indian, native american, HUMAN would do this to someone who is not able to really fend for themselves, and need to rely on others for daily things such as sustenance/food!...some of these people are in their 90s..i cant imagine(but i do and often now that im disabled and have a very hard time day to day) how awful it must be to be old, when you know what its like to be young, then to have anyone mistreat you, withhold food, life giving nutrition and to give it to you when *THEY* please, feel like it , and to serve it to you cold, or when the food is rotten or not give it to you at all, then sell it and/or take it for their own family etc..and thats not even talking bout the accusations that there are drug sells and alcohol going on through the center, which is illegal on the reservation at Pine Ridge/Porcupine. Drug and alchohol, especially in conjunction with each other, leads to very bad influences which the poor elders are being subjected to, and i dont and never will understand how and why the tribal police are not doing whats right?! WHAT the hell exactly are THEY doing??!! how can they dare to accept a paycheck? The honorable thing to do would be the RIGHT thing but since they dont do that, then the next honorable thing is to just quit their jobs so someone who WILL do the right thing, can step into the position? How would they feel if this was their grandmother, grandfather, mother, father? would they allow ANYONE to disrespect, mistreat, abuse and neglect THEIR family member?http://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2011/03/porcupine-occupation-lakota-elders.html
I am Mdewakanton Lower Sioux Dakota, I may not be FULL blooded(but my grandmother was) but i identify with the blood running through me, of my ancestors...i always have and always will and the older i get, the more i feel it and its funny,not in the haha funny way, but just honestly a nice realisation, that with the more i learn about my family, my ancestors, my lineage, i realise that almost every thing about me, since i was very very little, the way i feel about things, about this life, about nature...it all falls right in line with being Dakota..even without being raised on the "Rez" or knowing the language and i am trying my best to raise my children to know who they are, where they come from and putting huge importance on it all so that they can be proud and also have empathy , sympathy, compassion and understanding of all those who came before them, what they endured and they endured more than most people these days could take....if you think about it, we all live with modern conveniences, indoor plumbing, heat, air conditioning, cars, televisions, cellphones...some of the elders deeply affected by this happening, still live in excruciating poverty, no indoor plumbing, etc ...pine ridge is notoriously filled to the brim and overflowing with severe poverty-literally a 3rd world country-right inside the borders of what is now called the United States,http://news.change.org/stories/americas-third-world-pine-ridge-south-dakota the GREAT Lakota/Nakota/Dakota nation! right here, right NOW...so the BIA(bureau of indian affairs) who is supposed to be "over" any and all "indian" , where are they?? WHO is taking care of the elders, WHO is standing up for them, beside them?! WHO has their back?? WHO is seeing that these WONDERFUL beings ,this is who is standing up for them, standing by them, behind them? The Strong Heart Warrior Society,aka Cante Tenza Okolakiciye http://www.kotaradio.com/news.asp?eid=5002&ID=8501 led by Duane Martin, Sr(bless him and them!)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrLAKhIXixs who have endured so much in their lifetimes, and yet STILL stand proud and dont complain, they smile, they laugh, have humor and dignity and most of all, they give LOVE to everyone, and mentor the young ones....theyve raised their families, and not just their own children, their multigenerational(as it should be) and have given of themselves, to their own detriment, all of their lives, some giving of themselves to protect this "country"...all while and after having this land, THEIR land, taken from them and shoved onto reservations as if that was a kind thing "given" them?! it really was and is basically a concentration camp from my point of view, where indians were sent to die off, starve, and be assimilated.(please do yourself a favor and research and learn the truth,..the "history" that we are NOT taught in US public schools, about the genocide that took place and is still taking place in this country, while we send money to Israel but not to Palestine...while we take over Iraq, Afghanistan, anywhere we can, all under the pretense of "helping" ....funny that huh? all the places that have something we can *take*(oil, wealth etc) not the other impoverished nations, say, in Africa or other lands? why arent we there? dont they deserve "democracy")....I, myself, was unaware of the true history for most of my life..about the largest mass execution on "US" soil, in Mankato, Minnesota the day after Christmas 1862http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dakota_War_of_1862, when 38 Dakota were hanged and President Abraham Lincoln ordered this..some of these men and women were *MY* ancestors, *MY* family..and it breaks my heart into zillions of pieces even *imagining* what they went through, as they were marched ...just like the Trail of Tears... we all know of the Trail of Tears but that wasnt the only Trail of Tears folks....it happened all over these lands, different tribes, everyone who wasnt white/europeanhttp://www.dakota-march.50megs.com/onered.html..http://www.dakota-march.50megs.com/oneredreport1862.html.the ORIGINAL peoples of this land we live on now. Not to mention ALL the craftily broken "treaties"....and it goes on and on folks...LEARN, READ Please!! do not be ignorant any longer! Change can only happen once theres an acknowledgement of wrongs, and knowing the FACTS..and then DOING something about it! The Elders NEED our help, I know theyd help any one of us, if they were asked and were needed, in ANY way they could..dont let them be forgotten, left behind, starved to death, physically and verbally assaulted...if someone hit YOUR grandmother or Grandfather, would you turn your head and look the other way and not help them, not go to their aid?? I am sincerely asking you to quiet your mind for a few minutes and envision YOUR loved one being struck, or a gun held to their head, or cursed/cussed at, hit or threatened and them recoiling in fear, and that look on their face of fear and sadness....really SEE it .....now will you help?http://lakotaoyate.net/ Even writing, calling your congress person, senator, any and ALL you can get the word out to....sending a box of tuna helper and a can of tuna(they need non-perishables, so they dont run out of food here is a list of what they are in immediate need of
"FOOD: For occupation elders/warriors and to feed the elders who are now coming.
- Lots of bottled water. Fresh fruits and vegetables. Meats, ground beef, coffee, tea, and sugar. Whole wheat bread, yeast, oil, flour, baking soda. Crackers, cookies, ice cream. Eggs, bacon and sausage.
- Other non-perishable and healthy food including Peanut Butter, Rice, Grits, Dry Beans (Any Variety) Oatmeal, Powder Milk, Tuna Helpers with cans of Tuna, Pasta, Pasta Sauce (Hunt’s in a Can is great) Cans of Salmon, Canned Vegetables, Bullion Cubes.
- Bleach, citrus cleaner, vinegar, paper plates, paper towels, napkins, eating utensils, toilet paper
- Verizon phone cards for pay-as-you-go phones.
- Bedding, sleeping bags, air mattresses.
- Batteries AA and AAA. Warm gloves. Tobacco. 8mm video cassettes.
- Generators (loaned or donated)
- If anyone has a used laptop - folks in the occupation would like to have one there to create documents and follow news and postings. Please contact us if you can provide this.
- Western Union money orders to be used for gas and shuttling elders between locations (send us the routing numbers to Cantetenza13@gmail.com or call Duane Martin Sr. at 605-454-0449, so folks on the ground can pick up).
Strong Heart Warrior Society
c/o Duane Martin Sr
Box 512 Hill City, S.D. 57745
Finally, one note on respect for Lakota culture. Occupation participants have asked that any supplies sent are not sent with Christian literature, etc. Churches that wish to send supplies are asked to be sensitive and find a way to do so that does not promote missionary goals. While churches have a long history of support for social justice causes - in this case it is important to be aware of how faith has been used as a tool to fuel an ongoing genocide of Lakota people, their language and culture. This is not intended to be disrespectful. We hope you don't find it so. Your solidarity and support is needed, valued and appreciated. Pilamaye. Thank you."
You can follow the story, as it unfolds, by friending "Lakota Oyate" on facebook or follow @ CanteTenza on Twitter and learn ways you and others can pitch in and help...like i said, please put yourself in anothers shoes..what if this was *YOU* or *YOUR* family?...theyre not asking for a million dollars, theyre not asking for fancy cars, fancy clothes...just nutritional FOOD to sustain them..and if youre still not understanding what theyre going through i challenge *you* to go *WITHOUT* ANY food for a few days and thats only a small part of what theyre going through...
“It is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope.” -Robert Francis Kennedy
“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.”-Bishop Desmond Tutu
“There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest.”-Elie Wiesel
“Love is the only cement that can hold this broken community together.When I am commanded to love, I am commanded to restore community, to resist injustice, and to meet the needs of my brothers.” -Martin Luther King, Jr.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/03/05/952822/-Lakota-Elders-Organize-Takeover-of-Elderly-Meals-Center
Please remember that before the takeover of the meals center, that the elders faced serious retaliation, so therefore mind your "p's and q's" when speaking to others about helping them...we dont want anything bad or worse to happen to any of these dear people...we want them safe, and fed and ok!!
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