December 2006 Archive

December 28, 2006 Listen to the Show

Festival of Resistance: Featuring Indigenous Films, Poetry, Crafts & Music; Tribute to John Mohawk: Seneca Scholar and Indigenous Rights Activist

Indigenous News Roundup

Fiji Military Halts All Meetings of Indigenous Chiefs
In Fiji, the military grip on power continues to tighten. Fiji's military regime took the unprecedented step Wednesday of halting all meetings of the nation's powerful council of indigenous chiefs — accusing it of failing to accept that the military now controls the affairs of the South Pacific nation. Military strongman Commodore Frank Bainimarama said while the indigenous Great Council of Chiefs had been allowed to meet despite the nationwide state of emergency in place, they "failed to understand the reality" on the ground." Bainimarama said, "I have …issued directions that as long as the state of emergency is in place, the GCC will not be allowed to sit unless the military gives it clearance to do so." Bainimarama's move was seen as a further tightening of his grip on power after he took over government on Dec 5th. He disbanded the Cabinet, banished Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase to his home island nearly 200 miles north of the capital, suspended Parliament and dismissed the president and vice president in an armed coup. He has since been embroiled in a struggle with the chiefs, who have challenged his authority to appoint himself as Fiji's president. The council now says it will adopt the role of observer, make no further statements and await further action of the military.

Navajo Nation Update
The Navajo blockade continues into its 17th day, where the Doodá Desert Rock Committee is resisting plans for a new coal-fired power plant proposed by the company Sithe Global Power and the Dine Power Authority. The resistors spent the holiday weekend huddled around a campfire standing their ground. Elouise Brown, President of the Doodá Desert Rock Committee in Burnham NM made an appeal on their web site this weekend.
She wrote: "Spending Christmas huddled around a campfire and protecting our land is not something that we, resisters, had originally planned. We are being watched by the police 24 hours/day and every time a vehicle comes by, they charge over and scare the elders and medicine people visiting the Resisters’ Vigil. But feeling the cold wind against our faces at this Doodá Desert Rock Vigil is not something that we regret. It is a time for us to continue standing up for what is right. The warriors of this vigil are the elders and, despite us telling them to go home and rest for a while, they will not leave. Their priority is to protect this area for all of its richness and its beauty. “For the grandchildren of the future, we protect this place.” is what Grandma Lucy says. The challenge for you is to help us in protecting our land and culture. Our Navajo Nation President has sold us out for pennies but we are not walking around with dollar signs stamped on our heads. No amount of coal and pollution can put a price on our livelihood. We are calling upon all native people, tribes and descendants to stand with us. Call, email, fax, write, and use whatever method to tell President Shirley that he needs to do what is culturally right by rejecting this project. Write to your senators, newspapers, television stations etc."
That is what Elouise Brown wrote, President of the Doodá Desert Rock Committee in Burnham, NM. You can get more information at www.desert-rock-blog.com.

Oklahoma Centennial
The state of Oklahoma is preparing to celebrate its 100th birthday next year with parades, fireworks and festivals, but the grand celebration is also opening old wounds for some Native Americans. Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chad Smith recently wrote an editorial for two local newspapers reminding Oklahomans to remember all the state's history. Tribal leaders and academics say the centennial isn't a time for celebration because in 1907 Oklahoma became the 46th state through the dismantling of tribal territories. Those lands once were guaranteed to Native Americans nations by the U.S. government, but the promises were brushed aside as Western expansion caught fire. Years earlier, tribes were removed from their ancestral lands in the Southeast and relocated to what is now Oklahoma. The most egregious of these relocations occurred with the 1,000-mile Cherokee Trail of Tears. And now, scholars say, children are re-enacting homesteading land runs on school playgrounds without learning about what happened to make those events possible, as if the tribes disappeared in some sort of vacuum at the time of statehood. Chief Chad Smith said, "We should remind the general public that there were 39 governments here in place before the state of Oklahoma was established." The Cherokee Nation, which occupies 14 counties in northeastern Oklahoma, is the largest tribe in Oklahoma and the second largest in the U.S.

Festival of Resistance: Indigenous films, Poetry, Crafts & Music
We speak with Elvira and Hortencia Colorado, who are organizing the Festival of Resistance on January 1st at the Brecht Forum. It is being held in honor of the 13th anniversary of the Zapatista uprising. The Colorado sisters speak about the recent events in Oaxaca, the long resistance of teachers and indigenous peoples in the state, and the upcoming festival. They told us you can call (212) 431-1666 for more information on the festival.

Tribute to John Mohawk: Seneca Scholar and Indigenous Rights Activist
We play an excerpt of a speech that John Mohawk made last month in New York at the "Indigenous Peoples' Resistance to Economic Globalization: a Celebration of Victories, Rights and Cultures." This teach-in was sponsored on by the International Forum on Globalization and the Tebtebba Foundation. Mohawk was pronounced dead at his home in Buffalo on Dec. 12. He was a longtime professor at the State University of New York at Buffalo and wrote several important books and articles, including the classic ''Basic Call to Consciousness."

December 21, 2006 Listen to the Show

Dine Blockaders Vow Continued Resistance Against New Power Plant; The Skulls & Bones Society: Holocaust Deniers and Cultural Appropriators

Dine Blockaders Vow Continued Resistance Against New Power Plant
“This project is an act of terrorism and cultural genocide.” Today is day 10 of the Desert Road Blockade, where the Doodá Desert Rock Committee is resisting plans for a new coal-fired power plant proposed by the company Sithe Global Power and the Dine Power Authority. The resisters halted work on the project last week by blocking access to the site of the proposed power plant. Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley unexpectedly visited with the protestors on Monday, but they said he was unresponsive to their needs. Shirley says the proposed $3 billion coal-fired power plant is desperately needed to provide jobs and revenue for the tribe. Many of the Navajo Nation's residents live without electricity and running water and jobs are scarce. Shirley says the Desert Rock Energy Project would be one way to help the situation. However, there are many in the nation who disagree. Critics point out the proposed Desert Rock Energy Project would be the third such power plant on the reservation, and that it won’t improve conditions, but make them worse. Early Wednesday morning, the resisters of the Doodá Desert Rock Blockade were served with several Temporary Restraining Orders and an immediate injunctive relief on behalf of the Diné Power Authority/Sithe Global.
Dailan J. Long, media spokesperson for Diné CARE, Doodá Desert Rock Committee.
For more information go the Resistors’ blog: www.desert-rock-blog.com
Or to provide support: Dailan Jake, Media Contact DineCARE/Doodá Desert Rock Committee 505.801.0713 (cell) dailanjake@dartmouth.edu (e-mail)

The Skulls & Bones Society: Holocaust Deniers and Cultural Appropriators
Bush family’s stranglehold on the remains of Geronimo. The great grandson of the Apache leader Geronimo has appealed to the White House hoping to recover the remains of his famous relative - stolen more than 90 years ago by a group of Yale students – the Skull and Bones Society. The story that members of Yale University's secret Skull and Bones society took the remains - including a skull and femur - from the burial site in Fort Sill, Oklahoma, has long been part of the university's lore. But a university historian recently recovered a letter from 1918 that appears to support the story that members of the society did indeed take the remains while serving with a group of army volunteers from Yale, stationed at the fort during the First World War. The students - among them, President Bush's grandfather Prescott - apparently returned with the remains and kept them in their society's headquarters at the university in New Haven, Connecticut. The society's initiation rite reportedly involves kissing a skull, referred to as "Geronimo", usually held in a glass case. We speak with a scholar who has research this story.
Jim Craven, a Blackfoot scholar from Montana, Professor of Economics at Clark College, Vancouver, WA.
For more information: www.aradicalblackfoot.blogspot.com
Or email Craven: Omahkohkiaayo@peoplepc.com

December 14, 2006 Listen to the Show

How to Hate/Love an Indian: Ojibwe Author David Treuer on Native American Fiction

Native American Fiction: A User’s Manual, is the title of a book of essays that has recently stirred up the literary community. Ojibwe author David Treuer takes on beloved Native American writers like Louise Erdrich, Sherman Alexie and Leslie Marmon Silko. He raises questions about their texts that other literary critics have failed to do. But Treuer turns his critic’s mind most sharply on the critics. His book of essays looks at how Native American fiction is read and interpreted and the set of cultural stereotypes that are behind that. He also has a new a novel, called The Translation of Dr. Appelles: A Love Story, which has the critics raving.
David Treuer, from the Leech Lake reservation in northern Minnesota and currently an associate professor in the English Department at the University of Minnesota.
For more information: www.davidtreuer.com, MPR:Translating David Treuer, MPR: Talking Volumes Interview

Navajo Artist Discusses his Work and NYC American Indian Market
The 24th Annual New York City American Indian Market is happening for only a few more days. The market will be open today, Thursday December 14th, and also Saturday and Sunday from 12pm to 8pm. It will be closed Friday. There will be Native jewelry, textiles, ceramics and more from indigenous artisans across the continent.
Location: Judson Memorial Church 243 Thompson Street, between West 3rd street and Washington Square South. Telephone for more info: (718) 930-8922 www.aich.org

December 9, 2006 Listen to the Show

Indigenous Oaxacan Activists Discuss State Crackdown; Nasa Filmmaker on Violence Inflicted on Indigenous Peoples in Colombia

Indigenous News Roundup

Fiji Tribal Chiefs Refuse to Recognize New Regime
In Fiji, the military leader of the nation’s recent coup faces increasing isolation. The country’s powerful council of tribal chiefs are refusing to recognize the country's military regime and the newly installed prime minister has conceded the takeover was illegal. Commodore Frank Bainimarama used his self-appointed powers to remove Vice President Ratu Joni Madraiwiwi from his office late Wednesday. The council of tribal chiefs is throwing its support behind the nation's president. Tribal Council Chairman Ratu Ovini Bokini called Madraiwiwi's dismissal "illegal, unconstitutional and disrespectful" and reiterated support for him and President Ratu Josefa Iloilo. Iloilo is still technically the country's president, although Bainimarama said Tuesday that he had assumed presidential powers. The coup is Fiji's fourth in nearly two decades.

Kamehameha Schools Win in Hawaii
In Hawaii, the Kamehameha Schools won a victory on Tuesday when the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the school’s admission policy can favor Native Hawaiians. The court overturned an earlier ruling that the policy amounted to unlawful discrimination. A white student had claimed he was excluded from the school because of his race. In an 8-7 ruling, the Court held that the admissions policy is constitutional because the discrimination is remedial, it is meant to address historical wrongs and the program has met with congressional approval. For more than 100 years, the private school has given preference to Native Hawaiian applicants.

Federal Court Sides with Native American Voters in South Dakota
In South Dakota, a federal district court ruled in favor of Native American voters earlier this week. The decision orders city officials in Martin to redraw city council district lines. This corrects violations of the Voting Rights Act that prevents Native Americans from having an equal opportunity to participate in the political process and elect representatives of their choice. The ACLU brought the lawsuit in 2002 on behalf of two Native American voters. The defeated redistricting plan would have given white voters control of all three city wards. Native Americans are approximately 45% of the city’s population.

Elderly Abuse March in Navajo Country Ignored
In Arizona, Navajo activist Marjorie “Grandma” Thomas led a demonstration march to the tribal administration offices to protest what they say is inaction over the abuse of elders. She pushed her own wheelchair for part of the walk in Window Rock on Monday, according to The Gallup Independent. President Joe Shirley Jr. and Vice President Frank Dayish Jr. did not meet with the group, whose staffers said they were not in. The protest was largely in support of Rena Babbit Lane, an 84 years old Navajo woman who lives on Hopi land. On November 4, three Hopi officers arrived at Lane's home dragged her from bed, pushed her around and threatened to take her to jail and make her walk home, about 100 miles away. She suffered a heart attack during the incident. The raid on Lane’s home was in anticipation of a law that would force her removal from her land. She is a fierce foe of forced relocation and lives in a remote region of Black Mesa. Lane has a longstanding conflict with Hopi and BIA officials, her lawyer said. In the past she has been severely beaten, had her hand broken and her horses, goats and sheep confiscated.

Tribal Elections on Oglala Sioux Rez Embroiled in Controversy
In South Dakota, a political standoff continues between two groups claiming to be the rightful government of the Oglala Sioux Tribe. John Yellow Bird Steele was sworn into office as President Tuesday. His opponent, Alexander White Plume, said the swearing in was illegal. White Plume has been tribal president since June and declared Steele’s victory in the November 7 tribal general election illegitimate. White Plume has pledged to continue in office until new elections can be held early next year. The tribal elections have been roiled with controversy, beginning with irregularities in the October 3 primary. Earlier this year, the tribal council impeached former president Cecilia Fire Thunder over her proposal for a private woman’s clinic that would thwart a new state abortion ban. The council then elevated Vice President Alex White Plume to the president’s post.

Indigenous World Uranium Summit
In other news, the Indigenous World Uranium Summit recently wrapped up in Arizona, hosted by the Navajo Nation from November 30 through December 2nd. It was a historic gathering for activists working to stop the spread of nuclear proliferation in all its forms. Here is Manny Pino, a board member of the Indigenous Environmental Network, reading the declaration: [audio included in show MP3].

Interview Segments:

Indigenous Oaxacan Activists Discuss State Crackdown
We speak with two members of Ojo De Agua Comunicacion who have arrest warrants issued for their activities in Oaxaca, Mexico. They have been involved in video and media training and production programs in indigenous communities in Oaxaca. They talk about the crackdown on protesters and journalists and the recent issuance of hundreds of arrest warrants in Oaxaca.
Sergio Julian Caballero, a native media maker from Oaxaca, Mexico. He has edited and post-produced works from indigenous communities in the region. He has developed Ojo de Agua Comunicacion’s web site www.laneta.apc.org/ojodeagua
Damian Lopez, a native media maker who was documenting protests in Oaxaca.

Nasa Filmmaker on Violence Inflicted on Indigenous Peoples in Colombia
Mauricio Acosta, producers and directs documentaries for Tejido de Comunicacio, the communication network of the Associacion de Cabildos Indigenas del Norte (ACIN) in the state of Cauca, Colombia. Tejido de Comunicacion promotes the autonomy of indigenous communities through media. In 2006, Acosta’s video Pa’ poder quo Nos Cen Tierra was recognized at the Festival Internacional de Cine y Video de los Pueblos Indigenas for its effectiveness in bringing attention to the violence inflicted on indigenous peoples in Colombia and the communities’ peaceful resistance.