Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 19, 1995)
Smith discusses battle to legalize peyote use Mara blino For jr»i Omgoo FMy Alfred Smith, n Klamath Native Aniw » an, !ol<i a group of about 75 fM-xopU- l ints day night Unit cultural misunderstandings i a used him to be fired from his job as a drug counselor after he used poyolv m a religious ctmmionv Smith told the audience of The Pttynie Hoad, a documentary about the plant with halluginogenii propertht* that is used m the religious < eremomes of some Native American trilses Smith also diw ussed his Supromo Court battle to legal ire the use of peyote for spir itual purposes I he Him was shown by the Monitor, the University law- school's Civ il Wights Group and by the Native Ainer i« on litw Association Tuesday night In If MM. Smith was invited to a Native American Church meeting that would lilt lude the use of peyote Smith, who is not a memtier of the i hurt h, was told by his employer* not to ingest jaiyote. whk ii they i onsider a ilrtig At the time Smith was employed as a drug rehabilitation counselor Smith, who was sober and drug free for SMITH IB year*, also consid ered peyote a drug before he it o>d it "I e x pet tod to got loaded, high or turned on.” he said "it wasn’t what I thought it was *' I’eyoto is a spineless tael us found along the Rio Ciromis* River and in tne *outhwn*t United States The Native Amnnun Church consider* peyote to i«> the heart of the Creator, much a* wine is consid ered to be the blood of Christ by Christians Offerings are made before the plant is cut and ingested while a *a< red fire is burned, "It 's used to get into harmony with the Earth, not to get high.' Smith said. When Smith returned to work after attending the meeting, he is is ,-led if h< took what they < ailed a dnig He said. No, hut I did take the sa< red s»< lament, and was fired. Because peyote is part of» reli gious ceremony, Smith equates biting pro hibjted from using it to being prohibited from going to church "How un you tay who tan go to church and who can't t»r that I tan go to your church but 1can't go to mine'” he asked The case. Department of Human Resources of Oregon v Smith, went to the Supreme Court, but Smith said tie was disc ouraged from pursuing the issue by Native Americans as well as law v ers Smith was viewed as a troublemaker who was putting the religious rights of Native Americans in jeopardy Religious freedom is espec tally cherished by mem bers of the Native American Church because in the past all tribal religions were banned In t'tfi'i. peyote was added to the- list of controlled substances and in itw»7, les.is made the possession of peyote against the law and required dealers to be licensed This made* getting peyote diffi cult because many peyote gardens are In Texas. Although Smith was encouraged to withdraw his Supreme Court case, after many sleepless nights he dec kind to keep lighting "I thought that one of these days my kids an- going to grow up and someone's going to say to them. Is your dad A! Smith' Isn't he that guy who sold out on the peyote ease w ay bark then' " Smith said I wanted my kids to t*» proud of me It was a fight and I didn't do anything wrong, so let's go for it," The Supreme Court ruled against Smith, but agreed that individual states could decide whether to legalize the list- of pey. ate Sim « the ruling. C-ongross fms passed the Kehgious Freedom Restoration Act. which generally protects religious free dom. according to teirrett Epps, assistant professor of law at the University. Also (tasscd were the Religions Freedom Amendments to the American Indian Civ il Rights A< t. w hich protect the possession and i eremonial use of peyote by Native Amerh ans who are members of peyote using i Imrt ties However, not nil members of pey ote-using rhun:hi*s are Native Amer icans. " t he war on drugs has come down very hard on people," Epps said The more I study this i aw the more I'm convinced it's a landmark < ase " Martin Luther King Awards presented to classified employees Amy Columbo <>ny»io (i*v i nwitki Thrwc University classified employees rectnved Martin Luthur hmn Awards during a i uremoiiy Wednesday tn their honor Nancy Make. Tuhv I teenier and I h M< Donald were i hosen f>v a University t oinmittee for their servo e to the i fniversity i ntripus and the i ominunitv SMMHI The applicants won* judged on Rv« * ritsria adhering to the prin ciple* of non-violence, promot ing < nltornl diversity and racial lusiit «*. woh timing peopleof i ol or and people from various eth nil bat kgrounds into the work plai o. working to redut e racial and social tensions; and setting a caring, example of such ideals Blake works as the offii «• and volunteer coordinator of the Ore got) Bach Ki'stivn! Sho tins advo cated multicultural perfor mances. hiring performers from L-alin American. Middle hasten). African-American and Native Aiikth an cultures She has been with the University since 1'MU IVetner serves as the assistant to the Dmn for Academe Affairs in the (Graduate School She is dv\< rdn*d bv her i o-workers as liemg able to win support and at.hunt' her goals, and as very supportive of graduate students She is described as one who refuses to m t opt bigotry, racism or dm rinmiation She has been W .th the I !i,,\ etsit v sun e J'tl.H Mi Donald works ns the opera tions coordinator for the Office of Public Safety She is active in the Universiu \ Knee Task Fort*, which is a group of student s, staff and faculty who serve as advo cates fur students who have expe rienced racial harassment. She is also the chairwoman of the Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Standing Committee and the trea surer of the hw al chapter of the National Assot iation for the Advancement of Go I o red People. Hie three employees were cho sen from a pool of seven indi viduals nominated by fellow employees at tin* end of last year Wc want to extend our deepest sympathies to our fellow students whose families have suffered due to the horrible earthquake in Japan. Our thoughts and condolences go out to those who have suffered because of this devastating event. Sincerely. The volunteers, coordinators and staff of ESCAPE Deluxe Double aw Deluxe Double with cheese Sale of old-growth sparks controversy; activist to present Sugarloaf slide show Tony Lystra ><* tfv Omgan flwy f "»wh Well-known (orotiDr and activist (H-uryc Shook will speak tonight about an old-growth tim ber v*iI*? m the Siskiyou National Forest The free (Ai lure and slide show, sponsored by the Univer sity Outdoor Program, will begin at 7 .10 in the EMU Hen Linder Room Shook, 5.t, earned his forestry degree from Syr/u use University and has worked for tfie Forest Servile and private corpora tions Over the last JO years he has served as an advocate for ancient forest protection, align ing himself with Forth First' and recently with the Siskiyou Regional Education Project SKI P staff member K.-Ijm Wil son said Shook’s lecture is a hiking trip of what a typical backpat king trip in tin* Siskiy ou* is like. (Shook) takes you along the trail and shows you what's there as well as different threats” to the region, Ouidoor Program Knviron mental Coordinator )on Ray mond contacted the Siskiyou Kdui anon Project after reading about the sale of a plot of old* growth timber — known as the Sugarloaf Sale in the Rogue River Medford area The Sugarloaf Sale is sur rounded by controversy lusmise the fiHO-atrre plot was the first to sell after President Clinton enacted a plan to protect old growth while ensuring a tint tier harvest Because some critics have gnawed at the Sugarloaf Sale, many see it as an environmental and public relations blunder for Clinton How did the Sugarloaf area sell if the Clinton plan guaran ties the protection of old-growth timber? According to the fall 199-t issue of tlu> lIt’Qiiivtttrt', Journal. a last-minute < lause was written into the president's forest plan allow ing the harvest of 21 tiro lie r sales front 1990 Raymond said the Outdoor Program sponsored Shook's lot turn to help wilderness enthusi asts and adventurers understand the environmental politics sur rounding Northwest forests We feel like, as a back-coun try resource center, people who are going out and hiking need to tie aware of resource issues," Raymond said Free Weight Management Workshop Learn about: ❖ why diets don't work ❖ nutrition exercise delicious low-fat meals * making positive choices for a healthier life ■ Today is the last day to register W'hCH: Ihursdays Jan. 19 leb. 23, i: M)-5:(X) p m in till' Student Health ( enter Ciroup Room (room UO Student Health Center Hea/th Education Program lo register, or for more information, call 346-4456
