All they were doing was trying to stay ahead of their fears, given the murder of Sitting Bull. While the Ghost Dance Movement provoked fears of a general Lakota uprising, one NEVER materialized and it became the law of the land that tribes could not practice their tribal based religions (in direct conflict with the First Amendment). Colonel Forsyth made three reports about the massacre at Wounded Knee - his reports downplayed the brutality and the numbers killed. He was rewarded for his service with continued promotions and he retired as Brigadier General. Consider this, the Lakota were unarmed and they were cold and hungry, they had done everything the soldiers had asked of them, they did not want a fight, and did not have weapons to fight, and yet 20 soldiers were awarded Medals of Honor for these murders. There is a strong movement to have those medals revoked. It still has not happened.
Mitakuye Oyasin (Lakota - we are all related, all humans and all living things).
My one favorite authors, Ilona Andrew’s wrote, “A ‘better world’ bought by atrocities will be rotten at the core.”
She is right.
In that culture war, the victory by weapons of lies, dishonor, cruelty, and atrocities, created a type of “survival of the fittest” which became part of the emerging American culture and perpetuates in future generations.
Their “progeny” lead our industries, are billionaires, infect our government, are entrenched in our military & law enforcement.
That rottenness within our culture will continue to destroy because it perpetuates unchecked.
Like you, Solomon was observant and considerate and articulate regarding the human condition - which was then as it is now. I can only hope the findings of the Jan 6 Commission lead to the rotten and their rottenness being checked.
Proverbs 16:18 ESV
Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
Here’s an example of rottenness which was rewarded and which lead to the 2020 election ballot challenge. This is from HCR’s 12/29/21 post:
“”” As the media covered the [Nov 2000 Brooks Brother’s] riot, the canvassing board voted to shut down the recount because of the public perception that the recount was not transparent, and because the interference meant the recount could not be completed before the deadline the court had established. “We scared the crap out of them when we descended on them,” Blakeman later told Michael E. Miller of the Washington Post. The chair of the county’s Democratic Party noted, “Violence, fear and physical intimidation affected the outcome of a lawful elections process.” Blakeman’s response? “We got some blowback afterwards, but so what? We won.”””
The medals need to be revoked if nothing more than to honor the people that truly deserved them. I know that the heir’s of those men had nothing to do with the massacre, but no doubt those Medals of Honor are sitting in an honored place among them. I have felt this way for many years, ever since I learned that our nation’s highest honor was given to the men that took part in the massacre, that dishonor’s all of the deserving recipient's.
Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona argued against the bill, claiming that although the actions of the government at Wounded Knee were shameful, it would be unjust tp strip the medals from long-dead individual soldiers who, he claimed " fought bravely in a brief, fierce fight in which 25 soldiers died and 45 were wounded."
It's a shame that McCain's own history as a prisoner of war and victim of torture and starvation in the Vietnam War made him so partial to the individual soldiers' suffering that it blinded him to the shame, disgrace, brutality, and cowardice of the atrocities they participated in, for which no medals should ever be awarded.
Jeri, 100%. I'll never figure that one out. He was badly advised, but he didn't have to take that advice. Palin and trump, 2024! Never happen, trump hates women.....
Wow, Gus. There's a chilling thought. He might also choose Lauren Boebert or Marjorie Taylor Greene. Liberal/progressive GOTV activists are going to need industrial quantities of anti-nausea meds and clothespins for their noses
This link describes McCain's statements in opposition, which to me explains why to Senate Republicans probably refuse to consider the Remove the Stain Act, closing herd with McCain and an "all soldiers are heroes" uncritically pro-military perpective. Once again, blind pokitical allegiances block the path to truth and reparations in America.
My favorite (in the most awful way) of the reasons given for denying tribes various "rights" is they werent """citizens"""!! That in itself & there are many other reasons - should make us all cringe.
Jeri, I did not know about this until I read it here before going to sleep. Had a ptsd episode during the night. On the rare occasions that I have been in the presence of a Recipient, I have always had the reaction of controlling tears at just being in the presence of such a human being. The medal cannot be tainted by what despicable anti-human white men did, in my opinion. We know what it takes to wear that medal!
The slaughter of other humans is the taint, the awarding of the medal the anomaly. I think many other veterans would agree with me. The dismay at what was learned last night is completely drowned out by my awareness that such anti-humans are substantially increasing in number again.
Heather, My S-i-L, born this day on a Minn reservation, graduated from Harvard and Boalt, was just promoted to a senior position in the Dept of Interior where she oversees lawyer fighting for equal access to education. Every legal scrap is a battle, every piece of turf is a a battlefield of its own. Progress is so damned hard. Still. But still, thank the heavens for people like her willing to fight so hard for what’s right.
And, for some reason about which there is a lot of conjecture but little conclusion, Fox has no serious competition from reasonable and reasoned sources on the air.
NPR, The Guardian, and other news sources provide better alternatives. The problem, imho, is not that there aren't great alternatives, but that Fox has achieved cult status and reinforces its viewers in totally closing their minds. It's a propaganda and brainwashing vector, not a news source.
It's not that there aren't alternatives, it's that the alternatives aren't competitive in the media marketplace. The Guardian is quite good but, being British, isn't given as much credence as it deserves in this country and NPR, which does an excellent job in many areas, is regarded as a limited market almost elitist operation.
So, if it isn't easy or highly profitable, we just won't bother? Seems a little too facile to me or ought we just give up on the idea of having an informed electorate involved in governance?
Susan, years ago I got somewhat forced into being one of three leads in a school referendum campaign, got really really pushed out of my comfort zone. I will not stand outside a polling place nor make phone calls ever again. However, Ellie Kona's frequent posts got me to do something I could do, and that was to sign up for sending postcards to voters, which I did to Virginia. I also signed up for sending letters. If even half of those who are reading HCR's letter would do that, I feel like it might make a difference. Perhaps I am too optimistic.
"But it is not December 29 that haunts me. It is the night of December 28, the night before the killing."
Thank you Professor Cox-Richardson. It haunts us all. No amount of psychiatric/pharmaceutical support or egocentric distractions of the 'modern' world will dispel the shadows of this nightmare until "We The People" own the truth of our murderous, rapist, exploitative culture and quit rewriting the story to justify our lies - just for starters.
Where do we begin?
From Phyllis Young of The Lakota People’s Law Project:
12/23/2021
Last week, we took an important step forward when U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland visited Lakota Country for a meeting with tribal leaders, including our new Standing Rock Chairwoman, Janet Alkire. Watch the video we made about the visit here!
It’s a wonderful sign, amid all that’s already on her plate, that Secretary Haaland — the first Native Cabinet secretary in U.S. history — took the time to come to our homelands and hear our concerns and feedback.
That’s emblematic of who she is. On two previous occasions, Lakota Law met directly with Secretary Haaland, and we’re excited about the values she brings to overseeing federal policy affecting Indian Country. That’s why you helped us advocate — as detailed by the New York Times — for her appointment as Interior Secretary.
It makes my heart smile as an Indigenous elder to know that our chairwoman and Secretary Haaland have met and begun a process of listening to one another. As the first woman to serve as our chair in over 60 years, Janet will represent us well. Not only did she work with Lakota Law during our successful vote campaign last year, but she also cares deeply about our environment, community-based healing, and tribal sovereignty.
We’re in an important moment. Experienced Native women are stepping into leadership positions when we need their guidance most, and we have an unparalleled opportunity for the Standing Rock Nation to reassert its stature as a global environmental justice leader. I thank you for supporting Lakota Law as we continue to assist in any way we can.
Wopila tanka — my gratitude for your care and attention!
..., so, let's take a breather from daily routines of avoidance and denial, and make room to support First Nations people in their ongoing struggle to awaken the conscience of this nation.
This is from Madonna Thunder Hawk of The Lakota People’s Law Project:
12/27/2021
As we prepare to turn our calendars to 2022, one issue rises to the top of mind for many of us in Indian Country: in an election year, we have to make sure we’re heard at the ballot box. Given how critical the Native turnout was to the results in 2020 — and the extra barriers certain states have created for Native voters and other People of Color — now is the time to begin game planning. Your support over the past two election cycles powered our ability to increase participation both here in Lakota Country and around the U.S. The stakes in 2022 remain monumental, and, with your support, we intend to be change-makers once again.
We have to hit the ground running right now on strategy and planning to maximize our effectiveness in November. Please generously include the Lakota People’s Law Project in your year-end giving. We can and will increase turnout from Native and environmental voters when and where it matters most!
We’ve already created the blueprint to succeed. In 2018, we joined a massive effort to get out the vote at Standing Rock Nation. In 2020, our call center at Standing Rock employed tribal members as phone bankers who called fellow tribal members and environmental voters across the nation. We focused on where our organizers could make the biggest possible difference.
Last time around, that included swing states like Arizona, North Carolina, and Florida — and we then successfully replicated our model during the Georgia run-off elections. This year, once again, we’ll choose the states we can impact the most. In Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Arizona, Nevada, and New Hampshire, we anticipate tight senate races where an inspired turnout from Native People could elect those who care about the things that matter most to Lakota Country.
Your support has been and will continue to be crucial. I thank you for standing alongside the original people of this land as we give everything we have to ensure a better world for its future generations.
Wopila tanka — thank you for your generous spirit, and happy holidays!
P.S. Please give a year-end gift from the heart to help accomplish all this and more. Every dollar you contribute counts as we activate Native People across this land to make our voices heard in 2022!
... and, while we're at it, let's wake up and pay attention to continuing violations disguised as progress - and take effective action ... we've been hearing a lot about the ongoing fight to STOP LINE 3 ... what about Enbridge's LINE 5 ...?
This from Bill Latka of 'Oil & Water Don't Mix':
"As we approach the end of 2021, I'm reflecting on the year. The pandemic rages on, and there is a general unease about inflation and more proof of an overheating climate. With so much out of our control, taking action on things we can influence can give us a sense of empowerment and make a real difference.
Take Line 5, for example. Even though the legal landscape has shifted, you can take heart that you have helped create the movement that will get this dangerous oil pipeline shut down once and for all. The race is on to shut down the pipeline before it ruptures.
Please consider making a year-end tax-deductible donation to Oil & Water Don't Mix. Join the fight to make 2022 the year when you can look back and think, yeah, I did that. I protected the Great Lakes, Michigan, and the climate from a foreign company and its dangerous pipeline.
We knew this wasn't going to be easy, but thanks to your contributions and advocacy, we're still in the fight and still have a real chance to shut down Line 5. The petition you signed, the phone call you made, the social media post you liked or shared, and yes, the dollar you gave have all added up to one of the most significant environmental movements in our great state.
How do we know this movement is making a difference? Enbridge is spending more than ever trying to convince the public and lawmakers that we need their outdated pipeline. They are desperate to keep their profit flowing, and their actions show they are afraid of the truth.
We know that removing Line 5 and beginning a transition to cleaner ways of producing and using energy is the only way forward. And with your help, we'll all get there.
Aging pipelines owned by foreign company Enbridge lie exposed in the water at the bottom of the Straits of Mackinac, where Lake Michigan and Lake Huron meet. These pipelines, called Line 5, were built in 1953 during the Eisenhower administration.
When another Enbridge pipeline ruptured in 2010, it spilled over 1 million gallons of heavy crude oil into the Kalamazoo River. It was the largest land-based oil spill in U.S. history and is still being cleaned up. Enbridge’s Line 5 through the Straits of Mackinac is 15 years older than its pipeline that gushed oil into the Kalamazoo River.
Despite assurances that they could detect a leak "almost instantaneously," Enbridge initially misdiagnosed the massive spill into the Kalamazoo River, restarting pumps twice and allowing 17 hours to lapse before final shutdown. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency compared their poor handling of the disaster to the bumbling of the “Keystone Kops.”
This was just one of 1,068 Enbridge spills that dumped 7.4 million gallons of oil between 1999 and 2013 -- an average of 71 spills and 500,000 gallons leaked per year. That’s more than one oil spill every week for the last 15 years.
SIGN THE PETITION: Urge @POTUS to protect the #GreatLakes and climate from the Enbridge Line 5 oil pipeline. Help prevent disaster in the Straits of Mackinac. #shutdownline5 #EvictEnbridge Sign here: https://www.oilandwaterdontmix.org/line_5_presidential_petition … via @OilWaterDntMix
Kathleen, thank you for bringing our attention to the necessary and effective work of the Lakota Law Project. I appreciate the opportunity to support their work in mobilizing the voices and *votes* of Indigenous People and People of Color. I just set up a monthly donation. I sit with the irony that they offer me a way that I can begin to make (my tiny) amends for the collective atrocities of my white colonial invader ancestors, by supporting the Lakota Law Project's work. Their voter mobilization seeks to rescue not just their own rights, but all of us, from the end-stage destruction with which the white colonial exploitive world view threatens all of us and all life on the planet.
May the spirit of Desmond Tutu join those of your ancestors to guide you in this effort. In fact this country needs to replicate his efforts at reconciliation, a fitting rebuttal to the white “supremacist” emboldened cretins who would love to repeat the worst of our history.
Thank you Jeri, and thanks to all of you for your heartwarming response!!
It is refreshing to hear from people of conscience who care.
Years ago, when Archbishop Tutu spoke, people cheered with a rousing spirit that inspired confidence and joy that this purpose could be fulfilled. Not long ago, I heard a recording of Archbishop Tutu speaking to a crowd that sounded more like people in a cocktail lounge - laughing, talking among themselves - glasses clinking - like nobody really listened - or heard what he said. My spirit was torn between deep disappointment and rage.
Project JOY was started to celebrate and perpetuate his works, and close friendship with the Dalai Lama through the movie, MIssion: JOY. Here is a note from his team at MISSION: JOY ...:
12/26/2021
Dear JOY friends,
Sadly, in the middle of the night Peggy was notified by Arch's team that Archbishop Tutu passed away.
What a colossal loss for the world.
But his fierce embrace
of justice,
of love and laughter,
of kindness,
of Ubuntu,
live on in all of us as
wisdom shared.
Today, we join with you, our JOY community, to mourn this loss and to remember his legacy--a legacy that includes each of you, as his final mission was to help each of us learn how to create more JOY for ourselves.
If you would like to share a note of condolences or gratitude with his family and his team, you can do so here:
The ability to send notes of gratitude to Arch (and the Dalai Lama) is something we started months ago, because so many people were touched by learning more about his story through the MISSION: JOY film. Each note is read and appreciated.
Also, if you would like to host a free-of-charge screening of MISSION: JOY for your community group, college/university, or faith community, you can do that here:
Arch and the Dalai Lama were adamant that as many people see the film as possible, without regard for ability to pay.
Standing with you on this day, grateful for his life and his example of what JOY-fueled action can accomplish, even amid seemingly insurmountable challenges.
Peggy, Jolene, and the entire Mission: JOY team
Peggy Callahan, Mission: JOY Co-Director and Producer, and Impact Director
I was delighted to see that you had beaten me to posting information about Lakota Law Project this morning. I have already made a year-end gift and encourage everyone reading this to do the same. Thank you Kathleen!
This past summer, I visited Red Cloud’s grave at the Jesuits’ Red Cloud Indian School in Pine Ridge, and also their St. Francis Mission on Rosebud Reservation (both are great missions btw)Your history lessons here taught me even more than that which I purported to have learned this summer. Each evening is a class with you. I am grateful for this constant classroom of lifelong learning.
"The past is never dead -- it isn't even past." said Faulkner. Yes, we have the power to shape the future, but only if we are allowed to remember the lessons of the past -- even the horrifying lessons. Thank you, Heather. May this New Year find us wiser.
Our ability to learn from lessons of the past depends on conscientious historians like HCR writing in a democratic society that supports exchange of ideas. Another take on the past, its historical documentation, and impact on the future is unfolding in present day Russia. Two organizations that document atrocities, persecutions, and mass executions under the Stalin Reign of Terror are under attack by Putin:
"International Memorial… is almost entirely focused on distorting historic memory, first and foremost about the Great Fatherland War [World War Two]," Alexei Zhafyarov told the court, accusing the group of creating a false image of the USSR as a "terrorist" state.
Vladimir Putin has placed great store on the Soviet victory over the Nazis in World War Two, part of his hankering for the old days of superpower status - a far more attractive focus for many Russians than the parallel history of secret courts, prison camps and firing squads.
...Sister organisation Memorial Human Rights Centre, which works to document modern-day political repression and rights violations, is also facing closure for alleged violations of the foreign agents law. A ruling in its own case is expected this week."
That Russia's future is "glorious" is open to doubt but the manifest variability and instrumentaization for the purposes of state-control of its past is not. Memorial will raise its own memorial to its own work and become a shrine for freedom; they'll not be stopped now by fear as they weren't in Russia's recent past.....a lesson that all peoples should now heed as we are all facing similar trials and tribulations facing restrictions on our liberty "for apparently worthy causes". This sort of thing can be habit forming.
When you look at Russian history you can roll back the years and see that winter and the size of the country saved them from Napoleon and Hitler....not to mention Stalin's rearmement by America at the time. Further back you have defeat by the Kaiser in 1917, the Japanese in 1905, the Anglo-French in Crimea in early 1860s. The only saving grace being the ganging up of the bullies to dismember Poland in 19c.
Mind you, one has also to remember that the Native tribes did a little bit of that too amongst themselves; look at the arrival of the Lakotas on the plains for instance displacing resident peoples and the attitude of the Commanche and Apache towards the Pueblo especially after the Spanish reintroduced the horse and guns filtered into the internecine conflicts.
Indigenous tribal warfare is comparable to African tribal warfare and raids for slaves. Unlike the U.S. Government (and the preceding American Continents colonizers) and Euro-American slave traders, neither the Native American tribes nor African tribes were institutionalized as state policy, backed by mass murder weaponry, that escalated from devaluing, dehumanizing the native peoples to cultural genocide to displacement/mass murder/cut off from means of sustenance/enslavement on an industrialized, capitalized scale, ultimately victimizing millions of Indigenous people on the continents of North America, South America, and Africa.
Let's not forget Australia.....under the Christmas tree this year was Richard Broome's "Aboriginal Australians"....a history of the European invasion and life since from their point of view. Or one could try Bill Gammage's "The Biggest Estate on Earth" and Bruce Pascoe's "Dark Emu".
All that because England had both a surplus of capital to invest and of non-industrialized workers..... "liberated" by technological inovation and massive improvements in labour productivity that needed placing elsewhere.
The Native Americans are no different than any other human group and were quite willing to commit their version of atrocities. Had they the technology of the Europeans, they would undoubtedly exploited the land and ecosystems in a quest for resources, too.
Out of curiosity, does anyone mourn the demise Ordovices?
William, your comment is the kind of baseless charge given to absolve horrific abuse by Eurocentric people around the globe. Contrary to what we were taught, humanity is not by nature "red in tooth and claw"--as you seem to believe. There is a huge difference between Indigenous and Eurocentric people. Indigenous cultures are ecocentric--with a deep connection to nature, a focus on the benefit of the whole community, and goal to live in harmony with nature. Eurocentric cultures are anthropocentric--with a view that man is separate from and above nature, a focus on the benefit of the individual, and goal to dominate or be better than others, especially those who are seen as "different." If you're interested in learning about indigenous cultures and how their wisdom and worldviews can benefit non-indigenous peoples, you may want to read Robin Wall Kimmerer's books, including "Braiding Sweetgrass," and Sherri Mitchell's book "Sacred Instructions: Indigenous Wisdom for Living Spirit-Based Change." As they inform and expand one's knowledge and understanding, I recommend them most highly.
They mined copper and exploited the forests but didn't create eco-disters like us. They considered that they were part of nature and had a duty to all the other parts. Nature to them was not just a personal larder to be emptied with impunity. We are the abnormalities and not them.
But would they have done it in the same way when you consider that decisions were taken with the impact on 7 generations into the future? We need to be careful that we are not just looking for excuses for our own suicidal behaviour.
My spouse has Lakota ancestry and both of us are in the process of learning much about this aspect of our history. We both have read a history of the Lakota, written interestingly by a person who teaches in England...Oxford if I remember correctly. I have started Unworthy Republic which is about the emptying of the eastern half of the US of Native Americans and sending them across the Mississippi. It has upset me so much that I haven't finished it yet just as I haven't finished The Half Which Has Never Been Told about cotton slavery. We also have orders written by someone fighting Native Americans in southern Oregon and it is quite the revealing document about attitudes towards Native Americans. Every time I read of these aspects of the history of the US, I just want to weep. Right now I am reading Finding the Mother Tree which is about forestry practices in both the US and Canada. It is also an autobiography of the author. She frequently mentions how the indigenous people have treated the forest in contrast to the lumber companies which are all about short term profit. This also makes me want to weep. So we are living on stolen land and much of our wealth was built on the backs of slaves and in a relatively short period of time, we have managed to bring the earth to a crisis.
Guess we are reaping what we have sown. Hopefully those of us who are aware and compassionate will somehow join our forces and stand against this evil tide.
It is and right now I am at the point where she is working on experiments knowing that the lumber industry and those they influence are wrong. I have gardened on our almost half acre lot for more than 40 years, trying to respect the land. One noticeable thing is that we always have plenty of bees. When our lawn service came to spray dormant oil this year(at the wrong time in my opinion), I wouldn't let him because the bees were still active. He mentioned that he had been to a property in south Salem where there were none. There was also a property in our neighborhood that fairly reeked of chemicals. Thankfully, someone else has it and now it doesn't smell and is no longer perfect grass.
What's so infuriating is the lumber folks won't listen. Money is more important. And, I hear you about the ways in which we use topicals on grass/gardens etc. We live in a condo complex and the landscape company who takes care of the area way over uses fertilizer/weed killers, etc. And the lawns don't look much better. I noticed in my tiny annual garden that we had lots of bees. So whatever the landscapers use didn't appear to effect the bees.
That's good. I once found many bumble bees dead in our front yard. I had to assume that somewhere in the neighborhood (it wouldn't be hard)they had absorbed poison.
We live in Salem further north and we had terrible raging fires earlier that wiped out a lot of the Santiam Canyon. The effects of this are ongoing and parts of the area are still closed including some popular hiking destinations. The battle over forest practices has raged long and hot. Now we have an entity called Timber Unity which is financed out of state and likes to stir the pot. Instead of just donating hay without trying to make political hay, they had their sign all over the hay trucks and there was also one for a local R politician. This is one of the reasons, it is difficult to improve approaches to what we do to the land.
Oh my god. This is your absolutely most powerful essay. You nailed it. How thoroughly motivational. "It is never too late to change the fulture." Wow!!! It so mirrors one of my favorite quotes, this from Robert Kennedy: "The future is not a gift. It is an achievement." Love and infinities of blessings to you for your wisdom and your ability to inspire.
I grew up with stories of the Trail of Tears, the Wounded Knee Massacre, and so many others. As a child to now I’ve traveled extensively through our nation - one that is born out of a terrible history of overtaking and senseless death. I’m humbled with visiting monuments or places and spaces of our history, many places we hold sacred and dear to learn and preserve.
Recently someone said to me “don’t be afraid to read the next chapter, you know the author.” It seems to me that that saying, mixed with the one of our nation needing to hold a mirror to itself is so vital in these times. Thank you for your voice - we all learn so much
You've capured just how I feel: on the cliff-edge of a New Year that could end in historical tragedy, and make me a refugee. But doesn't have to! My New Year's resolution: not to let our democracy die.
We will win! But not without working hard. *Twice as hard,* as Biden, and Haaland, Vilsack and Lander, have abandoned the imperatives of the climate crisis and the young, who got him elected, won’t get out there for him again.
I’ve been a semi-regular reader but this letter prompted me to finally subscribe. It is so very hard to have hope in these dismal times, but the note you sound is so true. It’s never too late to change the future, but we have to have the will to do it and the wisdom to see where and how. Your writing helps so much-thank you.
I have read widely in my life and HCR's writing is the best of the best of the best.
She must have spent her childhood reading every book she could find, then, spent her college years in the library. The way she can create a feeling from words is not something that they teach in English class.
She is a truly masterful with the English language and you will be very happy to be part of this reflector for comments.
It was the need to reach out to like minded people that spurned me to subscribe. I wish I was half as knowledgeable, articulate and educated as so many of those who post, but I feel that I can gain just by being here. Welcome aboard.
Though we don’t know the next chapters that are going to be written in our story, still, “it is never too late to change the future.”
My thoughts tonight are with the just deceased Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who, despite being very ill towards the end, still, as late as October of this year, was appearing on Cable News programs. I recall Senator Reid speaking during the Trump Presidency about the tensions and turmoil in this country that could break the entire political and constitutional system. He clearly was thinking ahead to what the next few years could bring if we didn’t start trying to figure out how to deal with these deepening divisions. I imagine many of us thought that January 6th would be a moment of restitution, and, when we heard from Republicans initially, it did seem like an instant of restoration and renewal, and then they all went back to Trump, presumably because they saw he still owned the base.
When Senator Reid appeared on the ReidOut this past October, he said something to the effect that the fight of our lives right now has to be to secure voter protections and the peaceful transfer of power. Though activists in the Democratic Party share this view, we haven’t, as of this writing, heard the same level of urgency from Democratic leaders in Washington. Hence, when Congress re-convenes in January, and the country writes the next chapter of its story, let’s prevail upon Congress to be mindful of the Senate’s former leader, who these past few years has tried to create momentum both to fortify sorely tested, fragile institutions and restore trust in government, and let’s demand that leadership makes voter protection legislation the central issue of this time.
The Republicans “all went back to Trump, presumably because they saw he still owned the base.”….you have to give the devil his due, but he never wins because he’s a loser, so even if they do go back to tRump , eventually they will lose too: he will throw them under the bus - that’s all he knows how to do.
I was an imaging scientist in my last 20 years of career. The image "may" be a little bit enhanced in certain key areas. It will be hard for anyone to tell.
Thank you, Heather, for this vivid but horribly sad storytelling that nevertheless ends on a note of hope and a reminder that it is we who make our future.
How important all this content and context is to our understanding of the American Experiment that you give us nightly. To learn, yet again, of the catastrophic choices by the US Government that led to the heartbreaking tragedies that led to the deaths of Crazy Horse, Sitting Bull and the massacre at Wounded Knee that leads us today to weep for what we lost in our insatiable pursuit of happiness in this land of opportunity. Can we ever build back better our humanity?
Where is the humanity? In Europeans claiming occupied land from one coast to the other? In a Declaration of Independence written by immigrant colonizers, the descendants of immigrant colonizers, enslavers, and those who chose to allow enslavement to continue? In laws written to uphold and support slavery? In laws written to disenfranchise Natives of their land? In military campaigns to annihilate Natives? In sundown laws, Black Codes, acts such as the Fugitive Slave Act, the decision to recognize five "civilized" tribes (oh, the irony) and ignore and thus disenfranchise the rest? In the compromise that ended Reconstruction to welcome white southerners back into the fold, while allowing them to do as they chose to Black citizens? Where is the humanity in U.S. history? Could this empire based on oppression ever succeed?
All they were doing was trying to stay ahead of their fears, given the murder of Sitting Bull. While the Ghost Dance Movement provoked fears of a general Lakota uprising, one NEVER materialized and it became the law of the land that tribes could not practice their tribal based religions (in direct conflict with the First Amendment). Colonel Forsyth made three reports about the massacre at Wounded Knee - his reports downplayed the brutality and the numbers killed. He was rewarded for his service with continued promotions and he retired as Brigadier General. Consider this, the Lakota were unarmed and they were cold and hungry, they had done everything the soldiers had asked of them, they did not want a fight, and did not have weapons to fight, and yet 20 soldiers were awarded Medals of Honor for these murders. There is a strong movement to have those medals revoked. It still has not happened.
Mitakuye Oyasin (Lakota - we are all related, all humans and all living things).
My one favorite authors, Ilona Andrew’s wrote, “A ‘better world’ bought by atrocities will be rotten at the core.”
She is right.
In that culture war, the victory by weapons of lies, dishonor, cruelty, and atrocities, created a type of “survival of the fittest” which became part of the emerging American culture and perpetuates in future generations.
Their “progeny” lead our industries, are billionaires, infect our government, are entrenched in our military & law enforcement.
That rottenness within our culture will continue to destroy because it perpetuates unchecked.
Like you, Solomon was observant and considerate and articulate regarding the human condition - which was then as it is now. I can only hope the findings of the Jan 6 Commission lead to the rotten and their rottenness being checked.
Proverbs 16:18 ESV
Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
Thank you. Perfect proverb too.
Here’s an example of rottenness which was rewarded and which lead to the 2020 election ballot challenge. This is from HCR’s 12/29/21 post:
“”” As the media covered the [Nov 2000 Brooks Brother’s] riot, the canvassing board voted to shut down the recount because of the public perception that the recount was not transparent, and because the interference meant the recount could not be completed before the deadline the court had established. “We scared the crap out of them when we descended on them,” Blakeman later told Michael E. Miller of the Washington Post. The chair of the county’s Democratic Party noted, “Violence, fear and physical intimidation affected the outcome of a lawful elections process.” Blakeman’s response? “We got some blowback afterwards, but so what? We won.”””
Time Magazine published this article on the 2020 Election:
https://time.com/5936036/secret-2020-election-campaign/
Remember--it's only "fair" when the correct political party wins.
Reading…
Thanks for sharing.
“… relentlessly identify your assumptions and challenge them.”
Despicable.
The medals need to be revoked if nothing more than to honor the people that truly deserved them. I know that the heir’s of those men had nothing to do with the massacre, but no doubt those Medals of Honor are sitting in an honored place among them. I have felt this way for many years, ever since I learned that our nation’s highest honor was given to the men that took part in the massacre, that dishonor’s all of the deserving recipient's.
And that is one medal that should never, EVER, be tainted.
Amen. To honor dishonor is dishonorable.
Indeed.
wopila Wakan Tanka.
Thank You Creator. (If I remember correctly). Don’t know which Lakota nation.
The Remove the Stain Bill was introduced in the Senate March 26, 2021. https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/senate-bill/1073/all-info
It was referred to the Armed Services Committee and no action was taken.
Here’s my MoveOn petition to the Senate: https://sign.moveon.org/petitions/remove-the-stain-of-wounded-knee?just_launched=true
Signed!
Signed!
Signed and shared.
Majority Members (13) Minority Members (13)
Reed, Jack (RI), Chairman
Shaheen, Jeanne (NH)
Gillibrand, Kirsten E. (NY)
Blumenthal, Richard (CT)
Hirono, Mazie K. (HI)
Kaine, Tim (VA)
King, Angus S. (ME)
Warren, Elizabeth (MA)
Peters, Gary C. (MI)
Manchin, Joe (WV)
Duckworth, Tammy (IL)
Rosen, Jacky (NV)
Kelly, Mark (AZ)
Inhofe, James M. (OK), Ranking Member
Wicker, Roger F. (MS)
Fischer, Deb (NE)
Cotton, Tom (AR)
Rounds, Mike (SD)
Ernst, Joni (IA)
Tillis, Thom (NC)
Sullivan, Dan (AK)
Cramer, Kevin (ND)
Scott, Rick (FL)
Blackburn, Marsha (TN)
Hawley, Josh (MO)
Tuberville, Tommy (AL)
Maia, thanks for listing the D and R members of the Senate Armed Services Committee. My Senator, Elizabeth Warren, was one of those who first introduced the Remove the Stain Act in 2019. Her website gives a D/supportive history of the bill. https://www.warren.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/warren-merkley-and-kahele-reintroduce-the-remove-the-stain-act
Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona argued against the bill, claiming that although the actions of the government at Wounded Knee were shameful, it would be unjust tp strip the medals from long-dead individual soldiers who, he claimed " fought bravely in a brief, fierce fight in which 25 soldiers died and 45 were wounded."
It's a shame that McCain's own history as a prisoner of war and victim of torture and starvation in the Vietnam War made him so partial to the individual soldiers' suffering that it blinded him to the shame, disgrace, brutality, and cowardice of the atrocities they participated in, for which no medals should ever be awarded.
Sarah Palin is the horror that will taint him forever in my eyes
No kidding. What a catastrophic lapse of judgment it was that he selected her as his running mate.
Jeri, 100%. I'll never figure that one out. He was badly advised, but he didn't have to take that advice. Palin and trump, 2024! Never happen, trump hates women.....
Wow, Gus. There's a chilling thought. He might also choose Lauren Boebert or Marjorie Taylor Greene. Liberal/progressive GOTV activists are going to need industrial quantities of anti-nausea meds and clothespins for their noses
This link describes McCain's statements in opposition, which to me explains why to Senate Republicans probably refuse to consider the Remove the Stain Act, closing herd with McCain and an "all soldiers are heroes" uncritically pro-military perpective. Once again, blind pokitical allegiances block the path to truth and reparations in America.
https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/116/hr3467/summary
Here is a synopsis of the bill
https://www.warren.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Remove%20the%20Stain%20Act%20one-pager%20117th%20Congress.pdf
Warren's my hero, for so many reasons.
Shame on us
My favorite (in the most awful way) of the reasons given for denying tribes various "rights" is they werent """citizens"""!! That in itself & there are many other reasons - should make us all cringe.
It does. Again, and not for the first time, our so-called Christian nation has failed to adhere to Christ’s example.
White hubris. We take their land and declare them non-citizens....
:’-(
Medals tainted by the blood of the innocent.
Jeri, I did not know about this until I read it here before going to sleep. Had a ptsd episode during the night. On the rare occasions that I have been in the presence of a Recipient, I have always had the reaction of controlling tears at just being in the presence of such a human being. The medal cannot be tainted by what despicable anti-human white men did, in my opinion. We know what it takes to wear that medal!
The slaughter of other humans is the taint, the awarding of the medal the anomaly. I think many other veterans would agree with me. The dismay at what was learned last night is completely drowned out by my awareness that such anti-humans are substantially increasing in number again.
My deep regard for honor and the honorable is as deep as my loathing for disgrace and the disgraceful.
You are 100% right
Could you provide a phonetic pronunciation please?
https://www.howtopronounce.com/wopila-tanka
Thanks for that!
Heather, My S-i-L, born this day on a Minn reservation, graduated from Harvard and Boalt, was just promoted to a senior position in the Dept of Interior where she oversees lawyer fighting for equal access to education. Every legal scrap is a battle, every piece of turf is a a battlefield of its own. Progress is so damned hard. Still. But still, thank the heavens for people like her willing to fight so hard for what’s right.
Life in America would be so different if everyone could and would vote.
And would take the time to become informed about who and what they were voting on.
Well, that would surely help. As it is Fox gets out the cult vote…
And, for some reason about which there is a lot of conjecture but little conclusion, Fox has no serious competition from reasonable and reasoned sources on the air.
NPR, The Guardian, and other news sources provide better alternatives. The problem, imho, is not that there aren't great alternatives, but that Fox has achieved cult status and reinforces its viewers in totally closing their minds. It's a propaganda and brainwashing vector, not a news source.
It's not that there aren't alternatives, it's that the alternatives aren't competitive in the media marketplace. The Guardian is quite good but, being British, isn't given as much credence as it deserves in this country and NPR, which does an excellent job in many areas, is regarded as a limited market almost elitist operation.
from day one, I watched best friend (husband worshipped Fox) become a cult nut.
Our free press has been bought
There are two related problems.
1. It takes a lot of time and effort to curate "news" and pick out what is reasonable and reasoned.
2. It takes a lot of time and effort to read and absorb what is reasonable and reasoned, especially if it contradicts our pet prejudices.
News sources know there is no profit in the former, and news consumers have other things to do.
So, if it isn't easy or highly profitable, we just won't bother? Seems a little too facile to me or ought we just give up on the idea of having an informed electorate involved in governance?
Susan, years ago I got somewhat forced into being one of three leads in a school referendum campaign, got really really pushed out of my comfort zone. I will not stand outside a polling place nor make phone calls ever again. However, Ellie Kona's frequent posts got me to do something I could do, and that was to sign up for sending postcards to voters, which I did to Virginia. I also signed up for sending letters. If even half of those who are reading HCR's letter would do that, I feel like it might make a difference. Perhaps I am too optimistic.
resistbot does letters
Congratulations. Thank your sil for me.
WOW!
"But it is not December 29 that haunts me. It is the night of December 28, the night before the killing."
Thank you Professor Cox-Richardson. It haunts us all. No amount of psychiatric/pharmaceutical support or egocentric distractions of the 'modern' world will dispel the shadows of this nightmare until "We The People" own the truth of our murderous, rapist, exploitative culture and quit rewriting the story to justify our lies - just for starters.
Where do we begin?
From Phyllis Young of The Lakota People’s Law Project:
12/23/2021
Last week, we took an important step forward when U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland visited Lakota Country for a meeting with tribal leaders, including our new Standing Rock Chairwoman, Janet Alkire. Watch the video we made about the visit here!
https://lakotalaw.org/resources/haaland-meets-with-lakota-tribal-leaders
It’s a wonderful sign, amid all that’s already on her plate, that Secretary Haaland — the first Native Cabinet secretary in U.S. history — took the time to come to our homelands and hear our concerns and feedback.
That’s emblematic of who she is. On two previous occasions, Lakota Law met directly with Secretary Haaland, and we’re excited about the values she brings to overseeing federal policy affecting Indian Country. That’s why you helped us advocate — as detailed by the New York Times — for her appointment as Interior Secretary.
It makes my heart smile as an Indigenous elder to know that our chairwoman and Secretary Haaland have met and begun a process of listening to one another. As the first woman to serve as our chair in over 60 years, Janet will represent us well. Not only did she work with Lakota Law during our successful vote campaign last year, but she also cares deeply about our environment, community-based healing, and tribal sovereignty.
We’re in an important moment. Experienced Native women are stepping into leadership positions when we need their guidance most, and we have an unparalleled opportunity for the Standing Rock Nation to reassert its stature as a global environmental justice leader. I thank you for supporting Lakota Law as we continue to assist in any way we can.
Wopila tanka — my gratitude for your care and attention!
Phyllis Young
Standing Rock Organizer
The Lakota People’s Law Project
https://action.lakotalaw.org
..., so, let's take a breather from daily routines of avoidance and denial, and make room to support First Nations people in their ongoing struggle to awaken the conscience of this nation.
This is from Madonna Thunder Hawk of The Lakota People’s Law Project:
12/27/2021
As we prepare to turn our calendars to 2022, one issue rises to the top of mind for many of us in Indian Country: in an election year, we have to make sure we’re heard at the ballot box. Given how critical the Native turnout was to the results in 2020 — and the extra barriers certain states have created for Native voters and other People of Color — now is the time to begin game planning. Your support over the past two election cycles powered our ability to increase participation both here in Lakota Country and around the U.S. The stakes in 2022 remain monumental, and, with your support, we intend to be change-makers once again.
We have to hit the ground running right now on strategy and planning to maximize our effectiveness in November. Please generously include the Lakota People’s Law Project in your year-end giving. We can and will increase turnout from Native and environmental voters when and where it matters most!
https://action.lakotalaw.org/action/donate
We’ve already created the blueprint to succeed. In 2018, we joined a massive effort to get out the vote at Standing Rock Nation. In 2020, our call center at Standing Rock employed tribal members as phone bankers who called fellow tribal members and environmental voters across the nation. We focused on where our organizers could make the biggest possible difference.
Last time around, that included swing states like Arizona, North Carolina, and Florida — and we then successfully replicated our model during the Georgia run-off elections. This year, once again, we’ll choose the states we can impact the most. In Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Arizona, Nevada, and New Hampshire, we anticipate tight senate races where an inspired turnout from Native People could elect those who care about the things that matter most to Lakota Country.
Your support has been and will continue to be crucial. I thank you for standing alongside the original people of this land as we give everything we have to ensure a better world for its future generations.
Wopila tanka — thank you for your generous spirit, and happy holidays!
Madonna Thunder Hawk
Cheyenne River Organizer
The Lakota People’s Law Project
https://action.lakotalaw.org
P.S. Please give a year-end gift from the heart to help accomplish all this and more. Every dollar you contribute counts as we activate Native People across this land to make our voices heard in 2022!
https://action.lakotalaw.org/action/donate
... and, while we're at it, let's wake up and pay attention to continuing violations disguised as progress - and take effective action ... we've been hearing a lot about the ongoing fight to STOP LINE 3 ... what about Enbridge's LINE 5 ...?
This from Bill Latka of 'Oil & Water Don't Mix':
"As we approach the end of 2021, I'm reflecting on the year. The pandemic rages on, and there is a general unease about inflation and more proof of an overheating climate. With so much out of our control, taking action on things we can influence can give us a sense of empowerment and make a real difference.
Take Line 5, for example. Even though the legal landscape has shifted, you can take heart that you have helped create the movement that will get this dangerous oil pipeline shut down once and for all. The race is on to shut down the pipeline before it ruptures.
Please consider making a year-end tax-deductible donation to Oil & Water Don't Mix. Join the fight to make 2022 the year when you can look back and think, yeah, I did that. I protected the Great Lakes, Michigan, and the climate from a foreign company and its dangerous pipeline.
https://www.oilandwaterdontmix.org/donate
https://www.oilandwaterdontmix.org/double_your_donation
We knew this wasn't going to be easy, but thanks to your contributions and advocacy, we're still in the fight and still have a real chance to shut down Line 5. The petition you signed, the phone call you made, the social media post you liked or shared, and yes, the dollar you gave have all added up to one of the most significant environmental movements in our great state.
How do we know this movement is making a difference? Enbridge is spending more than ever trying to convince the public and lawmakers that we need their outdated pipeline. They are desperate to keep their profit flowing, and their actions show they are afraid of the truth.
We know that removing Line 5 and beginning a transition to cleaner ways of producing and using energy is the only way forward. And with your help, we'll all get there.
Bill Latka
Oil & Water Don't Mix
http://www.oilandwaterdontmix.org/
cleanwater@oilandwaterdontmix.org
Aging pipelines owned by foreign company Enbridge lie exposed in the water at the bottom of the Straits of Mackinac, where Lake Michigan and Lake Huron meet. These pipelines, called Line 5, were built in 1953 during the Eisenhower administration.
When another Enbridge pipeline ruptured in 2010, it spilled over 1 million gallons of heavy crude oil into the Kalamazoo River. It was the largest land-based oil spill in U.S. history and is still being cleaned up. Enbridge’s Line 5 through the Straits of Mackinac is 15 years older than its pipeline that gushed oil into the Kalamazoo River.
Despite assurances that they could detect a leak "almost instantaneously," Enbridge initially misdiagnosed the massive spill into the Kalamazoo River, restarting pumps twice and allowing 17 hours to lapse before final shutdown. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency compared their poor handling of the disaster to the bumbling of the “Keystone Kops.”
This was just one of 1,068 Enbridge spills that dumped 7.4 million gallons of oil between 1999 and 2013 -- an average of 71 spills and 500,000 gallons leaked per year. That’s more than one oil spill every week for the last 15 years.
Where will the next Enbridge spill occur?
https://www.oilandwaterdontmix.org/
SIGN THE PETITION: Urge @POTUS to protect the #GreatLakes and climate from the Enbridge Line 5 oil pipeline. Help prevent disaster in the Straits of Mackinac. #shutdownline5 #EvictEnbridge Sign here: https://www.oilandwaterdontmix.org/line_5_presidential_petition … via @OilWaterDntMix
Dec 24, 2021
https://www.oilandwaterdontmix.org/line_5_presidential_petition
https://twitter.com/POTUS
https://twitter.com/hashtag/GreatLakes
https://twitter.com/hashtag/shutdownline5
https://twitter.com/hashtag/EvictEnbridge
https://twitter.com/OilWaterDntMix
https://twitter.com/KaiThePunk1/status/1474620980882554881
More on LINE 5:
This has been going on for years ... what will it take to 'Make That Change' ...?!
A Massive Oil Pipeline Under the Great Lakes Is Way Past Its Expiration Date
New Documentary Exposes Enbridge Line 5
https://www.oilandwaterdontmix.org/new_documentary_exposes_enbridge_line_5
https://www.vice.com/en/contributor/motherboard
https://www.vice.com/en/article/4x3j4d/the-aging-oil-pipelines-below-the-great-lakes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ic9NcKtEPGs
@spencerchumbley
https://twitter.com/spencerchumbley
_______
Beneath the Surface: The Line 5 Pipeline in the Great Lakes | Great Lakes Now
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UPTaXGkY6c
_______
Watching the Waters - Great Lakes Now Full Episode - 1020
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjfDuGEIlmk
_______
Minnesota: A History of the Land, Episode 5
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Prvih1PmVJ0.
Don't stop talking, Kathleen. We're listening, and taking action!
There’s a great editorial in todays NYTIMES by Laurence Tribe toward Garland—everybody should read it!
I agree, Liz, Laurence Tribe's public plea to Atty General Garland is very important. It was published on 12/23/2021. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/23/opinion/trump-capitol-riot-january-6th.html
I like the point he makes that Garland may very well be conducting criminal investigations but not making it public.
Thank you Kathleen for the information and links. I just donated and I hope it encourages others to do so as well. ❤️
Kathleen, thank you for bringing our attention to the necessary and effective work of the Lakota Law Project. I appreciate the opportunity to support their work in mobilizing the voices and *votes* of Indigenous People and People of Color. I just set up a monthly donation. I sit with the irony that they offer me a way that I can begin to make (my tiny) amends for the collective atrocities of my white colonial invader ancestors, by supporting the Lakota Law Project's work. Their voter mobilization seeks to rescue not just their own rights, but all of us, from the end-stage destruction with which the white colonial exploitive world view threatens all of us and all life on the planet.
May the spirit of Desmond Tutu join those of your ancestors to guide you in this effort. In fact this country needs to replicate his efforts at reconciliation, a fitting rebuttal to the white “supremacist” emboldened cretins who would love to repeat the worst of our history.
Thank you Jeri, and thanks to all of you for your heartwarming response!!
It is refreshing to hear from people of conscience who care.
Years ago, when Archbishop Tutu spoke, people cheered with a rousing spirit that inspired confidence and joy that this purpose could be fulfilled. Not long ago, I heard a recording of Archbishop Tutu speaking to a crowd that sounded more like people in a cocktail lounge - laughing, talking among themselves - glasses clinking - like nobody really listened - or heard what he said. My spirit was torn between deep disappointment and rage.
Project JOY was started to celebrate and perpetuate his works, and close friendship with the Dalai Lama through the movie, MIssion: JOY. Here is a note from his team at MISSION: JOY ...:
12/26/2021
Dear JOY friends,
Sadly, in the middle of the night Peggy was notified by Arch's team that Archbishop Tutu passed away.
What a colossal loss for the world.
But his fierce embrace
of justice,
of love and laughter,
of kindness,
of Ubuntu,
live on in all of us as
wisdom shared.
Today, we join with you, our JOY community, to mourn this loss and to remember his legacy--a legacy that includes each of you, as his final mission was to help each of us learn how to create more JOY for ourselves.
If you would like to share a note of condolences or gratitude with his family and his team, you can do so here:
https://missionjoy.org/arch/
The ability to send notes of gratitude to Arch (and the Dalai Lama) is something we started months ago, because so many people were touched by learning more about his story through the MISSION: JOY film. Each note is read and appreciated.
Also, if you would like to host a free-of-charge screening of MISSION: JOY for your community group, college/university, or faith community, you can do that here:
https://missionjoy.org/host-a-screening/
Arch and the Dalai Lama were adamant that as many people see the film as possible, without regard for ability to pay.
Standing with you on this day, grateful for his life and his example of what JOY-fueled action can accomplish, even amid seemingly insurmountable challenges.
Peggy, Jolene, and the entire Mission: JOY team
Peggy Callahan, Mission: JOY Co-Director and Producer, and Impact Director
Jolene Smith, Mission: JOY Impact Producer
Our mailing address is:
The Joy Film LLC
1390 Chain Bridge Rd # 10010
McLean, VA 22101-390
From Amy Goodman & Denis Moynihan of DEMOCRACYNOW!
12/29/2021
DESMOND TUTU, REST IN POWER
https://www.democracynow.org/2021/12/29/desmond_tutu_rest_in_power
_______
Archbishop Desmond Tutu (1931-2021) on Apartheid, War, Palestine, Guantánamo, Climate Crisis & More
https://www.democracynow.org/2021/12/27/life_and_legacy_archbishop_desmond_tutu
Beautiful thought, Jeri. I'm working on it.
“His Spirit Reflected a Giant”: Mumia Abu-Jamal Remembers Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s Visit on Death Row
https://www.democracynow.org/2021/12/28/mumia_abu_jamal_remembers_desmond_tutu
_______
South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu Calls for Release of Mumia Abu-Jamal
https://www.democracynow.org/2011/12/8/south_african_archbishop_desmond_tutu_calls?autostart=true
************
FREE MUMIA - AND LEONARD PELTIER TOO!!!!!!!
... and the hundreds of water protectors being detained for standing up to Major League Gas/Oil Industries and attending Global Bog Box Enterprise ...
... and Steven Donziger too - at least he is back home for now ...
... Big Box ...!!
... although, 'bog' probably says more about the nature of that industry ...
https://action.lakotalaw.org/action/donate
I was delighted to see that you had beaten me to posting information about Lakota Law Project this morning. I have already made a year-end gift and encourage everyone reading this to do the same. Thank you Kathleen!
Excellent post and info. Thank you.
Truth and reconciliation.
This past summer, I visited Red Cloud’s grave at the Jesuits’ Red Cloud Indian School in Pine Ridge, and also their St. Francis Mission on Rosebud Reservation (both are great missions btw)Your history lessons here taught me even more than that which I purported to have learned this summer. Each evening is a class with you. I am grateful for this constant classroom of lifelong learning.
"The past is never dead -- it isn't even past." said Faulkner. Yes, we have the power to shape the future, but only if we are allowed to remember the lessons of the past -- even the horrifying lessons. Thank you, Heather. May this New Year find us wiser.
Our ability to learn from lessons of the past depends on conscientious historians like HCR writing in a democratic society that supports exchange of ideas. Another take on the past, its historical documentation, and impact on the future is unfolding in present day Russia. Two organizations that document atrocities, persecutions, and mass executions under the Stalin Reign of Terror are under attack by Putin:
"International Memorial… is almost entirely focused on distorting historic memory, first and foremost about the Great Fatherland War [World War Two]," Alexei Zhafyarov told the court, accusing the group of creating a false image of the USSR as a "terrorist" state.
Vladimir Putin has placed great store on the Soviet victory over the Nazis in World War Two, part of his hankering for the old days of superpower status - a far more attractive focus for many Russians than the parallel history of secret courts, prison camps and firing squads.
...Sister organisation Memorial Human Rights Centre, which works to document modern-day political repression and rights violations, is also facing closure for alleged violations of the foreign agents law. A ruling in its own case is expected this week."
https://twitter.com/BBCWorld/status/1475814429866483717?s=20
Said the BBC commentator: "Russia's future is glorious; its history is unpredictable."
That Russia's future is "glorious" is open to doubt but the manifest variability and instrumentaization for the purposes of state-control of its past is not. Memorial will raise its own memorial to its own work and become a shrine for freedom; they'll not be stopped now by fear as they weren't in Russia's recent past.....a lesson that all peoples should now heed as we are all facing similar trials and tribulations facing restrictions on our liberty "for apparently worthy causes". This sort of thing can be habit forming.
You'll appreciate that the BBC commentator had tongue in cheek playing on Putin's reference to Russia's history as "glorious."
The BBC still has some "journalists" thankfully who know the power of the "unspoken" word.
When you look at Russian history you can roll back the years and see that winter and the size of the country saved them from Napoleon and Hitler....not to mention Stalin's rearmement by America at the time. Further back you have defeat by the Kaiser in 1917, the Japanese in 1905, the Anglo-French in Crimea in early 1860s. The only saving grace being the ganging up of the bullies to dismember Poland in 19c.
Oh
We all live on stolen land.
And virtually alll of our wealth is ill-gotten gains.
I'm currently thinking through the thesis that all wealth is theft.
Mind you, one has also to remember that the Native tribes did a little bit of that too amongst themselves; look at the arrival of the Lakotas on the plains for instance displacing resident peoples and the attitude of the Commanche and Apache towards the Pueblo especially after the Spanish reintroduced the horse and guns filtered into the internecine conflicts.
Indigenous tribal warfare is comparable to African tribal warfare and raids for slaves. Unlike the U.S. Government (and the preceding American Continents colonizers) and Euro-American slave traders, neither the Native American tribes nor African tribes were institutionalized as state policy, backed by mass murder weaponry, that escalated from devaluing, dehumanizing the native peoples to cultural genocide to displacement/mass murder/cut off from means of sustenance/enslavement on an industrialized, capitalized scale, ultimately victimizing millions of Indigenous people on the continents of North America, South America, and Africa.
Let's not forget Australia.....under the Christmas tree this year was Richard Broome's "Aboriginal Australians"....a history of the European invasion and life since from their point of view. Or one could try Bill Gammage's "The Biggest Estate on Earth" and Bruce Pascoe's "Dark Emu".
All that because England had both a surplus of capital to invest and of non-industrialized workers..... "liberated" by technological inovation and massive improvements in labour productivity that needed placing elsewhere.
Trump and his mob who like to do the same to all who think differently than they.
"Indigenous tribal warfare is comparable to African tribal warfare and raids for slaves."
As if white tribes never engaged in "tribal warfare and raids for slaves."
Historically, we've all done it at one time or another.
That doesn’t equate to our genocide of the indigenous people of North America.
Yes, said succinctly!
True and indeed the European invasion greatly facilitated and accelerated it.
The Native Americans are no different than any other human group and were quite willing to commit their version of atrocities. Had they the technology of the Europeans, they would undoubtedly exploited the land and ecosystems in a quest for resources, too.
Out of curiosity, does anyone mourn the demise Ordovices?
William, your comment is the kind of baseless charge given to absolve horrific abuse by Eurocentric people around the globe. Contrary to what we were taught, humanity is not by nature "red in tooth and claw"--as you seem to believe. There is a huge difference between Indigenous and Eurocentric people. Indigenous cultures are ecocentric--with a deep connection to nature, a focus on the benefit of the whole community, and goal to live in harmony with nature. Eurocentric cultures are anthropocentric--with a view that man is separate from and above nature, a focus on the benefit of the individual, and goal to dominate or be better than others, especially those who are seen as "different." If you're interested in learning about indigenous cultures and how their wisdom and worldviews can benefit non-indigenous peoples, you may want to read Robin Wall Kimmerer's books, including "Braiding Sweetgrass," and Sherri Mitchell's book "Sacred Instructions: Indigenous Wisdom for Living Spirit-Based Change." As they inform and expand one's knowledge and understanding, I recommend them most highly.
They mined copper and exploited the forests but didn't create eco-disters like us. They considered that they were part of nature and had a duty to all the other parts. Nature to them was not just a personal larder to be emptied with impunity. We are the abnormalities and not them.
They didn't have the technology/capacity for industrial-scale recovery.
The romantic idea folks hold of native peoples reflects our simplicity, not theirs.
But would they have done it in the same way when you consider that decisions were taken with the impact on 7 generations into the future? We need to be careful that we are not just looking for excuses for our own suicidal behaviour.
Book to recommend viz. this discussion: "Changes in the Land" by William Cronon.
I recommend the book, The Dawn of Everything.
it's alreeady on my list for next year.
My spouse has Lakota ancestry and both of us are in the process of learning much about this aspect of our history. We both have read a history of the Lakota, written interestingly by a person who teaches in England...Oxford if I remember correctly. I have started Unworthy Republic which is about the emptying of the eastern half of the US of Native Americans and sending them across the Mississippi. It has upset me so much that I haven't finished it yet just as I haven't finished The Half Which Has Never Been Told about cotton slavery. We also have orders written by someone fighting Native Americans in southern Oregon and it is quite the revealing document about attitudes towards Native Americans. Every time I read of these aspects of the history of the US, I just want to weep. Right now I am reading Finding the Mother Tree which is about forestry practices in both the US and Canada. It is also an autobiography of the author. She frequently mentions how the indigenous people have treated the forest in contrast to the lumber companies which are all about short term profit. This also makes me want to weep. So we are living on stolen land and much of our wealth was built on the backs of slaves and in a relatively short period of time, we have managed to bring the earth to a crisis.
Finding the Mother Tree is amazing and inspiring and heart-breaking. Blessings.
Yes, I am not finished with it and already I have those feelings.
Guess we are reaping what we have sown. Hopefully those of us who are aware and compassionate will somehow join our forces and stand against this evil tide.
Finding the Mother Tree is a very inspiring and sad story. Seems you have your own stories to tell. Thank you for sharing your pain, Michele.
It is and right now I am at the point where she is working on experiments knowing that the lumber industry and those they influence are wrong. I have gardened on our almost half acre lot for more than 40 years, trying to respect the land. One noticeable thing is that we always have plenty of bees. When our lawn service came to spray dormant oil this year(at the wrong time in my opinion), I wouldn't let him because the bees were still active. He mentioned that he had been to a property in south Salem where there were none. There was also a property in our neighborhood that fairly reeked of chemicals. Thankfully, someone else has it and now it doesn't smell and is no longer perfect grass.
What's so infuriating is the lumber folks won't listen. Money is more important. And, I hear you about the ways in which we use topicals on grass/gardens etc. We live in a condo complex and the landscape company who takes care of the area way over uses fertilizer/weed killers, etc. And the lawns don't look much better. I noticed in my tiny annual garden that we had lots of bees. So whatever the landscapers use didn't appear to effect the bees.
That's good. I once found many bumble bees dead in our front yard. I had to assume that somewhere in the neighborhood (it wouldn't be hard)they had absorbed poison.
https://www.optimistdaily.com/2021/12/bootleg-fire-case-demonstrates-efficacy-of-indigenous-forest-management/
We live in Salem further north and we had terrible raging fires earlier that wiped out a lot of the Santiam Canyon. The effects of this are ongoing and parts of the area are still closed including some popular hiking destinations. The battle over forest practices has raged long and hot. Now we have an entity called Timber Unity which is financed out of state and likes to stir the pot. Instead of just donating hay without trying to make political hay, they had their sign all over the hay trucks and there was also one for a local R politician. This is one of the reasons, it is difficult to improve approaches to what we do to the land.
"The past has its own terrible inevitability."
"But it is never too late to change the future."
Dr. Richardson. Your two best and most valuable sentences yet (for me anyway). Wrapped around a tragic story for impact.
Thank you. Brilliant writing.
I understand.
Yes, but how do you stop a bunch of vindictive, violent white supremacists? How do we change the future that seems all but inevitable? How?
Oh my god. This is your absolutely most powerful essay. You nailed it. How thoroughly motivational. "It is never too late to change the fulture." Wow!!! It so mirrors one of my favorite quotes, this from Robert Kennedy: "The future is not a gift. It is an achievement." Love and infinities of blessings to you for your wisdom and your ability to inspire.
I grew up with stories of the Trail of Tears, the Wounded Knee Massacre, and so many others. As a child to now I’ve traveled extensively through our nation - one that is born out of a terrible history of overtaking and senseless death. I’m humbled with visiting monuments or places and spaces of our history, many places we hold sacred and dear to learn and preserve.
Recently someone said to me “don’t be afraid to read the next chapter, you know the author.” It seems to me that that saying, mixed with the one of our nation needing to hold a mirror to itself is so vital in these times. Thank you for your voice - we all learn so much
You've capured just how I feel: on the cliff-edge of a New Year that could end in historical tragedy, and make me a refugee. But doesn't have to! My New Year's resolution: not to let our democracy die.
That should be everyone's resolution. We've got 10 months until the 2022 election. We need to win.
We will win! But not without working hard. *Twice as hard,* as Biden, and Haaland, Vilsack and Lander, have abandoned the imperatives of the climate crisis and the young, who got him elected, won’t get out there for him again.
It is never too late to change the future. We need to always keep that in mind.
I’ve been a semi-regular reader but this letter prompted me to finally subscribe. It is so very hard to have hope in these dismal times, but the note you sound is so true. It’s never too late to change the future, but we have to have the will to do it and the wisdom to see where and how. Your writing helps so much-thank you.
Welcome also to an amazing community of people inspired by HCR and unparalleled in their comment contributions.
Welcome!
I have read widely in my life and HCR's writing is the best of the best of the best.
She must have spent her childhood reading every book she could find, then, spent her college years in the library. The way she can create a feeling from words is not something that they teach in English class.
She is a truly masterful with the English language and you will be very happy to be part of this reflector for comments.
My heartiest and warmest welcome.
Welcome! This is home.
It was the need to reach out to like minded people that spurned me to subscribe. I wish I was half as knowledgeable, articulate and educated as so many of those who post, but I feel that I can gain just by being here. Welcome aboard.
Well said, Michele. There are so many bright articulate people here that I learn as much from this community as I do from Heather.
Welcome Genevieve! Please continue to share your thoughts here. You have found a vibrant, supportive community.
Welcome. You will find support amid an amazing group of people.
Welcome, Genevieve! You will not regret this inspiring decision and community!
Welcome aboard. I hope you find this community as enriching as I do.
Welcome!!
Though we don’t know the next chapters that are going to be written in our story, still, “it is never too late to change the future.”
My thoughts tonight are with the just deceased Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who, despite being very ill towards the end, still, as late as October of this year, was appearing on Cable News programs. I recall Senator Reid speaking during the Trump Presidency about the tensions and turmoil in this country that could break the entire political and constitutional system. He clearly was thinking ahead to what the next few years could bring if we didn’t start trying to figure out how to deal with these deepening divisions. I imagine many of us thought that January 6th would be a moment of restitution, and, when we heard from Republicans initially, it did seem like an instant of restoration and renewal, and then they all went back to Trump, presumably because they saw he still owned the base.
When Senator Reid appeared on the ReidOut this past October, he said something to the effect that the fight of our lives right now has to be to secure voter protections and the peaceful transfer of power. Though activists in the Democratic Party share this view, we haven’t, as of this writing, heard the same level of urgency from Democratic leaders in Washington. Hence, when Congress re-convenes in January, and the country writes the next chapter of its story, let’s prevail upon Congress to be mindful of the Senate’s former leader, who these past few years has tried to create momentum both to fortify sorely tested, fragile institutions and restore trust in government, and let’s demand that leadership makes voter protection legislation the central issue of this time.
The Republicans “all went back to Trump, presumably because they saw he still owned the base.”….you have to give the devil his due, but he never wins because he’s a loser, so even if they do go back to tRump , eventually they will lose too: he will throw them under the bus - that’s all he knows how to do.
You can bet the house on it.
Let's go tRUMP!
https://photos.app.goo.gl/W4PM1Bt3DMf7kJCe8
feel free to download and share as widely as you want. Non copyrighted material.
I need eye bleach after that, Mike. But then, it is an accurate picture.
Ally,
I was an imaging scientist in my last 20 years of career. The image "may" be a little bit enhanced in certain key areas. It will be hard for anyone to tell.
I know. Photos are from about 90+ years ago.
Thank you, Heather, for this vivid but horribly sad storytelling that nevertheless ends on a note of hope and a reminder that it is we who make our future.
How important all this content and context is to our understanding of the American Experiment that you give us nightly. To learn, yet again, of the catastrophic choices by the US Government that led to the heartbreaking tragedies that led to the deaths of Crazy Horse, Sitting Bull and the massacre at Wounded Knee that leads us today to weep for what we lost in our insatiable pursuit of happiness in this land of opportunity. Can we ever build back better our humanity?
Where is the humanity? In Europeans claiming occupied land from one coast to the other? In a Declaration of Independence written by immigrant colonizers, the descendants of immigrant colonizers, enslavers, and those who chose to allow enslavement to continue? In laws written to uphold and support slavery? In laws written to disenfranchise Natives of their land? In military campaigns to annihilate Natives? In sundown laws, Black Codes, acts such as the Fugitive Slave Act, the decision to recognize five "civilized" tribes (oh, the irony) and ignore and thus disenfranchise the rest? In the compromise that ended Reconstruction to welcome white southerners back into the fold, while allowing them to do as they chose to Black citizens? Where is the humanity in U.S. history? Could this empire based on oppression ever succeed?