Hey - if you're here looking for new stuff, you're likely going to be disappointed. Check here instead.
October 29, 2004 And when we're snowed in, you finally get to hear from us. So hello Everyone, and blessings to all of you. It's that time again, when we're late on our "monthly" update. This time around, we have an exciting new development: photos! Last time we posted pictures, we made you read to the end to find them. Since this update is so long, we'll have mercy and let you skip to the good stuff: http://www.meyerloewen.net (We've also posted previous updates and other links). Some of you have asked us to clarify who writes what. We can't, because we write it together. Usually Karissa gets around to writing the first draft, then Carl goes over it, editing and embellishing, and we alternate edits until we're both happy. Many thanks to those of you who faithfully respond to our updates! Whether we're able to reply or not, your emails/letters/phone calls are all very much appreciated. They keep us going, so keep them coming! Thanks... We just came out of the busiest month and a half since our arrival. Some noteworthy events since our last update on September 5: From September 16-19, we attended the Lakota Nation Action Camp in the Black Hills. We were glad to connect with some other young people at this event, which was focused on strategies for protecting the environment of the Black Hills. The Black Hills were stolen from the Lakota people after Custer found gold there in 1871. In 1980, attorneys representing the Lakota won a Supreme Court case finding that the Black Hills were illegally taken. The Court commented that "a more ripe and rank case of dishonorable dealing will likely never be found" in U.S. history. Unfortunately, only monetary compensation was awarded. The value of the land was calculated from prices in the late 1880s, and with no compensation for the billions that have been made from gold mining, logging, and tourism in the Hills. The Lakota people are so united in their desire to protect and regain the sacred Black Hills that they have refused all payment for the land for over 20 years now (this is the origin of the slogan "The Black Hills are Not for Sale"). September 18: I (Carl) left the Action Camp to drive out to Chamberlain, SD, along the Missouri River. A group of our friends from the reservation planned to confront the Lewis and Clark re-enactors docking in Chamberlain that day, and asked MCC and the SD Peace & Justice Center to provide observers. The commemoration of the Lewis & Clark bicentennial (big tourism bucks for SD) includes a re-enactment of their journey. This summer's portion brought the re-enactment crew, complete with period outfits and replica boats, into Lakota country. Our friends came with a simple message: Lewis and Clark's journey is the dawn of the genocide of their people. Lewis and Clark were mapping out the land for Manifest Destiny. Their expedition brought with it deadly outbreaks of smallpox, and in its wake, the army and settlers. Our friends asked the re-enactors to make a choice of conscience: rather than repeat the arrogance of the past, to turn around and not continue through Lakota territory. The meeting was several hours long with many eloquent words (I took some notes and transcribed - email if you want a copy). Apparently none of them reached the hearts of the re-enactors, who continued up the river. September 23-26: We left on the 23rd to attend our first MCC Central States board meeting, in Newton, KS. Although we are located in the MCC Central States region, we are currently supervised by MCC US Peace and Justice Ministries. We felt good about our report to the board and the chance to connect with board members. September 30: We hosted our first community advisory meeting at our home in Porcupine. We had been thinking about doing this for several months, because we felt that we needed clearer lines of feedback and accountability with our partners. Overall, we were very pleased with how it went. Five of our partners came to share a meal and fellowship, followed by a discussion of MCC's role in the local community. The conversation affirmed that MCC's way of working here is appropriate and appreciated, and gave us some good feedback on possible improvements. We hope to continue meeting this way in the future. October 3-4: We held the first meeting of the MCC OLN Discernment Group. For the past 10 years, our unit has been passed back and forth between MCC Central States and MCC US, due to structural problems of racism and other issues in MCC Central States. At this point we are temporarily under MCC US Peace and Justice. So our supervisor and several representatives from Central States worked with us to put together the OLN Discernment Group. This group will be meeting 3 or 4 times over the next year to put together recommendations for the long-term future of our unit in MCC's structure. The first Discernment meeting went extremely well. The meeting took place in Rapid City, just 80 miles from our home so that other members of the group could fly in. One of our partners facilitated the meetings for us and did an excellent job. The group made a lot of progress in coming to a common understanding of the problem and the concerns of all the parties within and outside of MCC, and we feel positive about the direction this group is headed. Harley Eagle, one of the past program coordinators, was present for the Discernment meeting and stayed in our home for 4 days afterwards. His stay was one of the highlights of the month -- talking with him about our work was affirming and re-energizing. Come back again, Harley! (And Sue too!) October 7: On this Thursday evening we attended a community screening of the video Hollow Water, which deals with the difficult topic of sexual abuse. We were part of the planning for this event, working in partnership with three other organizations: the Pahin Sinte (Porcupine) College Center, Wakanyeja Pawicayapi (Put the Children First) also located in Porcupine, and Indigenous Issues Forums. The film was followed by a circle discussion. Response was good, and several people have asked about showing it in other communities on the reservation as well. Here's a summary of the video from the event flyer: "Hollow Water in central Manitoba Canada is home to 450 people--many of them victims of sexual abuse. The offenders have left a legacy of pain and denial, addiction and suicide. Hollow Water chose to bring the offenders home to face justice in a community healing and sentencing circle. Based on traditional aboriginal practices, this unique model is reuniting families and healing both victims and offenders. The video documents one family who struggle to confront their past. A powerful tribute to one community's ability to heal and change." October 10: To top it all off, we had accepted an invitation to speak at two churches in Sioux Falls the next Sunday (the two churches have staggered services and share a pastor, so we gave the same message at both on the same morning). Our first official "share about your work with MCC" gig -- an intimidating prospect. We agonized over what to say, but in the end we felt good about the content. We talked about the need to understand the continuing effects that our history has on us - not only on Indian people, but on all the rest of us as well. We wrote it all out, so if you're curious you could request a copy. We got positive responses and met some great people (some of whom joined our update list - welcome!). We're relieved that it's over and seemed to go smoothly. The next weekend we had a break (wahoo!). Then on October 21, last Thursday, we hopped in our car with one passenger in tow and headed up to join fifty or so of our Lakota friends in their presence at the last big Lewis and Clark event of the year, in Bismarck, ND, at University of Mary. The first night included a forum with representatives from the University, United Tribes Technical College where we were staying, the local police, the governors office, and others. The forum was followed by an inspiring rally including words of wisdom, stories, and music. The next morning we all stood in the icy drizzle for several hours outside the Lewis & Clark event, holding signs and handing out flyers with information on the treaties (one tour bus pulled in and everyone took one of our flyers as they got off, thinking they were official event literature!). There was a lot of positive response from college students passing by on their way to class - Karissa interviewed several on film. After catching a bite to eat, we gathered together in prayer and then drove North to a proposed coal strip-mining site. One of our partners, Defenders of the Black Hills, has been working hard to stop this mining project, which would destroy over 17,000 sacred sites and burial sites in North Dakota. The land is within the treaty territory promised to the Lakota. As with everything our Lakota partners do, we needed to begin this struggle with a prayer gathering. So 45 of us piled into 11 vehicles, each with our own hand radio, and the caravan left for the Coteau Freedom Mine area. Perhaps coincidentally, we followed Lewis & Clark trail signs most of the way there. We were far out in the North Dakota countryside, where there were hardly any signs of people, when suddenly a huge smoky cloud was puffing on the horizon. As we got closer, it looked as though we were approaching an evil city out of some dark movie. It was a huge fuel processing plant, several miles wide, in the middle of nowhere. Or in fact, in the middle of a rich coal mining area, and in the middle of miles of ancient burial grounds. As we approached the plant from the east, we drove across land that had already been mined many years ago and filled in again, or "reclaimed." On the west side of the smoke stacks they were mining even as we were arriving. On our way past the stinky, smoky fuel plant, we pulled off at a "Scenic Overlook" (marked as such by an official sign) looking out over all the machinery. The prayer site the leaders had picked was southwest of the plant, overlooking it on a hill, next to an ancient arrangement of stones in the shape of a turtle. We prayed there for the protection of that place and all the thousands of other sacred and burial sites that were still sitting undisturbed on that land. Your prayers could help too. Something else that might help, in the long run, is the work one of our partners (Lakota Action Network) is doing to bring renewable energy to the reservation, starting with a wind turbine to power the KILI radio station. Pine Ridge reservation alone has enough wind to generate more than 4,500 times its own electricity usage. Now we're home from that trip, bringing the finances up to date, writing an update to our friends and family, catching up with friends and neighbors, and so on. On Sunday we had a pleasant visit to St. Julia's Episcopal Church here in Porcupine. Meanwhile I (Karissa) am recovering from a sore throat and head cold that picked up force after so many hours in the cold and rain on Saturday. I'm hoping for a swift recovery without too much coughing. So what happened to dear Carlissa, you ask? Well -- ask yourself, because you didn't send Carlissa any new questions! Looks like kns will get the rest of his earlier question answered. Please don't be shy, or Carlissa will be out of a job. Dear Carlissa, Can you give us some current sociology on the Lakota community - I am wondering about family and friendship structures, language use, and community events/gathering places. Are there ways you can connect on a more friendly social level with your community? How can you identify with your partners and neighbors? Do you feel like you are doing more good or harm by your presence in the Lakota community? -kns Dear kns, For those of you just tuning in, we tried to answer the first two questions back in September. Let's start with "How can you identify with your partners and neighbors?" Of course it depends on each person. We find it easiest to relate to other motivated young people. Many of the people I've met here are committed to making the world a better place, for the Lakota people and for everyone. That desire to make a difference is something a lot of us can identify with, as well as the frustrations and hardships that come with the work of building God's Kingdom. We're all struggling together. Are we doing more good or harm by our presence? That's a very good question, and not at all self-evident. In a lot of ways, it does feel harmful to be here as a mostly white organization representing so many resources. To many people here, we are representing the same group of people that has caused them so much suffering. So by being here, are we reopening old wounds that have never healed? Sometimes we are. Our hope is that we are learning how to be here in a different way. My hope is that the little support we can provide now and then can be a boost in morale. And we do hope that we are able to open new eyes, including our own, through our work here. Maybe we can help our white friends, relatives, fellow Mennonites, and others to see that the Lakota peole have not disappeared. They have survived and perservered, and are seeking a new day for this beautiful continent they call Turtle Island. Carlissa Blessings to you all! Love, Karissa & Carl
