tobacco seed bank and education program

joseph c winter (jwinter@unm.edu)
Thu, 3 Oct 1996 15:31:58 -0600 (MDT)

Hello everyone, it's time for another reminder about the traditional
tobacco seeds and leaves available from our program at the University of
New Mexico. Sorry for cross-posting, but it's important that the message
get out to the most people, since we have discovered that there is a
tremendous need in the native community for traditional tobacco. The use
of commercial tobacco by native youth is skyrocketing, and one of the
reasons, we believe, is because sacred traditional tobacco is becoming
harder and harder to find, so commercial tobacco is being used in its
place for ceremonies and prayers. This legitimizes the use of commercial
tobacco, and gives a bad message to the kids. Therefore, our program:

1. provides traditional tobacco seeds to any Native American requesting
them, so they can grow their own for personal traditional uses

2. provides small bags of traditional tobacco to individuals, pow wows,
prison inmates, ceremonies, tribal meetings, and other people and events
in need of it for prayers and ceremonies. This part of our program is
growing by leaps and bounds, thanks to people like Gary Night Owl Smith
who distribute our small traditional tobacco bags and our brochures at pow
wows. We will also be supplying 1500 bags to the Gathering of Nations Pow
Wow here in Albuquerque, in the spring. Also, the prison part of the
program is becoming especially important, since native men and women in
prison often do not have access to traditional tobacco for sweats and
prayers, and some institutions are tobacco-free. Therefore, we are
supplying many prisons across the country with traditional tobacco,
through the chaplains, spiritual advisors, and support groups, for the
native inmates.

3. And last but not least, we put on tobacco health education programs for
the youth, and give talks, lectures, and papers concerning the negative
health effects of commercial tobacco use and the positive cultural values
of traditional tobacco.

So, if you would like to obtain traditional seeds, of the type used by
your native group or a nearby one, or otherwise want to use our services,
contact Joseph Winter or Lawrence Shorty at the following address, email,
and phone number. Thanks for all the interest and support!!!

P.S. If you have any ideas concerning other people who might need
traditional tobacco, please let us know. For example, we are wondering if
native AIDS patients and people in hospitals and hospices might have a
need for it???

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Joseph C. Winter Phone: 505-277-5853
Director, Traditional Native American Tobacco FAX: 505-277-6726
Seed Bank and Education Program email:jwinter@unm.edu
University of New Mexico
1717 Lomas Blvd NE
Albuquerque, NM 87131 USA
http://www.treaty7.org/friends/tnat/tnat.htm

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