Articles appearing have been previously posted for public dissemination
and/or permission for inclusion has been secured.
Letters of authorization are on file. A list of those granting permission
to repost their words in this issue are listed at the end of part A.
I thank each of you for allowing your words to be shared with the people.
<----<<<< >>>>---->
This newsletter is a way of keeping the brothers and sisters who share our
Spirit informed about current events within the lives of those who walk the
Red Road.
It is archived at the Native American FTP site ftp.cit.cornell.edu
in the directory /pub/special/NativeProfs/newsletters; and is being
sent to gst@gnosys.svle.ma.us to include in the NATIVE-L lists.(part A)
It is echoed on AISESnet, IND-NET, and EIRP listservers and archived
by AISESnet.
Thanks to Marc Becker, mbecker@uclink2.berkeley.edu, issues of Wotanging
Ikche/Kanoheda Aniyvwiya are now being archived at a World-Wide-Web site.
The URL is http://ukanaix.cc.ukans.edu/~marc/journals/nanews/
This is a test site, and at some point in the future the location of these
files will change.
Thanks to Phil Duran, duranp@wsuvm1.csc.wsu.edu, issues are now being
archived at the Washington State University gopher in the following
directory:
gopher.wsu.edu /WSU Campuses Info /Public Services /Native Peoples
"My paw is Sacred, the herbs are everywhere.
My paw is Sacred, all things are Sacred."
__ Song of the Lakota Bear Doctors
+- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+
| Indian Pledge of Allegiance | The Indian Pledge of Alleg-
| | iance was first presented
| I pledge allegiance to my Tribe,| on 2 December '93 during the
| to the democratic principles | opening address of the Nat-
| of the Republic | ional Congress of American
| and to the individual freedoms | Indian Tribal-States Relat-
| borrowed from the Iroquois and | ions Panel in Reno, NV. NCAI
| Choctaw Confederacies, | plans distribution of the
| as incorporated in the United | Indian Pledge to all Indian
| States Constitution, | Nations.
| so that my forefathers |
| shall not have died in vain | Walk in Beauty! Night Owl
+- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -+
O'siyo Brothers and Sisters!
This issue contains several very urgent appeals from Brothers and
Sisters under attack in all directions. This issue tells of the tall
standing ones about to be destroyed for the greed of a few.
I have been told the Four Sacred Winds will blow again, the calendar
will roll up and Mother Earth will cleanse Herself. I believe this.
I have been told the Sacred Hoop must be mended and all The People
must be brought into The Great Circle. I believe this.
I speak now to those who take but do not give, look but do not see the
truth, speak but do not listen. You cannot mend any circle if the circle
you bring into it is broken.
Peace! Night Owl
, , Gary Night Owl gars@genie.geis.com
(*,*) P. O. Box 672168 gars@netcom.com
(`-') Marietta, GA 30067, U.S.A. gars@igc.apc.org
===w=w=== NativeNet Node 90:133/2501 FidoNet 1:133/2501
----------- News of the people featured in this issue ----------
Part A: Usenet and e-mail Part B: NATCHAT and NATIVE-L lists
- Tell The People!!!! - Conferences and Powwows - online
- Mexico: URGENT APPEAL TO THE WORLD - Urgent:Sacred Lands/Mount Shasta
- Rose Auger, Prophecies and Music - Alert: SE Alaska Rainforests
- Sovereignty in Quebec - If You Want to Know
- Bear Butte Land Trust - California Tongva Chief Passes On
- BIA Water Resources and Surveyor - Navajo-Hopi Update
Training Programs
- Poem: Coyote Morning
- Verse: Hawai'ian Book of Days
- Conferences and Powwows - offline
--------- "RE: Tell The People!!!! " ---------
Date: Sat, 11 Feb 1995 16:15:52 -0500 (EST)
From: nipc@gwuvm.gwu.edu (Ann Parsons)
- From: Bob Zenhausern <DRZ@SJUVM.STJOHNS.EDU>
- From: Goodwin@univscvm.csd.scarolina.edu (Chuck Goodwin)
Subj: Tell The People!!!!
UUCP email
Dear Night Owl,
Please forgive the two screens of headers on this msg, but I repost this
because it comes, *not* from any Native American net or source but from
a notable doctor of education in New York City. He wouldn't post
something which he felt was in accurate, or I don't think so. Anyway,
here is the message. Do not let our relations suffer in silence!!!!!
Mitaquye Oyasin,
Ann P.
Date: Sat, 11 Feb 1995 14:45:03 -0500 (EST)
From: Bob Zenhausern <DRZ@SJUVM.STJOHNS.EDU>
Subject: Forwarded Message Re: Mexican Massacre
Comments: Resent-From: Bob Zenhausern <DRZ@sjuvm.stjohns.edu>
Comments: Originally-From: Rollin Denniston <denni011@GOLD.TC.UMN.EDU>
I forwarded this to president@whitehouse.gov and asked if anything was
going on here that he should consider in our dealing with Mexico
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>From: Goodwin@univscvm.csd.scarolina.edu (Chuck Goodwin)
>Subject: Massacre in Chiapas
>We've just received an emergency call from friends in Mexico. They tell us
>that the Mexican army has surrounded the city of San Cristobal in Chiapas,
>and that the hospital in the nearby city of Comitan is flooded with
>casualties. The press is being excluded from the area. The people being
>attacked are the Mayan Indians, and other poor farmers, who've been denied
>land and food since the conquest.
>
>They've asked that we try to get word about this out via email. While we
>have no further information beyond this one call I ask you to pass this
>message on, or tell anyone you think relevant via any means so that this
>does not occur in silence.
>
>============================
>Chuck Goodwin
>Anthropology
>University of South Carolina
>Columbia SC 29208
> (803) 356-6006
> (803) 777-0259 (fax)
--------- "RE: Mexico: URGENT APPEAL TO THE WORLD" ---------
Date: Sun, 12 Feb 95 08:44 EST
From: usi@infi.net ("Mexicanos Exiliados pro-Democracia")
Subj: Mexico: URGENT APPEAL TO THE WORLD
Newsgroup: soc.culture.native
February 11, 1995
To the peoples and governments of the world,
To the United Nations Organization,
To the Organization of American States,
To the International Red Cross,
To the world's nongovernmental organizations,
To the media:
Once again the Mexican Government is showing its disregard for both the
Mexican Constitution and the Geneva Conventions for Armed Conflicts.
Ernesto Zedillo, de facto President of Mexico, has issued Federal arrest
warrants against six individuals accused of leading the EZLN (or Ejercito
Zapatista de Liberacion Nacional). By ordering the Federal Army to
execute those warrants WITHOUT PRIOR CONGRESSIONAL DECLARATION OF A
STATE OF EMERGENCY, he violates the Mexican Constitution. In addition,
Mr. Zedillo's order disregards the Geneva Conventions for Armed Conflict,
for the soldiers of a Belligerent Army are treated as though they were
common criminals. Moreover, his order disregards the sovereignty of the
State of Chiapas, inasmuch as it gives Federal jurisdiction to alleged
criminal activities that would otherwise fall within the jurisdiction of
the said state, had the crimes been committed by civilians.
While Mr. Zedillo based his use of the Federal Army on article 89 of the
Mexican Constitution, he was oblivious of the same Constitution (articles
13; 16; 21; 29; 49; 73, fractions XIV and XXX; and 129) which imposes
strict limitations and conditions for the use of the military,
SPECIFICALLY DEMANDING CONGRESSIONAL APPROVAL, PARTICULARLY IF THE ARMY
IS SENT AGAINST CIVILIANS; and, according to Mr. Zedillo the soldiers of
the EZLN are civilians.
The illegal Executive Order will no doubt reignite the Civil War in
Chiapas and has the potential to spread the conflict to the entire
Mexican territory, and beyond. Mexican Exiles for Democracy urges all
law-abiding citizens of the world, as well as their governments and the
international organizations to sever all ties between them and the de
facto government of Mexico.
We urge, in addition, an immediate embargo on weapons and military
paraphernalia to Mexico, the garnishment of any and all Mexican assets in
your territories, the expulsion of Mexican ambassadors, consuls and other
diplomatic personnel from your countries and organizations; we also urge
you to call urgent sessions of the UNO Security Council and the OAS in
order to demand an explanation from the Mexican government; finally, we
urge you to hear the demands of the EZLN.
The International Red Cross must be alerted to be prepared for a prolonged
and bloody Civil War in Mexico, since the spurious government has shown,
beyond any reasonable doubt, its lack of intent for peace with justice
and dignity.
We urge our fellow non-governmental organizations to send observers to
the War Zones in Chiapas, as well as to those that might develop
elsewhere in Mexico.
We ask the peoples of the world to boycott Mexican products and to lobby
your respective governments to protect your countries' interests by not
intervening in Mexico and to abide by the principles of non-intervention
and peoples' self-determination.
"For a Free and Democratic Mexico"
Luis Melgoza,
for the International Executive Committee.
--
Mexican Exiles for Democracy <usi@infi.net>
Surface Mail: 386 J S MILITARY HWY, NORFOLK VA 23502 USA
Telephone: (804)461-3119 Fax: (804)459-2350
--------- "RE: Rose Auger, Prophecies and Music" ---------
Date: Sat, 11 Feb 1995 10:19:11 -0500
From: aj096@freenet.carleton.ca (Michael Patterson)
Subj: Prophecies and Music
UUCP email
Hi Gary
Aboriginal VOICES just published our Winter issue. I had written a
story on an elder, which got chopped considerably by the editor. I wonder
if you would be interested in running it as is:
Re prophecies and music
Rose Auger is a medicine woman of the Woodland Cree people from
Driftpile reserve, near Faust Alberta. We talked about music, although
there is no word for music in Native languages. The drum, rattle and flute,
the songs, are all used for sacred and other purposes, they are all part
of something larger than just music.
"People say the Indian way of life is gone after 500 years, but look
at me. I'm here."
Her music and her ceremonies are used to bring spirits and help the
people. The social system today and the lifestyles of people, particularly
in the cities, is putting their spirits and bodies in danger. The 9 to 5
lifestyle for money, the culture of the TV, the inner city life that
leaves so many people lost, are all killing people. Rose works to help
people see the reality of the red road.
"Sometimes I wonder how it can work, with the way we have our
lifestyles, they way we eat, the way we abuse our body in all that we do.
You know, a lot of people are so tired from a day's work that they'll go
home and then they'll try to relax with alcohol or whatever. More abuse !
And then finally they fall asleep in the wee hours, then get up and take
off again. That's a very abusive life. And then they wonder why they have
all this turmoil in their life, and disease in their body, it's just chaos.
"I see this, and try my very best to bring it out to people, to say
'stop doing that, there is a better way.' You know we were here thousands
of years, and we know a better way. We have the values of our ancestors,
which are in our genes, which are here. Stop using this harmful drink,
this harmful drugs, and values. Your values are not good, it's driving you
crazy."
Governments and society are in a state of denial in regards to the
sickness that has fallen on mother earth. As a result, purification
foreseen by the Cree in the West has begun. "The purification already has
happened. If you pay attention, look at the world and the natural
disasters, that's part of purification. Your earthquakes, your floods like
the great ones down Florida way and Texas - that's all part of it. The
purification means many lives lost and many, many people totally wiped out.
You have your air disasters, your wars, your fanatics who wipe out people.
"A lot of people think that purification is the end of the world. I
don't think that's the way it is. It just a way that's going to change
things: The money markets are going to collapse, money is going to have
less and less value, and people are going to have to learn how to survive
and go back to the old ways and the land, to relearn their natural
traditions in order to become whole.
"When the holy people were putting out their teachings of prophecy,
they told us: 'Go back to the land. Learn how to find your water. Old
knowledge. Learn how, so that when purification happens you will be
prepared for it.' I've done that, I've led people back to the land to
prepare for that purification, but they're just too weak, too weak. They
gotta have town, town..."
Rose tries to show people how to live with the land and the spirits
on the land. Not everybody is ready to learn. Some time ago at Timbers (a
sacred site in Alberta), she went out to help people prepare for the
purification by teaching them about the land there.
"The first year they put in the garden they didn't get much out of it
because the gophers got it all, you see ? (laughs) So that's as far as
they went, they didn't learn how they had to do it. They could have put up
offerings and fixed it so that those ones would not do that, you see,
because you're working with the spirits.
"And that's the way it went. And that's the way it goes today. People
are willing to grasp at our value system, our knowledge, our wisdom. But
they can only go so far. When it means changing your lifestyle or doing
things differently - that's a very difficult move to make. And then there
are some young people are so super eager about saying 'oh yes yes I'm
gonna give up my job and go back to the land and be like you were, before
white man came.
"And I say 'yes that is super, that is wonderful, but let me tell you
my dear friend, you must have support in what you do. You can't do it
alone.' And you must also know how to relate to mother earth and all the
beings, whether it's trees or medicine or water. You have to make that
connection. And don't jump into it. Your body cannot take it. Your mind is
too unbalanced. Your mind will get the worst of you. So you have to do it
in a way that makes the transition wise.
"Continue to have some place where you have this (your life today)
and then, work at it over there. Because when you get over there and you
want to live the right way, you have to know that it's not just for today,
but fifty years from now. You will build that place for the generations
coming, they they will have a place. To have the natural water, and to
have the medicines.
"I built a round house, and the beavers kept making dams because that
was their area and we came and invaded it. And so they kept making their
dams and our land was flooding and we couldn't keep our horses and our
cattle there because their hoofs would suffer, it was too damp. So finally
I had to do a ceremony and ask the beaver to pity us, and go somewhere
else. And they did. They moved, you see... that is the teaching of our
ancient ancestors, that we have a way of living in harmony with the beings.
"The thing was, some of the people who were there building, said
'Well go get us some dynamite and we'll dynamite the beaver dam and houses
and that's how we'll get rid of them.' And I said 'No, no, you don't need
to do that, that's destructive, to disturb all the plant life, all the
waters."
Some people are now waking up, says Rose. "People are just now
saying: 'What happened here ?' (speaking of the crisis in the world today).
And then when we come in and tell them, they may accept it or they might
try to find other ways of looking at it. But most times people just will
not make those changes that they need to make in order to know a better
way of life.
"That better way of life was here for thousands of years. Those days,
those times, there were no prisons or hospitals. We always lived in
harmony and our people who were medicine people, or people of visions,
people of dreams, they played all those parts to keep the nations alive
and in harmony.
Rose plays her part through her music, her ceremonies, and travels.
This things are done to reach people. She has 126 spirits, and she carries
a yuipi ceremony, given to her by a Sioux medicine man who had carried it
for 42 years. "He came to my land, and passed it to me and one of my
brothers.
"I have my own sacred songs and they're addressed to different
spirit people, and different things. Most of them came to me and the
others, that were passed to me, came when the ceremony was passed to me.
That's how it works. The music and the ceremony are all one. If you
profess to know a ceremony and you don't have the music, then it's not a
ceremony."
She doesn't use a drum, she uses a rattle. "Me, I have turtle rattles,
and I've had a turtle rattle since I can remember. Someone coming up here
will say 'how come there's turtle rattles here, there's no turtles here...
' you know, but the spirits are universal. We knew the turtle and we had
the turtle in our ceremonies... it's a real ancient spirit. The same as
you see shells, we use shells... all these things are everywhere. How it
came about is... back there somewhere. I'm just a baby, I don't know."
She says that people have been travelling a long, long time. "Turtle
rattles, they have them in the West and in the East. I've had different
rattles given me like the small ones, I like the small ones, the ones that
I work with. I also have a big one, which was given to me by the Onondaga
(firekeepers of the Iroquois Confederacy). A grandmother brought me there
and I did some doctoring and they gave me this rattle and they gave me
tobacco and they gave me a lot of sacred stuff. It's because of love of
our ceremonies.
"Spirits are so holy, that's why we have rattles. That's why we have
a ceremony. We put all these sacred objects there for them to use. To
touch us, that's how holy they are. That's why we have what we have, you
know - the pipe, the rattles, the sage, all these sacred things.
"We put them there for them (the spirits) to come, and to cleanse us,
heal us - all that we need. And we always ask for everything, in our
ceremonies. We ask for forgiveness for the mistakes we made, anything that
we may have inflicted on somebody that caused them pain, or maybe put them
off course on their path.
"What mistakes we make, we have to ask for forgiveness and ask, you
know, to learn. Show me, teach me, have no pity on me - how else am I
going to learn ? In my early years I made a lot of mistakes. I kept
worrying: 'I can't do this, I'm not holy enough, I wont be able to do this
- I've just done too many things that are not good.' And the holy man who
passed the lodge to me kept saying 'it's not your choice, the spirits
chose you, you have to do it, you have no choice.
"Most people have their own free destiny, they can choose. I'm not
one of them. This is what I was told, and so, regardless of how I may try
to run away and ignore what comes through, it'll keep coming until I
respond. And in the beginning I used to really put myself through a lot of
pain because I was ignoring the spirit. But I finally learned to realize
that there's no other way to go that will leave me this great sense of
well being.
"In my life, I've gone through so much, so many places, met so many
people. So I'm always prepared to hear what people say, what people think,
and I want that. I honour it as much when somebody's upset as when
somebody's happy. I just honour what's happening with them, and sometimes
it's painful, especially when it's from our own people. Those kind of
things are painful.
"But I know a way to free myself from that pain. I just take a smudge
and smoke my little pipe, then I'm back on track. Because to work in a
holy way you always have to be holy, in order for the spirit to work
through you."
A constant healing process is needed for a healthy life. Her helper
Celeste Strikeswithagun equates that with learning kindness: "There are
people who say: 'Oh I'll do that, I'll do anything (to get the
spirituality).' But they don't know what it takes. It takes your whole
life to learn about kindness, about being happy."
Rose says that "once you're on it (the road) you just flow with your
life. And the part that most people find difficult is the part to give. To
give of their time, of theirselves, to give without expectations. When you
give you give from your heart. And you know that the creator sees you and
watches you, and the creator's going to give you what you need. And you a
lot of the time don't even know what that is. But you just know that you
do this and it will be given to you.
"Someone who is always giving away things, he just walks free. He
doesn't accumulate a bunch of stuff that weighs him down. They're just
free. They're just so free in life. That's how our people were. They just
roamed this world, everywhere. Because they never got weighed down by the
materialistic world. They just had survival, what that was about - and the
most important part is the spirituality, being able to get from here to
there anytime.
"I have a car, which was given to me. When I get in my car, I light
my smudge, I offer my tobacco for protection from anything harmful. Also
for help so I can get where I'm going soon. In that process the police
might cross my path, but he's busy with someone else or he fell asleep at
that moment I went by there, breaking the speed limit.
"When we're in that power, it's just so awesome. Myself, I don't want
to be there alone so I work really hard to teach my children, my
grandchildren, and all the people who wish to come and learn. Learn and be
free to pursue that lifestyle. In this world, it's all connected. We don't
separate ourselves from anything. We venture into life with this kind of
support and help from our ways.
"Learning to be in harmony, especially with the water... you have to
be in harmony and connected with all these things because should it be
that some kind of disaster happens, then you're going to have that
knowledge, and the spirit people helping you. It's not going to work to
just go and be there on the land, and not be connected."
She has had many good times, teaching the people and bringing the
spirit to give guidance. Her way of life and her songs are shared by many
people. She describes an experience at Waterhen Reserve in Alberta:
"It was so beautiful... we had just put our pipes up and we were
fasting, and it was in September, the leaves were just beautiful and the
water was incredible. And so here we were, we were coming down from the
fast, and the women had brought the food, we were going to have a feast
right on the shore of that lake.
"And a whole school of loons were there because that's where they
lived, these loons. And so they started coming, and they were just talking
and telling each other what we were about, what we were doing. And they
were very pleased, because the loon man was there, that's my son Dale, he
has this gift of the loon call. So he started to call, and they just came
right to the shore, and they were just going in and talking back and we
were all in awe of what these loons were doing before our eyes. This
wasn't just loons, this was sacred beings and we were in their territory.
"And my son has the loon song, and then the people sang the loon song
and we were in unity with these loons. That was so profound for me, I had
never seen that before. That unity, that these beings, these loons, knew
who we were. And we had a vague idea what they were about. We know they
are very sacred, they are the medicine people of the waters, of the land.
We knew that, but there was much more than that between us.
"Most people will never really get to know the extent of what
everything is about. But everyone can learn things. You learn to be
grateful when you have that opportunity to be passed these songs, these
rituals and ceremonies - being able to work with these beings. It's a
great gift. Even just one spirit."
--
Michael Patterson spirit voice radio 93.1 FM 3-137
Columbus Ave. Aboriginal VOICES magazine
Ottawa Ontario Canada K1K 1P9 aj096@freenet.carleton.ca fax and
phone (613) 748 1636 algonguin territory
--------- "RE: Sovereignty in Quebec" ---------
Date: 95/02/11 18:44
From: Suzan Horovitch (a.horovitch.genie.geis.com)
Subj: Sovereignty in Quebec
GE Electronic Mail
From Suzan Horovitch
St. Jean Baptiste, Quebec
Feb. 12, 1994
The Quebec government in moving towards a referendum to decide
whether the province is to stay within Canada or go its separate
way, has begun a series of sovereignty hearings. The express
purpose of these hearing is to hear from the people the form of
government/society they would want after separation... however, one
in five briefs presented have had a federalist platform.
At one hearing, in Lanaudiere, Francoise Barthe, a resident of
St. Calixte ( 35 km. northeast of Montreal) suggested that an army
was necessary if Quebec was to protect its territory from "foreign
aggressors " and suggested such a force might be needed to maintain
Quebec's territorial integrity, and to maintain peace with the
aboriginals.
Deputy Premier Bernard Laundry was on hand to respond. " Don't
exaggerate their importance. We have to be realistic and respect
our aboriginal people but they represent less than 1 percent of the
population and are divided into 14 tribes. We can resolve whatever
difference we have with them by negotiation. We will be an
exemplary nation." He rejected outright the notion that Quebec
needs an army to maintain peace with the natives.
In other news, the two nations that the Parti Quebecois was
negotiating with to settle land claims, the Innu and Atimakek have
rejected the most the recent offer. They say that the land that
the Quebec government is willing to give them self government on is
too small and much more territory would be required. They would
also, under this agreement, fall under the government of Quebec
rather than Canada, and this they are not willing to agree to at
this time.
Brave Star
--------- "RE: Bear Butte Land Trust" ---------
Date: 95/02/11 21:19
From: James D. Audlin (j.audlin@genie.geis.com)
Subj: Bear Butte Land Trust
GE Electronic Mail
The following is from a letter from Tek Nickerson (Muskogee/Creek),
Chairperson and National Director of the Sacred Hoop of America Resource
Exchange (SHARE) Bear Butte Lodge Board of Directors. Other members of
the Board include Arlene Nickerson, William Giese, Elvin (Silver Bear)
Lockwood, David Swallow Jr., and Anita Whipple. The Bear Butte Lodge
Council of Elders includes Irvin Red Fox, Charles Little Old Man, Austin
Two Moons, and David Swallow Jr. Appendant to the following letter are a
number of documents outlining the history of this matter and SHARE's
involvement. --Distant Eagle
========================================================================
I hope you are excited about the chance to rescue a pivotal 40-acre
property at one of North America's most important Native sites, Bear Bute,
in Sturgis, South Dakota.
For the Sioux, Cheyenne, Mandan, Arikara, and other Native Americans of
the northern plains, Bear Bute has been a sacred vision quest site for
over four thousand years. This land has been stolen, desecrated, and
misused for generations. We now have a unique opportunity to turn the
tide, buy a motorcycle camp (HOG Camp), and return the land to public use
as a sacred site. This 40-acre camp will be the impetus for the formation
of the Bear Butte Land Trust, a joint activity of tribal governments and
non-profit [organizations], with the mission [being to] secure private
and state-owned land at Bear Butte and returning this entire area to
public use for spiritual and cultural activities.
For the Native people across the country, the return of Bear Butte to
sacred use would likely be the single most important event in Native
American history since the massacre at Wounded Knee, just 103 years ago.
Time is of the essence! We must raise the $35,000 down payment for the
40-acre camp before February 28, and the full $350,000 by September 1,
1995. We are certain that the down payment will provide the momentum
needed to generate broad-based public support nationwide. We need your
help to make this vision come true!
The theater in which this drama is unfolding is in the Black Hills... To
the Lakota/Sioux, the Black Hills are sacred and therefore are not for
sale. The Great Sioux Nation refuses to claim the funds voted by Congress
to compensate for the taking of these hills under broken treaties. Two
sites are particularly sacred for Native people:
> Harney Peak, where the Lakota Holy Man, Black Elk, received his vision
and today park attendants charge Indians to enter and pray, and
> Bear Butte, where the Cheyenne prophet Sweet Medicine received his
instructions, not unlike Moses on Mt. Sinai.
Bear Butte, in Sturgis, S.D., rises majestically from the grassy plains -
a mountain butte in the shape of a sleeping bear. For Native Americans
all across the country, Bear Butte continues to serve as a very popular
magnet for traditional worship.
Since the arrival of the U.S. Cavalry and gold miners 126 years ago, this
sacred land was stolen in defiance of the U.S. Supreme Court and sold for
private ranches, a state park, and a motorcycle campground. Tourists
litter the sacred vision quest grounds and trails with beer cans.
Traditional Native people continue to come to fast and vision quest in
record numbers, and to pray for a way to return the land to sacred use.
[Because of] the erosion of their land, culture, identity, and self-
esteem, Native Americans have the highest percentage of drug and alcohol
use (85%), the highest incidence of fetal alcohol effect (70%), the
highest suicide rate among youth, and the shortest life expectancy (43
years).
In response, a small but important step forward was made in August 1990
when the founders of SHARE (Sacred Hoop of America Resource Exchange)
personally bought a 40-acre ranch with a lodge at the base of Bear Butte
and turned its exclusive use over to SHARE. An advisory Council [see list
above] of Native spiritual leaders who frequent Bear Butte was formed to
act as the heart and mind to set policy and programs at the ranch.
Meanwhile, SHARE raises the funds to support the Council's programs and
the facilities.
The Council, as grandparents, requested a safe place where they could
bring their grandchildren to restore their cultural pride, identity, and
self-esteem. This will help protect the next generation from drug and
alcohol abuse as they move into their teens.
With the generosity of SHARE supporters, a culturally based youth camp
site was created by the Council in June 1991 that i both regional and
intertribal, unique yet replicable. SHARE provides school groups with
free use of tipis, cook pits, and sanitary facilities at the majestic
base of Bear Butte. The schools provide bus loads of kids, bedrolls, food,
spiritual leaders with their own agenda and staff. While the campsite
primarily serves Sioux, Arapaho, Arikara, and Cheyenne youth-at-risk
between 8 and 13 years old, it also hosts cross-cultural exchanges of
non-Indian youth groups from as far away as New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and
California.
Bear Butte itself annually attracts thousands of poor "pilgrims" from the
urban cores of Portland OR, Minneapolis MN, Denver CO, Oklahoma City OK,
NYC, and Canada, as well as the dozens of reservations on the northern
and southern plains. They come for vision quest and to restore their
spiritual, mental, and emotional balance. Bear Butte is a powerful oasis
in a land otherwise hostile to its host culture.
Every August the town of Sturgis hosts the Annual Sturgis Motorcycle
rally. The Rally creates an instant city of 250,000 bikers, compared to
the population of 102,000 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota's largest city. It
is estimated that one third of the bikers belong to gangs that deal in
illegal drugs, while the balance are weekend "wannabes" from all
vocations. Most of the bikers have come for a rowdy vacation and camp in
tents. The state police report that the drug trafficking, prostitution,
violence, arrests, and injuries, and fatalities are expected occurrences
of any "city" of this size. To the casual observer, the Rally is a very
noisy, two-week beer party blowout for 250,000 bikers, 80,000 of whom are
hardened drug traffickers. People still talk of the time, not long ago,
when the portajohns were dynamited by a biker drug gang to prevent police
spies from having an excuse to come into their camp. Think of it as the
national annual drug traffickers' convention and shopping mall.
In 1986, Bernie Micheel founded the HOG Camp (HOG = Harley Owners' Group)
at his 40-acre ranch at the base of bear Butte to serve bikers at the
Rally. The HOG Camp is adjacent to SHARE's cultural camp; we can hear
their sound system blasting away, while fasters are on the Butte trying
to concentrate! The cultural camp must close for two weeks during this
disruption. Every year Bernie has made substantial improvements to bring
his camp into compliance with state [regulations as a year-round camp,
complete with 42 RV hookups, 10 cabins, cooking facilities for large
numbers, showers and portajohns for 500 biker-campers on 10 acres. During
the 50th anniversary, there were as many as 1600 campers at any one time.
If SHARE fails to meet the february 28th down payment, the offer of sale
defaults to the N.Y. chapter of the Harley Owners' Group, which proposes
to develop the HOG Camp more intensely, perhaps much more intensely, as
will be demonstrated.
The largest biker camp is Buffalo Chips (400 acres), which is noted for
its flowing beer and big name entertainment to an audience of 20,000.
Women may not enter the portajohns without first baring their breasts.
his camp is reputedly so dangerous that the state police avoid entering
for fear of their lives. The camp owner, Rod Woodruff, recently lost his
liquor license, and offered $100,000 and half the beer sales to HOG Camp
owner, Bernie Micheel, in return for bringing Buffalo Chips over to HOG
Camp at Bear Butte. Micheel turned him down, but do you think the N.Y.
HOGs will decline as new owners, if SHARE fails to purchase?
I believe the future of Bear Butte, as we know it, is at stake here, and
we are each being tested about our commitment to Native culture as
epitomized by traditions that have been practiced at Bear Butte for over
4,000 years. It is time to stand up and make a difference.
SHARE is working to raise the down payment of $35,000 to secure the
purchase. Our Board donated $3,000 to kick off the capital campaign, and
we are proceeding at full speed. We have initiated talks with the tribal
councils of two reservations, and plan to extend these talks to all
northern plains tribal councils.
However, we have not raised much more money since January 16 and I am
concerned. We must create momentum immediately to carry us to our goal!
If we can make the down payment on February 28th, we will have bought six
months to pull all the parties together, raise the balance, and establish
the Bear Butte Land Trust in time for the closing on September 1st.
We really need all the help we can get! Perhaps there are key people or
foundations you know who would find this opportunity worth their serious
consideration. Will you help us beat the deadline and put this together?
I can be reached at 1-800-WARMTH-9 all day and all night and will send
copies of the grant request to those willing to consider making
significant contributions.
Warmest wishes,
/s/ Tek Nickerson, National Director, SHARE, Inc.
--------- "RE: BIA Water Resources and Surveyor Training Programs" ---------
Date: Thu, 9 Feb 1995 16:09:08 -0800
From: "James Phillip King" <JPKING@cage.nmsu.edu>
Subj: BIA Water Resources and Surveyor Training Programs
Mailing List: TRIBALLAW (triballaw@thecity.sfsu.edu)
My name is Phil King and I am a professor at New Mexico State
University. I'd like to get the word out about a training program
that the BIA is putting on to educate Native Americans about the
technical, legal, and cultural aspects of water resource management.
The training has several unique points
that have made it extremely effective in developing on-Reservation
expertise:
1. The BIA pays all training and travel expenses. In addition, they
provide funding to the successful participant's home Tribe to employ
the individual for one year. First they get trained, then they get
that crucial first job.
2. The federal agencies most involved in water resources and
surveying participate in the training. Students learn the ins and
outs of the government's role, and they develop an excellent network
of expert contacts all over the country.
3. Graduates of the programs are working in water quality, flow
measurement, water resources engineering, water law, hydrographic
survey, and cadastral survey all over the country, including Alaska.
You can't argue with success. Graduates become part of this growing
family of Native American natural resources experts.
Participants must have a high school diploma or GED, be on the rolls
of a federally recognized Tribe, and have a letter of endorsement
from their Tribe. The application form is the SF171, which is
available from any federal office.
This program is the brainchild of the BIA's Mo Baloch, who you can
contact at (202) 208-6042. I'm handling the applications, so please
contact me at jpking@nmsu.edu or (505) 646-5377 for further details
or if you have any questions. If you are active on any other
relevant discussion groups, please post this there. I'd like to get
the word out, but our mailings to the Tribes don't always make it to
the individuals who would like to apply. Thank you.
--------- "RE: Poem: Coyote Morning" ---------
Date: Mon, 11 Jul 94 03:45:59 GMT
From: turtle@aicap.s21.com (Turtle Heart)
Subj: Coyote Morning
Newsgroup: alt.native
Old men
and old coyote dogs
boil their dreams in the sun
served steaming within a bowl
filled with shadows
rolling sticks onto the ground
and making wild songs
while they smack their lips
and spit out the dust
blown in by the winds
nameless
and place-less
but hard to ignore
Tobacco Indian
Turtle Heart turtle@soft21.s21.com (Ahnishinabeg)
American Indian Computer Art Project BBS 619-374-2100
Land of Kaw-ii-su ancestor: Land of Light
Land of Kaw-ii-su ancestor: Land of Light
--------- "RE: Verse: Hawai'ian Book of Days" ---------
Date: 95/02/11 16:25
From: Kepola (dfsanders@genie.geis.com)
Subj: A HAWAI'IAN BOOK OF DAYS, week of February 19-25
GE Electronic Mail
A HAWAI'IAN BOOK OF DAYS, week of February 19-25
PEPELUALI
(February)
(Kau-lua)
19
I am a keiki o ka aina, a true child of the land!
20
My hope lies in the future; my strength lies in the past; my survival
lies in the joining of the two.
21
Look into the eyes of a stranger, ... and find a friend.
22
Trust in the lessons of our heritage.
23
A dream is a wild bird upon the wind!
24
See the world through the eyes of a child.
25
Love is a gift that grows only with the giving.
(c) Copyright 1991 by D. F. Sanders
Me ke aloha i ka nani, ... Moe'uhanekeanuenue
(With love and beauty, ... Rainbow Dream)
--------- "RE: Conferences and Powwows - offline" ---------
Date: Thu, 16 February 95 08:00 -0500
From: Janet Smith (Evening Star) (jans@genie.geis.com)
Subj: Upcoming conferences and powwows not previously posted
to Mailing Lists NATCHAT or NATIVE-L
GE Electronic Mail
=POWWOWS=
From: EIRP News <EIRPnews@COOPEXT.CAHE.WSU.EDU>
Subject: Fish and Wildlife Conference Announcement
=========================================================================
The Southwest Region Native American Fish & Wildlife Society 11th Annual
Conference will be on March 12-16, 1995 to be held at the John Ascuaga's
Nugget Hotel in Reno/Sparks, Nevada. This conference is hosted by the
Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe and their Fisheries Department.
For More Information Call:
Albert John: (702)476-0500
John Antonio:(505)766-3334
Registration Cost: $75.00 (includes Banquet & Tour of Pyramid Lake)
The Agenda is pretty long so, just have people call Albert John for an
Agenda. <wrwater@coopext.cahe.wsu.edu>
=======================================================================
This information provided courtesy of the Extension Indian Reservation
Telecommunication Project and EIRPnews:
pablob@coopext.cahe.wsu.edu
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
=======================================================================
Sender: root@newsbf02.news.aol.com
SENECA NATION OF INDIANS
"SOVEREIGNTY WALK FOR PEACE"
The SENECA NATION OF INDIANS would like to extend an open door to all
tribes and those concerned with the sovereignty of the Seneca Nation being
jeopardized in New York State Supreme Court. This action could ultimately
affect all tribes across the United States. We pray this does not happen.
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 1995 8:00 AM
WILLIAM SENECA BUILDING
ROUTE 438
IRVING, NY 14081
716-532-4900
The above information was sent to me by mail and is the Seneca Nation's
call to other Indian Nations to help them in a power struggle within the
Nation. A group of people within the Seneca Nation are opposed to the
newly elected president and have taken their case to the New York State
Court. The New York State Court Judge Doyle ruled in favor of the group
and as a result has caused a turmoil within the nation. New York State
does not have any jurisdiction over the Seneca Nation of Indians. The
Seneca Nation President Dennis Bowen has met with representatives from the
federal Department of the Interior to enlist their help. He blames the
power struggle and political turmoil on Casino gambling. The Seneca
Nation and its people voted in a referendum last year to not have casino
gambling. The group opposed to Mr. Bowen are in favor of casino gambling.
I know this is short notice to the walk for peace however letters in
support of the Seneca Nation can be sent to the above address.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: amt@teleport.com
Newsgroups: soc.culture.native
Subject: Dine Nation Weaving Collective Rug Show Tour!
The Weaving Project, Women in Resistance is a collective established in
1986 to directly support the Dineh women's resistance to forced relocation
and genocide. The Dine Nation was self-sufficient before the US federal
government intruded upon its sovereignty. For the Navajo (Dine in the
Navajo language), land is at the center of life and religion. The Big
Mountain rugs are not commercially woven rugs. They are traditional forms
of spiritual art, still woven with song and prayer. Each rug pattern is
created by the individual, and has its own meaning to the weaver. It may
tell a story or symbolize a revered part of Mother Earth. The designs of
this area reflect the colors and patterns of the naturally dyed wool,
taking from one to three months to complete. Weaving techniques and
traditions are handed down through the women from generation to
generation.
This tour will directly support Women in Resistance.
A tentative schedule of the Resisting Relocation Speaking Tour and Weaving
Project Rug show follows: If you live in Port Townsend or Santa Cruz and
would like to help this tour, WE NEED YOU. We need an individual or group
contact to help find a hall and set up show. (Please pass this
information on to a local Native American student unions). If you live on
the tour route, please come out and see the beautiful rugs of the Weaving
Project and hear speaker Louise Benally on the Big Mountain Sovereign Dine
Nation.
Bellingham, WA Thursday March 30
Seattle, WA Friday March 31
Olympia, WA Saturday April 1
Portland, OR Sunday April 2
Break Mon 4/3 - Tues 4/4
Eugene, OR Wednesday April 5
Ashland, OR Thursday April 6
Arcata, CA Friday April 7
Garberville,CA Saturday April 8
Ukiah, CA Sunday April 9
Break Mon 4/10 - Tues 4/11
San Francisco Wednesday April 12
Thursday, Friday, Saturday OPEN for
Berkeley, CA
Santa Cruz, CA
Please contact Project PEACE, 503.246.5445 or amt@teleport.com if you can
help out in Berkeley or Santa Cruz. We would also appreciate help of any
kind for the duration of the tour; ie donations for lodging, gas, food,
for the Elders and crew!
Information and donations for Big Mountain Sovereign Dine Nation and
environmental work projects (Spring Gathering at Camp Anna Mae) can be
made to: Louise Benally, P.O.Box 1042, Hotevilla, AR 86030
Donations to the Women in Resistance Weaving Collective can be made
directly to Weaving Resource Center, P.O. Box 865, Kykotsmovi, Arizona
86039, 602.527.2757
For All Our Relations,
Project PEACE
=========================================================================
From: EIRP News <EIRPnews@coopext.cahe.wsu.edu>
Subject: Boulder-Denver News
From: Wes Wildcat <wildcat@niwot.scd.ucar.EDU>
INDIAN COUNTRY TOURISM 2000 Conference
Wednesday-Friday March 15-17,1995 at the Holiday Inn Denver Downtown.
Conference is sponsored by the Western Indian Chamber.
21st ANNUAL DENVER MARCH POW WOW
Friday-Sunday, March 17-19,1995, Denver Coliseum. A groundblessing will
be held on Thursday March 16th and special contests, no admission charge
on Thurs.
ELDERS ARE BEING SOUGHT FOR A CONFERENCE FOR FALL 1995
AISES is presently planning a conference in its Traditional Knowledge
series, to center on tribal migration and creation stories. Elders who
know stories of strangers, occurring in their own traditions will be asked
to come to a small conference in the Fall of 1995. This conference will
concentrate on traditions that can shed light on how long Indian nations
have been in North America. Call the AISES office at 303-939-0023 and
leave names, phone numbers, addresses of elders for Vine Deloria Jr. to
contact.
NATIVE AMERICAN AWARENESS WEEK
Monday-Saturday, April 3-8, 1995 at the University of Colorado-Boulder.
Speakers, forums, films, entertainment and a pow wow are some of the events
planned.
=========================================================================
This information provided courtesy of the Extension Indian Reservation
Telecommunication Project and EIRPnews:
pablob@coopext.cahe.wsu.edu
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
=========================================================================
From: EIRP News <EIRPnews@coopext.cahe.wsu.edu>
Subject: Elders' Gathering: Peterborough, ON. Canada
Original Sender: drheault@trentu.ca
TWELFTH ANNUAL ELDERS' AND TRADITIONAL PEOPLES' GATHERING
"FAMILY GROWTH THROUGH OUR ELDERS"
FEBRUARY 17, 18 & 19, 1995
TRENT UNIVERSITY, PETERBOROUGH, ONTARIO, CANADA
Boozhoo!
It is again our great honour to present this year's Elders' Gathering.
There will be 17 Elders this year, each presenting a lecture and/or
workshop on different Native issues:
_Avis Archambault_ is a Native American; Lakota/Gros Ventre from Ft.
Belknap, Montana. This Elder is a Traditional Treatment Practitioner and
she pioneered the "Talking Circle".
_Ernie Benedict_ is from the Akwesasne Mohawk Nation. He is a much sought
after speaker on culture and tradition.
_Marie Campbell_ was born on a trapline in Northern Saskatchewan. She is
the author of _Halfbreed_ and deals with race relations, community
development and creative writing.
_James Carpenter_ is a member of the Attawapiskat First Nations (James Bay
Cree). For the last 20 years he has been involved in working with youth,
being an advisor and teacher of traditions, and organizing festivals and
ceremonies.
_Barbara Clifton (Alaist)_ is the Hereditary Chief of the Ganada Clan (Frog
Clan) in Gitwangak, B.C.
_Dave Couchrene (White Sun Man)_ of the Eagle Clan is a spiritual leader of
the Anishnabe Nation.
_Raphael Fireman_ lives in the bush country of James Bay. He will speak to
us about the medicinal properties of plants and survival in the bush.
_David Gehue_ is a wise man, a medicine man, a healer. From Nova Scotia,
he speaks of the traditional way of life and healing.
_John Hookimaw_ is respected as a spiritual leader and mediator. He is a
member of the Attawapiskat First Nation.
_Edna Manitowabi_ is an Odawa-Ojibwe from Wikwemikong, Manitoulin Island,
and is the Head Woman of the Eastern Doorway of the Three Fires Midewiwin
Lodge.
_Janice Longboat_ is of the Turtle Clan from Six Nations and is a member of
the Cayuga Nation. She is experienced in the use of herbal medicines.
_Sylvia Maracle_ is a member of the Wolf Clan, Mohawk Six nations
Confederacy and a member of the Tyendinega First Nation. She is active in
education development affecting Aboriginal peoples in Ontario.
_Sara Smith_ is Mohawk of the Turtle Clan and has the great gift of her
Nation's Oral Teachings.
_Chief Jake Thomas_ is an Hereditary Chief of his Clan amongst the Iroquois
Nation. He is a carver, translator and consultant on Iroquois language.
He recently published _Teachings from the Longhouse_.
_Michael Thrasher_ is a Metis from Alberta. He has a great background in
the Medicine Wheel, and has worked with orphans and prisoners as well as
drug and alcohol consultation.
_Rachael Uyarasuk_ comes to us from the NWT. This is only the second time
that she has come south in her life.
_Shirley Williams_ is a member of the Bird Clan of the Ojibwe and Odawa
First nations. She has lectured across Canada promoting language and
culture and is now asst. prof. at Trent University.
Workshop registrations will start each day at 8:30 am, with the opening
ceremonies at 11:30 am Friday, Feb. 17.
Registration can be done upon arrival at the University.
weekend daily
adult $50 $30
students/seniors $35 $20
Children $25 $10
Socials are included in Weekend Workshop rates. Otherwise the socials are
$5 each. On Friday night we will have Tom Jackson (North of 60) performing
at the Memorial Centre. $10 at the door.
Cheques and money orders payable to:
(Make cheques out to TRENT UNIVERSITY)
Dept. of Native Studies
Trent University
Otonabee College
Peterborough, Ontario
K9J 7B8
Canada
attn: Kathy Fife
For further information please contact
Kfife@TrentU.ca
or call (705) 748-1443
I hope that many of you will be able to take the time out to visit us. We
are now the largest Traditional Gathering in North America with 2000-5000
people coming for this occasion
Miigwech,
D'Arcy Rheault
============================================================================
This information provided courtesy of the Extension Indian Reservation
Telecommunication Project and EIRPnews:
pablob@coopext.cahe.wsu.edu
==========================================================================
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--
Notice of Copyright Clearance by Contributors:
The following have granted permission for their original articles to
be reposted in order to help mend the Sacred Hoop:
Kepola, James Phillip King, Ann Parsons, Bob Zenhausern, Chuck Goodwin,
Michael Patterson, Turtle Heart(mending the Sacred Hoop with Song Poems),
Suzan Horovitch, Janet Smith, Tek Nickerson via James D. Audlin,
Mexican Exiles for Democracy(Urgent Appeal), Ana Holub(Urgent Alert),
LightHawk(Urgent Alert), Lance Foster, Charles Phillip Whitedog,
Navajo Nation(jn)
--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--//--
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~ all items below this line have already been distributed by our
brother, Jay Brummett, via the NATIVE-L or NATCHAT mailing lists.