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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 10, 1999)
BL A<KHHTORyMONTH 1999 FEBRUARY 10, 1999 • W ? » « 1 A DIALOGUE ON RACE SERIES I Am A Native American Indian B y D aryl E astman , R ose H igh B ear and “S moke S IG NALS” Which is Correct: American Indian or Native American? Either term is generally ac ceptable, although individuals may have a preference. But, when I describe myself, 1 use the term native American Indian. It re spects both preferences. Native American is a term recently used to describe American Indians. Whereas American Indians un der the laws of the United States and the treaties is the correct terminology used to describe our indigenous people under this country’s legal definition. Where did American Indi ans come from originally? Many anthropologists believe that Indians traveled about 35,000 years ago across a land bridge spanning the Bering Strait from Asia to North America. Most tribes have their own creation story. Many believe that Native people originated on this conti nent. What is an Indian tribe? It’s a body of indigenous na tive American Indians bound to gether by blood ties who were socially, religiously and politically organized to live together in a territory where they speak the same language or dialect. These territories were seasonally inhab ited for their purpose of gather ing food/medicine, conducting re ligious ceremonies, hunting, and other reasons. What powers do the tribes hold? They have nationhood status, enjoying the powers of govern ment, except those expressly taken away by Congress or over ruled by the Supreme Court. The United States recognized the tribes’ right to form their own government, determine member ship, administer justice, raise taxes, establish business and have the power to remove other Indi ans or non-Indians from their reservation due to tribal viola tions. In 1998, there were 554 feder ally recognized tribes in the United States, according to the Bureau o f Indian Affairs. This includes 226 villages in Alaska. With a 1990 population o f 308,132, Cherokees are the largest U.S. tribe. Most live in Oklahoma, though more than 5,000 Chero kees live on their reservation in North Carolina. Are reservations and tribal governments the same? No. Tribal governments ex isted long before reservations were established. However, gov erning authority on reservations is the tribal council. In cases where different tribes share a reservation, they often separate governments, as the Shoshone and Arapaho do in Wyoming. The term originates from the federal government’s act of re serving land for federal purposes. well, have their own gaming com missions, tribal police forces, and court systems. The federal law requires states to enter into compacts with tribal governments that plan to engage in casino gambling, including slot machines and black jack. Gaming must be conducted on tribal land, and the sta te ’s control is limited to the terms o f the com pacts. Compacts are ap proved by the Sec retary of the Inte rior. Indian gaming is growing at a rapid pace, but represents only 8 percent of the rev en u e m arket share, according to the Nation Indian Gam ing A ssocia tion. R oughly one- third o f the 554 tribes have gaming operations, and may be limited to bingo. Is there an American Indian religion? M any N ativ e Americans believe in a Great Spirit that rev e a ls its e lf through nature and influences all life. Indigenous religions also are filled with lesser spirits that in habit the everyday world. In the 19th century, Native Americans lost many of their religious cus toms as colonists forced them to convert to Christianity, sent chil dren to mission schools, and banned some of their ceremo nies. In the United States, there are two kinds of reservations: Indian and military. Who regulates Indian casi nos? The National Indian Gaming Commission, established by Con gress, oversees bingo operations, casinos, and certain types of gam bling on tribal land. It sets rules for licensing, reviews yearly au dits, and approves ordinances that tribes develop to run gaming op erations. The U.S. departments of Treasury, Justice, and Interior have authority over aspects of Indian gaming. Indian nations, as What is a Peace Pipe? We look at the pipe as a sacred object that has a great deal of power and meaning to us. There are two pieces: a bowl and stem. The bowl side is the female and the stem, the male. When we place the pieces together and fill it with herbs or tobacco, we then make a prayer to reach out to Spirit and ask for help. Why is the eagle a sacred animal to Native Americans? Eagles soar through the sky in a clockwise motion. We believe that it doesn’t live here with the rest of us. When we pray, the eagle is able to send our prayers skyward to the eagle’s home with the Great Spirit. In ceremo nies, we use the plume, feather bone and talon. What is a pow-wow? Pow-wow comes from the Narragansett word for Shaman. It is a celebration and social gath ering. It is a celebration and so cial gathering, honoring sacred Indian traditions through danc ing, drumming, singing, and the gathering of people. Pow-wows may be held to honor an indi vidual or a special occasion. Most commonly, a pow-wow is a so cial event. All non-Native Ameri cans are welcome at these events. What is a sweat lodge? It’s a place to pray. We use the red willow bark and make a womb shape calling it the “Womb of Mother Earth.” Sweat lodges are used to induce sweating for spiritual or medicinal purposes. Sweat lodges are heated by fire or by pouring water over hot stones. A sweat ceremony is very sacred for purification. We release ourselves from unre solved grief, fears, disease and anger and give this negativity to the elder spirits. Our Meaningful Ties B y R ose H igh B e a r T h e re is a g re a t c o m m o n a lity b etw een N a tiv e A m e ri c a n s an d A f r ic a n A m e r i c a n s b e c a u s e o f th e c o n n e c tio n o f o u r h e a r t, th e d e p th o f o u r s p ir it. E ver s in c e A fric a n A m e ric a n s c a m e to T u r tle Is la n d ( th is c o u n tr y ) , we w ere r e la te d . O u r s p ir itu a l p r a c tic e s are a lik e in th e o b se rv a n c e o f c e re m o n y and r itu a l. T h e r e ’s s im ila r ity in o u r d ru m m in g , d a n c e , th e h o n o rin g o f s p ir it g u id e s , th e h o n o rin g o f th e fo u r le g g e d a n im a ls ( lik e d e e r, e lk and th e h o rs e ) o f th e w in g e d n a tio n a n d a r e v e r e n c e fo r a ll o f G o d ’s c re a tio n . N a tiv e A f r ic a n s a re at ris k to d a y b e c a u s e m an y o f th e ir v a lu e d tr a d itio n s are n o t b e in g p r a c tic e d . S om e N a tiv e A m e ric a n tr ib a l n a tio n s h a v e k e p t th e ir c u s to m s a liv e . T h e y ’ve b e e n p re s e rv e d fro m g e n e ra tio n to g e n e ra tio n w ith in so m e fam ilies. W e r e c o g n i z e a ll f o u r c o lo r s w ith in th e N a tiv e A m e r ic a n W h e e l: B la c k (fo r A f r ic a n s ) s ta n d to the w e s t, R ed ( f o r N a tiv e A m e r ic a n s ) s ta n d to th e n o rth , Y e llo w ( fo r A s ia n s ) s t a n d to th e E a s t , a n d W h ite ( f o r E u r o p e a n s ) sta n d s to th e so u th . We look at o u r s e lv e s as in te r r e la te d to a ll c o lo r s o f p e o p le . A nd w ith o u t th o s e c o lo rs , w e ’re n o t c o m p le te . N a tiv e A m e ric a n s s p i r i tu a lly u n d e rs ta n d o u r c o m m on tie s to life . W hen we p ra y , we a lw a y s p ra y fo r ALL P E O P L E - e v e ry o n e o f e v e ry ra c e and n a tio n o f m an k in d . jZn celebration of Black History Month, Self Enhancement, Inc. would like to salute the In 1849, the Oregon Territorial Legislature passed the Exclusion Act (repealed in 1926), which banned “Negroes and Mulattoes from the Oregon Territory. This year, one hundred and Fifty years later, Oregon Uniting will acknowledge Oregon's discriminatory history, condemn the attitudes that led to that discrimination and acknowledge the people of ALL races and ethnic backgrounds who have worked for positive change. “Whereas, situated as the people of Oregon are, in the midst of an Indian population, it would be highly dangerous to allow free Negroes and mulattoes to reside in the territory or to intermix with the Indians, instilling into their minds feelings of hostility against the white race, therefore: Be it enacted by the Legislative Assembly of the territory of Oregon that it shall not be lawful for any Negro or Mulatto to come into or reside within the limits of this ^territory.. Territorial document # 3666 The Metropolitan Human Rights Center (MHRC) is a member o f Oregon Uniting. For more information call (503) 823-5136 Voice/TTY schools, families and community organizations who bring hope to youth while enhancing the quality of community life. I i I i I i i i i i 3920 N. Kerby Avenue Portland, Oregon 97227-1255 (503) 249-1721 fax (503) 249-1955 I i 1------I I I I I I I ' I J ï "¿“T