Native Village
Youth and Education News
December 8, 2004, Issue 143 Volume 1
"This Earth is in trouble. ... That's why I'm a firm believer in teaching the children. You never know who you are going to touch, that one person who may grow up to be the president or secretary of state, and who cares about the environment." Cryinghawk Tarbox, Passamaquoddy/ Micmac
Indigenous hunger strike
at United Nations
Switzerland: Representing the indigenous of the world, Dene, Yaqui, French
Guyana, Oglala Tetuwan, Seminole and Zapoteca carried out a hunger strike at the United Nations. The strike coincided
with UN discussions over a declaration about the rights of 300,000,000 Native peoples threatened by globalization,
environmental issues, and thefts of land, mineral and water rights. The hunger strike pressed for the United Nations not
to support attempts by some states, as well as this UN itself, to weaken and undermine an earlier Draft Declaration, the
"Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities." That draft, adopted 10 years ago by a UN
sub-commission, established a minimum standard for protection. Today, that draft is being diluted, indigenous strikers
said. Meanwhile, 80% of indigenous peoples in 70 countries live below the poverty line, while their land and
resources are stolen and exploited. Carrying out the hunger strike were Adelard Blackman, Buffalo River Dene Nation,
Canada; Andrea Carmen, Yaqui Nation, Arizona United States; Alexis Tiouka, Kali'a, French Guyana; Charmaine White Face,
Oglala Tetuwan , Sioux Nation Territory, North America; Danny Billie, Traditional Independent Seminole Nation of
Florida, United States and Saul Vicente, Zapoteca, Mexico.
Indian Country Today.
American
Indians spread passion for their culture
A prophecy among Native peoples tells of a generation who would return to
the Earth and restore American Indian traditions ."We have been told about a time when the teachings would come
back, when we would learn how to walk in harmony with creation again," said Eddy Stevenson, 63, an Ojibwe Indian.
This new time is called the "seventh generation" prophecy because it is said that seven generations after
Europeans contact, American Indians would no longer hide or be ashamed of their heritage, and would once again embrace
their culture and share it with the world. Natives believe the seventh generation now walks two roads — the red
and the white — and yet somehow strike that balance between the modern and the ancient. the Earth.
"The Earth is in great crisis, but there is hope. We have a choice right now to either walk the spiritual path or
walk the industrial path." Stevenson added. CryingHawk Tarbox, a Passamaquoddy and Micmac, agrees.
"We believe in the Creator, but we believe in creation, too," he said. "This Earth is in trouble.
... That's why I'm a firm believer in teaching the children. You never know who you are going to touch, that one person
who may grow up to be the president or secretary of state, and who cares about the environment."
http://www.thejournalnews.com/newsroom/112804/a0128nativemain.html
Fire Pit Dated to Be Over
50,000 Years Old
South Carolina: Since the 1960s, most anthropologists believe
hunters migrated to North America 13,000 years ago by crossing a land bridge across the Bering Sea. But some
archaeological sites have yielded stone tools and artifacts suggesting that humans lived in North America thousands of
years earlier. Recently, near the Savannah River, Al Goodyear uncovered a layer of charcoal from a possible hearth or
fire pit more than 50,000 years old. Goodyear, however, remains cautious about actually declaring it proof of North
America's earliest human occupation. "It does look like a hearth," said the University of South Carolina
archaeologist, "and the material that was dated has been burned." More work and tests are needed to determine
the site's true identity.
http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/news/article.adp?id=20041117221009990008&_mpc=news%2e6&cid=842
Casa Grande Ruins stand in
peril
 |
After hundreds of years of surviving the elements, Casa Grande Ruins' adobe walls could crumble because of a Wal-Mart across the street. Squirrels are digging their way under the four-story ruins, creating holes for water to seep in and dissolve the structure's foundation. Squirrels have always been a part of the landscape here. But their numbers were controlled by coyotes that now stay away. "Look around us," said Paige Baker, the monument's superintendent. "We're completely encircled by development, and it took away the natural predators." The Casa |
| Grande Ruins are thought to have been built by Hohokams around 1400. In his notes from 1694, Father Eusebio Francisco Kino, the Spanish explorer, wrote of the castle-like structure surrounded by smaller buildings and a ball court. Kino said there were similar structures in the region, but Casa Grande the only one still standing. | |
http://www.azcentral.com/news/columns/articles/1122ruelas22.html
photo: azstar.net
Court will investigate
Leschi case
Washington: A Historical Court of Inquiry and Justice will rehear the
150-year old murder case against Leschi, chief of the Nisqually Indian tribe. During the signing of 1854's Treaty of
Medicine Creek, Leschi objected to a reservation high on a cliff, far away from the Nisqually Valley and the salmon-rich
river that sustained the tribe. War erupted between the Indians and territorial forces, and a soldier in the
Washington Militia, A. Benton Moses, was killed. Leschi was charged with Moses' murder. In 1854, the first
territorial jury refused to convict Leschi after it was instructed that killing a combatant in a time of war was not
murder. A second court was convened, and that jury pronounced Leschi guilty. The judge also refused to admit
into evidence a map showing that Chief Leschi could not have traveled the distance necessary to fire at Moses.
After the U. S. army refused to execute him, Washington's Territorial Legislature passed a law allowing local
authorities to carry out the execution. Chief Leschi was hanged Feb. 19, 1858. Today, after prodding by Tribal members,
the 2004 Legislature has called upon the state's Supreme Court to reopen the case.
http://www.theolympian.com/home/news/20041203/opinion/42566.shtml
Minnesota Historical
Society Acquires American Indian Treaty of National Importance
Minnesota: The Minnesota Historical Society has acquired the "Treaty
of Washington," signed in 1858 and ratified in 1859. The 12-page manuscript is written in feather pen and ink
and is approximately 20 inches wide by 17 inches long and laces together at the top with a ribbon. The
"Treaty of Washington" called for the Yankton Sioux to cede more than 11,000,000 acres between the Big Sioux
and Missouri Rivers in exchange for a 430,000-acre reservation. In return, the Yankton were to receive
government services and $1,600,000 in annuities and the rights to the quarry at Pipestone, Minn. Although
the Dakota people have mined the sacred stone from the quarry, the Yankton Sioux never received the services and
money they were promised. The treaty will be exhibited at the Minnesota History Center through Feb. 14,
2005.
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/11-18-2004/0002463955&EDATE=
"GIVE BACK"
American Indian protesters want land returned
Massachusetts: On Thanksgiving Day, Tall Oak spoke at the National
Day of Mourning, an annual event he helped start 35 years ago. About 200 people showed up in Plymouth to protest the
many injustices American Indians suffered throughout the nation's history. Protesters said their march was not
only about history, but what they see as a continuation of the "insatiable greed" of non-natives. Tall Oak
cited a Nov. 5 Massachusetts Land Court ruling that took 15 acres from American Indians in Mashpee. He said he
would like to see such land that has been taken all over the country returned. "It's not impossible to give back
land when you have a surplus," he said. "The greed, the excessive greed; there's no reason for people to
horde." The demonstration doubled as a rally for Leonard Peltier, an Anishabe/Lakota Sioux who was imprisoned for
killing two FBI agents on the Pine Ridge Indian reservation in 1975. Thousands of activists have questioned the
investigation and trial and have formed organizations to push for his release from the federal prison in Leavenworth,
Kan.
http://ledger.southofboston.com/articles/2004/11/26/news/news04.txt
Inuit View Themselves As
Canadians First: Kusuga
Prince Edward Island: The president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatamdsyd says his
people have created a saying to describe their place in Canada- First Canadians, Canadians First. "...Inuit are
married to Canada," said Jose Kusugak. "Canada is our Nignuak, but in accepting Canada we shouldn't have
to worry about losing our identity or believing in ourselves any less. Thus we have Inuit that are more than First
Canadians--Inuit are Canadians First." Kusugak is president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, a national
organization that speaks out for the Inuit. The Inuit are the aboriginal people of Canada, formerly known as Eskimos.
About 45,000 Inuit live in 53 communities across the Arctic in four regions: Labrador, Northern Quebec, Nunavut and the
Northwest Territories.
The Guardian Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
A most honorable gift
Indiana: Stanley Calvert made the Miami Nation the rightful owners --
again -- of 150 acres of land in eastern Parke County. Calvert has owned the 150 acres of grasslands since 1973 and
estimates it's worth $500,000. But the money is not an issue to Calvert, who is angered by the developments he
sees overtaking nature. Instead of having his land bulldozed, he wants it to remain pristine, and wants the people who
were its original inhabitants to protect it. "I am thankful that the Miami have agreed to become the caretaker of
this land, " Calvert said. "I am confident that the Miami will protect and preserve the land long
into the future much better than I could from the grave." In keeping with their history of trading, the Miami
gave Calvert something in return for his generous gift -- honorary tribal memberships and new Miami names. "
There's really no words that can express the gift of this magnitude," said Miami Chief Brian Buchanan.
"It's not much for us to give back, but we don't have much." To American Indians, land is the most
honorable gift one can give. Some of Calvert's gifted land is set aside for a museum/cultural center and a woodland
village. Plans also include powwow grounds and a caretaker's plot for use by Calvert's family. The rest -- 125 acres of
it -- will remain untouched for use by the Miamis.
http://www.tribstar.com/articles/2004/11/29/news/news03.txt
Code
Talker Was Voice of GI Joe Doll
New Mexico -- Navajo Code Talker Sam Billison has passed away.
Billison was born on the floor of a hogan on the Navajo reservation sometime in the mid-1920s. He didn't have a birth
certificate, so he never really knew his age. In 1943, Billison was recruited as a Navajo Code Talker, landed on
the beach at Iwo Jima, and received a Congressional Silver Medal for his services. He later became president of the
Navajo Code Talkers Association. Billison said one of the high points in his life came in 2000 when the Hasbro company
asked him to become the voice of their new doll, a Navajo Code Talker GI Joe. "Dr. Billison led an
extraordinary life," said Lawrence Morgan of the Navajo Nation Council. "Dr. Billison never stopped advocating
for both veterans and youth."
http://www.abqjournal.com/shock/gijoe/1fun03-01-00.htm
Tribes farewell 'quiet
general'
(NEW ZEALAND) More than 3000 people recently paid respects to Tumate
Mahuta, the "quiet general" of the Kingitanga, who passed away at age 88. Mr. Mahuta, an uncle of Maori
Queen Dame Te Atairangikaahu, was one of Tainui Maori royalty's most revered leaders. He was buried at Taupiri Mountain.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm?storyID=3612591&thesection=news&thesubsection=general
Project
Preserving Original and Traditional Lullabies
New Mexico: It seems every culture in the world has a song to put babies
to sleep. Now a global project is recording those lullabies, language, and history for posterity. “The Lullaby Project”
is seeking traditional and original lullabies in all the languages of the world. “We have already recorded 50
languages and 350 lullabies,” said Anita Gerlach, a grandmother of five and a member of the Comanche Nation. “We
have recorded lullabies from about six Native American tribes." Other lullabies have been recorded in the languages
of pre-Bolshevik Russia, 5 Indian languages, Indonesian, Ukrainian and North Vietnamese. Gerlach would like to see the
lullabies recorded on compact disks to use in children's hospitals, or for adoptive parents to play for their children
who might be from another culture. She also explained that some Native tribes don’t want their traditional
lullabies to become public property. For them, the Lullaby Project offers to record the songs for the tribe’s own use
and preservation.
The Lullaby Project www.thelullabyproject.org
http://nativetimes.com/
Moms bring back the Dine
language
Arizona: In its fourth year, STAR (Service to All Relations) volunteers
are helping Navajo students learn their tribal languages. In one school near Leupp, parents Elaine Riggs, Diane Tohannie
and Louva Montour are helping their own children--as well as other students--reconnect with the Navajo language. “It’s
very important to me because I don’t want the generation after us to forget their language,” Riggs said. “Our
language is slowly disappearing and I would like to revive it ... most of the parents should be reinforcing the Navajo
language at home, and it is a shame that we don’t." School Director Mark Sorensen welcomes the parents'
enthusiasm and passion. He compares their efforts to Language Nests developed by the Maori mothers in New Zealand which
is responsible for the revival of the Maori language. “This is an opportunity to strengthen the continuity of the
Navajo language through the mothers,” he said. “What better group is there to do this than the mothers?”
Non-Navajo children are also excited about the classes, including Kelly Hardman of Swedish, Norwegian, and Cherokee
ancestry. “I want to learn more Navajo,” Hardman said. “I used to speak it ... but I have lost a lot of it.”
http://www.navajohopiobserver.com/NAVAJOHOPIOBSERVER/myarticles.asp?P=1038668&S=392&PubID=13347
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Native
Village is published with the generous help and support of friends, listserves, and online publications.
Without you, Native Village would not exist. Megwich to you all.
To join our mailing list and receive news update
reminders, send email address to: subscribe@nativevillage.org
To contact Native Village staff, email: NativeVillage500@aol.com
Native Village Linking Policy
Our research, study and resource collections cover a lot of Internet territory! We do our best to screen all links and
select only those we designate "kidsafe" and appropriate. However, Native Village does not control the content
found on third-party sites, so we are not always aware when content changes. If you discover a link that contains
inappropriate information, please contact us immediately. In addition, please be aware that each linked site
maintains its own independent data collection, policies and procedures. If you visit a Web site linked to from Native
Village, you should consult that site's privacy policy before providing it with any of your personal information.
For more information about keeping kids safe online, please read about the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).
Native Village © Gina Boltz
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