CRAZY
COYOTE'S HIDES
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SMOKE SIGNAL NEWS Manataka - Preserving The Past Today For Tomorrow
NOVEMBER Issue Page 1 of 3 Pages
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Manataka American Indian
Council Volume XIII Issue 11
NOVEMBER 2009
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SMOKE SIGNAL NEWS Manataka - Preserving The Past Today For Tomorrow
NOVEMBER Issue Page 1 of 3 Pages
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Contents:
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Contents of Page 1 |
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| Special Recognition: | American Indian Heritage Month | |
| Elders Meditation: | Dr. A.C. Ross (Ehanamani), Lakota | |
| Editorial: | Sweat Lodge Deaths - Greed and Ignorance | |
| Upcoming Events: | ||
| Feature Story 1: | ||
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Feature Story 2: |
The Shores Within - Chapter 7 - Creating | |
| Ecological Notes: |
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Grandfather King Coke Speaks: |
Using Meditation to Control Emotions - Part II | |
| Mother Earth Watch: | Shedding Light on Sunscreens | |
| Tribal News: | A | Senate approves apology to Natives |
| Education: | Teaching About American Indians | |
| Inspiration Thoughts: | You can tell more about a person | |
| Website Updates: | 22 New Stories In October | |
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Contents of Page 2 |
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| Legends of Old: | Fish Dog Skins | |
| Feature Story 3: | 11th Annual Native American Music Awards | |
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Letters to the Editor: |
Keep the Faith Manataka | |
| Organic Consumers: | Vanishing of the Bees | |
| Elder's Meditations: | Rolling Thunder, Cherokee | |
| Plant Medicine: | Stressed to be Sick | |
| Fluoride: | Mercury Fillings Shattered! Conspiracy to Poison Children | |
| Animal Rights and Wrongs: | A |
Rambo the Sheep: My Greatest Teacher |
| Sacred Sites: | Goodbye Indian Mounds, Hello Sam’s Club | |
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Contents of Page 3 |
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| History: | Do you know American’s original people? | |
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Grandmother L. Cota Nupah Makah Speaks: Grandmother Magdala Rameriz: |
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Feature Story 4:: |
Native Against Native Racism | |
| Elder's Meditations: | Mary Leitka, Hoh | |
| Women's Circle: | For Those Who Were Indian In A Former Life | |
| Food & Nutrition: |
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| Book Reviews: |
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| Poetry Circle: |
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| Healing Prayer Basket: | Prayer Is A Two-Way Communication | |
| Manataka Business: | Elder Council Members and Committees | |
American Indian Heritage Month
November
is National American Indian Heritage Month.
The Creation of American Indian Heritage Month
By Dr. Arthur C. Parker
What started at the turn of the century as an effort to gain a day of recognition for the significant contributions the first Americans made to the establishment and growth of the U.S., has resulted in a whole month being designated for that purpose.
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Dr. Arthur C. Parker |
Early Proponents: One of the very proponents of an American Indian Day was Dr. Arthur C. Parker, a Seneca Indian, who was the director of the Museum of Arts and Science in Rochester, N.Y. He persuaded the Boy Scouts of America to set aside a day for the "First Americans" and for three years they adopted such a day. In 1915, the annual Congress of the American Indian Association meeting in Lawrence, Kans., formally approved a plan concerning American Indian Day.
It directed its president, Rev. Sherman Coolidge, an Arapahoe, to call upon the country to observe such a day. Coolidge issued a proclamation on Sept. 28, 1915, which declared the second Saturday of each May as an American Indian Day and contained the first formal appeal for recognition of Indians as citizens.
The year before this proclamation was issued, Red Fox James, a Blackfoot Indian, rode horseback from state to state seeking approval for a day to honor Indians. On December 14, 1915, he presented the endorsements of 24 state governments at the White House. There is no record, however, of such a national day being proclaimed.
State Celebrations: The first American Indian Day in a state was declared on the second Saturday in May 1916 by the governor of N.Y. Several states celebrate the fourth Friday in September. In Illinois, for example, legislators enacted such a day in 1919. Presently, several states have designated Columbus Day as Native American Day, but it continues to be a day we observe without any recognition as a national legal holiday.
Heritage Months: In
1990 President George H. W. Bush approved a joint resolution designating
November 1990 "National American Indian Heritage Month." Similar proclamations
have been issued each year since 1994.The theme for 2005 is: "Respecting
Tradition, Embracing a Healthy Future"
http://www.ihs.gov/PublicInfo/PublicAffairs/Director/2005_Statements/2005-Heritage-Month-Speech.pdf
Source: U.S. Dept. of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs (From http://www.ihs.gov/)
"When temptation comes, I don't say, 'Yes, and I don't say, 'No.' I say, 'Later.' I just keep walking the Red Road - down the middle. When you're in the middle, you don't go to either extreme. You allow both sides to exist." -Dr. A.C. Ross (Ehanamani), Lakota
We need to practice controlling our focus. Whatever we focus on we become. We also become whatever we practice. We need to focus on balance. Whenever something comes along to tilt us off balance, we need to be grateful, because it allows the opportunity to practice our focus. Sometimes this is called temptation. Temptation in itself is not bad. What really counts is what we do with it when it happens. We need to practice controlling our focus and keeping and thinking focused on the Red Road.
Great Spirit,
today, guide me through my temptations
and allow me to focus on the
Red Road.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Gatherings, Meetings, Conventions, Seminars
Reflections of the Manataka in Australia Spiritual Gathering
.. Sept 26 – 28th Sept, 2009
by Lynn Dream Dancer Guy
E-lo-hi-no do-hi-yi ge-se-s-ti [peace on earth] beautiful folk who make up my/our sacred Manataka family all across Mother Earth .. it’s now a month since we had our first ever Manataka Gathering in Australia and I’m not sure where to begin to share with you about the wealth of our experiences and how this event unfolded.
I would like to thank the Creator and Rainbow Woman for blessing us and allowing us to hold this Gathering and for watching over us and guiding us along the Visioning how it may look and unfold.
I would also like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to Grandfather Lee Standing Bear Moore and all the Elders of Manataka for their permission and support for us to hold this event – the first time that a Manataka event has been held outside Turtle Island .. it was an honour, a joy and one huge learning/growing experience. I would also like to thank Amanda Morning Star Moore who accompanied her father, Standing Bear, to Australia to lead and assist us with our first Gathering. She is truly one of the most delightful and heart-centered folk I have ever met and worked with…. Like her father she gave of herself tirelessly to our Aussie Manataka family. And I must not forget to thank Becky Flaming Owl Moore who graciously allowed us to hug her family close to our hearts whilst she kept things going back home in Hot Springs! To all in the Manataka Women’s Drumming Circle who joined us along the energy lines in prayer song and drum over the Gathering .. we felt you, we heard you and we thank you too for your light and your love as we grew through our individual and collective experiences.
Perhaps my story should start at the beginning so let us try that .. since I was a little child rainbows have delighted and captivated me. They have uplifted my spirits and taught me how to be in my heart, how to see through the eyes of a child even in to my mid 50’s where I sit now on the sacred wheel of life...
Editorial Comment
by Takatoka and Friends
Sweat Lodge Deaths Attributed to Greed and Ignorance
What Happened
You may have already
heard about the
tragic October 8 deaths of three people at a so-called "sweat lodge" at the
Angle Valley Spiritual Retreat Center near Sedona, Arizona operated by the
self-improvement guru
James Arthur Ray.
According to news reports, about 60 people were crowded into a makeshift 415-square-foot sweat lodge, as part of a "Spiritual Warrior" retreat. Participants paid $9,695 each for a series of exercises, seminars and American Indian ceremonies. Ray has been selling American Indian ceremonies for at least seven years, according to the owner of Angel Valley Spiritual Retreat who annually rent their property to him, “tee pees” included.
Another similar incident occurred in mid-October 2005 when several people became violently ill during one of Ray's retreats. People suffered from burns and others were found lying on the ground unconscious and two others suffered cardiac arrest. The owner the retreat and participants in the October tragedy said they were not aware of the 2005 incident and James Ray is not talking -- some brave warrior he is.
The local law enforcement agency probing the deaths of three people, says it is now treating the case as a homicide investigation. Yavapai County Sheriff Steve Waugh said his office is focusing the inquiry on James Arthur Ray and anyone else involved in organizing the ceremony. Ray immediately fled the scene and left the state and is refusing to speak with detectives -- that really says a lot about his character.
Kirby Anne Brown, 38, of Westtown, N.Y., James Scott Shore, 40, of Milwaukee, and Minnesota resident Lizabeth Neuman, 49, died and at least twenty people were treated for illness and injury at the hands of a greedy, ego-maniac who misappropriated American Indian ceremonies. Funerals are being arranged while Ray continues ranking in money on his speaking circuit.
American Indians are Appalled by Commercialization of Spiritual Ceremonies
Chief Arvol Looking Horse, 19th Generation Keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe Bundle, said in a lengthy statement, "As Keeper of our Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe Bundle, I am concerned for the [three] deaths and illnesses of the many people that participated in a sweat lodge in Sedona, Arizona that brought our sacred rite under fire in the news. I would like to clarify that this lodge and many others, are not our ceremonial way of life, because of the way they are being conducted. My prayers go out for their families and loved ones for their loss... What has happened in the news with the make shift sauna called the sweat lodge is not our ceremonial way of life!..."
2009 Summer Gathering - Thank you!
 BRAND NEW! |
FLY IT HIGH! |
WANNA BE A MEMBER OF MANATAKA?
TODAY IS A GOOD DAY TO JOIN!
REAL
STORY OF THANKSGIVING
by Susan Bates
Most of us associate the holiday with happy Pilgrims and Indians sitting down to a big feast. And that did happen - once.
The story began in 1614 when a band of English explorers sailed home to England with a ship full of Patuxet Indians bound for slavery. They left behind smallpox which virtually wiped out those who had escaped. By the time the Pilgrims arrived in Massachusetts Bay they found only one living Patuxet Indian, a man named Squanto who had survived slavery in England and knew their language. He taught them to grow corn and to fish, and negotiated a peace treaty between the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag Nation. At the end of their first year, the Pilgrims held a great feast honoring Squanto and the Wampanoags.
But as word spread in England about the paradise to be found in the new world, religious zealots called Puritans began arriving by the boat load. Finding no fences around the land, they considered it to be in the public domain. Joined by other British settlers, they seized land, capturing strong young Natives for slaves and killing the rest. But the Pequot Nation had not agreed to the peace treaty Squanto had negotiated and they fought back. The Pequot War was one of the bloodiest Indian wars ever fought.
In 1637 near present day Groton, Connecticut, over 700 men, women and children of the Pequot Tribe had gathered for their annual Green Corn Festival which is our Thanksgiving celebration. In the predawn hours the sleeping Indians were surrounded by English and Dutch mercenaries who ordered them to come outside. Those who came out were shot or clubbed to death while the terrified women and children who huddled inside the longhouse were burned alive. The next day the governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony declared "A Day Of Thanksgiving" because 700 unarmed men, women and children had been murdered.
Cheered by their "victory", the brave colonists and their Indian allies attacked village after village. Women and children over 14 were sold into slavery while the rest were murdered. Boats loaded with a many as 500 slaves regularly left the ports of New England. Bounties were paid for Indian scalps to encourage as many deaths as possible. READ MORE>>>
THANKSGIVING STORY FOR TEACHERS
By Chuck Larsen
This is a particularly difficult introduction to write. I
have been a public schools teacher for twelve years, and I am also a historian
and have written several books on American and Native American history. I also
just happen to be Quebeque French, Metis, Ojibwa, and Iroquois. Because my
Indian ancestors were on both sides of the struggle between the Puritans and the
New England Indians and I am well versed in my cultural heritage and history
both as an Anishnabeg (Algokin) and Hodenosione (Iroquois), it was felt that I
could bring a unique insight to the project.
For an Indian, who is also a school teacher, Thanksgiving was never an easy
holiday for me to deal with in class. I sometimes have felt like I learned too
much about "the Pilgrims and the Indians." Every year I have been faced with the
professional and moral dilemma of just how to be honest and informative with my
children at Thanksgiving without passing on historical distortions, and racial
and cultural stereotypes.
The problem is that part of what you and I learned in our own childhood about
the "Pilgrims" and "Squanto" and the "First Thanksgiving" is a mixture of both
history and myth. But the THEME of Thanksgiving has truth and integrity far
above and beyond what we and our forbearers have made of it. Thanksgiving is a
bigger concept than just the story of the founding of the Plymouth Plantation.
READ MORE>>>
THE PLYMOUTH THANKSGIVING STORY
By Chuck Larsen
When
the Pilgrims crossed the Atlantic Ocean in 1620, they landed on the rocky shores
of a territory that was inhabited by the Wampanoag (Wam pa NO ag) Indians. The
Wampanoags were part of the Algonkian-speaking peoples, a large group that was
part of the Woodland Culture area. These Indians lived in villages along the
coast of what is now Massachusetts and Rhode Island. They lived in round- roofed
houses called wigwams. These were made of poles covered with flat sheets of elm
or birch bark. Wigwams differ in construction from tipis that were used by
Indians of the Great Plains.
The Wampanoags moved several times during each year in order to get food. In the
spring they would fish in the rivers for salmon and herring. In the planting
season they moved to the forest to hunt deer and other animals. After the end of
the hunting season people moved inland where there was greater protection from
the weather. From December to April they lived on food that they stored during
the earlier months.
READ MORE>>>
WINNER BEST DOCUMENTARY 2008 Big Water Film Festival
Sacred Ceremonies for a Price?
by Takatoka, Manataka Correspondent
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Grandfather Watches Over Us |
We believe American Indian spiritual beliefs and practice cannot be bartered or sold at any price.
It costs nothing to enter the Sacred Circle because it does not belong to anyone, it is a gift of the Creator. There is no admission fee to a Purification Lodge because the messages, visions and teachings of the lodge are not owned by a human, but come directly from the Great Mystery. There is no monetary price to pay for the honor of going on a Vision Quest because the Spirit of God is there. When money and greed are present, the Spirit of the Creator is absent and thus there cannot be a Vision. The spiritual connection has been broken.
Several years ago, this Manataka member wrote in the article False Shamans
"...Our ceremonies, dances, songs and symbols are sacred. They must be protected from theft, exploitation and desecration. We should encourage all people to seek their own ways of spiritual expression, the ways of their ancestors, and not to use American Indian ways to find spirituality within themselves..."
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The Shores Within By Boe Glasschild & Laughing Dog Red Feather
Free Online Lessons on the Medicine Way Eight lessons plus a glossary, bibliographic notes and more.
The Medicine Way has been exclusively an oral tradition for centuries. Now, Choctaw Spiritual Elder Boe Many Knives Glasschild, Bvshpo Lawa, puts these teachings in writing for all to read and understand. This is the fifth installment of ten monthly installments of the book entitled, "The Shores Within" covering the entire book from April to December 2009. Each chapter contains links to a glossary of definitions to various Medicine Way terminology.
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USDA to stop collecting data on pesticide use
Dirty Coal Lobbyists Caught in Forgery Scandal
As
the debate over energy and climate change moves to the Senate, corporate
agribusiness lobbyists see an opportunity to remove biofuels safeguards.
The Waxman-Markey bill that passed the House in June removed protections from a
federal biofuels mandate, allowing the use of biofuels that create more global
warming pollution than gasoline. Last week we asked you to take
action and tell your Senators that this is unacceptable, and so far we've sent
almost 6,000 letters. If you haven't yet taken action,
please do so now.
The National Agricultural Statistics Service, a division of the U.S. Department
of Agriculture (USDA), has announced that it will stop collecting data about the
amount of pesticide applied to various crops. The program has been the public's
only source of reliable data on pesticide and fertilizer use for much of the
United States. These data showed that pesticide use in engineered corn,
soybeans, and cotton was higher than in conventional varieties, even though the
biotech industry claimed that engineered crops would need less pesticide.
Without the USDA's data, UCS and other groups will have no way to track this
trend into the future and evaluate the biotechnology industry's claims. The
Environmental Protection Agency also relies on the data to determine which
chemicals should be regulated. In response to the announcement, 44 scientific,
environmental, and sustainable farming groups including UCS have asked the
USDA's Secretary to reverse the decision.
Late
last month, reports surfaced that a D.C. lobbying firm hired by the coal
industry had forged letters to Rep. Tom Perriello (D-Va.) in an attempt to
weaken energy legislation. The letters were purportedly from the local NAACP and
a local Latino group, but in fact were sent without those groups' knowledge.
Environmental groups demonstrated outside the offices of the firm, Bonner and
Associates, to call out the firm's naked fraud. Environmental champion
Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) announced he had launched a congressional investigation
into the matter. Similar forged letters had been sent to two other members
of Congress. This shows just how low polluting industries are willing to stoop
in their quest to block clean energy.
No offense intended for any individuals or tribes.
Joined at the tooth
A Sioux woman and her husband interrupted their vacation to go to the dentist.
"I want a tooth pulled, and I don't want any pain killers because I'm in a big hurry," the Sioux woman said. "
Just extract the tooth as quickly as possible, and we'll be on our way."
The dentist was quite impressed. "You're certainly a courageous woman," he said. "Which tooth is it?"
The Sioux woman turned to her husband and said, "Show him your tooth, dear."
USING MEDITATION TO CONTROL EMOTIONS
Let us start with a quick review,
since a little more than two months have passed since I started this subject.
My August writing discussed the fact our mind has two basic parts. The
CONSCIOUS which processes current awareness and makes decisions, makes up only
12% of our mind. The other 88% is called our SUBCONSCIOUS mind. This part
contains our memories, habits, beliefs, personality, and self-image. These
aspects are often referred to as scripts and conditioning.
The subconscious mind is a true storehouse of information. A large problem with the subconscious mind is it takes all information at face value. It does not know the difference between REALITY and IMAGINATION, truth or false information. The value is that we can use this to change our responses to life. It is here where we can change our lives because there is no distinction here. We will discuss this more later.
Emotions are developed from the combined action of the conscious and the subconscious. Let me give an example. A fellow I knew had his daughters and one of their friends killed in the safety of their home by being shot with a shotgun. The loss of his loved ones by murder caused deep grief, which festered into anger, then into hate, and finally into wanting revenge.
Shedding New Light on Nanotechnology in Sunscreens
Our Health and Environment Campaigner Ian Illuminato, along with
partners at the International Center for Technology Assessment and the
Consumers Union,
released another breakthrough report last month on the potential risks
involved with using sunscreens made with nanoparticles. Nanomaterials' small
size may make them more able to enter lungs, pass through cell membranes,
and possibly penetrate damaged or sun-burnt skin. So the question becomes,
if there are no advantages in sun protection, why should we accept the
unnecessary potential risks to our health and environment? Our government
must take action to protect consumers.
EPA to Extending Permits That Will Destroy More Mountains
In September, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will reviewed 86 new mountaintop removal permits. If approved, these 86 new permits could mean 86 less mountains in Appalachia. That spells disaster as mountaintop removal coal mining has already destroyed 500 mountains, buried 2,000 miles of rivers and streams under rubble and greatly harmed Appalachian communities and culture. If approved, these permits will be devastating for the people and ecosystems of West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee and other parts of Appalachia and authorize a new round of blasting, flooding, and water contamination. Over the past month more than 10,000 of you have asked EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson to go to Appalachia and see Big Coal's swath of destruction for herself. Add your name to the petition. Let's end this environmental disaster. The future of 86 Appalachian mountains hang in the balance.
Kick the
Disposable Battery Habit
GRANDFATHER
SEVEN HAWK EYES SPEAKS
Grandfather Hawk is a bit slow this month. Recovering from recent surgery and bouts with arthritis. We ask for your prayers and good wishes for our most respected and honorable elder. Let us know if you like his stories -- we will forward your comments to him as a present. Thank you!
WASHINGTON – For the
second year in a row, the Senate has voted to apologize to Native Americans
for historical injustices. The apology, known as the Native American
Apology Resolution, was attached to a defense appropriations bill, which the
congressional body voted on Oct. 6. The resolution extends a formal
apology from the United States to tribal governments and Native American
people nationwide. It is aimed at making amends for years of “ill-conceived
policies” and acts of violence against Native Americans by U.S. citizens.
It also asks President Barack Obama to “acknowledge the wrongs of the United
States against Indian tribes” in order to encourage healing. The
president was asked earlier this year by grassroots groups to apologize
specifically for atrocities carried out on Indians who attended boarding
schools, often forcibly.
Obama has not yet said if he will take such action.
First
American Indian female dentist inducted into Michigan Women’s Hall of FameINTERLOCHEN, Mich. – Jessica A. Rickert became the nation’s first American Indian woman dentist in 1975. Nominated by her brother Levi Rickert in 2008 to the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame, she will be inducted during a benefit dinner Oct. 21 in East Lansing, along with nine other women being honored for their contributions to society.
WASHINGTON – Voter rights advocates are calling on the Obama administration’s Justice Department to improve the system for Native Americans. The calls have grown louder since the release of a new report by the American Civil Liberties Union, which concludes that American Indians continue to face discriminatory policies and actions that deny them their constitutional right to vote. The report, titled “Voting Rights in Indian Country,” provides a historical overview of systemic discrimination against American Indians that has limited their ability to participate in local, state and national elections. It also highlights ACLU-backed lawsuits challenging unlawful election practices on behalf of Native Americans in Colorado, Montana, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming.
TEACHING ABOUT AMERICAN INDIANS
Teaching Resources for Educators
Here are resources if you've ever wanted classroom-teaching activities on
American Indians beyond the Thanksgiving holiday or the history of American
Indian Education or best teaching practices addressing American Indian learners.
Resources include books, magazines, articles, bibliographies, maps, etc.
Although often times there is overlap, these resources are organized in four
categories:
Teaching About American Indians
Culturally Responsive Pedagogy for American Indian Learners
Researching American Indian Education
Other Resources
You can tell more about a person by what he says about others than you can by what others say about him.
How a man plays a game shows something of his character, how he loses shows
all of it.
A man sees in the world what he carries in his heart.
It was a high counsel that I once heard given to a young person, "Always do
what you are afraid to do."
~Submitted by Ro Garcia
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©2009 ManatakaTM American Indian Council. The word "Manataka" is a registered trademark exclusively owned by the Manataka American Indian Council. Use of this trademark without the expressed written permission of MAIC is prohibited and violators will be prosecuted. 15 U.S.C. Section 1051(a), (b). The Smoke Signal News is copyrighted in its entirety and no reproduction, republishing, copying, or distribution is permitted without the expressed written permission of MAIC is strictly prohibited and violations will be prosecuted.
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