thought of the days gone by when he would have come across the plains with stolen horses, a hand braided bridle and with a bustle of eagle feathes taken from the bird by hand in way of the old ones he walked up there alone He thought how would it be to have known her for a few more hours His drum stick was spinning and he had to hurry his drum group was packing driving all the way back home and he walked slowly up to them counting his steps and in the light of pow wow grounds late that night said good bye to this woman "Dust in Her Hair" Her mother looked at him as he said, Hello, I am Toe Jams She laughed to hear it and smiled at him and said tell me your name He looked at her and said, I am David, David Red Elk my mother comes from Yellow Knife, I am Dene but stay in the Windy City she said said help us carry these folding chairs to our campsite he picked them easily and she quizzed him about his father He told her he didn't know him he left them when they he was small and your mother she said, she is at home she works as a seamstess She told him she spent some time there years ago in Chicago, the Windy City Relocation took many of us there, my man was an iron worker Oh he said, my father was also one he said, worked high steel she took a long look at him and something twinkled in her eyes your mother would her name be Winifred, from Yelloknife, Winifred Bugler He stopped in his tracks and looked at thiw woman and remembered a picture it sat up high on the wall from the time he was a child, he would see it everyday he saw it and saw this picture come to life, she was here He said I have seen your picture, you were standing with my mother years ago it was at Haskell outside one of the dorms it is all faded the woman stopped and embraced him and said I have found her my friend my old dear friend, you are her child. She stood there and held him and then she sat him down and told him the story of how he came to be. --------- "RE: Poem: Inipi" --------- Date: Sat, 31 Jun 2003 04:15:13 -0000 From: "Thomas(White Bird)Coy" Subj: Inipi Mailing List: N A Poetry Gathering of souls traveling back to the womb of mother her ribs of willow bowed covered by the animal peoples hides that they have gifted us along with their lives and meat to eat and we thank them we thank all the people four legged winged ones tree people rock all these people mothers womb is warmed with the stones from the fire sweet smell of cedar and sage stir the senses with a magical aroma offerings to Creator and the spirits of the ancestors songs and singing chanting prayers of thankfulness each human being giving of themselves suffering the heat to be with their God. wabipenache --------- "RE: Verse: Hawaiian Book of Days" --------- Date: Sunday, August 10, 2003 12:29 am From: Debbie Sanders Subj: Hawaiian Book of Days A HAWAI`I BOOK OF DAYS, week of August 18-24 AUKAKE (August) (Mahoe-mua) 18 Arise with joy to greet the day! 19 Accept what cannot be easily explained. 20 Sculpting molten lava is an act of devotion only a few artists can perform. 21 Nature can provide healing for many ills. 22 Deep forest of the ancient days -- sustain my spirit. 23 There are many diverse traditions in this land. 24 My dreams are shaped in the ever-changing clouds. (c) Copyright 1991 by D. F. Sanders Me ke aloha i ka nani, ... Moe'uhanekeanuenue (With love and beauty, ... Rainbow Dream) --------- "RE: Tlingit-oriented Classes give Students a Boost" --------- Date: Tue, 12 Aug 2003 08:11:31 -0700 From: Gary Smith Subj: NA News Item - - - - - - -- - - - - - - filename="TLINGIT ORIENTED CLASSES" http://www.adn.com/alaska/story/3653040p-3683829c.html Tlingit-oriented classes give students a boost SCHOOL: Emphasis on Native language, culture helps improve kids' performance. The Associated Press August 12, 2003 JUNEAU - Tlingit-oriented classrooms at a Juneau elementary school are being hailed as a success. Students enrolled in the Harborview Elementary School program generally perform as well as other students in the district and do better than Native students on average, a recent study shows. "This whole emphasis on literacy is paying off," Annie Calkins, a former district administrator who has studied the program, told the Juneau School Board last week. Eunice James-Lee's son Hunter, 9, has been enrolled in the Tlingit program for three years. "For the chance for our kids to succeed in school, to see them thrive, to see them develop, to grow in confidence -- I wanted that for my children -- and to know who they are, where they're from," she said. The Tlingit classrooms have operated for three years, emphasizing English and Tlingit language instruction and incorporating Native culture such as potlatches. Besides the classroom teachers, the program employs a cultural specialist and elders, according to the Juneau Empire. Native students suffer from low self-esteem, teacher Shgen George told the School Board; they tend to talk less often and more quietly. But children in the Tlingit classrooms are proud to be Tlingit, she said. "I think that's the lowest, deepest root of this program," George said. The program was funded in its first two years by a federal grant to the Sealaska Heritage Foundation. The program is funded now by the school district. The classrooms are housed at Harborview downtown but are open to students throughout Juneau. About three-quarters of the participating students have been Native. In the past school year, four out of 10 students qualified for free or reduced-price lunches. As in school districts across the nation, a smaller percentage of Juneau students from low-income families or racial minorities perform well on standardized tests and other measures of academic success than other students. Nonetheless, in many of the Tlingit program's grade levels in its three years of existence, a larger percentage