INDIAN HEALTH POLICY AND THE IMPACT ON FAMILY

Good day. Spoke with Steven M. Sachs Ph.D. today. He publishes a non-juried journal entitled "Indigenous Policy", http://www.indigenouspolicy.org/ . Interesting reading. Because of our conversation, I am thinking I might submit a small article about Oklahoma Indian families and their migration to Phoenix, Arizona in the 1940's.

Why you ask, well my own little Chickasaw family left the Sulpher area around that time and my grandmother, a lucky (?) Indian woman, found employment as a laundress at the Indian TB Sanitarium, in Phoenix. Because she had little education, granma was given the job of boiling soiled linens that bore sputum and blood stains from the lungs of TB infected patients in large pots on 110 degree days. It wasn't a perfect job but it was the only one she could find that provided both room and board for grandma and mom. They lived on the campus of the hospital and because there was no room for families my grandfather, and mom's older siblings, were forced to live elsewhere. Granma's paycheck supported them all. The impact on our family is representative of what was happening to other Indian families who left Oklahoma as a means of surviving the times. The family groups were fractured and irretrivably broken after only a few short years.

The question I have always wondered about is this, did the Indian health mangement policies of the time lead to the break down of our family or was it at an earlier time in Oklahoma with the loss of the land allotment that broke our family? Hmmmmm. Policy and indigenous folks... Genocide, granma tested positive for the scratch TB test for the rest of her life, and assimilation. Are they one and the same?

American Indian Inclusion Manual written by Martin Reinhardt, Ph.D.

Blogging is such a wonderful way of connecting with folks. After the previous post, regarding the American Indian Inclusion Manual, I received an email from the author, Dr. Martin Reinhardt. The following is a snipit of the message he sent to me regarding the manual, "I am glad to see it being used. You can use the info below for attribution if you like. I am Anishinaabe Ojibway, a citizen of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians".

Dr. Reinhardt's contact information:
Martin Reinhardt, Ph.D.
Research Associate
Interwest Equity Assistance Center
Colorado State University
410 Seventeenth Street, Suite 1419
Denver, Colorado 80202
(303) 623-5531
Cell: (720) 209-5190
Fax: (303) 623-9023
martinr@cahs.colostate.edu
http://www.colostate.edu/programs/EAC/

American Indian Inclusion Manual

The American Indian Inclusion Manual was created as a guide for both Indian and non-Indian educators seeking to include the Native American perspective in subjects across the curriculum.(http://edoptions.com/indianed/American_Indian_Inclusion_Manual.pdf)
*The manual is a great way to learn how to include American Indian concepts and issues across all subjects
* It will also help to expand cultural understanding and how to apply these concepts beyond the standard Native studies curriculum
* Great educational strategies for both Native and non-Native educators
* This information can be downloaded at: http://www.edoptions.com/indianed/

Great Quote By American Indian Artist

There are three kinds of people: first, the "dreamers and doers" who get things done; second, the people who "step in and try to take over" after something is finished; and third, the "yapping dogs" who sit on the sidelines...
-Janelle Romero, American Indian Actor, Producer

AZCARMEN INDIANPRENUER FOR MARCH INDIGENOUS INTERNET CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Az Carmen has been chosen as the Indianprenuer for March 2008, by the Indigenous Internet Chamber of Commerce. Her interview and more of her paintings can be seen at: http://www.iicoc.com/entrepreneur_march_2008

The Indigenous Internet Chamber of Commerce is a great site and the owner, Larry Knudtsen, is a man who is serious about encouraging American Indian artists to market their artwork. I recently found the IIOCC site through NATIVE BIZ; an American Indian internet publication. Be sure and connect with Larry after going to his site, http://www.iiocc.com/

Native Artists Making a Difference, Portland State University Art Show

“Native Artists Making a Difference”

Hosted By UISHE
Includes Live Art and Exhibits
Thursday March 6th, 2008
4pm-8pm


FEATURING

Bunky Echo-Hawk - Pawnee/Yakama
Bunkyecho-hawk.com

Natalie Ball - Modoc/Klamath
http://nball.otherpeoplespixels.com

Az Carmen – Chickasaw
Azcarmenindianart.theblogspot.com

Toma Villa - Yakama
http:www.myspace/9007127



For more Information:
Nicole Charley
503.725.5671
ncharley@pdx.edu
Location:
NASCC
710 SW Jackson St
Portland OR 97201

Teach Your Children To Be Afraid

Good Morning,
You may not know this about me but I am a grandmother of 16 grandchildren. They are all unique and fun to be with and I love them with all of my heart. Both my husband and I pray about their safety and their well being on a daily basis. This week something happened that allowed me to understand more fully the importance of prayer. Because of this I thought I would tell you what happened with a chance email and how it may have protected the lives of a family living in Bolivia.

Earlier in the week, a person I have known for several years, but who seldom sends me emails, sent me an email with an attachment that included pictures of a highway in Bolivia built on the side of an enormously tall mountain range. The series of pictures showed a dirt road that was so narrow that two small trucks would have difficulty passing one another without one of the trucks falling into the 1,000 foot canyon below. There were about 10 picturesque images of the mountain range and the tunnels that were carved out of the mountains. They were beautiful and terrifying all at the same time. The pictures showed in detail the extremely treacherous nature of the highway. The one that made me sickest was the one with small buses filled with people being crowded to the edge of the abyss by trucks loaded with goods. It was scarey to look at on the computer and I decided to never again travel across any Oregon coastal bridges without closing my eyes. I forwarded the email to my daughter, as a curiosity, and promptly pushed the scarey images to the back of my mind.

Later in the day, my daughter, sent me an email telling me that she had forwarded the email to a friend of hers who is teaching in Bolivia and made the comment in the subject line, 'Your Commute to Work'. The comment in the subject line caught the attention of her friend and she opened it immediately. It appears that the friends in Bolivia had actually been planning a trip along the same highway for the next week! They had planned a weekend adventure on the basis of viewing one picture of the road and thought how fun it would be for them to travel over one of the world's most narrow and steep highways. When they viewed the attached email pictures they realized that they might be getting invovled with an adventure that could potentially be life threatening. They began to ask questions of friends and acquantainces about the road and found out that not only is it extremely dangerous but the highway is also frequented by bandits! They immediately decided to cancel their planned highway adventure and asked my daughter to forward thanks to the woman who originally sent the email.

The lessons I have learned from this experience are two fold. The first is that God does work in mysterious ways and the second is that prayers are often answered quickly and in the most miraculous ways. I am so grateful for this.

As an addendum, I relearned the importance of teaching your children to be violently afraid of heights, snakes, and things that go bump in the night!

Take care,
Az