Such a beautiful moon tonight!
It is the first full moon after the equinox and is called the Egg Moon, Grass Moon or Easter Moon. It will be full at 10:25 pm our time.
Here is an interesting article about it from Earthsky:
http://www.berthoudrecorder.com/2010...n-near-saturn/
This is the start of a new moon on the Ojibwe Calendar, where it also has several names, depending on the location of the people using the name, or whether it is a cold spring or a warm one. I have not heard the frogs or loons yet so I would pick the first name for this new moon this year. I think the snowshoes were not an issue here this year.
Iskigamizige-giizis Maple Sap Boiling Moon
Omakakiiwi-giizis Frog Moon
Bebookwedaagime-giizis Snowshoe Breaking Moon
Maango-giizis Loon Moon
Ziigwan - Springtime Tasks
It is past time to be in the sugar camps working. Here are some of the things that were done:
The women made birchbark baskets to hold the sap, and small containers to hold the sugar.
The men cut cedar shakes to direct the sap from the tree into the basket
The men cut holes in the trees and positioned the cedar shakes.
For 20-30 days, everyone worked on the sugar. The children helped tend fires and gather sap. The women tended the sap as it boiled,
The men went fishing often on the ice, and the fish was cleaned and dried or smoked for preservation.
Once the sugaring was done, fish began spawning and everyone went to the streams to catch as many as possible. We still do this today when the smelt are running. There used to be sturgeons, and of course, muskies, pike and walleye, bass and trout. Fish were a huge source of food and trade. Drying and smoking the fish continued full time.
Cedar and basswood bark was harvested, for building wigwams, making rope.
Early spring food plants and medicines were gathered, wild leeks, skunk cabbage, jack in the pulpit,
During Springtime when people came together, there would be a big celebration and feast, and during this time, many ceremonies would take place, such as vision quests, naming ceremonies, spiritual gatherings, music and dance.
Chocolate Easter Bunny Ears
Well, maybe not really, but here is the reason those ears are so nice and long, according to MicMac legend. The MicMac are still up on the east coast near the mouth of the St. Lawrence and southward into Maine.
How Rabbit got his long ears
A long time ago when Rabbit was first on this earth he had very short ears. One day he had nothing to do. He was very bored so he decided to play a trick on all the other animals.
He told Beaver, "Did you know that the sun is not going to rise again?"
Of course Beaver told Squirrel and Squirrel told Chipmunk and Chipmunk told Skunk and so on. The story soon got around and all the animals were worried.
The animals were all upset. They said, "If the sun is not going to shine anymore it will be dark and cold like winter. We will have to gather our food and get ready right now."
Even Bear was worried. He began to eat and eat the blueberries around him so he could grow fat and store his food. Squirrel was busy gathering all the nuts he could find. Everyone was busy getting ready for the sun not to shine again. They had no time to play even though it was a nice summer day.
Now Rabbit really thought this was funny. He hid in the bushes. He was laughing and laughing as he watched the other animals all running around trying to get ready for the sun not to shine anymore. Along came Kluskap. Normally the animals were all very glad to see Kluskap. They usually gathered around to talk to him. But this day no one ran up to greet him.
Kluskap asked Bear, "How are you? How is everything going?"
Bear said, "I don't have time to talk to you."
Kluskap just kept walking. No one paid any attention to him. Kluskap went back to Bear.
"What's wrong with you? You're not talking to me. What is going on? Talk to me. Something is wrong!" Kluskap said.
"Well, don't you know?" Bear said. "The sun is not going to shine anymore and we have to hurry up. I have to get ready for winter now. That is what everyone is doing."
Kluskap told bear, "Whoever told you that story is lying. It's not true."
So Kluskap called a meeting with all the animals and they all gathered around him in a circle. He got to the bottom of it.
He said, "Who told you Bear?"
Bear said, "Raccoon told me."
And Raccoon said, "Well, Chipmunk told me."
Everyone said who they heard the story from, all the way down to Beaver.
Beaver said, "It was Rabbit that told me."
Kluskap said, "Well, where is Rabbit?"
Rabbit was really scared so he hid in the bushes. Kluskap knew for sure then that Rabbit had started the story.
"Where is Rabbit?" he asked again.
"Not here. He is gone. He must be hiding," Beaver said.
Kluskap went and looked in the bushes. He found Rabbit and when he did he grabbed him by his ears and lifted him up. That is how Rabbit got his long ears.
Some Big Moccasins, Walking On
Wilma Mankiller, women’s rights heroine, walks on
By Rob Capriccioso
Story Published: Apr 6, 2010
Story Updated: Apr 6, 2010
WASHINGTON – Wilma Mankiller, former principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, passed away at age 64 in the morning hours of April 6 after a battle with pancreatic cancer.
Mankiller was best known for her leadership of her tribe, at which she served 12 years in elective office, the first two as deputy principal chief followed by 10 years as principal chief.
During her time in office and beyond, she was viewed nationwide as a strong Native American advocate, and had many friends in the women’s rights movement.
Mankiller retired from public office in 1995, but was never far from the public eye, serving as a board member on various organizations, including the Women Empowering Women for Indian Nations nonprofit. She also shared her wisdom at several learning institutions, including the University of Arizona.
Among her many honors, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Bill Clinton.
“Our personal and national hearts are heavy with sorrow and sadness with the passing this morning of Wilma Mankiller,” said Chad Smith, principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, in a release.
“We feel overwhelmed and lost when we realize she has left us but we should reflect on what legacy she leaves us. We are better people and a stronger tribal nation because her example of Cherokee leadership, statesmanship, humility, grace, determination and decisiveness. When we become disheartened, we will be inspired by remembering how Wilma proceeded undaunted through so many trials and tribulations.
“Years ago, she and her husband Charlie Soap showed the world what Cherokee people can do when given the chance, when they organized the self-help water line in the Bell community. She said Cherokees in that community learned that it was their choice, their lives, their community and their future. Her gift to us is the lesson that our lives and future are for us to decide. We can carry on that Cherokee legacy by teaching our children that lesson. Please keep Wilma’s family, especially her husband Charlie and her daughters, Gina and Felicia, in your prayers.”
Mankiller requested that any gifts in her honor be made as donations to One Fire Development Corporation, a nonprofit dedicated to advancing Native American communities.
Tax deductible donations can be made at www.wilmamankiller.com as well as www.onefiredevelopment.org. The mailing address for One Fire Development Corporation is 1220 Southmore Houston, TX 77004.
According to the Cherokee Nation, Mankiller’s memorial service will be held April 11 at the Cherokee Nation Cultural Grounds in Tahlequah, Okla.
http://www.indiancountrytoday.com/ho.../90011057.html
Just a little more about Wilma Mankiller
Obama, BIA head and others praise Mankiller’s life, legacy Oklahoma City, Oklahoma [[AP) April 2010
http://indiancountrynews.net/images/...illerwilma.jpg
President Barack Obama and others are praising the life and legacy of former Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Wilma Mankiller.
Mankiller battled numerous ailments, including breast cancer and lymphoma, but it was pancreatic cancer that took her life April 6. She was 64. Funeral services were scheduled for April 10th at 11am in Talequah, Oklahoma. Obama said Mankiller transformed the relationship between her tribe and the federal government and served as an inspiration to all women.
Bureau of Indian Affairs head Larry Echo Hawk says her childhood, her family’s financial struggles and relocation to California as part of a federal government program helped her gain insight on how to improve the lives of her people.
Cherokee Chief Chad Smith said when tribal members can be inspired by Mankiller’s grace in the face of so many trials and tribulations.
Oklahoma Congressman Tom Cole says we won’t soon see anyone like Mankiller again.
Comments on Passing of ex-Cherokee Chief Wilma Mankiller
*****
“I am deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Wilma Mankiller today. As the Cherokee Nation’s first female chief, she transformed the Nation-to-Nation relationship between the Cherokee Nation and the Federal Government, and served as an inspiration to women in Indian Country and across America. A recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, she was recognized for her vision and commitment to a brighter future for all Americans. Her legacy will continue to encourage and motivate all who carry on her work.” – President Barack Obama.
*****
“We are saddened by the passing of our friend Wilma Mankiller, a woman who exemplified the enduring strength of the human spirit. As the first female Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation, she was not only the guardian of the centuries-old Cherokee heritage but a revered leader who built a brighter and healthier future for her nation. During her two terms, she worked to create jobs, break down social and economic barriers, improve access to health care, and address the roots of both rural and urban poverty. She led her people with dignity and grace, fostering a sense of community, cooperation, and shared values.” – Former President Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
http://indiancountrynews.net/index.p...=8853&Itemid=1
The man behind the sugarmaker
This is about Jim Northrup, 'Nish writer and husband of the sugarmaker in the preceding video. Direct from his own writings, his history:
I used to be known as a bullshitter but that didn't pay anything. I began calling myself a storyteller - a little better, more prestige - but it still didn't pay anything. I became a freelance writer. At first it was more free than lance, then I started getting money for my words [[Rez Road Follies, p. 2)
Here he wrote about Sugar Bush:
Yup, we made maple syrup again. The cycle of seasons continues and we were able to gather our share of the annual gift. I told my grandson, Aaron, the Creator must like us: we were given syrup again.
Last month, my brother, Vern, Aaron, and I made snowshoe trails to walk on at the sugar bush. We did a good job but at the last minute we moved the sugar bush. We went to another place that had hip-deep snow. My cousin, Chuck Greensky [[identified as Chuck Greenday in a story by Julie Shortbread), and our kids made new trails in the new sugar bush. We like taking our kids along when we do things like this. It gives them fuel for their I-used-to-go-to-the-sugar-bush-with-my-dad stories. I think the cold outside air makes you sleep more. After breaking trails all day, we went home and slept like Rip Van White Guy.
My brother, Russ, and cousin, Butch Martineau, are at their sugar bush. Butch said he tapped one tree that squirted like a fire hydrant, cutting trenches in the snow. I told him all my trees squirt like that. Russ and Butch like sugar bush and the storytelling that goes on there. Russ did a great imitation of a Sawyer elder talking sugarbush: "You just tap the trees and then you just wait." He used the gestures and voice that we all recognized as belonging to one of our family members. It is the kind of story you hear around a boiling kettle of hot sap, eyes burning in the wood smoke. .....
Read more here:
http://www.turtletrack.org/Issues00/...imNorthrup.htm
Spring Beauties, Post #301
My Spring Beauties are blooming! They came out on Friday, and today the sun is perfect for their picture.
Why Are Traditions Important?
This is from a teaching given by Dr. Rosemary White Shield, Anishinabe/Choctaw, in a session on Nokomis Endaad [[Grandmother’s House). White Shield is the curriculum developer, coordinator and researcher for the Native American Parenting Traditions Revisited Program. She is also a consultant for the Minnesota Department of Health. The teachings were from the Fourth Annual Red Lake Drug and Gang Summit in February.
... White Shield cited historical trauma as being significant and alcohol as the common denominator. “Some Native scholars say that the effects of historical trauma are now being passed down generation to generation. There is an effort among many Indian nations to heal the effects of historical trauma, and learning about these factors is key to that healing.
Historical trauma refers to a cumulative wounding across generations as well as during one’s lifetime. Victims of genocide during Indian-European wars is estimated to be up to 13 million indigenous people. Using conservative estimates, 2/3 of indigenous people in North America were exterminated between 1500 and1900; and 90 percent of American Indian children were forcibly placed in boarding schools by 1930. The theory goes on to say that there is an “intergenerational transmission,” meaning there is a psychological transfer of trauma response across generations.
Her presentation described that colonization and forms of assimilation result in “altered states of self,” a loss of traditional values and culture. Colonization has historically used sexual violence as a primary tool of genocide – for Native women – to stop them from being mothers. The presentation states that colonization encompasses a wide range of strategies, “not only to destroy peoples, but to destroy their sense of being a people.”
The answer according to White Shield is the decolonizing of indigenous minds by re-centering indigenous values and cultural practices within research practice, and an essential piece is an indigenous peoples’ struggle for self-determination.
http://www.indiancountrytoday.com/archive/88845717.html
The Ongoing Sedona "sweat lodge" story
Motivational speaker Ray hit with another lawsuit
By Felicia Fonseca
Flagstaff, Arizona [[AP) April 2010
http://indiancountrynews.net/images/...y-mug-shot.jpgAn Arizona self-help guru charged with manslaughter in the sweat lodge deaths of three people has been sued by several people who contend they lost out on thousands of dollars paid in advance for self-help seminars that were never conducted.
A lawsuit filed April 2 in Maricopa County Superior Court contends James Arthur Ray and his Carlsbad, Calif.-based company, James Ray International, misled plaintiffs during sales pitches for the events and haven’t responded to calls or letters requesting refunds.
Ray has been named in other civil lawsuits that accuse him and the owners of the retreat where he held a deadly October sweat lodge ceremony of negligence, fraud and other actions. Sweat lodge ceremonies commonly are held by American Indian tribes to cleanse the body.
The lawsuit accuses Ray of breach of contract, consumer fraud and unjust enrichment. It names three plaintiffs but estimates up to 1,000 people are similarly situated.
Susan Smyser of Las Vegas, paid nearly $8,000 for two events; Patricia Franklin of Mesa paid almost $3,350 for two events; and Kim Wilson of Los Angeles paid more than $12,500 for four events, according to the lawsuit.
The plaintiffs contend Ray used prepaid fees to cover past events or fund his own wealth. They also say he lacked the assets or capital to conduct events or refund advanced fees without continued sales and collection of those fees.
A refund policy posted on Ray’s Web site says buyers have three days from the date of a transaction to cancel. Event registration fees then are considered nonrefundable, though the policy doesn’t address what happens when Ray cancels an event. Buyers can make a one-time transfer by paying an additional fee for an event held within a year of the one they initially signed up for, the policy states.
A representative for Ray said his attorneys haven’t reviewed the complaint.
Ray stopped holding events shortly after the two-hour ceremony he led near Sedona in October resulted in the hospitalization of 18 people and the deaths of Kirby Brown, 38, of Westtown, N.Y., James Shore, 40, of Milwaukee, and Liz Neuman, 49, of Prior Lake, Minn.
Prosecutors have said that Ray recklessly crammed more than 50 people inside the structure. His attorneys have called the deaths a tragic accident, and Ray has pleaded not guilty to three counts of manslaughter. His criminal trial is scheduled to begin Aug. 31.
oe Rose: The Oskibimadizeeg (The New People)
A little talk about the Seventh Fire.... The New People [Oss' kih bih ma' diz eeg]. Be sure and watch the youtube at the end.
Welcome to IndianCountryTV - Spirituality Produced by Nick Vander Puy
Reserve, Wisconsin [[www.IndianCountryTV.com)
According to some Ojibwe prophecy, during the time of the Seventh Fire, which is figured to have started with the boat landing spearfishing protests in Wisconsin in the late nineteen eighties, a new people will emerge to retrace their steps back to natural living.
During this time, the journey of the natural people of the earth, the Oskibimadizeeg, [[the New People) will take them to elders for advice.
According to teachings in The Mishomis Book the light skinned race will be offered a choice between following the road towards unlimited technology and spiritualism. If the slower, less damaging path towards spiritualism is followed the Seventh Fire will light the Eighth Fire, an era of peace, brotherhood, sisterhood, and love.
During the Native American Week at Northland College, Ashland, Wisconsin in March Professor Joe Rose [[Bad River Ojibwe) talked about the emerging New People.
"There are four colors on the medicine wheel, red, white, black, and yellow. They will come together during the time of the Seventh Fire."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65V02...layer_embedded
Ways of thinking about things
The history piece above is a look at shifting how we look at things. As we go through our suns, moons and seasons, the more years that pile on, the more things seem to come up that we just believe or accept because they are. How often do we think about shifting our outlook for a fresh perspective.
Example, someone posted last night on my Facebook page that they were so excited making a ceremonial dress for their little girl for her naming ceremony next month. She is so anxious to get everything traditional and everything right for this event. Wouldn't you know, someone commented that they thought we are only supposed to make ceremonial garb in the winter, not in the spring or summer. Hmmm.
Is this a tradition that has spiritual meaning? Or is it based on the traditional lifestyle, when spring, summer and fall were so busy that any time taken for personal pursuits could have a negative impact on the family and maybe even the whole community? One less person available to fish, hunt, filet and hang fish and meat for drying, gathering fruits, berries, nuts and seeds to put up for winter, could make a big dent in the community stores for the coming winter season.
Nowadays, we do not live a traditional lifestyle for the most part. We probably have jobs to make money to buy our food and clothing. Sure, we may also hunt and gather foods in the traditional ways, but that does not usually make up the mainstay of our winter diet. Those of us who are not busy with such pursuits are not impacting the community by not producing food and goods for community use.
Another issue is the materials used in the regalia. Feathers, skins and bone beads could involve killing birds and animals for their hides and feathers and bones. Spring is no time to be hunting just for decoration, but there would be hunting for food and those creatures that serve as food do have hides and feathers that could be harvested for future use in ceremonial garb. Nowadays, we can order those things from places like Crazy Crow and Noc Bay Trading Company year round should we choose to go that route.
So, would it be OK for the woman to make the regalia now, to prepare for the ceremony? Tradition tells us that Indian communities in the old days did take time to prepare for feasts and celebrations at times in the Spring and Fall. Did that include making regalia? Maybe not, but it might include refurbishing and adding to what we had already. Repairing and refreshing decoration happened year round.
It is something to think about.
Echohawk for Supreme Court?
American Indian Supreme Court push
Originally printed at http://www.indiancountrytoday.com/ho.../91030729.html
WASHINGTON – Justice John Paul Stevens’ retirement from the U.S. Supreme Court has some tribal legal advocates calling for an American Indian replacement.
Stevens, who announced April 9 he would retire in late June or early July, has served on the court since 1975. A member of the court’s liberal voting bloc, he slowly grew stronger on tribal issues, including sovereignty, during his tenure, legal observers said. Still, the consensus is, he had a long way to go.
“Justice Stevens’ record on Indian issues is a mixed bag,” said Chris Stearns, a Navajo attorney for Hobbs Straus Dean & Walker and a commissioner with the Seattle Human Rights Commission. “His 35-year tenure on the court meant he was involved in some of the most significant cases in Indian law history.
“He wrote the Supreme Court’s 1989 opinion affirming the Boldt decision upholding Washington tribal fishing rights and rejecting the state of Washington’s appeal led by then-Attorney General Slade Gorton. That case remains one of the most profound recognition of the power of treaties.”
Stearns added that Stevens was “the lone voice of reason” on the court during the controversial Carcieri decision of 2009, in which he argued in favor of the Narragansett Tribe’s position.
On the other hand, Stearns noted that Stevens sometimes dissented against tribal interests in cases favoring tribes, such as Cabazon, which involved gaming, and Holyfield, which involved the Indian Child Welfare Act.
Matthew L.M. Fletcher, director of the Indigenous Law and Policy Center at Michigan State University, expanded on Stevens’ anti-tribal decisions, saying that his legacy in Indian law is “very, very bad.”
Fletcher said that Stevens was particularly tough in the area of federal Indian law preemption cases, where all tribal taxation cases fit.
“During the 1970s and through the 1980s, the tax cases were hit and miss because the court was unsure how to handle them. But in 1989’s Cotton Petroleum case [[authored by Stevens), the court placed the advantage squarely with the states and local governments. From then on, the court only took cases far out of step with its settled understanding. …”
Fletcher also believes Stevens would “have eviscerated tribal sovereign immunity long ago,” since he often has argued against any form of immunity, tribal, federal and state, for decades, to little or no avail.
Many Indian law experts believe the Supreme Court is weak on tribal issues because it has never had any knowledgeable members of that field.
To remedy the situation, some Native American-focused organizations are rallying for an Indian face on the bench. John Echohawk, director of the Native American Rights Fund, has been floated as the most common name, even receiving a nod in The Nation publication, which is influential in some Washington circles.
Richard Guest, a legal expert with NARF, said officials with his organization are soon to have a meeting with White House officials regarding Echohawk’s qualifications, which range from tribal and federal expertise to nonprofit and legal aid issues.
“We believe we have a strong case to share regarding John Echohawk – not only because he is a strong Native American legal authority, but he also has diversity of perspective.”
The National Native American Bar Association is also pushing for a Native candidate, sending the White House a letter April 14 to make that case.
“Our first goal is to try to get a Native person in there,” said Heather Dawn Thompson, the immediate past president of the organization. “It’s always a long shot, but we actually think we have as good a shot as anyone else.”
Reasons for hope include a USA Today poll last year that indicated a majority of American people saying they’d like to see an Indian nominated to the court.
Plus, Thompson said the wide-ranging legal experience of Indian law experts should be a factor.
“Every Native attorney is a constitutional scholar, by definition. In this field, you just have to be a state and federal law expert. … every single issue that could come up is addressed in this field.”
Fletcher took a hesitant view of the likelihood of a Native selection. “Sadly [[very, very sadly), John Echohawk [[or any other American Indian, or Indian law-focused practitioner) is definitely not a serious contender. Most realistic possibilities for the Supreme Court nomination are already federal or state judges in order to avoid the obvious question, ‘What is the nominee’s judicial experience?’ And there simply are not any American Indians on the federal bench, and only a small handful on state appellate benches.”
The NNABA has long made the case that the absence of Indian federal judges across the board needs to be remedied, especially since such cases tend to disproportionately affect Native Americans.
Among the non-Indian names mentioned for the bench, none are notable on Indian issues, and there is little consensus on who would be best in terms of tribal affairs.
President Barack Obama is expected to make a decision on his selection by summer. No matter the candidate, a tough confirmation battle is expected in Congress, given the increased politicization in that body lately.
