Retired National Park Service Employee to Plead Guilty to Stealing Indian Remains
So very tired of this. I am tired of this and so many things. First, our remains, our artifacts, our culture and traditions treated as a thing of naught. Treated as a thing of the past, not in line with anything of today, Ancient. Drivel from the hunter and gather time period. Taboo, voodoo, superstitious, and almost satanic. As if we have or had no knowledge. As if we are not still here! What we had was pure, albeit misguided at times, but it was pure. We prayed. We fasted. We sang songs of worship to the Creator. We offered up sacrifices for thanks. Fools, who judged/judge us so harshly to be without God or spirituality, were/are pitifully, woefully, ignorantly and wrong. Frankly, they are unChrist-like. Our initial teachings came from the Creator himself. What was Columbus to teach us? What were the priests to teach us? If they were wise, they would have listened to us. Counseled with us. Learned about us before they killed, raped, robbed, and assimilated us. Instead, to acknowledge, they toss us crumbs from the table.
In DMC, the Park Board of Rochester put a white man on a committee along with a host of other white people and refused to let us true natives speak about Indian Heights Park. It was MY ancestors that worshiped there, yet they turned to each other and a white man for our point of view. Scandalous. As if we are not here. After I wrote a pointed op ed, they tossed us a crumb and let us speak for 5 minutes before their meeting about our sacred place. I took that crumb, and along with Leonard Wabasha, we made bread baby! I spent that 5 minutes very well! I showed how the white people of Olmsted County systematically and very intentionally plowed up our burial mounds. The white people wanted proof of our existence here in DMC. Please! Indian Heights Park was preserved. They could not deny the truth or those that had the TRUTH!
We are still here, yet our culture, values, spirituality, traditions, expressions of beliefs, songs and the like are stolen by those who exercise white privilege. They adopt our ways or they are adopted by some well meaning Indian family and think they are automatically native. Not so! There is a group right here in DMC, the NAC of SE MN. A legit group back in the day, but no more. It is filled with wannabees and NO natives. They host a Native American Art Expo every year, but there isn't any true native art. How does this go on? We are still here, yet our art is available for any wannabee to take and sell as ours.
They say they can pray with our pipes and tobacco for healing and other ceremonies. We are still here, yet our ways are taken by those hoping to make some mazz or dejope from our spiritual ways. How can this happen? Our ways are protected by law. I hope to make this very clear next week in a meeting with Mother Mayo and Mr. Art Owen. We will help them understand that you cannot have just anyone conduct sacred ceremonies. We are still here and we will address these issues as we deem necessary.
I am tired of people saying that I am playing the race card when I address these issues. You are arrogant and self-righteous and you are exercising your white privilege when you say this to me. Did you know that? Well, you are! I am still here and yet you talk as if I am not here. As if I am not at church with you. As if I am not in the same meeting as you are. As if I do not know the laws relative to Human Rights, Education, health care, city ordinances, and so on. Your laws were/are designed to oppress me. Did you know that? Well they are! I have researched these laws and know how to protect myself, but when I exercise my rights and my freedoms, I am playing the race card. I am so very tired.
So today I read about a white man, who was hired and paid to protect our natural and sacred spaces, who has been robbing our graves for over 15 years. (Just as his ancestors before him I suspect). This is so typical and the story of the USA. Obviously, we are unable or incapable of managing our sacred spaces ourselves. Isn't that their thinking? We need the BIA, the Department of Interior, the IHS, the NPS, and the like to manage our sacred spaces and our selves. It is stories like this that help me realize just how tired I am.
I am tired, but while I have breath, I will continue to fight for my people and our rights. Despite the people who desire that I fall in line, surrender, know my place, get over it, I will continue to raise the alarm, awareness, the flag, my voice, and my prayers to Mauna, for strength that He may lift me as if on eagles wings, for I am tired.
No comments:
Post a Comment