aol.com!isanyati writes:
> I would just like to point out a few things 1. if Ward Churchill is
> Cherokee/Creek then why is it that neither Nation has any record of him?
> I am from the Creek Nation and have a copy of their letter stating that he
> is neither enrolled with the Creek Nation and is not on the headrights
> either. The Cherokee have said the same. If he is Native American it would
> be very simply for him to clear things up and make quite a few of us look
> like fools at the same time by just stating who his people are.
You never use your name, on your posts, so I cannot use your name, either.
But, still, I will post this to native-l, as I have a strong opinion on
what you just stated.
>From all that I know, Ward Churchill HAS STATED WHO HIS PEOPLE ARE!
Neither Nation would have any record of him, if he is not enrolled.
Leonard Peltier himself, is not enrolled. One does not have to be
enrolled, to be an American Indian. Which shoots your point full of holes.
I am Tsalagi. I know I am Tsalagi, my family knows that they and I are
Tsalagi, and my friends know I am Tsalagi. I am not an enrolled member,
and am not a "card-carrier". (That is my choice. I am not saying there
is anything wrong with BEING enrolled. Neither is there anything wrong
with NOT being enrolled.)
I don't feel that I have to prove to YOU who I am, or what Nation I
belong to. I know who I am, and that is all that counts. Ward Churchill
doesn't have to prove ANYTHING to you. He has made his choices, and
those are his business, not ours.
What has happened to the respect that we should be treating one another
with? What about your own dignity? And, I would like to ask, who are
you fighting. Because we are not the enemy.
In Peace-
Freedom Spirit Rising
Non-Enrolled Tsalagi Woman
[ For whatever it's worth, I'd just like to point out that "isanyati"
seems to be agreeing in her article that tribal enrollment is not
the only standard by which such things should be judged, since she
does indicate that one solution to the problem she poses would be
for Ward Churchill to "state who his people are." When Freedom says
"I know I am Tsalagi, my family knows that they and I are Tsalagi,
and my friends know I am Tsalagi," she seems to be appealing to the
same kind of standard as is "isanyati." In order to prove someone
is who s/he claims to be, s/he can simply refer to others within the
community who know her/him or to whom s/he is related. So I don't
see the disagreement here. --Gary ]