Columbus Day 2012 events

Recognizing and Celebrating First Peoples on Columbus Day: A Guide to Events Across Indian Country

Discover native heritage on October 8 at the Museum of the American Indian

Crazy Horse Memorial hosts free celebration

South Dakota's Native American Day brings mixed reaction

By Jeff Natalie-LessAmerican Indians have different thoughts about Native American Day, but on one point they agree—they are glad it is not Columbus Day.

"To me, I am really excited Gov. (George) Mickelson made the effort to change the holiday," said Dani Daugherty, an attorney who works for the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Aberdeen. "The main reason is that I don't think we should be honoring Columbus."

Daugherty, who grew up on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, said that when she was in law school at the University of South Dakota in 2000, she read the journals of Christopher Columbus.

"The journals record the horrific treatment of the natives," she said. "In one section, Columbus says how he rewarded the crew by letting them go on shore and rape the native women and girls. The records are filled with atrocities. How could people, regardless of their views about American Indians, feel that a person like that should be honored?"

In 1989, the South Dakota Legislature unanimously passed legislation that changed Columbus Day to Native American Day. Then-Gov. Mickelson proposed the legislation. The holiday is recognized on the second Monday in October in South Dakota.

Daugherty said she sees Native American Day as a time to recognize the resiliency and the worth of native peoples.

"Not only did we survive horrific treatment, loss of land, culture, buffalo and sacred sites, but we are here contributing as citizens," she said. "Our story is a story of positive change. It is a great thing what Gov. Mickelson did. He recognized the rich cultural resource that we are."

Gretchen Brown, a student at Northern State University, said the holiday is hard to separate from Columbus Day.

"I have mixed feelings about Native American Day because it represents the cruel treatment of American Indians and native peoples after Columbus arrived," she said. "The whole day we could just get rid of."

She said she is surprised the country as a whole holds on to Columbus Day.

"U.S. culture is based on freedom, equality and rights, but yet we still honor Columbus?" she asked.Comment:  The sentiment among my Facebook friends seemed clear. Columbus was a savage, a killer, a Hitler type whose honors should be stripped from him. They'd all prefer to see the holiday become a Native American day instead.

For more on Columbus, see Columbus Day Celebrates Conquest and Geico Ad Features Columbus in Speedboat.

Pix of my South Dakota trip

I plan to write some articles about my South Dakota trip in June. Meanwhile, here are my photos of the trip. I trust the captions will explain our experiences well enough.

Day 1

LAX to downtown Rapid City--June 24, 2012 (7 am-3:30 pm)

Prairie Edge Gallery--June 24, 2012 (3:30-5:30 pm)

Dinosaur Park--June 24, 2012 (5:30-6:30 pm)

Etta Mine--June 24, 2012 (6:30-7:30 pm)

Cemetery and Mt. Rushmore--June 24, 2012 (7:30-10 pm)

Day 2

Hotel and Scenic, SD--June 25, 2012 (morning)

Sheep Mountain--June 25, 2012 (morning)

Fossil-hunting--June 25, 2012 (morning)

Visitor center and Stronghold--June 25, 2012 (morning)

Red Cloud Indian School--June 25, 2012 (late morning)

Pine Ridge and Whiteclay--June 25, 2012 (early afternoon)

Wounded Knee--June 25, 2012 (afternoon)

Lakota War Pony Races--June 25, 2012 (afternoon)

Oglala Lakota College--June 25, 2012 (afternoon)

Lakota Prairie Ranch Resort--June 25, 2012 (late afternoon)

Thunderstorm--June 25, 2012 (early evening)

Day 3

Iron Mountain Road--June 26, 2012 (early morning)

Custer State Park and Wind Cave--June 26, 2012 (morning)

Into the cave--June 26, 2012 (early afternoon)

Hole in the Wall and Needles Highway--June 26, 2012 (afternoon)

Sylvan Lake and Rapid City--June 26, 2012 (late afternoon)

Day 4

Hunting geodes and finding Nemo--June 27, 2012 (morning)

Homestake Gold Mine and Terry Peak--June 27, 2012 (morning)

Spearfish Canyon and Deadwood--June 27, 2012 (early afternoon)

Bus tour and Boot Hill--June 27, 2012 (afternoon)

Walking in Deadwood--June 27, 2012 (afternoon)

Day 5

Black Hills Institute--June 28, 2012 (morning)

Gift shop and Crazy Horse Memorial--June 28, 2012 (morning)

On the Crazy Horse Memorial--June 28, 2012 (early afternoon)

Visitor center and gift shop--June 28, 2012 (afternoon)

Veranda and Lakota dancers--June 28, 2012 (afternoon)

Sculptor's studio and cultural center--June 28, 2012 (afternoon)

Nature Gates and Rapid City--June 28, 2012 (afternoon)

Day 6

Hotel and Memorial Park--June 29, 2012 (morning)

City of Presidents, part 1--June 29, 2012 (morning)

City of Presidents, part 2--June 29, 2012 (morning)

City of Presidents, part 3--June 29, 2012 (late morning)

City of Presidents, part 4--June 29, 2012 (early afternoon)

Fountains and park statues--June 29, 2012 (afternoon)

Rose garden and flight home--June 29, 2012 (afternoon)

Plus a few postings on related subjects:

Cultural center at Crazy Horse Memorial
Anti-suicide campaign at Lakota college
Hundreds of Sun Dances
Economic development on Pine Ridge

Cultural center at Crazy Horse Memorial

From the Native Sun News by way of Indianz.com:

Crazy Horse Memorial offers cultural education

By David ArredondoThe Crazy Horse Memorial may be a main attraction for millions of tourists every year, but visitors can leave the monument with more than just amazing sightseeing memories–and with a better understanding of different cultures.

People arrive in the masses during the summer to the in-progress monument, the world’s largest mountain carving, and are encouraged to visit the Native American Educational & Cultural Center, a wood-and-rock-walled building where artists from around the country set up vending booths with their elegant works of art. Completed in 1996, the rocks used in constructing the center were blasted from Thunderhead Mountain, the site on which the monument sits.

Around a dozen mostly Native American artists and crafters gather daily in the Educational & Cultural Center to sell, as well as demonstrate, their skills. The artisans’ work includes traditional quillwork and beadwork as well as traditional regalia, jewelry, silverwork and painted pieces.

Along with purchasing their art, fascinated tourists can visit each booth for the opportunity to chat one-on-one with the vendors–who are not employed by Crazy Horse–about their cultures, customs, art and other relevant issues.

“I think the vendors add immeasurably to the experience of the visitors,” said Pat Dobbs, media relations coordinator and general spokesman for Crazy Horse Memorial. “The visitors can have an informal conversation with the vendors and learn about customs without any book or lecturing.”Comment:  Having just visited this location, I was less impressed than Arredondo. The room is off to one side, separate from the main building. I suspect a lot of visitors miss it. I doubt there were a dozen vendors the day I was there. And vendors sitting quietly behind their tables doesn't encourage a lot of questions or conversation.

To do this right, you'd put more of displays in the side room and vendors in the main room. You'd have Natives actively demonstrating their craft, perhaps teaching classes to kids. And not just sitting behind tables like vendors everywhere.

This isn't a criticism of the vendors, but of the menorial's management. "Educational & Cultural Center" is a glorified name for what's really an isolated vendor area. If the Memorial's goal is education, then educate. Don't just offer space to sell art; pay people to make art so visitors can see the process.

For more on the Crazy Horse Memorial, see Mixed Feelings About Crazy Horse Memorial and 21st Native Americans' Day at Crazy Horse.

South Dakota trip schedule (Day 5)

9:00 AM-12:00 PM
Tour of central Black Hills--Pactola and Sheridan Lakes and Black Hills Institute

1:00-4:30 PM
Crazy Horse Memorial--lunch and view from monument

4:30 PM
Return to Rapid City

6:30 PM
Farewell dinner--Dakota Steakhouse

For more on the subject, see South Dakota Trip Schedule (Day 4) and South Dakota Trip Schedule (Day 3).

Mixed feelings about Crazy Horse Memorial

A Monument to a Sioux Warrior, Its Completion Date Somewhat Unclear

By A.G. SulzbergerThough that commitment has been much romanticized, it has also been the focus of persistent criticism, most vocally from American Indians, who have long regarded the project with a mix of support and suspicion. Many complain that the family has made millions of dollars from a project that, while carrying the name and imagined likeness of Crazy Horse, has become more of a monument to the sculptor than to his subject.

Indeed, the bearded, mountain-man profile of Mr. Ziolkowski, who is buried on the grounds, is as ubiquitous as the stern visage of the Sioux leader around the visitor complex. And the 85 full-time staff members at the Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation included more of his descendants (seven) than Indians (five), even though the nearby reservations have some of the highest unemployment rates in the nation.

“I’ve never heard a single Native American, not one, ever say I’m proud of that mountain,” said Tim Giago, the founder of Native Sun News, based in nearby Rapid City.

Thomas Shortbull, president of Oglala Lakota College, which receives a number of scholarships from the foundation, acknowledged the discontent. “But most people see the positive of filling the void of the lack of recognition that we have in this country for Indian people,” he added.Comment:  The points in this article apply to other "honors" as well: everything from Indian mascots to Hollywood tributes to apologies for past injustices. The gestures are nice but meaningless without accompanying action. Indians want substantive change, not happy talk.

For more on the Crazy Horse Memorial, see 21st Native Americans' Day at Crazy Horse and Crazy Horse/USD Academic Partnership.

21st Native Americans' Day at Crazy Horse

'Lakota Music Project' to highlight Native Americans' Day at Crazy Horse"The Lakota Music Project" presented by the Porcupine Singers and South Dakota Symphony Chamber Orchestra will highlight the 21st Native Americans' Day celebration at Crazy Horse Memorial on Monday, Oct. 11.

Also, Jim Shaw of Rapid City will emcee the 10 a.m. program that will feature the Crazy Horse Educator of the Year, American Indian singers and dancers and recognition of the "Year of Unity" effort in South Dakota.

Native Americans' Day is special at the nonprofit Crazy Horse Memorial that honors North America's Indian people.

The 1990 South Dakota Legislature established the holiday, now the oldest official observance of its kind in the country. State lawmakers, at the urging of several citizens, replaced Columbus Day for "the remembrance of the great Native American leaders who contributed so much to the history of our state."Comment:  For similar holidays, see History of Native American Heritage Day and Happy National Aboriginal Day!

Crazy Horse/USD academic partnership

Crazy Horse Memorial will be home to Native education programs

By Carol BerryAt the invitation of the Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation, “Crazy Horse will become a satellite affiliate of the University of South Dakota,” Jack Marsh, of the foundation’s board of directors, said in recent remarks for Native American Day at the memorial.

“USD will hire special faculty, write curriculum, and teach preparatory and college-level courses to Native students,” he said. “The Crazy Horse/USD academic partnership will begin as a summer program.

“Initially, Native students, attending other schools and colleges during fall, winter and spring will reside at Crazy Horse for the summer and become temporary students of the University of South Dakota,” said Marsh, who is the founding director of USD’s American Indian Journalism Institute.

The students will divide their time between classroom and workplace, earning college credit for USD-taught classes and receiving income from jobs and paid internships provided by Crazy Horse. Eligible Native students will receive tuition scholarships from the foundation.Comment:  For more on the subject, see Native American Day at Crazy Horse Memorial and Students Perform at Crazy Horse Memorial.

Native American Day at Crazy Horse Memorial

Crazy Horse to showcase youths at 20th Native Americans' Day program

Rapid City entertainers, OLC educator featured at free Monday eventCeremonies Monday at Crazy Horse Memorial celebrating Native Americans' Day will showcase youth dance and drum performers, mostly from Rapid City.

The free event marks the 20th yearly celebration of the state's official holiday honoring Native Americans in South Dakota.

Regional student groups, including St. Joseph Indian School from Chamberlain, Custer, Elk Mountain and Rapid City, are scheduled for such hands-on activities as beading, miniature tipi making, learning about buffalo, a simulated archaeological dig, and science exploration at the Starbase Project NOVA mobile classroom. Lula Red Cloud of Hermosa and Paula Tonemah of Hot Springs also will tell Lakota children's stories.Comment:  For more on the subject, see Students Perform at Crazy Horse Memorial.

German film on South Dakota monuments

German filmmakers complete documentary in Hills, on reservation

By Jomay SteenA two-man crew recently completed filming a documentary about three famous South Dakota monuments and memorials and how people relate to them. The German filmmakers believe they will have it ready for distribution by next summer.

Producer and co-directors Tim Gruenewald and Ludwig Schmidtpeter, who also handled visuals, camera and sound, had arrived in western South Dakota nearly three weeks ago to begin filming at Mount Rushmore National Memorial, Crazy Horse Memorial and the Wounded Knee monument on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.

"Everyone adds a little something in the relationship to the places," Gruenwald said.

He and Schmidtpeter wanted to know how various stakeholders and people from the communities related to the memorials and monument as well as how they function and relate to one another.Comment:  For more on Germans and Indians, see Germans Film Pilgrims in Salem and Foreigners Have Native Affinity. For more on documentary films, see Native Documentaries and News.

Students perform at Crazy Horse Memorial

Advocacy performances tell stories of Crazy Horse, LakotaA group of Alma College students will bring Ziolkowski’s story–and the Lakota people that his work honors–to life via an original script that’s based on interviews with his family and the Lakota who live on and near the Pine Ridge Reservation in the Black Hills.

The advocacy performance is a “first” at the memorial, which pays homage to the 19th century Native American leader who fought to preserve the traditions and values of the Lakota way of life.

“The script is derived from original transcripts of interviews I conducted in 2007, and the students use a theatrical style called ‘everyday life performance’ to weave the words into a story–it’s using performance as advocacy for the voices of the real-life people,” Alma College professor Joanne Gilbert says about “Living a Dream: the Creation of Crazy Horse Memorial” and its unique performance style.Comment:  For more on the subject, see Dueling Monuments in Black Hills and The Crazy Horse Memorial.