Paging Gazhekwe

[jams]

Hope to see you there.

Monday I could hear the singing all the way to Fort Street

[gazhekwe]

This is the remaining schedule -- I hope to be there tomorrow evening to see Bill Miller. Hey, Jams, nice to see you here! I will look for you.

250th Anniversary Commemoration of Chief Pontiac's Council
April 27, 1763-2013

Honor our Culture Traditional Pow Wow
& Detroit River Canoe Border Crossing
Council Point Park on the Ecorse River ~ Lincoln Park, Michigan
April 19, 2013 - April 28, 2013

---

All Events are offered to the public free of charge,
Co-Presented by the American Indian Movement of Michigan,
and the City of Lincoln Park Historical Museum

---

Schedule of Events

[[subject to change)

• School Programs /Monday through Friday, April 22 to April 26, 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.*

Evening Public Programs

• Thursday April 25

• 3pm Community Food Distribution – Forgotten Harvest
• 5pm Classic Pontiac Car Show in parking lot
• 7pm ‘Into the West’[[pt 3) film**

• Friday April 26

• 9am-12pm Canoe International Border Crossing, at Detroit River - Belle Isle to Windsor/return
• *[[1pm-5pm Educational Programs in p.m. due to morning event)
• 5pm Grammy winning singer-songwriter Bill Miller concert
• 7pm ‘Older than America’ film**

• Saturday April 27

• 10am-8pm American Indian Movement annual Pow Wow
  Grand Entry at 1:00 p.m.
• 5:00 pm 250th Anniversary Ceremony, including the State of Michigan’s dedication of
  “Pontiac’s Council” Historical Site Marker

• Sunday April 28

• 10am-6pm American Indian Movement annual Pow Wow
  Grand Entry at 1:00 p.m.

For more information [[313) 386-3137
curator@lphistorical org
www lphistorical org

* School programs by prior reservation only
** All films will start at dusk, time to enjoy a walk in the park

[gazhekwe]

http://www.lphistorical.org/Pontiac_FactSheet.pdf

WHO: PONTIAC, or Obwandiyag [[born ca. 1720 – April 20, 1769), was a Native American Ottawa war leader, remembered for his participation in the struggle against British occupation of the Great Lakes region that bears his name: Pontiac's Rebellion.

Pontiac rose to great fame and importance during this war, and yet the documentary evidence of Pontiac's life is scanty. Much of what has been written about the chief has been based on tradition and speculation, and so depictions of him have varied greatly over the years.

Beyond Pontiac himself, we turn to a literal cast of thousands on the 1763 stage: the Chieftains and Warriors of the Indian nations of the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley regions; the British soldiers and officers who commanded and garrisoned the forts in the region; the British settlers with the aim of moving westward from the crowded English/American colonies; the French habitants who had lived in the region for generations; and the French & British traders, all hoping to make their fortunes here.


WHAT:It is said that Pontiac‘s April 1763 COUNCIL on the ECORSE RIVER* was the largest Indian council attended by multiple Nations yet to meet in the western territory. Chiefs and warriors of the Great Lakes Nations were summoned together, and in a few weeks‘ time other tribes would be enlisted to join their campaign efforts.

Pontiac formally began the council by reciting a list of grievances against the British, rousing those in attendance to advance to war. Pontiac displayed the war belt which he told them he had received from their French Father, the King of France, to induce Pontiac to attack the English.

He further inspired those gathered with the story of the famed Delaware Prophet, Neolin, who had journeyed to visit the Great Spirit. The core of Neolin's teachings was the belief that Indians had been corrupted by European ways and must purify themselves by returning to the traditions of their ancestors and preparing for a holy war. The Great Spirit instructed Neolin to spread his message against the white men: “Drive them out, make war upon them… Send them back to the lands which I have created for them.”

*[The river was called Rivière aux Écorces by the French: ―the river of the bark, signifying the importance of the birch bark for many uses by the area tribes.]

[gazhekwe]

It was a beautiful sunny evening at Council Point Park, a bit chilly with a stiff breeze coming in from the south. We gathered in the circle to hear a Grammy winning singer songwriter, maybe a hundred of us, all bundled up with anticipation. Bill Birdsong Miller did not disappoint us. He sang to us, talked to us, and played his amazing double flute. Bill does a wonderful show, no matter how small the audience, no matter if they did not have to pay a dime to come and listen to his amazing voice and words.

Jams, I did not see you there. Sorry if I missed you!

These are a few songs Bill sang last night, from different venues.


He opened with Hallelujah http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExCCqGqBejk


My all time favorite, Anishinaabe http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A4pA48mKEN8

He closed with Folsom Prison http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZrd616GDVg For this one he showed the necklace he was wearing. It was a beautiful black and white beaded round belonged to Johnny Cash and was given to Bill by John Carter Cash.

I couldn't find one of him playing the marvelous double flute:




But here he is with a single flute: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHDcm...CAEF2&index=14

Added a couple of pix. I have one of him playing the double flute, having a little trouble with the upload process.

The first one shows him playing Faith of a Child to a young girl who was in the audience. I didn't find it on YouTube. Here is the first verse:

[edit]

A child will walk, a child will run
A child with faith, faith will fly
Anita hasn't walked right since she was small
Her legs are short and twisted not straight and tall
She learned when she was young how to deal with the rejection
Cast into a world with all it standards of perfection
Most people looked away with a downward glance
And as a beautiful young woman, she was never asked to dance
Her dreams were just as lofty as the girl next door
And she remember what her father said
when she couldn't take no more
He said
Someday your going to soar like a eagle,
You will run and never grow tired
You'll become a new creation
If you just keep the faith of a child,

[gazhekwe]

Native American Times Powwow Guide is ready to download FREE from www.nativetimes.com

http://nativetimes.com/pdf/2013PowwowGuide.pdf

This guide has great information about powwow dances and powwow etiquette as well as dates for powwows all over the country. Lots of great pix, too. There is one ad for supplies to make beadwork and regalia.

I hope you will enjoy this!

[gazhekwe]

Jacob Devaney, Founder and Director, Culture Collective

Posted: 05/13/2013 7:52 am

Teacher and Principal Pressured to Resign over Student Presentation about Fracking

At Evergreen Middle School near Denver, Colorado, young members of Earth Guardians made a presentation and sang a rap which has infuriated local parents and brought angry threats upon the school and the youth. Some are calling it "liberal indoctrination" others calling it "censorship," the school has apologized, and what started out as a simple presentation by 13-year-old Xiuhtezcatl and his 9-year-old brother Itzcuauhtl has turned into a national story. The youths presentation included a rap that they wrote about the dangers of fracking stating, "poisoned the water, poisoned the air, poisoned the people, do you think that's fair?" and included a call-and-response for the students, "When I say what the, you say frack. What the... frack, what the... frack."

Earth Guardians is an organization started and run by youth [[most under 13 years old) whose mission is, "...to educate and assist youth in becoming active caretakers of our precious earth, and to empower them in becoming outspoken environmental leaders, both locally and globally." Earth Guardians achieve their mission through nature programs, environmental education, message-driven performances and community activism. From their website, "Earth Guardians provide youth with the knowledge, tools, and leadership qualities needed to envision and shape a healthy planet, one that we can all be proud to pass on to our next generations."

A local teacher had learned about Xiuhtezcatl and Earth Guardians through a film produced by Peter Gabriels organization, Witness, and she thought that a presentation would be inspirational for her students. Witness features youth activists and promotes video advocacy. The short video focuses on our Public Trust, and the governments responsibility to make sure our air and water is protected while highlighting the work of Xiuhtezcatl and Earth Guardians.
Though natural gas burns cleaner than other fuels, the process for extracting it, known as fracking, is harmful to the air and the water. Toxic Trespass occurs when hazardous materials used on one property become airborne, or seep into the water-supply and drift [[or trespass) from one property to the next, or enter our bodies without our consent.

Michael Green states in his recent post, Fracking, Health, and our Chemical History:

Though fracking companies keep their chemical use secret, a 2011 study identified more than 600 chemicals used in fracking. Many of these chemicals have never been fully assessed for health risks, but 353 were frequently cited in scientific studies. Twenty-five percent of these 353 fracking chemicals were linked to cancer and mutations; 40-50% can affect the brain/nervous system, immune and cardiovascular systems; and more than 75% can harm the skin, eyes, and respiratory and gastrointestinal systems.The study also found that 37% of these 353 fracking chemicals could disrupt our bodies' natural hormones, with impacts on sexual development, reproductive health and fertility. Health problems from these substances, called endocrine disrupting chemicals, can manifest at different stages of life - from neonatal and infant periods to the aging adult. Some endocrine disruptors can even have health impacts across generations...

The health of our democracy depends on an informed and active public, yet the content of what is taught or talked about in schools is often disputed. The oil and gas industries have the money to buy television ads, lobby our politicians to reduce EPA regulations, hire lawyers and public relations teams to tell us that fracking is safe. Does this make you feel safe? Are we truly informed when the ones informing us have a vested financial interest in the story they are selling us?

"When your kids lives are in danger, do you stop to ask the government permission to protect them?" - Julia Butterfly Hill

ABC 7 News in Denver has reported that, "The district told 7NEWS it plans to distribute pro-oil and gas literature to parents so they have information from the other side." Though students deserve to hear a balanced story, pro-gas marketing materials will not refute nor answer to the concerns of a growing number of citizens. If the chemicals they are using are safe, then why do they refuse to disclose what they are?

We all need energy, we all use various forms of gas and energy that involve varying degrees of risk for us and our environment. Accurate information about the risks is necessary to determine the cost to our environment and peoples health. The thought of censoring objection, or burying questions and concerns with glossy marketing materials defies the principles of critical analysis. The price we may pay in the long run with damage to our environment from these chemicals may be too much, but those with money to make in the short term don't want to have a conversation with full disclosure about potential risks.

An uninformed democracy fails. When elected officials are beholden to lobbyists and financial interests above the health of the people, that is when people of all ages and backgrounds should be taking a stand and asking questions. In Colorado we have a collection of courageous young Americans leading the charge.

You would think that people would applaud them, but that's not the case. The threats, insults, and harassment of these youth and their friends on The Earth Guardians Facebook Fanpage have been so inappropriate that some of the kids mothers have spent the days reporting and deleting hateful comments. Unfortunately in America, we have come to expect slander and character assassination when there is no other intelligent or factual response to someone that has exposed a hidden truth. When the anger and verbal aggression of adults is directed at a group of children through an internet site, it crosses a boundary and becomes bullying. I can't think of any instance where bullying children is appropriate...

I spoke briefly on the phone with Xiuhtezcatl and he was more articulate and confident than most adults. He spewed more facts at me than I could keep up with and when I asked him what he felt about all of this he responded, "Obviously they are targeting a 13-year-old boy because we are speaking the truth. What they don't realize is that it's gonna effect their kids too if we don't do anything about it."

He told me that he does research on the internet, goes to conferences and learns as much as he can about the science because, "We are fighting for the survival of our generation and the health of the waters, the air, our community. We are fighting for kids everywhere."

This controversial rap might just become the next hit single among youth across the country. At the request of the school district however, the video of the two singing at school has been removed. I'm sure that it will resurface again and again as Earth Guardians gain momentum and acclaim for their creative use of media, activism, and music. Below is another popular tune by Earth Guardians called, "Act as if Our Future Matters."

Let us take their advice and live as if it matters. Let's remember that our young ones are watching and we have a responsibility to be role models, support their expression and give them a voice in their future. In the case of The Earth Guardians, perhaps adults can learn a little from these kids about speaking up for the safety of our communities, the air, and the water.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jacob-...b_3256988.html

[Jimaz]

I guess Detroit isn't the only place with a scrapper problem.

Ancient Maya Pyramid Destroyed in Belize

...

A construction company in Belize has been scooping stone out of the major pyramid at the site of Nohmul [[meaning Big Mound), one of only 15 ancient Maya sites important enough to be noted on the National Geographic World Atlas.

The National Institute of Culture and History of Belize had earlier noted that "the site continues to be destroyed by road construction crews who bulldoze the mounds for gravel."...

Authorities discovered the destruction late last week.

All of Belize's ancient Maya sites are protected by law....

What were they thinking?!

[gazhekwe]

This story is heartbreaking. I saw it last week but due to some personal issues, I was not ready to address it. Worldwide, historic sites are not respected as the monuments to history and the opportunities to education that they are. Each time one is damaged or destroyed, we all lose contact with our past.

Here in the New World, where our history is not written in books, we are even more bereft by such destruction. Who cares? they shrug. They got what they needed, stone for the roads.

[gazhekwe]

American Indian Mascots In Michigan Schools To Stay Says Federal Agency

DETROIT [[WWJ/AP) – A federal agency has dismissed a complaint seeking to ban the use of American Indian mascots in Michigan’s schools.
In February, the Michigan Department of Civil Rights cited 35 Michigan school districts for discrimination, saying their mascots reinforce stereotypes and hurt American Indian students’ self-esteem and learning.
But the U.S. Education Department’s Office of Civil Rights denied the state’s complaint last week.
The state civil rights department says it’s disappointed by the ruling and is considering its options.

http://detroit.cbslocal.com/2013/06/...ederal-agency/

A little more info from the Free Press on the reasons for dismissal and the state's response:

But the federal department, in its letter dismissing the complaint, said the information the state department provided “is not sufficient for OCR to infer that racial discrimination has occurred or is occurring,” said Catherine Criswell, director of the OCR office.Criswell said the department had not provided to OCR any specific examples of race-based incidents or identified “any students or individuals who have suffered specific harm because of the alleged discrimination at any of the named school districts.”

The department’s complaint asked the OCR to create a new standard for determining whether there is a hostile environment. The current standard requires the MDCR to prove there is intent to discriminate against students, said Leslee Fritz, spokeswoman for the state department. “That’s an incredibly hard threshold to meet. It’s a rare in stance where there’s intent,” Fritz said. She said the department believes most school districts choose their mascot and their imagery “in an effort to show respect to a community and to the community’s history. They’re not intending to do harm.” The MDCR argument, though, is that “it’s no longer a relevant part of the conversation when we know harm is happening.”

[gazhekwe]

Natives Are Not Gun-Rights Mascots

Adrian Jawort
June 10, 2013

In Greeley, Colorado there are signs along a busy highway that show a picture of three Native men holding guns that say, “Turn in your arms, the government will take care of you.” The people who created billboard do not want to be disclosed. Just over 200 miles away from Greeley, the site of the infamous 1864 Sand Creek Massacre took place in which 700 cowardly Colorado volunteers and soldiers gunned down over 200 mostly Arapaho and Cheyenne women, children, and elderly men while most of the warriors were out hunting.

Before the massacre, pacifist and Cheyenne “peace” Chief Black Kettle had waved an American flag he’d gotten from Abraham Lincoln himself the year prior, and told the camp they needn’t be afraid because he was assured no Americans would fire at anyone who flew this flag. The “well-regulated militia” opened fire, however, and slaughtered his people before his eyes. Later, they paraded their ghoulish “trophies” of things like women’s private parts in downtown Denver among other heinous acts.
Atrocities endured by our ancestors have seemingly become likened to a pro-NRA prop to fuel political ignorance and paranoia of G-men coming to confiscate every law abiding citizens’ guns if added modest regulations are proposed to buy them, or existing rules are actually enforced with teeth.

Disclosure: my brother, who was just a year younger than me and someone I considered my best friend, was a victim of gun violence. He died several years ago at the age of 26, exactly a month before his son’s first birthday. The impact of a bullet had shattered his pelvis, and he laid and bled out for several hours before he was begrudgingly taken to the hospital by the one who shot him where he was pronounced DOA - Dead On Arrival. It obviously pains and angers me when I think about how horrid my baby brother’s last couple of hours on this earth must’ve been.

However, I never blamed a gun for his death; I blamed the person who abused it. During the court sentencing I said to the face of my brother’s murderer, “Guns don’t kill people, idiots with guns kill people.” The presiding judge agreed and even quoted me soon after. I consider myself a crack shot, and I’ve used guns and respected them since I was a young boy wandering the Montana countryside.

I personally know at least a dozen people my age or younger I count as good friends that have served in Afghanistan or Iraq- most with multiple tours and a few that were Special Forces. I’m just noting that’s my generation and I’m proud of these warriors, and none of them need to pretend they’re manlier-than-thou because they’re playing GI Joe with a AR-15 shouting against imagined “tyranny.” They’ve seen the real oppression of Taliban and Islamic radicals firsthand.

But with any proposed gun restrictions automatically being deemed "unconstitutional" by factions, I'm curious what self-proclaimed patriots think is "constitutional" regarding an amendment written when muskets fired once or twice followed by bayonet and close quarter physical fighting was the rule in 1791—not like when the Tucson killer expended over 30 rounds in a brief terrifying moment and received 19 charges of murder and attempted murder for the minimal effort of twitching his finger.
Do current gun rights advocates honestly believe there are no lines to be considered because of political partisanship? Or does a mentally ill, deranged mass murderer’s right to bear and stockpile arms that they bought with little or no questions asked before pumping rounds into civilians always trump our own right to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness"?

As far as the definition of "arms," do they think selling more firepower that includes fully automatics, Surface to Air Missiles, and grenades to any citizen is a right that "shall not be infringed" lest they can't adequately defend themselves from said theoretical government tyranny?

Am I under the mistaken belief the NRA is supposed to be about teaching safe and responsible gun ownership, or has the NRA motto become: "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of schoolchildren and civilians"? Does that sound like freedom?

Rather than unite behind the unite behind the recent horrific tragedy of Newton, extremist pro-gun Americans have wrapped themselves in the same haunted American flag that Black Kettle flew over his camp while he watched women and children being slaughtered and called it patriotism.

As a proud Cheyenne who knows how hard my ancestors fought so I could speak today, I know their spilled blood should not be used as a “gun rights” Straw Man ploy. Does anyone really believe the anonymous people who created this billboard are some kind of longtime American Indian rights activists?

Not to exclude other non-white killers like that of the Korean National V-Tech and the Ojibwe Red Lake killers, but if we’re bringing race into the issue, why don’t they use pictures of mass murdering Caucasians Jared Loughner of Tucson, Newtown’s Adam Lanza, or Aurora’s James Holmes? They’d call it insensitive, while ironically telling me I should “just get over it” regarding the deaths of innocent Sand Creek children being exploited. They could have a picture of all three of them together as it says, “Buy more guns. The NRA will make it easier for these guys to do so, after all.”

Sardonic, perhaps, but at least having their photos on a billboard wouldn’t be a deflection to the real reason of why we’re having this discussion in the first place instead of using the systematic genocide of Natives as some sort of political gun nut mascot.

A lifelong Montana resident, Adrian Jawort is a freelance journalist, writer, and poet. A proud member of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe, he is a contributor to Indian Country Today Media Network as well as Native Peoples, Cowboys & Indians and many other publications.

Read more athttp://indiancountrytodaymedianetwor...rights-mascots

[gazhekwe]

by Johnny Rustywire 6-11-2013

It was long ago at a place not too far from Winona Trading Post along the Turquoise Trail where you came across a muddy wash that each Spring roared to life with the rain and it washed over the land so fast it raced down to a place where it cut through the rocks and flowed and they called this place Grand Falls. It’s sort of out in the sticks and it’s a hard life there. But there is sweet water from a spring and so an old couple came to live there. Their place was not so big. Just a hogan, a sheep corral and an outbuilding with a couple of cedars. It was just short of a day’s ride from Kinlani, the place of many old houses, located in the pines.

The old couple had no children, but on stopping at Winona Trading post they heard that a child was found along side the road and that no one claimed the little girl. It was believed that she had been left there, or was lost and so she was taken to the Indian mission in Kinlani.

By chance, the old couple would go by there to water their horses and to sleep in one of the cabins provided by the missionary who lived there and while there they saw this little girl. Some said she was from the Keesahni people and others said she was from Selba Delkai; others said she was Apache…no one really knew.

She had bright eyes and dark hair and looked at the old couple from the other room, peeking in at them…she was maybe two or three winters old. When the old couple went to sleep on the floor they covered themselves with a heavy quilt and when they woke in the morning the little girl was lying between them. She didn’t speak much. She just liked to watch everything and everybody. They were in town for three days and each day the child would follow them around and the missionary said she did not know what to do with her. The child was an orphan, it seemed. The little girl did not talk much and when she walked she would walked with a stilted gait as if her balance was not that good. But her eyes were large, bright and dark.

The old couple got their supplies and filled their wagon and left Kinlani and headed back to Grand Falls. It was early spring; the year was 1908. The roads were rough and so they made their way back slowly past the lava fields and old hills of volcanic ash that dotted the land. They stopped at a ranch along the way known as Stretton’s place and watered their horses and camped over night. Old man Stretton came over and said to them in their own language: “Where did you find that little girl? She is pretty, that one.”

They said she is our granddaughter and we are headed back to our place. The little girl with big eyes just peeked out from the wagon at the old white man and didn’t say anything. The old couple and the little girl left the next morning.

When they got back to their place, the old couple tended to the sheep and lived their lives like they had always done and noticed the little girl did not talk at all but just followed them around and played with the cat. They told her the cat was named Mosi—the word forcatin Navajo—and that there was not another name for it.
She settled in with them and they wondered if she would ever talk. She continued to watch everything and she ran around the best she could. But when strangers came she would find a place to hide and not come out until they were gone.

Mosi seemed to know everywhere there was a place to hide and she would always lead the old couple to where the little girl was. They came to call her Nizoni---Pretty One---but she never talked to anyone. She just watched everything with her large dark eyes behind her bushy hair.

Then one day they noticed that she did not sleep near them and when they woke up she was gone, so they went to look for her. In the Chao-wood shade house outside they found her lying on the ground all wrapped up and they wondered if she had the fever. She woke up and looked up at them with her wide eyes and she smiled the biggest smile she ever made and they were surprised to see her so full of good spirit. They wondered why she was so happy. Then they heard a faint noise and listened carefully and Nizoni just laughed….

They had never heard her laugh before. It was like a young bird singing in the early morning and they looked at each other with wonder as to why she was laughing….and then they saw them….Mosi’s kittens. Three of them were lying next to Nizoni. All tiny and small….just little ones.

Nizoni looked at them and said ”Mosi, Mosi” and they laughed to hear her for the first time speak to them. Nizoni cuddled those little kittens in her arms and she said “they are my kittens.”

The elders were happy to finally hear her talk. They made a place for Mosi’s kittens so they would be nice and warm, and the little girl took care of them. From then on she told everyone about “her” kittens. So it went long ago at that place called Grand Falls, just a little ways from Kinlani.

Johnny Rustywire is Folded Rocks Clan People on his mother’s side, and born for Tsinahbiltnii, the Mountain People Clan on his father’s side. He comes from Toadlena-Two Gray Hills, New Mexico, where the mountain is cracked and the water flows. He is a father of six and grandfather of 12. He attended Indian boarding schools and grew up on the Navajo Reservation, and has been married to the same woman for 40 years, a Ute from Fort Duchesne, Utah.

Read more athttp://indiancountrytodaymedianetwor...story-mosi-cat

[gazhekwe]

Long ago when all the animals talked like people, Turkey overheard a boy begging his sister for food.

“What does your little brother want?” he asked the girl.

“He’s hungry, but we have nothing to eat,” she said.

When Turkey heard this, he shook himself all over. Many kinds of fruits and wild food dropped out of his body, and the brother and sister ate these up. Turkey shook himself again, and a variety of corn that is very large dropped out of his feathers. He shook himself a third time, and yellow corn dropped out. And when he shook himself for the fourth time, white corn dropped out.

Bear came over, and Turkey told him, “I’m helping to feed my sister and my brother, over there.”

Bear said, “You can shake only four times to make food come out of you, but I have every kind of food on me, from my feet to my head.”

Bear shook himself, and out of his fur dropped juniper berries. He shook himself again, and out dropped a cactus that is good to eat. Then he shook out acorns, then another kind of cactus, then gambel oak acorns, then blue oak acorns, then pinion nuts, then a species of sumac, then manzanita berries, then wild mulberries, then saguaro fruit.

Turkey said to the boy and girl, “I have four kinds of corn seeds here for you, and this is a good place to plant them.”

The sister and brother cut digging sticks and made holes with them. In the holes they planted all their corn seeds. The next day the corn had already come up and was about a foot and a half high.

The girl said, “we still have some squash seeds here,” so they planted them too. The boy and girl asked Turkey for more corn seed. “The corn is coming up nicely,” they said, “so we want to make another farm and plant more corn there.” Turkey gave them the seed, and they left him to look after their first fields while they started off to make the other farm.

When they came back, they heard Turkey hollering at the corn field. They ran down there and saw him dragging one wing along the ground on the side toward them. There were snakes on the other side of him, and he pretended to have a broken wing to lure the snakes away and shield the boy and girl.

The squash plants had young squash on them, and the corn had grown tall and formed ears and tassels. The tassels had pollen in them, and the snakes had come to gather the pollen out of the corn plants.

Turkey told the boy and the girl to stay away from the corn for four days, when the snakes would be finished. At the end of the four days, the corn was ripe.

Turkey told them, “This will be the only time when the corn will come up in four days. From now on it will take quite a while.”
And it does.

By now, the brother and sister had planted corn three times, and they gave seeds to other people. Then Slim Coyote came and asked for some.

“The corn you planted is growing well, and the ears are coming out on it,” he said. “I’d like to have some seeds to plant for myself.” Coyote would have to do lots of work if he wanted to raise his corn, but that wasn’t his plan. “These other people here plant their corn, and after it’s grown they have to cook it. Me, I am not going to do it that way. I’ll cook my corn first, and then plant it, so I won’t have to bother to cook it when it’s ripe.”

Here’s where Coyote made a big mistake. He cooked his corn, ate some, planted quite a patch of the rest. He felt pretty good about it. “Now I’ve done well for myself. You people have to cook your corn after you plant it, but mine will be already cooked,” he said. After planting, he went off with the rest of the people to gather acorns, but when they returned to their fields, Coyote’s had nothing growing on it at all.

He said angrily, “You people must have taken the hearts out of the corn seeds you gave to me.”

“No, we didn’t do that,” they told him, “but you cooked the heart out of them before you planted.”

Coyote asked for more seeds and planted them the right way this time. So his corn grew :the day after he planted it, it was up about a foot and a half. He felt good. The people who had planted their corn at the beginning were harvesting now and tying it up into bundles. Coyote saw these and wanted some. People got mad at Coyote because he was always asking them for corn.

“I just want some green ears to feed my children,” he would say. “As soon as my corn is ripe, I’ll pay you back.”

The other people had all their corn in and stripped now, but their squashes were still growing in the field. Coyote stole their squash, and the people all came to his camp. They wanted to know if he was the one who was stealing their squash.

Coyote pretended to get angry. “You’re always blaming me for stealing everything. There are lots of camps over there. Why do you choose mine to come to with your accusations?”

But the people knew about Coyote’s thieving ways. “From now on, don’t make your farm near us. Move away and live someplace else!” they said.

“All right. There are several of you that I was going to repay with corn, but I won’t do it now that you’ve treated me this way,” he said. So Coyote’s family lived poorly, and they never bothered to cook anything before they ate it.

Source: firstpeople

[gazhekwe]

Native-Themed License Plate Could Allegedly Promote Pantheism

Carol Berry
June 14, 2013



An Oklahoman who felt an American Indian image on his car’s state-issued license plate violated his civil rights received a positive hearing from two of three federal appeals court justices in Denver June 12.Keith Cressman objected to a depiction on the Oklahoma license plate of a sculpture by the late Allan Houser, noted Chiricahua Apache artist, of “Sacred Rain Arrow,” which shows a man shooting an arrow skyward to convey peoples’ prayers for rain during a drought.

“Pantheism, polytheism, and/or animism,” to which Cressman does not subscribe, are promoted by the license plate, he contends in court records.

Cressman said that the image could constitute Oklahoma’s endorsement of a non-Christian religion and that requiring him to show it on his license plate is in violation of his constitutional free speech and religious rights. The image is symbolic speech with which Cressman does not agree, but which he must display, the court acknowledged.

His initial civil rights lawsuit over the issue was filed in 2011 against Oklahoma public safety and tax commission officials, but it was dismissed in 2012 by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma, so he brought his case before a three-justice panel of the U.S. Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, which in a split decision reversed the lower court’s ruling and reinstated the lawsuit.

Although Cressman “sufficiently alleges that others will perceive that the image conveys the message to which he objects,” the majority ruled, Judge Paul J. Kelly Jr., writing in dissent, said it’s implausible that others would regard the image as an ideological message rather than a historical or cultural one.

“Native American culture is an integral part of the history of Oklahoma,” Kelly said. “Oklahoma has decided to acknowledge its history by portraying a Native American cultural image on its license plate and promoting ‘Native America.’”

Cressman had sought ways to avoid displaying the license plate’s image, but it is unlawful to conceal parts of the standard Oklahoma license plate, while the specialty plates he finally purchased that do not carry the image are more expensive, creating a “monetary injury,” the court ruled.

The lawsuit,Cressman v. Michael C. Thompson, in his official capacity as Secretary of Safety and Security and as the Commissioner of Public Safety for the state of Oklahoma, et al.,was filed June 11 without the dissenting statement, but was re-issued June 12 with the dissent attached.

Read more at http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwor...ntheism-149905

[gazhekwe]

Navajo President Ben Shelly’s office announced the passing of Navajo Code Talker Milton Gishal, who died on June 8, 2013 in Farmington, New Mexico. Mr. Gishal was 93.

Mr. Gishal is the second Navajo Code Talker to pass away during the past week. One day earlier, Navajo Code Talker King Fowler passed away.

[gazhekwe]

We love our Grandfathers the Thunder Beings for bringing that water to us. But what are we doing with that precious gift of life that they give to us? 70 percent of Mother Earth is covered with water. Ninety-seven percent of our water is salt water. Only 1 percent of the water is drinkable. We have been given a wondrous gift by our relatives, but are we showing our appreciation of that gift or are we wasting it, spoiling it and throwing it away? How are we treating that gift that is so essential to our very existence? How can we even consider hydro-fracking and possibly causing the disruption and destruction of our waters? How is it possible that we would consider risking the loss or contamination of even one drop of water when our very lives depend on it? If we don’t care about ourselves, then why aren’t we considering the quality of life for our children, our nieces, our nephews and our friend’s children? What about the seven generations to come? What will they drink? What will they eat, if there is no clean water for the plants and the animals to drink? What kind of lives will they have, especially considering that there are more and more people every day? Will there be enough food and clean water for them?
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwor...fathers-148374

Now read this, an article about how the continued worship of oil, gas and money is endangering our earth and our future, as the media we rely on to inform us hides or ignores or downplays dangerous behavior of oil and gas companies, and willful blindness by regulatory agencies designed to protect us.

Accidents at Oceana County Fracking Well

June 17, 2013 Written by n8ppq ·


I wanted to know about the fracking well in Oceana County. Taking an afternoon drive to Silver Lake and asking local residents about it seemed like a good idea. If there were problems up there, that would be relevant to the planned fracking operations in Muskegon County. If there were no issues, then maybe people were overreacting here.



I spent two hours, searching online for the well’s location and any other pertinent information. I found almost nothing.

The DEQ has this map available, which shows the general location, and the number PN60575:

The legend at the bottom of the map gave coordinates: 15N 18W.

But feeding these into Google Earth gave me a location off the coast of Gambia.

I found nothing else online. No news reports about the well, no blog posts. The absence of web content led me to suppose that this well has had a boring life. I began to reconsider taking the time to drive up there.

I found the Oceana Ban Fracking Facebook page, which listed a public meeting with the DEQ for that afternoon in Shelby. I decided to go and to try to get some feedback from the residents up there, good or bad.

What I learned was very disturbing.

There have actually been three accidents at the well. And there have been two chemical releases. Not much is known, but noxious odors accompanied by headaches, body aches, and inability to sleep were reported by residents over a twelve mile radius in Benonia and Golden Townships in December and again in May

The Emergency Management Coordinator was unaware that fracking was under way. Small fire departments were dispatched five and six times a day for two week periods to respond to the complaints.

Hydrogen sulfide was noticeable among the odors. This gas is very poisonous, corrosive, flammable, explosive, and heavier than air.

There is no contact person at the Riley 1-22 well and so, they could not assess the hazard level.

We learned that the drill bit broke off several thousand feet down in December and that one of the attempts to remove it involved forcing liquid nitrogen into the well. Among other things, this resulted in extinguishing the flare and so methane was released into the air for a two week period. Flowback also occurred at this time, with the escape of chemicals and gasses.

Mishandled flowback occurred again in May, with another release of chemicals and gasses.

Although the “Right to Know Act”, which was enacted after the Bhopal gas tragedy which killed an estimated 8,000 people in India from a Union Carbide gas leak, mandates that County Emergency Management officials have documented information about chemicals used in all industrial processes before they are brought on site, the Emergency Manger still does not know what chemicals were released to the environment.

This is because the “Halliburton Loophole” exempts the fracking industry from all environmental regulation and oversight.

The Michigan DEQ is quick to say that flowback fluids are safely contained in pools and storage containers by stringent regulations. They describe costly measures enacted by the industry to prevent chemical runoff. These include double walled liners and high walls around the drill site.

However, my visit to the Riley 1-22 well showed effectively no protection at all. [[See video:http://youtu.be/d_jnagDwVxo).

A small berm had been pushed up at three sides of the site. This berm was at most two feet high and did not exist at all in many areas. This included the wide roadway above a ditch, right next to a farmer’s field.

Not only is it disturbing that sloppy management of the Riley well led to several accidents, and that the agencies charged with protecting the public are out of the loop by design, but the fact that no news reports or web content exists to help the people who are most affected by this very serious matter prepare themselves is beyond words.

What has happened to the press? What is happening to democracy?

http://omlive.org/site_omlive/post/A...Fracking-Well1

[gazhekwe]

Coyote Places The Stars

One time there were five wolves, all brothers, who traveled together. Whatever meat they got when they were hunting they would share with Coyote.

One evening Coyote saw the wolves looking up at the sky. “What are you looking at up there, my brothers?” asked Coyote. “Oh, nothing,” said the oldest wolf.

Next evening Coyote saw they were all looking up in the sky at something. He asked the next oldest wolf what they were looking at, but he wouldn’t say.

It went on like this for three or four nights. No one wanted to tell Coyote what they were looking at because they thought he would want to interfere. One night Coyote asked the youngest wolf brother to tell him, and the youngest wolf said to the other wolves, “Let’s tell Coyote what we see up there. He won’t do anything.”

So they told him. “We see two animals up there. Way up there, where we cannot get to them.”

“Let’s go up and see them,” said Coyote.

“Well, how can we do that?”

“Oh, I can do that easy,” said Coyote. “I can show you how to get up there without any trouble at all.”

Coyote gathered a great number of arrows and then began shooting them into the sky. The first arrow stuck in the sky and the second arrow stuck in the first. Each arrow stuck in the end of the one before it like that until there was a ladder reaching down to the earth.

“We can climb up now,” said Coyote.

The oldest wolf took his dog with him, and then the other four wolf brothers came, and then Coyote. They climbed all day and into the night. All the next day they climbed. For many days and nights they climbed, until finally they reached the sky. They stood in the sky and looked over at the two animals the wolves had seen from below. They were two grizzly bears.

“Don’t go near them,” said Coyote. “They will tear you apart.”

But the two youngest wolves were already headed over. And the next two youngest wolves followed them. Only the oldest wolf held back. The wolves sat down and looked at the bears, and the bears sat there looking at the wolves. The oldest wolf, when he saw it was safe, came over with his dog and sat down with them.

Coyote wouldn’t come over. He didn’t trust the bears. “That makes a nice picture, though,” thought Coyote. “They all look pretty good sitting there like that. I think I’ll leave it that way for everyone to see. Then when people look at them in the sky they will say, ‘There’s a story about that picture,’ and they will tell a story about me.”

So Coyote left it that way. He took out the arrows as he descended so there was no way for anyone to get back. From down on the earth Coyote admired the arrangement he had left up there.

Today they still look the same. They call those stars Big Dipper now. If you look up there you’ll see that three wolves make up the handle and the oldest wolf, the one in the middle, still has his dog with him. The two youngest wolves make up the part of the bowl under the handle, and the two grizzlies make up the other side, the one that points toward the North Star.

When Coyote saw how they looked, he wanted to put up a lot of stars. He arranged stars all over the sky in pictures and then made the Big Road across the sky with the stars he had left over.

When Coyote was finished he called Meadowlark over. “My brother,” he said, “When I am gone, tell everyone that when they look up into the sky and see the stars arranged this way, I was the one who did that. That is my work.”

Now Meadowlark tells that story about Coyote.

Source: firstpeople

[Jimaz]

What a great story. The Big Road must be our Milky Way galaxy.

I love the way the author tells a story about a story — or is it a story about itself?

[gazhekwe]

A long time ago, there was a mighty ruler who was getting old. He had a beautiful daughter, Ixtacihuatl was her name. She loved the strongest of warriors, Popocatepetl, and their wedding was to take place in the turning of the seasons.

Meanwhile, a nearby place had a young ruler who was getting anxious to increase the size of his territory. He had many people and they longed for the great lands of the the old ruler's people. The drums of war began sounding, and the old chief gathered his warriors to council. To fight or to try to make peace? The old ruler, knowing his strength was waning, wondered if the two rulers could unite their peoples. The first thing that came to mind was Ixtacihuatl, comely and gracious. Would she consider taking the young chief as her mate? Ixta vehemently rejected the idea, for she really loved Popocatepetl. Popocatepetl also would not hear of it. No other plans came from the council, and it was decided they had to go to war.

All the warriors gathered and planned, and finally they were ready. As they went off toward their fight, Ixta watched as Popo, in the lead, turned and looked back many times. She watched til long after they were out of sight.

They were gone for weeks. Finally word came that they had defeated the others, but Popocatepetl had been killed after taking many lives himself. Ixtacihuatl was beside herself with grief, and she refused to eat or drink. It was not many days before she too was dead.

Not long after, the warriors returned, with Popocatepetl, alive but wounded, still in their lead. Upon learning of the death of his beloved, he went into a passion of rage and ran into the woods by himself. After many days, Popocatepetl came home and set himself to building a huge stone monument. He worked and worked, day and night. When he was done, he took Ixtacihuatl's body to the top, and lit a permanent fire for her.

Not content and still grieving, he began a second monument which he built just as high, right next to hers. He went up, lit a permanent flame, and there he stayed til he died.

Today, those two mountains are still there. When the volcano Popo erupts, Popo will go to Ixta and awaken her. At last the two lovers will be united.



Watch Mexico’s Popocatepetl Volcano Blast Massive Ash Plume: Video

ICTMN Staff June 19, 2013

Mexico’s famed Popocatepetl volcano, known affectionately in those parts as Popo, has been feisty lately, spewing out ash and lava 300 times in May and fueling predictions for a major eruption at any time.

On June 18 a local webcam caught the biggest eruption in two years. It released a massive ash cloud that shot more than a mile skyward and flung “incandescent fragments” for nearly 330 feet, Mexico’s National Disaster Prevention Center [[Cenapred) said of the 2:48 p.m. explosion. Homes were rattled as far as 15 miles away.

It was nothing new for the area, since the region surrounding the 18,000-foot-high volcano just outside Mexico City has been on Yellow Alert, Phase 2 for a while, volcanologist at Denison University told theNew York Daily News.

"It's been in effect a few months now," said the volcanologist, Erik Klemetti. "That alert says that at any time it could have an explosion like this."

The webcam’s remarkable footage, condensed from 10-20 minutes into 30 seconds, is below.

Read more athttp://indiancountrytodaymedianetwor...e-video-149996

[gazhekwe]

Hi, JimAZ, the Big Road is indeed what we call the Milky Way. In our region it is the Pathway of Spirits. We see the stars as the fires of those on their seven day journey to the Spirit World.

[gazhekwe]

The moon Sunday morning at 7:33 am [[average time) will be a Super Moon, the closest to Earth as she gets all year, 221, 821 miles away. Usual distance is 252, 581 miles.

The best viewing for most of us will be after sunset on Saturday night. She rises at 7:49 pm on the average.

Check your time here:

http://www.timeanddate.com/worldcloc...?obj=moon&n=77

Saturday night will have the most important Grandmother Moon Ceremonies. Our Grandmother Moon pours her healing energy down on her children, the women of the world. During the Full Moon Ceremony, women may gather to celebrate her, hosting a sacred fire and sacred feast. It is a time to cleanse the mind, body and spirit, and to pray for strength and healing of women.

Each woman wears a long natural fiber skirt and brings tobacco and a yard of yellow natural cloth [[no synthetics). Do not let the cloth touch the ground and keep it with you the whole time. Start by wrapping a little tobacco in the corner of the cloth and smudge. The tobacco carries our prayers, and the cloth is wrapped around us as we pray. After the smudging, there is a sharing circle around the fire, then each woman, offering tobacco in the fire, leaves the circle in turn to pray, wrapped in her yellow cloth. When all have done so, there is a small feast, then more prayers and songs. After the ceremony, the cloth is burned in the sacred fire to carry our prayers to the spirits. Tobacco and food offerings for our ancestors are put into the fire.

[gazhekwe]

The moon tonight is spectacular! Tomorrow will be even better. I hope the sky stays clear.

[gazhekwe]

Bay Mills Honoring Our Veterans Powwow is this weekend. My Dad was the oldest vet, WWII Marine, Pacific Theater.

You can just see him in this picture, straight as an arrow, holding a flag. He is toward the left center, in a white shirt and red hat.

[gazhekwe]

Here is some great fancy dancing:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?featur...&v=QcfC57zDMo4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPwsuUOGxbs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yt-YJaC9eEU

[gazhekwe]

The Week That Was: The Big Stories in Indian Country, June 30, 2013

ICTMN Staff, June 30, 2013

It's our weekly roundup of the stories that mattered most in Indian country:

On June 23, actor Wes Studi, Cherokee, famous for his work in such films as The Last of the Mohicans and Avatar, wasgiven the Distinguished Artist Awardat the Tulsa Awards for Theater Excellence [[TATE).

If the Keystone XL pipeline increases the carbon content of the atmosphere,President Barack Obama will turn it down, he said on Tuesday June 25 in a speech on climate change.

Johnny Depp, who plays Tonto in the Disney film The Lone Ranger, attended a special premieres of the film at Disneyland in Anaheim, California, and in Lawton, Oklahoma, capital of the Comanche Nation.

In a move that ensured the protracted continuance of the four-year custody battle over Veronica Brown, the Supreme Court on Wednesday reversed and remanded Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl back to the South Carolina courts for further review.

Leaders of the Oglala Lakota Nation declared June 26 Leonard Peltier Day in honor of the American Indian Movement activist who has been in prison for 36 years, convicted of murdering two FBI agents in a trial that leading social justice organizations say was unfair and tainted by political influence.

Just days after the anniversary of the Battle of the Greasy Grass, also known as the Battle of the Little Bighorn, Minor League Baseball's Hagerstown, Maryland Suns announced it would be giving away George Armstrong Custer bobbleheads to the first 1,000 fans through the gates.

President Barack Obama on, June 26 released an executive order thatestablishes the White House Council on Native American Affairs.

According to a press release issued by genealogy website Ancestry.com, Armie Hammer, the actor who plays the title role in Disney's upcoming western film The Lone Ranger, has Native American heritage.

Signaling the end of Civil Rights era reformation, the Supreme Court on June 25ruled in Shelby County v. Holderthat section four of the landmark Voting Rights Act is unconstitutional.

A spiritual ceremony was held on Monday, June 24, at the Duluth Civic Center in Duluth, Minnesota to reinstall an eagle staff that had been removed and dumped into nearby bushes over the weekend.

A draft proposal of far-reaching revisions to the Interior Department’s process for federal acknowledgment of Indian tribes is being hailed as the best thing to happen in decades to a system that’s been described as “broken, long, expensive, burdensome, intrusive, unfair, arbitrary and capricious, less than transparent, unpredictable, and subject to undue political influence and manipulation.”

Following the Executive Order by President Barack Obama on June 26 establishing the White House Council on Native American Affairs, Congressman Tom Cole [[R-OK) and Congresswoman Betty McCollum [[D-MN), co-chairs of the Congressional Native American Caucus applauded the announcement with a joint statement.

Read more athttps://indiancountrytodaymedianetwo...30-2013-150201

[gazhekwe]

Sagkeeng's Finest are a Canadian dance troupe, who won the only season of Canada's Got Talent in 2012.^[1] The trio consists of Dallas Courchene, Brandon Courchene and Vince O'Laney, three teenagers from the Sagkeeng First Nation in Manitoba,^[2] who perform a blend of First Nations clogging with contemporary dance.^[1]
In their winning performance, the trio danced to a medley of Raghav's "Fire" and Metro Station's "Shake It".^{[3] Wikipedia}

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_QNzF5Mbas

I'm trying to figure out how to post a video of them doing Cotton-Eyed Joe at Oak Point last night. Enough to sizzle your eyeballs!