March 2007 Archive

March 27, 2007

FIRST VOICES INDIGENOUS RADIO brings to the airwaves the experiences, perspectives and struggles of Indigenous people who have been almost totally excluded from both mainstream and progressive, alternative media. Our purpose is to help ensure the continuance and survival of Indigenous cultures and Nations by letting the People tell their own story, in their own words, and often in their own languages and ways of speaking with as little outside interference and interruption as possible.

As we open up the airwaves week after week to the voices seldom heard in the last 515 years, it is our hope that the newcomers to this Land - that is, every immigrant group - will begin to question their assumptions about Indigenous people here. We hope they become educated and informed, get activated, break down their romanticization, break free of their stereotypes, and begin to form real relationships with Indigenous communities based, finally, on respect and real understanding.

This special-one hour weekly (out of 168 hours) is devoted to bringing the voices of the Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island (North America) and connecting their struggles with those of other Indigenous Peoples--around the world. And while never forgetting that standing upon Mother Earth is a great responsibility.

We ask our guests with great respect to do the honor of coming on the program to offer their knowledge, wisdom, and experience, a knowledge that has been handed down over hundreds of thousands of years. It is a responsibility we take very seriously, and we know it is with great urgency that we ask these voices to be shared in this time of changes. We hope we offer our listeners a perspective they have been missing for far too long. The voice America has tried to silence, the voices of Indigenous Peoples.

First Voices Indigenous Radio belongs to all the Native Peoples here in Turtle Island (renamed North America by the occupiers).

March 26, 2007

Tiokasin at the New York Open Center an Evening Concert

The Spoken Flute & Lakota Thinking Traditions with Tiokasin Ghosthorse
Friday, March 30, 7pm New York Open Center 83 Spring Street, New York, NY 10012
Call 212.219.2527 Ext. 2 or Register @ www.opencenter.org Members $22 / Nonmembers $24

The Lakota cedar flute (Spoken Flute) is an ancient instrument that has been experiencing a renaissance and was intended to convey emotions and resemble the human voice. This evening one of the great exponents of the cedar flute, Tiokasin Ghosthorse, will share traditional contemporary Lakota music, stories and rarely heard songs. Tiokasin will intersperse poetry and prose with the haunting melodies and evocative tones of the flute. He combines Lakota indigenous teachings with modern issues, indigenous insight, spiritual awareness and global concerns. Experience this phenomenal musician and storyteller, whose performance is both powerful and soothing, combining the best of ancient ways with contemporary relevance.

March 1, 2007 Listen to the Show

The Eagle Feather Law: How Religious Freedom in America is Restricted for Native Americans
The history of the United States is often referred to as a story of people seeking religious freedom. It begins with the Pilgrims, whose story is deeply ingrained in the American public imagination as some of the earliest settlers who fled religious persecution and hoped to find their freedom by establishing a colony in the “New World.” This theme continues throughout American history and up to the present day.

But what about Religious Freedom for Native Americans? American Indians are the only ethnic group in the United States that require a federal permit for religious freedom. The law upholding this is commonly referred to as the ''eagle feather law'' and it governs the possession and use of eagle feathers. Some think this law is very problematic, charging that it bars many Native people from freely practicing their religion.

DaShanne Stokes, director of the public interest advocacy group, Religious Freedom with Raptors.

Related Links: Religious Freedom with Raptors web site and DaShanne Stoke’s article in Indian Country Today

Indigenous Activists Speak Out On 3,000 Mile Journey to Confront Logging Giant Weyerhaeuser From Their Land.

Community members from the Grassy Narrows First Nation are taking their fight with a big logging company on the road. They have maintained the longest running Indigenous logging blockade in Canadian history, which is now in its fifth year. Despite years of community opposition, logging company Weyerhaeuser continues to produce and sell building materials made from wood clear-cut and taken without community consent from Grassy Narrows land. Nearly a week ago the Grassy Narrows people kicked off a journey from their traditional territory in Northwest Ontario. Over the course of the next few weeks the group will travel more than 2,000 miles to confront Weyerhauser at their world Headquarters in Seattle Washington. In the meantime, Indigenous activists will speak about their fight to protect their culture, their forests, and their Indigenous people’s right to self-determination on their Traditional Territory.

• Mariah Swain, member of the Grassy Narrows First Nation
• David Sone, of Rainforest Action Network, who is on the road with the Grassy Narrows people. The tour is being organized by U.S.-based NGO Rainforest Action Network (RAN) and local environmental and human rights organizations.

Related Links: FreeGrassy.org.