1999 (June) - Echoes Of the Four Directions

a publication of ...
Pittsburgh Federal Executive Boardhlative American Heritage Committee
nnual Arts Program
Earth's riches. We are all connected to
one another...each with a name, each
with a spirit...in a circle ofno end! Use
the scale of the color circle palette of
the Cherokee for the Four Directions
and present an image to celebrate the
Color of Your Spirit!
THE COLOR OF OUR
SPIRIT:
The 9th Annual Art
Exposition will be held November 5,
1999 to November 30,1999 at the Olin
Art Gallery at Washington and
Jefferson College in Washington, PA.
The Opening Reception will be held on
November 5, 1999.
Native Americans have always
listened to the sounds of the wind
spirits and felt the warmth of those
messages. These spirits of the wind
arrive in living color from the Sacred
Four Directions: North, white; South,
blue; East, red; West, black. There is
color in all of Mother Nature's
wonders; all of Her spirits. Envision
the spectrum in a teardrop, in a
raindrop, in a rock! Study the entire
ranges of color in a cornfield, in a
flower garden, in a bird's feather, in a
child's face. There is life in all the
Entrants this year should focus an
artistic presentation on one of the many
tribal cultures and think in color.
Entry pieces submitted in the
exhibition must focus on the theme and
include written evidence of
authenticity and research and the
relevance to the theme. The artist is not
required to be a Native American
Indian to submit an entry. There is no
entry fee. For "Entry Form" and more
information, please call 412-365-5475
or 412-885-5097. All entries must be
submitted on October 10,1999.
/
CONTENTS
1999 Art Contest: THE COLOR
OF OUR SPIRIT . . . . . . . . .
1998 Winners: Celebrate the
Native American Rainbow ...
Sacagawea Honored. . . . . . . .
Tracing Ancestry . . . . . . . . . . .
Ethnic Cleansing? . . . . . . . . . .
Native American Sportsmen . .
Natural Remedies . . . . . . . . . .
Native American Geometry . . .
BookReview . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Recipe Corner . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The November 1998 Exhibition was
held at the CCACIPittsburgh. The
winners of the categories:
I
1
1
2-0: Carolyn Taylor, Ruth Richardson,
and Patricia Lodz
3-0: C.Christen Palumbo. Priscilla
Phanstiel, and Terry Case Sendek
Wearable Art: Keith Belles
2
2
3
3
3
4
4
Igg8
Winners
"CELEBRATE THE NATIVE
AMERICAN RAINBOW"
!
This annual program is an educational
project to accomplish a greater
understanding and awareness of the
American Indian culture through sensual and
visual interpretation of the arts.
The
Committee looks forward to another
successful event in 1999.
Spirit of the Corn
SACAGAWEA
HONORED
First Lady Hillary Rodham
Clinton and Treasury Secty Robert
Rubin unveiled the winning design of
the new US dollar coin which will carry
the image of the young Shoshone
woman Sacagawea, who guided Lewis
and Clark from the Ohio River Valley to
the Pacific Ocean and back. Glenna
Goodacre sketched Sacagawea in
three-quarter profile, looking over her
shoulder. On her back, she carries her
infant son Jean Baptiste, whom she
carried and cared for on her entire
3.000-mile trek. The back of the coin
designed by Thomas D. Rogers, Sr.,
depicts a soaring American bald eagle.
encircled by 17-stars, symbolizing the
states of the union at the time of the
Lewis & Clark Expedition in 1804. The
gold coin, which will replace the Susan
B. Anthony dollar coin, is expected to go
into circulation by the spring of 2000.
'
(Article from American Indian Report 6/99)
similar to identical names to your family.
you must do the other research in order
to determine if this is your ancestor or
and
peoplefrom
just another with the same name.
over the US are researching to prove
Some people may never be
their ancestors were Native American
able to Prove Indian heritage- The
lndians. ~h~~~has been an increase
in
Indian law usually dictated that "when
interest in lndian ancestry because of
any
citizen shall remove with his effects
the emphasis that is placed on minority
Out
of the limits of the Nation and
hiring in private industry and
become a citizen of any other
governmental agencies and in services
government, all his rights and privileges
provided by the Bureauof IndianAffairs.
as a citizen of the Nation shall cease,
This is a complicated matter that
requires study and research. There are
provided neverthelessthat the National
councilshall have power to re-admit any
certain things people should know
such person who may at any time
before they begin this search, such as
desire
to return to the Nation, but no
the fact that possession of Indian blood
One is entitled as an inherent right to redoes not, of itself, entitle an individualto
admission to citizenship." These laws
rights or benefitsprovided by the federal
government. The rights to benefits or
of tribal recognition have been
challenged in the US Supreme Court
any payments made to persons of
and on the floor of the Congress of the
Indian descent represent their shares of
US - each time 'they have been
the assets of the tribe with which they
affirmed.
are affiliated.
Consequently, to be
Caution: Operating in the US
eligible to share in the tribal assets or
at this time are over 300 "Let's Pretend
services, a person must be a member of
that we are Cherokee" groups, some
a federally recognized Indian tribe.
actually calling themselves "Tribes".
lndian policy was based on the
These
organizations are charging fees
General Allotment A C ~of 1887, which
purpose was to break up tribal land
ufor research", "membership
assessments" -for something called
holdings and allot each tribal member
"legal fees", and a monthly or yearly fee
land from the reservation with land title
for "belonging" to them.
Joining or
and full U.S. citizenship. A similar
being
meII'lbers
of
these
organizations
policy was forced upon the Five
no more "prove" your Cherokee
Civilized ~ r i b e s(Cherokee, Choctaw,
than your membership in the .
Chickasaw, Creek and Seminole), The
Cherokee Bowling League of Las
Osage, and the Sac & Fox by the
Dawes Commission. The Dawes ~011s Vegas- Any organization, certified or
not. should not charge for membership
contain the names of more than
if SO- be wary. If in doubt as to their
101,000 enrollees. There is a similar
"Final Roll" for most tribes and tracing
federal status, check . with the
ancestry to someone on a "Final ~ ~ 1is1 " Investigative Branch of the BID at 202208-2753.
usually the key to recognition by the
TRACING YOUR INDIAN
ANCESTORS
BIA. The Dawes Roll Book is used for
Certification of Degree of Indian Blood
and was compiled during the years
1899-1906. Anyonewho died beforethe
enrollment closing date of their
particular tribe would not have a roll
number. If you do not know whether
your ancestor was enrolled or the name
of their tribe, you must identify your
ancestor and learn where they were
Census. which can be obtained through
your own local library. Roll Books are
also available at many repositories in
the US. But, you should also realize
that a "name" does not a relationship
make. Although a roll may contain
Ethnic Cleansing A broad
and Here
-
(commentary by Julianne Malveaux)
Tales of the. ethnic Albanians'
torture are horrifying. Ethnic cleansing
defies all logic and every principle of
decency, which is why so many
American seem so extraordinarily
moved by the events in Kosovo. People
are allowing themselves some kind of
airstrike-justifying frenzy because they
are moved by poignant pictures of
children affected by Yugoslavian
President Milosevic. 1, too, am moved.
as I was by photographs of emaciated
children in Rwanda threatened by tribal
warfare. I shudder at the fact that
thousands of African people lost their
lives in a clumsy Rwandan conflict that
might have been stopped with Western
intervention. We refer to the Kosovo
activities as if we only have seen such
horrors during World War II,when Jews
were the Holocaust's victims. But our
nation, too, has been a perpetrator of
ethnic cleansing against African and
Native American people. In the 171h&
18m,centuries, ethnic cleansing saw
African people snatched fmm their
homeland and forced to survive the
Middle Passage. Millions of African
people died from suffocation, diseases,
and violence during those trips and
millions more were tortured and died
during their slavery in the US. To this
day, many historians explain American
slavery as an economic phenomenon,
not a massive human rights violation.
Ethnic cleansing? How did Europeans
wrest control of these resource-rich
United States from native inhabitants?
Native Americans were systematically
removedfrom their lands to make room
for immigrant Europeans. Vicious wars
were fought, and millions of lives were
lost because white Europeans needed
other people's land. That's ethnic
responsibility to Native Americans who
were nearly eliminated by US policies.
Two wrongs don't make a right, and
Milosevic's madness. Still when we talk
about his horrors, we ought to put them
into context. Indeed, ethnic cleansing
is at the very heart of our nation's
FIRST AMERICAN INDIAN
BALLPLAYER ...
Baseball fans know Jackie Robinson
was the first black athlete to play for the
major leagues. Few people know that
the first American lndian ballplayer,
Moses YellowHorse was a Pittsburgh
Pirate star. YellowHorse was born in
1898 on a farm near Pawnee, OK. His
chores strengthened his arm and he
improved his throwing accuracy by
hunting small game with stones. At 19.
he was pitching for a semi-pro club. In
1920, he helped take the Little Rock
Travelers to the Southern Association
championship. He started 'his Pirates
career in 1921 by beating Cincinnati
and becoming the first Pirates rookie
pitcher to win a home opener. He was
called the best rookie of the year, and
fans turned out in record numbers for
their "favorite Indian." At a time when
non-whites were barred from the major
leagues, YellowHorse . was widely
accepted. However, his pitchingquickly
deteriorated, and the next year was his
last with the Pirates. He went back to
his home and spent his life coaching
youth baseball and teaching Pawnee
traditions. R.Fenimore, Histor Soc of W. PA.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
ATHLETE OF THE CENTURY
Almost 50 years ago, sports great Jim
Thorpe was voted Athlete of the First
Half of the Century, by the The AP news
service. Now, a Senate resolution has
been introduced to honor Thorpe as the
Athlete of the Century. Born to an
impoverished Sac & Fox family, he
overcame adverse circumstances to
excel as an amateur and as a
professional in three sports: track and
field, football, and baseball. 87 years
after he represented the US in the
Olympic games in Stockholm, he is still
the only athlete to win gold medals in
the pentathlon and the decathlon. As a
student at the Carlisle Indian School in
PA. Thorpe established his amateur
track and football status. In 1913, he
signed a $5,000 contract to play
baseball with the New York Giants. He
later played with the Cincinnati Reds
and Boston Braves. In 1915, he
returned to football, playing for the
Canton Bulldogs. He later became the
first president of the American Football
ASSOC, now known as the NFL.
NATURAL REMEDIES ...
Mow Safe? How Effective?
Many alternative therapies may work,
but are they really more effective than
conventional ones? Questions about
safety and effectiveness seem so
simple, but are they?
Because
something is labeled "natural" doesn't
necessarily mean that it is completely
safe. Conventional drugs are not
dangerous because they are "unnatural" but because manufacturers
concentrate often powerful chemicals
and recommend them in doses which
will supposedly benefit a large number
of people, despite the fact that each
person will have their own variation of
the disease to be treated. Although
there are poisons in nature, it is much
more difficult to experience poisonous
effects from a botanical source or
nutritionalsupplement than from a drug.
Vitamin and botanical manufacturers
are commonly placing concentrated
doses of natural ingredients in their
products. The long-term effects remain
unknown and what interactions they
have when taken in conjunction with
conventional drugs is like-wise
uncertain. Even though certain herbs
have been used by Native Americans
for thousands of years, that does not
mean that certain people have
hypersensitivities to various natural
substances and can and will over-react
to them. There are now more choices
than ever for products and services to
improve your health. With such an
array of choices comes the hard part of
figuring out what to do. Educate
yourself! Consider finding a trustworthy
health professional to work with you on
developing an individualized program.
And, observe what works and what
doesn't. Doctors are said to "practice"
medicine. We need to "practice" health.
Time-Tested Herbs:
Echinacea:
Widely used by Native Americans and
the most popular herb in America prior
to the advent of antibiotics, Echinacea is
commonly used to prevent and treat
colds and flus.
Studies have
demonstrated that the tincture of the
root of Echinacea purpurea helps to
decrease the symptoms and duration of
flu-like infections. More research is
needed on the best form and dosage of
this herb.
...
MOMENTS IN HISTORY TSALl
From the Museum of the Cherokee
lndian ...
In 1838, Military troops entered-the
mountains of North Carolina to
forcefully remove Cherokee Indians
who were "violating" the Treaty of New
Echota, which ceded all the Cherokee
territory east of the Mississippi to the
US government for $5 million. But a
Cherokee named Tsali fought back.
His resistance led to the death of US
soldiers and then to his execution.
Three men shot Tsali and left three
bullet holes in his body, according to
eyewitness accounts. Since his death,
various legends and stories have
surroundedTsali. No matterwhichstory
one believes, Tsali remains a symbol of
those Cherokeeswho wished to stay on
ancestral land.
One of the guns, a flint lock musket,
used in the execution, has made its
way back to the Cherokee people and
is now on permanent display at the
Museum of the Cherokee Indian,
located in Cherokee. NC. For more
information on the Tsali gun, contact
the museum at 282-497-3481.
CONNECTING THE DOTS
Centuries ago indigenous
people in this country used highly
advanced geometric principles to
construct communities, design spiritual
centers and create art.
Now a
professor and archeologist in Tsaile, AZ
is using Native American geometry to
teach math, science and art to students
of all ages, no matter what their science
or math experience, no matter what
their language or cultural background,
revolutionizing the educational
experience. Originating from a simple
circle, Native American geometry is a
physical and proportional relationship
dealing with measurement and
properties of points, lines and angles,
surfaces and arrangement of shapes
and objects. Geometry illustrates the
relationship between science and art,
melding both disciplines into a body of
knowledge illuminating an underlying
order to the universe.
(Continued on page 4.)
Connecting the Dots ...continued
BOOK REVIEW'
There is a website illustrating
TQ~~Q
R@v@fl@
's
this theory of an ancient, seamless
Refections on American Indian Culture
connection between art, science and
and Policy ...by Rennard Strickland
math and anyone can use this
Rennard Strickland, an Osage-Cherokee
knowledge including students with
learning deficiencies. The methodology
legal historian and schoIar, o f f e a
introduces students to connect-the-dot
refieshingly forward-Iookirlg vision of
exercises. Students use a compass
contemporary Native America in this
collectionof lectures on Indian culture, law
and ruler to first draw a circle, then
and policy. Believing that succeeding
straight lines dividlng the circle into
more complex shapes such as
generations of white people have
"reinvented the Indian in the image of their
pentagons, hexagons and octagons.
More circles are drawn and more lines
own era, '..he callsfor "a perception of the
connect the intersection of the circles,
Indian not as aproblem to be corrected but
creating complex and beautifuldesigns.
people with rights, duties and powers. "
Students work with square roots,
Accordingly, in the title piece, about
proportional constants and irrational
movies. Strickland turns the usual litany of
numbers without fear becausethe math
dismal Holbwood portrayals into an
ex~IorationofAmericanIndianjlmmakers
behlnd the shapes is introduced as
"d actors. Indian artists, in his view,
artistic exercise. All lessons are taught
becoming increasingly professional and
by visual demonstration and simple
hands-on activities. The professor's
successfully employing a broad range of
interest in Native American Geometry
styles. have triumphed over "a
grew from an interest in Pueblo kivas.
preconceived notion of topics and symbols
He saw kivas with six and eight pilaster
well as s b l e considered acceptablefor
arrangements. A pilaster is a structure
Indianpaintings. " Politicallycommittedto
with the kiva supporting its roof and
uni& he urges h e r i c a n Indians lo
sides.
"They were divided fairly
join forces with 0 t h oppressed groupsequidistant around a circle" he said.
Strickland believes
the last halfmillettni~mhas Seen "the domination of an
"So, I just had to wonder how they
ideologically superior world view (that of
knew how to make a hexagon, an
the Native Americans) by a technologically
octagon, or a decagon, which is a tensided figure, without a protractor.n
advanced but increasingiy spiritually
Musingon kiva construction, he noticed
bankrupt civilization (the European
discoverers). " His ambition is that the
mat these basic shapes seemed to be
"eternal values that have aIlowed the
everywhere. Evident inmany cultures;
appearing in iconographies, religious Indians to survive" will reverse this course
symbols, as well as today's corporate
and Create a
where
will
prevail Over
logos - the proliferation of geographic
shapes was a fascinating puzzle.
Recipe Corner:
The professor emphasizes
that Native American geometry
Meat Jerkv
introduces parents, teachers and
(Apache, Pueblo, & Navajo)
students to the wisdom of our
ancestors, through re-experiencingthe
Lean venison, lamb, mutton or beef
underlying order to our universe, which
can be used. Be sure t o use only lean
can be discovered and explored,
meat without any fat. Slice meat into
measured and colored just by
thin, 114 inch slices. Salt moderately
connecting a few dots. This technique
well on both sides. Hang meat on
breathes life into an appreciation of the
line in full sun to dry. Turn from side
past, and it provides a real, concrete,
to side frequently. As sun starts t o
scientific application for the modern
go down, bring meat indoors t o hang
mind that's open to learning one of
in dry place. Return outdoors the
Nature's most harmonious and logical
next day in full sun. Depending on
climate and humidity, meat will dry in
a few days. Store in dry place in
covered container, Jerky can be
eaten as is or used in stews.
The NAHC COOKBOOK is still
available. This unique, one-of-a-kind
cookbook includes not only Native
American recipes from all over the
country, but if is also a great to01 for
the outdoorsman, with lots of ways
to use the meat from their most
recent hunting excursion. The book
also serves as a wonderful coffee
table art book, with original arfwork
from over a dozen local artists.
Historical notations and Special
informational articles are also
included for the reader's enjoyment.
For information on how to get your
copy, please call 412-885-5097. Also
available are NAHC totes for $5.00
each; t-shirts for $12 each; and,
cachets (printed and cancelled
envelopes) from our 7991Art Contest
for $3.00 each. Also available are
embr~ideredbaseballcaps
(teal)with
the NAHC logo and name. A treat at
only $10. Each of these items is a
great collector's value.
Pleasecheckyourmailinglabelandnotifj,
u s with corrections. I f you would like
others to be added to tlte mailings, or if
you wouldlike to be removedfrom the list,
pleaseletus know. Thankyou!
Editor:
Sandra Hemrnings
Co-Editor: Earl Dingus
Pittsburgh Federal Executive Board
Native American Heritage Committee
~~~L~~,"$'~,"~
irtsburgh, PA ,5222