Paging Gazhekwe

[gazhekwe]

GAP Emails Apology to AIM
Boycott Continues
Mike Mohan, publisher in Native Challenges
10-17-2012

SAN FRANCISCO – When Mari Reprado, a Northern California representative of AIM delivered the demand letter yesterday to the Gap Headquarters, Gap representative Debbie Mesloh, acknowledged that despite media and news claims, no formal apology had been issued. By early evening pacific time, Gap sent AIM So Cal an apology by email.

Gap Demand Letter

GAP representative Mesloh reported that The GAP is no longer selling the "Manifest Destiny" t-shirts online or in stores. In a visit to a suburban Detroit Gap store late yesterday afternoon, the Native News Network was able to confirm the t-shirt had been removed from store shelves. The four other offending designs do however remain for sale. However, the Native News Network had still found at least one image of a GAP model wearing the t-shirt on the company's facebook page yesterday, a quick search today finds the company has changed out the entire facebook page.

The GAP apology email titled "Statement from Gap" reads:

"We're sincerely sorry for the offense that the 'Manifest Destiny' t-shirt may have caused. This shirt was part of the partnership between Gap and GQ featuring new designers and was never meant to be insensitive.

Because of your feedback, we made the decision to no longer sell the t-shirt as soon as it was brought to our attention. The t-shirt has been removed from Gap.com and we are in the process of removing it from our stores. We are also focusing on how we select product designs for these types of partnerships in the future. Thank you for your continued feedback; we're always listening."

“What you [[designer Mark McNairy) did and how Gap endorsed it is not acceptable,” Corine Fairbanks, AIM So Cal Director and Native News Network contributor stated.

“We feel that their apology is not enough. We want him [[McNairy) fired and other shirts taken out,” Fairbanks continued.

The original controversial "Manifest Destiny" t-shirt promotes an ideology that resulted in the mass genocide of indigenous people. In reaction to the selling of this shirt by GAP, AIM communicated the issue to their network of Natives and allies.

AIM So Cal is maintaining their stance and calls to action all supporters of this cause.

posted October 17, 2012 11:40 am edt

http://www.nativenewsnetwork.com/gap...gy-to-aim.html

The other shirts celebrate the colonization of America, with such images as

--an outline map of the country with the word ONWARD printed across it,
--a bison over the slogan Roam Free United States of America Since 1969
--a Conestoga wagon over the slogan Exploring East - West with some other words that I can't quite read, including Since 1969

I couldn't find a fourth shirt. At least one is still available on the GAP website.

The shirt designer stated he learned about Manifest Destiny in Junior High and to him it means that anyone can plan and do what is needed to achieve future goals. He refuses to acknowledge that the phrase was ever used in a negative way.

Just goes to show the deficiency of US public school education.

[gazhekwe]

Russell Means is preparing to walk on, family and friends in attendance, in hospital in Rapid City. Born November 10, 1939.

[gazhekwe]

Russell Means began his journey to the Spirit World early this morning. This is sad news for those of us who were around for Wounded Knee II and other actions that advanced the cause of Native sovereignty, and began opening the nation's eyes to its true history.

His life was an amazing journey that opened many doors and went into all kinds of unexpected places. In addition to being a founding member of AIM in the late 1960s, Means was involved in national politics, trying for the Green Party nomination for President, running as VP to Larry Flynt, in the 80s. He ran twice for president of the Oglala Nation. He acted in several movies, playing Chingachgook in Last of the Mohicans, voicing Powhatan in Pocahontas, and more. He released an album, Electric Warrior, on SOAR. He published an autobiography in 1997, Where White Men Fear to Tread.

During his active life, there was often controversy. I believe this is the time to celebrate the things he did to create positive change and to teach and entertain.

In August 2011, Russell Means announced he was diagnosed with esophogial cancer and elected not to have surgery. He took both western and native treatment, and in December, he said he felt wonderful and had beaten the cancer. hen, a year after the first diagnosis, he developed what he said was a different form of cancer. That one ended his life on this earth, but it is certain his strong spirit will be active in the Spirit World.

Here is Russell Means performing "Hey you, Hey you Indian" from Electric Warrior:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQLXJYt08n4

[Pam]

Do you have this book Gaz? I got it out of the library. I recommend it if you don't already have it.

http://www.amazon.com/Spirit-Capture...spirit+capture

[gazhekwe]

I do not have it. It certainly looks interesting, and very reasonably priced. Is it an exhibition catalog?

[Pam]

I do not have it. It certainly looks interesting, and very reasonably priced. Is it an exhibition catalog?

Based on the blurb on Amazon it sounds like the book came first and then the exhibit, so I don't know if you could call it a catalog. It has a lot of written material in it too.

[gazhekwe]

Native American Heritage Month, that's what!
It's all we've got, so we have to work hard to get the truth out there while we have the spotlight.

In 1990 President George H. W. Bush approved a joint resolution designating November 1990 "National American Indian Heritage Month." Similar proclamations, under variants on the name [[including "Native American Heritage Month" and "National American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month") have been issued each year since 1994.

November is recognized as NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH and Indian Country Today Media Network will be celebrating every day of the month.

According to the 2010 Census, there are over 5.2 million American Indian and Alaska Native people and there are 566 federally recognized tribal nations that exist as sovereign nations within 33 states of the United States. In November, it’s an opportunity to celebrate the modern and the traditional cultures, peoples and societies of Native Americans. It’s also an occasion to highlight the important contributions of Native peoples and explore the shared histories between tribal nations.

In 1915, Blackfeet Red Fox James rode on horseback from state to state, advocating for an official national day of recognition for Native peoples. He eventually obtained the support of 24 state governments, and he presented this to the White House. Although James’s efforts did not lead to an official day of national recognition that year, his spirit and drive are honored today and throughout the entire NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH.

Please look for our special NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH coverage in November. Each day ICTMN will be presenting dedicated stories, photos, information about events and causes and more. And we welcome your participation. What does NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH mean to you? Send us your poems, stories and photos for possible publication to editor@ictmn.com.

Together, we hope to foster a collective understanding and sense of unity among all peoples around the celebration of Native peoples during the month of November.

Read more:

http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2012/10/31/native-american-heritage-month-begins-tomorrow-november-1-143233#ixzz2AuOcp5Hm

[gazhekwe]

This is a re-run from years past. It is an important part of Anishinabe tradition, celebrated at this time of year, not just Odawa, but Ojibwe and Potawomi, too. I think it is fascinating that so many cultures feel the closeness of the Spirit World at this particular time of year. According to Fred, first story below, the time selection was influenced by Christian missionaries, who moved it from the Spring.

HARBOR SPRINGS, MICHIGAN - The following two glimpses into the Odawa tradition and culture of commemorating the ancestors who have walked on during annual Ghost Suppers, held annually during the first week of November, were written in 1943 and 1992, respectively.The first glimpse was written by Chief Fred Ettawageshik, who passed in 1969 at the age of 73. He served as an ogema, leader, to the Odawa during a time before the Little Traverse Bay Bands of the Odawa Indians Tribe, based in Harbor Springs, Michigan, was yet reaffirmed by the federal government.

His son, Frank, was instrumental in leading the Tribe during the reaffirmation process. The Little Traverse Bay Bands of the Odawa Indians was reaffirmed by the federal government in September 1994. He served two terms as tribal chairman. Currently, he is the executive director of the United Tribes of Michigan.

1943

Ghost suppers are held each year during the first week of November by the Ottawa in the northern regions of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. To mention a few places, there is Cross Village, Middle Village [[the oldest Indian settlement in the region), Five Mile Creek, Harbor Springs, Petoskey and Burt Lake.

At this time one or two families in the community will cook a large supper, to which is generally understood all the Indians are invited. The word just gets around that some family is getting up a supper commemorating the spirits of their departed, hence, the name Ghost Suppers. To especially honor the memory of those who have gone to the "Happy Hunting Ground," the family will invite a few people approximately of the same age of the deceased. Tobacco will be given to them if the person they are supposed to represent was a tobacco user; if not, some gift will be presented. Children are given candies or some little gift. Custom requires that these few especially invited guests come early enough, if possible, so that they will be among the first served.

The Indians go from one supper to the other, until they have made the rounds. Etiquette requires that they eat at least a little of each kind of food offered. After the last guest has been served, the remaining food is left on the table until midnight, or in some cases until morning so that the spirits may come and eat.

Years ago, it was not uncommon for as many as six or eight households in a community to have these suppers during an evening. Today with the smaller Indian population, fewer suppers are held, and an effort is being made to spread them more evenly throughout the week. From fifty to seventy-five and as many as a hundred guests are served in some homes. Because of the limited space in the average home, the guests are served in relays. The first table is set and ready around six o'clock, seating from twelve to sixteen people; when these have finished, a second table is set, and so on until the last have been served.

These feasts were not always held during the first week in November. They were held during the late spring and early summer and were accompanied with much dancing and singing and peace offerings. Groups of grown people and children would go from place to place saluting each other, saying, "We are going around in spirits." At each place they would feast, dance and sing, and throw food into the fire, believing that the spirits would come and eat the food as it was consumed by the fire.

The change in the time for these feasts from the early part of the year to the first week of November was brought through the influence of missionaries, who saw the feasibility of aligning this custom with the feast days of their church, All Souls Day and All Saints Day.

Chief Fred Ettawageshik - 1943

1992

In the time since my father wrote about ghost suppers much has changed in the world: we fly faster than sound, men walk on the moon, and we look deep into space with orbiting telescopes seeking to look back into the very beginnings of our universe. Our Odawa world has changed as well: the council fires once again are burning and the beat of the drums again echoes from the powwows where people are dancing for themselves, for their communities, and for Mother Earth. Those who have been keeping and guarding our ways have been reawakening the honor and respect for creation that is the central gift of our people.

Ghost suppers are still held all over northern Lower Michigan. In parish halls and in private homes, from Cross Village to East Jordan, from Peshawbestown to Petoskey, in Charlevoix, Harbor Springs, and Burt Lake, families are honoring their ancestors and keeping sacred fires burning. The people come by the hundreds to visit each other, tell stories, and honor the ancestors, teaching our children the old ways while preparing to walk with pride into the future.

Frank Ettawageshik - 1992

[Pam]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1014286637

Citing 'civic emergency,' tribal leaders push for largest-ever Native American voter turnout

[gazhekwe]

Thanks, Pam, very timely article.

This quote shows Michigan's tribal status among the 50 states, we are among the ten with the highest Native population. Many people are surprised by that. Our people do not vote as a monolith, I have relatives supporting both major presidential candidates, though it mystifies me that several who have serious chronic health conditions are Foxified. I guess they have more time to get hypnotized on TV than many.

The NCAI and its partners are focusing on 18 states with high Indian populations, and their efforts are not without challenge. The NCAI said in a recent report that voter ID laws could negatively affect participation this year in Native American and Alaska Native communities in 10 states — Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Michigan, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Washington.
--From the article Pam posted above

[gazhekwe]

Things that Obama has done for NDN Country:

The Obama administration has championed American Indian and Alaska Native issues in four areas:

• HEARTH Act – The Helping Expedite and Advance Responsible Tribal Homeownership [[HEARTH) Act enhances tribal control over the leasing of Indian lands.
• Health Care – Buried within the Affordable Health Care Act, commonly referred to as Obamacare, is a provision that included a permanent reauthorization of Indian Health Care Improvement Act, which authorizes health programs for American Indians.
• Executive Order on Education – This presidential executive order on "Improving American Indian and Alaska Native Educational Opportunities and Strengthening Tribal Colleges and Universities" created an initiative to review the current status and make recommendation to ensure American Indian and Alaska students receive quality educations.
• Tribal Law & Order Act and the Safe Indian Communities initiative, are continuing to work with tribes to build safer communities.
• The Administration also supports the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Additionally, the Obama administration help to negotiate longstanding American Indian claims against the United States that had lingered for years – and even decades – to restore trust between the Indian country and the United States. Included in these settlements were the historic Cobell and Keepseagle settlements.

http://www.nativenewsnetwork.com/you...erves-it2.html

[jiminnm]

Under appreciated heroes [[at least off the Navajo Nation):
http://www.cnn.com/2012/11/01/us/nav...ies/index.html

[gazhekwe]

Thanks, Jiminnm, for commemorating George Smith, one of the handful of remaining Windtalkers. The last of the original 29 recently spoke a few days ago to dedicate his new memoir on the Windtalkers. He says he remembers much of the original code and would serve again if needed. There is also an exhibit of Kenji Kawano photos of Warriors including the Code Talkers at San Juan College through November 19.

Navajo Code Talker Chester Nez speaks to a packed auditorium at San Juan College

By Greg Yee gyee@daily-times.com
Updated: 11/01/2012 10:29:21 PM MDT

FARMINGTON — Navajo Code Talker Chester Nez, 90, spoke to a packed auditorium at San Juan College Thursday evening during a presentation on his memoir and a book signing. Nez and author Judith Schiess Avila spoke to a standing-room-only crowd at the college's Henderson Fine Arts Center Performance Hall about his experience as one of the original 29 Navajo Code Talkers in the Pacific Theater during World War II. Many in the crowd had read the book, "Code Talker: The First and Only Memoir By One of the Original Navajo Code Talkers of WWII."

Nez, who is hard of hearing and lost his legs to diabetes, speaks in a shaky voice, but his memories of the war are far from faded.

"I am very blessed to tell you that I am so glad to have served my country and my people," Nez said to roaring applause. "I was pretty lucky to come home. I don't know how many Code Talkers are left, but I want to let you know how proud I am."

Nez is the sole remaining member of the original 29 Navajo men recruited to create a code for the Marine Corps for use against the Imperial Japanese Military during WWII.

Much of that code is still imprinted in his memory, he said. "If I had a chance to go again, I think I'd go again," he said.

After returning from the war, Nez and his fellow Code Talkers were ordered to keep their operation a secret until it was declassified in 1968.

Nez wanted to tell his father about how their native language was used in the war effort but kept quiet, he said.

Keeping that secret was among the most difficult parts of coming home because he knew how pleased his father would be. Once the information was declassified, his father was the first person he told.

"I often think about all the things I went through during World War II," he said. "The worst thing was landing on the beach. I was a pretty lucky guy. I was very glad to see my relatives and all my friends [[again)."

Nez's presentation was part of San Juan College's One Book, One Community program. More than 1,000 students read the book during the fall 2012 semester, said the college's president, Toni Pendergrass.

"It creates a community, honors our servicemen and celebrates our diverse culture," Pendergrass said.

In addition to Nez's presentation, the One Book committee and the San Juan Foundation will welcome Kenji Kawano's Warrior photo exhibit to the College. The exhibit includes portraits of Code Talkers in their homes or on their native reservation. It has been on display in Japan, the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs and more than 50 other locations in the United States.

The exhibit opened with a reception on Oct. 19 in the Graphic Arts Foyer and will be on display through Nov. 19.

Gazhekwe speaking -- Our WWII Veterans are rapidly aging on. My father, a Marine who served on a Navy ship in the Pacific theater, will be 90 tomorrow. This Veteran's Day, be sure and reach out to Veterans in your family and let them know how much you appreciate their service in preserving our nation and working to build it so strongly.

[Jimaz]

The German enigma machine was cracked. The Japanese Purple Machine was cracked. To my knowledge The Navajo Code Talk was never cracked during WWII.

In a way this is a confirmation of the John Henry folktale although the more recent development of Public-key cryptography has turned the advantage back toward mechanized cryptography.

That is sad in so many ways.

[gazhekwe]

The Code Talkers took each letter of the American alphabet and assigned a Dine word beginning with the same sound. Dine was not a written language. Then they memorized all those words with all the letters. A code message was spelled out using the Dine words by a Code Talker at the sending end. Then a Code Talker at the receiving end read it back. It became smooth for them to send and read back messages. What my Dad would call Injunuity back before political correctness stole the humor from the word.

[gazhekwe]

I'll be working on that, but here is a preliminary fact from the 2010 Census:

The ten states with the largest American Indian and Alaska Native
alone-or-in-combination populations in 2010 were California, Oklahoma, Arizona, Texas, New York, New Mexico, Washington, North Carolina, Florida, and Michigan.

Oklahoma, Arizona, North Carolina and Texas went for Romney.
California, New York, New Mexico, Washington and Michigan went for Obama.
Florida still trending Obama as of the most recent map I found.

Did you know Michigan has the tenth highest NDN population in the country?

[jiminnm]

In the news here today is that Republican Sharon Clahchischilliage beat incumbent Ray Begaye on a race for the NM House. She's the first Navajo Republican elected to office in NM [[Begaye is also Navajo). She was helped by Begaye's getting double reimbursements for travel expenses and his use of official House stationery to try and get DWI charges against his daughter dropped.

[gazhekwe]

Tester, Heitkamp Score Victories With Native Vote

By Rob Capriccioso November 7, 2012

American Indian voters scored some big victories for politicians on election night in America.

In the days leading up to the November 6 election, incumbent Sen. Jon Tester, D-Montana, told Indian Country Today Media Network that he was relying on the Native American vote to help him defeat challenger GOP Rep. Denny Rehberg.

Just as in 2006, Tester pulled out a close victory, where the margin of votes from reservations in his state likely put him over the edge, according to Native political observers.

American Indian organizers, including Tom Rodgers, a Blackfeet citizen and tribal lobbyist with Carlyle Consulting, worked hard to secure Indian votes, canvassing the state and expressing support for Tester’s efforts on behalf of Indians. Several tribal citizens also filed suit in Montana to have satellite-voting offices opened on reservations—a battle that goes on now that the election has concluded.

“Every vote mattered,” Tester spokeswoman Andrea Telling said when asked whether the Native vote put him over the top.

One state away, Natives are taking credit for the slim margin of victory for Democrat Heidi Heitkamp, who defeated Republican Rick Berg in a very close North Dakota Senate race. Her win was a surprise to many national political pundits reflecting on the race.

Chris Stearns, a Navajo lawyer who previously was a House staffer, said he campaigned with Heitkamp 12 years ago when she ran unsuccessfully for governor of the state, and he came to the conclusion then that she’s an “awesome lady.”

Stearns believes Native efforts and votes for Heitkamp tipped the scales in her favor. Tex Hall, chairman of Three Affiliated Tribes, hosted a get-out-the-vote rally on her behalf on his reservation the Saturday before the election, and also campaigned for her.

“Sometimes the good candidates really win,” Stearns said. “Even a Democrat in a Republican state.”

Joe Valandra, an economic consultant to tribes, said both Tester and Heitkamp owe it to Indians to work hard for positive tribal agendas in Washington D.C. “I think they should be expected to give these issues the full attention and energy of their offices,” he said. “[Their] successes in Montana and North Dakota are directly tied to Indian votes.”

Beyond the Native roles in Tester and Heitkamp’s victories, there are now two Native Americans in U.S. Congress. Chickasaw incumbent Rep. Tom Cole, R-Oklahoma, easily defeated his challenger, as did Cherokee Markwayne Mullin, also a Republican in the state.

“With the election of Markwayne Mullin, Oklahoma is sending another Native American to Congress,” Cole said. “I look forward to working with my colleagues, both old and new, to enact the Carcieri fix, pass my tribal trade legislation, and remove barriers to tribal sovereignty and economic development.”

On the Democratic side, John Oceguera, Paiute, was not successful in his bid for Congress in Nevada. Elizabeth Warren, who has claimed Cherokee heritage but has not been able to prove it, also pulled out a victory in her race for a Senate seat in Massachusetts. Indians are looking to her to connect with tribal leaders given the controversies of her situation.

Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, current head of the House Subcommittee on Indian and Alaska Native Affairs, won his race, as did Sen. John Barrasso, vice-chair of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. Rep. Mary Bono Mack, R-Calif., and current vice-chair of the Native caucus in the House, is expected to lose to Democratic challenger Raul Ruiz, who has expressed support for Indian issues in the past.

Other victorious candidates that some Natives had been supporting included Rep. Kristi Noem, R-South Dakota, and New Mexico Rep. Martin Heinrich in his Democratic bid for the Senate.

Read more: http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwor...#ixzz2Bay2brHg

[gazhekwe]

This beautiful child disappeared on June 21 and was found days later, burned beyond recognition and buried under the porch of the home he shared with his mother and her boyfriend. Despite his complaints that the man was cruel to him and signs of injury, he was left in his care while his mother worked. The man was arrested and held on a charge of child abuse while the FBI completed its investigation. Murder on Indian reservations are federal offenses.

Multiple charges were finally fired. Praying for justice for one of our beautiful children.


http://www.wzzm13.com/news/article/2...berlain-murder

[gazhekwe]

November 11 is Veterans Day, a day to recognize those who have served in the armed forces. Historically, Native Americans have volunteered to serve at a per capita rate greater than any other ethnic group. November 11 is also the anniversary of the oldest extant treaty between Indian Nations and the United States: the 1794 Treaty of Canandaigua. Here are some facts about the treaty.

Treaty With The Six Nations, 1794
A Treaty between the United States of America, and the tribes of Indians called the Six Nations

This document between the United States and American Indian nations of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy [[Iroquois), signed on Nov. 11, 1794 established peace between the new United States and all of the Six Nations following the Revolutionary War, in which only the Oneidas and some Tuscaroras supported the colonists.

Also known as Pickering Treaty or the Treaty of Canandaigua, it was ratified on January 21, 1795 and signed by President George Washington.

One of the paramount issues addressed by the treaty was that the United States acknowledged the lands reserved to the Oneidas and others in the confederacy.

Within the lines of this treaty the United States and Oneida Nation agree to their boundaries and commit never to interfere with each other’s land

ARTICLE IV
“The United States acknowledges the lands reserved to the Oneida… to be their property; and the United States will never claim the same, nor their Indian friends residing thereon and united with them, in the free use and enjoyment thereof …”

In accordance with its terms, the United States still delivers bolts of cloth – known as treaty cloth or annuity cloth – to the Oneida Nation and the other members of the Confederacy every year

Although each Oneida Member’s portion of treaty cloth has diminished over the years, it remains an important symbol of the continuing government-to-government relationship between the Oneida Nation and the United States.

The Treaty of Canandaigua is the oldest valid treaty in the U.S. The original treaty signed by President Washington is housed at the National Archives in Washington, DC.

To read the full treaty, click here.

Read more:

http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwor...#ixzz2Bx36vaMx

Gazhekwe commenting here:

As early as 1854, the Iroquois Confederacy inspired talk of a Union of the 10-13 colonies. The Albany Plan of 1754 saw this speech by Benjamin Franklin:

• It would be a strange thing...if Six Nations of ignorant savages should be capable of forming such a union and be able to execute it in such a manner that it has subsisted ages and appears indissoluble, and yet that a like union should be impractical for ten or a dozen English colonies, to whom it is more necessary and must be more advantageous, and who cannot be supposed to want an equal understanding of their interest.²¹

^{In 1776, this speech was made in favor of a confederacy:}

In a speech on July 26, 1776, James Wilson, delegate from Pennsylvania and future author of the first draft of the U.S. Constitution, argued forcefully for a confederation similar to the Iroquois League and asserted that "Indians know the striking benefits of confederation" and we "have an example of it in the Union of the Six Nations."³⁰In essence, Wilson, a friend of Franklin, believed that a strong confederacy like the Iroquois Confederacy was crucial to the development of a new nation and to maintaining a friendly relationship with the Indian populations.<sup>31

And here is Thomas Jefferson who was instrumental in the final form of the Constitution:</sup>

• Their only controls are their manners, and that moral sense of right and wrong, which, like the sense of tasting and feeling in every man, makes a part of his nature. An offense against these is punished by contempt, by exclusion from society, or, where the case is serious, as that of murder, by the individuals whom it concerns. Imperfect as this species of coercion may seem, crimes are very rare among them; insomuch that were it made a question, whether no law, as among the savage American, or too much law, as among the civilized Europeans, submits man to the greatest evil, one who has seen both conditions of existence would pronounce it to be the last; and that the sheep are happier of themselves, than under care of the wolves. It will be said, the great societies cannot exist without government. The savages, therefore, break them into small ones.³²

^{The Confederacy in the end formed the basis for the Articles of Confederation, drafted in 1776 and ratified in 1781 and subsequently the US Constitution in 1784.}

http://www.ipoaa.com/iroquois_consti...ted_states.htm

It shows the respect the US came to have for these "ignorant savages" that this treaty, which followed the Constitution by ten years, recognizes their sovereignty and their right to their lands.

[gazhekwe]

Yokut Mono Baby Mary Jane Montoya of Fresno, California:


x

[Pam]

Aww, cute baby.

Did you see this? [[Offensive fashion show)

http://www.nydailynews.com/life-styl...sEnabled=false

[gazhekwe]

Yes, I did, Pam. There has been an ongoing discussion about it in NDN Country. I did not post it yet. Now that you have fired the opening salvo, let me say I am OUTRAGED by this stupid behavior on the part of Victoria's Secret, the producers of the show, the model and the audience. The sacred headdress has been violated and needs to be purified. The sacred squash blossom also has been violated. VS needs to step up and call in the healers to heal the company, purify the headdress and turquoise and silver artifacts, educate the model and everyone associated with this mess. Her lascivious expression surrounded by the beauty of the traditional headdress is obscene.

On Sunday:

The company said in a statement on Sunday, via The Huffington Post:

“We are sorry that the Native American headdress replica used in our recent fashion show has upset individuals. We sincerely apologize as we absolutely had no intention to offend anyone. Out of respect, we will not be including the outfit in any broadcast, marketing materials nor in any other way.”

I think that is good they said it, but it is woefully inadequate. "Upset" they say. It is so much more than that. So, I have a video to show that tells it all.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNKlo...&feature=share

[gazhekwe]

Navajo Code Talker Honored With Degree and Key to the City



Campus-wide activities at the University of Kansas [[KU) for Veterans Day included a touching ceremony November 12 honoring Chester Nez, the last surviving member of the original 29 Navajo code talkers from World War II.

“This is probably the final thing that he wanted to finish in his life,” his son Michael told the Lawrence Journal-World.

The now 91-year-old Nez was forced to withdraw from the University of Kansas in 1952 when his GI Bill funding ran out, putting a hold on his bachelor of fine arts degree.

Nobody knew then that he had been an integral part of World War II, creating a code using his native Navajo language that the Japanese never deciphered. His secret identity as a Navajo code talker was kept classified until 1968.

“He’s received a lot of awards, a lot of plaques and a lot of things from different organizations,” Michael told the Lawrence Journal-World. “But I think this [the degree] is up there on the top.”

During the event on November 12, Nez was also presented with a key to the city by Lawrence Mayor Bob Schumm, and Kevin Corbett, president of the KU Alumni Association, presented Nez with a class ring.

Before handing Nez his degree, Danny Anderson, the dean of KU’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, said Nez’s contributions as a code talker demonstrates how cultural diversity is important to society.

“The awarding of Mr. Nez’s degree reflects our aspirations for our graduates to change the world,” Anderson said.

Judith Avila, who co-authored Nez’s memoir told the Lawrence Journal-World: “Oftentimes he asked people at book signings, ‘Have you ever been to Lawrence, Kansas? That’s where I went to school.’ Now he can say, ‘That’s where I got my degree.’”

Read more: http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwor...#ixzz2CKg9iHrS

[gazhekwe]

Today we are preparing a feast for just a few relatives for a change, usually we have many more. It has been a sad week, with friends and family members walking on, some way too young.

We will set many traditional foods on the table to commemorate the First Thanksgiving, when the Wampanoag people shared their Spirit Feast with the newcomers after a summer of sharing their survival skills with them. We are having turkey, sweet potatoes, white potatoes, corn, beans and pumpkin, all indigenous foods. We are having nice white rolls and bread stuffing made with wheat flour thanks to the immigrant food. We added wild rice to the rolls and mushrooms and nuts to the stuffing. We will set a place for our ancestors as well to show them we remember them always and will continue to feed them. This includes our recent departures, who will be specially mentioned as they continue their journey to the Spirit World.

Now here is food for thought, the Wampanoag story of the first Thanksgiving:

Too often the story of the 1621 Thanksgiving is told from the Pilgrims’ point of view, and when the Wampanoag, who partook in this feast too, are included, it is usually in a brief or distorted way. In search of the Native American perspective, we looked to Plymouth, where the official first Thanksgiving took place and where today the Wampanoag side of the story can be found.

Plimoth Plantation is one of Plymouth’s top attractions and probably the place to go for the first Thanksgiving story. It is a living museum, with its replica 17th century Wampanoag Homesite, a representation of the homesite used by Hobbamock, who served as emissary between the Wampanoag and Pilgrims, and staffed by 23 Native Americans, mostly Wampanoag; 17th century English Village; and the Mayflower II, a replica of the ship that brought the Pilgrims to Plymouth.

According to a Plimoth Plantation timeline, the Mayflower arrived at Plymouth Harbor on December 16, 1620. The Pilgrims settled in an area that was once Patuxet, a Wampanoag village abandoned four years prior after a deadly outbreak of a plague, brought by European traders who first appeared in the area in 1616. The museum’s literature tells that before 1616, the Wampanoag numbered 50,000 to 100,000, occupying 69 villages scattered throughout southeastern Massachusetts and eastern Rhode Island. The plague, however, killed thousands, up to two-thirds, of them. Many also had been captured and sold as slaves.

And yet, when the Wampanoag watched the Mayflower’s passengers come ashore at Patuxet, they did not see them as a threat. “The Wampanoag had seen many ships before,” explained Tim Turner, Cherokee, manager of Plimoth Plantation’s Wampanoag Homesite and co-owner of Native Plymouth Tours. “They had seen traders and fishermen, but they had not seen women and children before. In the Wampanoag ways, they never would have brought their women and children into harm. So, they saw them as a peaceful people for that reason.”

But they did not greet them right away either. The English, in fact, did not see the Wampanoag that first winter at all, according to Turner. “They saw shadows,” he said. Samoset, a Monhegan from Maine, came to the village on March 16, 1621. The next day, he returned with Tisquantum [[Squanto), a Wampanoag who befriended and helped the English that spring, showing them how to plant corn, fish and gather berries and nuts. That March, the Pilgrims entered into a treaty of mutual protection with Ousamequin [[Massasoit), the Pokanoket Wampanoag leader.

Turner said what most people do not know about the first Thanksgiving is that the Wampanoag and Pilgrims did not sit down for a big turkey dinner and it was not an event that the Wampanoag knew about or were invited to in advance. In September/October 1621, the Pilgrims had just harvested their first crops, and they had a good yield. They “sent four men on fowling,” which comes from the one paragraph account by Pilgrim Edward Winslow, one of only two historical sources of this famous harvest feast. Winslow also stated, “we exercised our arms.” “Most historians believe what happened was Massasoit got word that there was a tremendous amount of gun fire coming from the Pilgrim village,” Turner said. “So he thought they were being attacked and he was going to bear aid.”

When the Wampanoag showed up, they were invited to join the Pilgrims in their feast, but there was not enough food to feed the chief and his 90 warriors. “He [Massasoit] sends his men out, and they bring back five deer, which they present to the chief of the English town [William Bradford]. So, there is this whole ceremonial gift-giving, as well. When you give it as a gift, it is more than just food,” said Kathleen Wall, a Colonial Foodways Culinarian at Plimoth Plantation.

The harvest feast lasted for three days. What did they eat? Venison, of course, and Wall said, “Not just a lovely roasted joint of venison, but all the parts of the deer were on the table in who knows how many sorts of ways.” Was there turkey? “Fowl” is mentioned in Winslow’s account, which puts turkey on Wall’s list of possibilities. She also said there probably would have been a variety of seafood and water fowl along with maize bread, pumpkin and other squashes. “It was nothing at all like a modern Thanksgiving,” she said.

While today Thanksgiving is one of our nation’s favorite holidays, it has a far different meaning for many Wampanoag, who now number between 4,000 and 5,000. Turner said, “For the most part, Thanksgiving itself is a day of mourning for Native people, not just Wampanoag people.”

At noon on every Thanksgiving Day, hundreds of Native people from around the country gather at Cole’s Hill, which overlooks Plymouth Rock, for the National Day of Mourning. It is an annual tradition started in 1970, when Wampanoag Wamsutta [[Frank) James was invited by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to give a speech at an event celebrating the 350th anniversary of the Pilgrims’ arrival and then disinvited after the event organizers discovered his speech was one of outrage over the “atrocities” and “broken promises” his people endured.
On the Wampanoag welcoming and having friendly relations with the Pilgrims, James wrote in his undelivered speech: “This action by Massasoit was perhaps our biggest mistake. We, the Wampanoag, welcomed you, the white man, with open arms, little knowing that it was the beginning of the end.”

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