Indian or Native American plus

The Church Defined in the 21st Century and how does it effect the Lakota people as well as other Indigenous People around the world is what I will seek to develop and think about in this blog post, plus the people in the picture.  There are many incidents around the Globe throughout the History of the world but the People of the Western hemisphere have seen people who called themselves Christian but do horrible things toward the them.  Many people struggle to be politically correct and wonder what we as Indigenous people of American want to be called.  American Indian is what I prefer because I believe it is important to remember the United States made agreements with the Indians and had the Indian Affairs in the 1800s and now we have the Bureau of Indian Affairs.  So I will write Indian throughout my writing as well as Lakota. 
So the other day I saw a Jesuit Priest come into the Higher Ground Coffee House and I asked him if  he had reconciled what the church had done to the Indians.  He was shocked because he started to mutter and sputter but he was able to tell me it happened all around the world.  Of course it did but he was in Lakota Country and I wanted to know if he thought about the killing of the Southwest Indians by cutting off their heads if they did not swear allegiance to the Catholic Church.  He was able to pull himself together and went on to drink his latte.  I think I like to challenge priests because there were involved in the things done against the Indians by their Church throughout the European history of being in the Americas.
So the picture is of a Short Term Mission group which came to Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and in this picture I see some at least two Indians a Korean, a few Black people and some white people.  Oh and also a Peruvian who is also Indigenous from the Americas. Now on the right is the saying Jesus is the Way, which is cool in my mind because I am a follower of Jesus and this means that I seek to follow his teachings.  Let me tell you how I got to this point and how easy it was to become a follower.  I gave my life to Christ when I was 12 years old and it was easy because I put my faith in what Jesus did for me.  He died for me and I accepted his gift.  Too Easy?  Your thinking there must be a catch right?  No it is simple, accept the gift of God for what his son did  on the cross, he died for my wrongdoings and things that kept me from God.  All of my sin not just some of it.
Now I want to explain something to you, these people in the photo are my family because we have our faith in common.  I can go anywhere in the world and find my family because the faith is powerful because it is God Moved.  You cannot stop it but here is the problem, some people maybe even a lot of people did some terrible things because they started with a wrong premise.  They followed people who were greedy for land and resource and this continues today with the Euro/Americans because they seek power and money.  This is not the teaching of Jesus, Jesus taught people if you want to be the most powerful, you must become the biggest servant.  So to get power you must first serve, this is not the American way so you must understand greed does not lead to heaven. 
Historically the churches came to the Indians and were the ones who would do the killing of the Indian and saving of the man.  They brought out rule books and told the Indians they could not be Indian any longer.  This was not the way of Jesus but it was the way of America.  And then they stole the land and resources.  I look at my friends who have had a history of coming to Pine Ridge for over thirty years and they are wonderful people, many of them may have issues but they seem to do well and have a great experience and remember the students they teach for a week.  Oh and yes they serve the people here help with projects and overall I believe they live as the first century church lived with things in common.  They share meals and work together as a family.  They become a tiospaye or extended family for a week and that is closer to how Jesus lived as well as the way of our Ancestors the Indians lived. 
It is important to understand that we have many things in common with the way Jesus lived and taught.  He thought about the poor as our Lakota people understand taking compassion on someone down is important.  He told a Rich young ruler to go and sell everything he had and it seemed at that moment that was too hard and the young man walked away. 
It is not rules and we are set free from bondage because Jesus no longer has us required to pay or give and offering.  A great friend of mine told me I need to define my faith, and it is difficult because I have severely swindled by many Euro/American people but I have been blessed by them as well.  I hope to see people as friends as the Lakota did you years ago.  It was told to me by a friend and brother that our people held an open hand of friendship until someone proved otherwise.  So now I will trust people are honorable until I see they are not I will speak the truth.  I love being an Indian and sharing my knowledge with people and I hope to attack the issues with solutions but the thing I love the most is being a follower of Jesus.  Who would not want the Creator of the Universe on his or her side.  So I will continue to share more and we can discuss what went wrong and where do we go from here as the American Indians.  Because We Live!

Kill the Food Source

As I share with people who come to Pine Ridge about what was done systematically to our people they really cannot understand.  We have a great company on the Pine Ridge Reservation and their product is healthy foods.  The Tanka Bar is a mix of fruit and bison and every where I go and I see the product I ask how it is selling.  I was at a Pizza Place and the owner was asking about the jerky and wanted to know what I thought.  I took a piece of the jerky and it was good but I don't like to mix my fruits with my proteins.  I come across photographs and when I think it is interesting I will save them and then share them on my blog.  A picture is worth a thousand words and when you see the skull pile you will understand they wanted to kill us off in a systematic way.  Just like when Hitler was marching the Jews to the ovens and gas chambers, the Americans were doing their genocide fifty years earlier.
Today I saw a man with a Jesuit Shirt on and so I asked him if he had reconciled the fact that the Catholic Church played a large role in the genocide of the American Indians.  He told me no, and I felt a guilt or shame  from him but he went on to say that he believed it happened all over the world.  I disagreed because  the Europeans wiped out 95% of the Indigenous peoples of the Western Hemisphere, and what other continent has seen this type of distructions.  He also said disease killed a lot of people but when you see the food source of the Lakota and other plains tribes wiped out you can see it was a system to take the land and resource. 
We have compounded problems and I struggle because I do not believe the Mascot Issue is the topic we should be worried about for now.  If were able to take care of the issues we have today the Mascot Issue will take care of itself.  I am committed to keep sharing my thoughts about the issues I feel our important. 

Water is Life

 

 

The Picture comes from Huffington Post and is a great photo and I thought I would use it because it has the capital building and an Indian, Cowboy, what looks like a hippy vest, not sure about all of those in the photo.  Mni Wiconi is an understanding that water is life.  The Government took the food source of the Lakota because they wanted us in Concentration Camps called Reservations.  Hitler's Germany did not  have anything on what America did to the Indigenous people of Turtle Island.  Both America and Canada have had gross treatments of the Indigenous people.  Now at the Risk of the Country's greatest water resource they seek to bring a pipeline through the Great Sioux Nation.  The Ogallala Aquifer is huge and a great source of fresh water for many people. It is good for people to come together and work to protect water and the earth.  Dallas Goldtooth was on MSNBC and show America his moccasins which was pretty funny.  I am developing an idea about a book about Indians and want to showcase some pictures of our people and I believe it will be at these types of events that we will be able to show America we are not Mascots. 
Recently the Owners of the Los Angeles Clippers who is really Rich showed an ugly side or Racist side  and it is really sad to see but in the end we have many people who only think of themselves.  I believe we must measure each other with our being and not the skin color.  There are good and bad in all ethnicities but we need to seek to understand we are the ones who need to be good to others.  I was reading this week and came across a chapter about our Mission in life.  It stated that our first mission is to know the God.  Second, is to give forgiveness and love, kindness, and so on...   We should all be this way to each by holding doors for each and allowing goodness to flow through us.   The last part of our mission in life should be what we love.  What brings us the most happiness while we are doing it.  Some people will live their whole lives doing something they hate.  But we as human beings need to seek what is good and lasting.  I enjoy writing, speaking, and cooking and I believe this will be my life.  Thank your reading my words and if you want to read the book, you can Find it on Amazon Rez Ramblings.

Doug Matthews My dad

                There are many issues we face and I am working to develop my balance.  We have had many years of struggle and as I go through my own life I understand that I must be responsible for my own life experiences.  My father Doug was the memorable teacher because I looked up to him even though he was not around much in my life.  I was walking by a little park on the Eastside of Downtown Denver and a man called out to me, “Hey Lee!”  I stopped and realized it was my dad; I must have been 13 at the time and was going to the Recreation Center on 20^th Street.  I asked him what he was doing and he told me he was waiting for his wife.  She was working and he was just hanging out in the little park.  It was powerful to meet my father; he invited me to his apartment. 

                It seemed like I spent the whole summer visiting with him and hanging out sometimes Wally would come with me and we had a great time.  He would ask us what we wanted to eat and I am sure we ate lots of pizza.  Early in life I remember we caught some crawfish in dried up pond and we took them home and he boiled some water and ate them.  Wow, that was crazy; as I remember back and I heard stories he would eat turtles with my grandfather.  I have tried some things but for the most part I stay away from fish or things from the water.  My father ruined black-eyed peas for me as he burned them and I just cannot get the memory out of my head.  

                During one evening with my dad we sat at the breakfast counter and he told me he was going to teach me a game.  I was up for a game and so it began my greatest lesson in life.  He pulled out some dollar bills and he told I would be the “House” and we were going to play Blackjack.  Well I dealt the cards and I kept taking his money and it must have gone on for about an hour.  After he went broke, he leaned toward me and said, “The House always wins.”  He then told me to have fun with the money, I think I went to the movies are something but I know I was smiling as I left his place.  My dad was pretty cool and because of poverty issues I was not able to attend his burial.  Sometimes I think about my dad and realize he grew up in a different time.  I hope to tell my grandchildren about their great grandfather. 

                The Ukraine is blowing up as I write this column and people are preparing to die in what is another act of dominance in the world.  I have read history and have often thought the area is always a hotbed of activity.  East meet West and cultures clash in the Ukraine Region.  I wanted to share some opinion about the conflict because I feel it is important to inform others.  First of all the Black Sea Russian Fleet is docked there and they signed an agreement to lease the port.  Russia resigned the agreement until the year 2042 in exchanged for natural gas help in the Ukraine.  You might be asking me why I am writing about this and what difference it makes to our Lakota people.  Actually it has everything to do with us because if war breaks out and we see the Russian Army move through there is a good chance our soldiers will be there as well. 

                Crimea the Port Province is vital to the Putin’s war machine and he seems to have many ideas about keeping or even occupying the smaller countries from the old Soviet Bloc.  It would seem that we have a huge chess match being played with the huge countries.  The people from this area are struggling because of different cultures but it world greed that moves people.  Biblically speaking The Battle of Armageddon will be used in this area and the world is having pains as we think about these things.  Russia is moving to see what the rest of the world will do and my personal opinion is that these moves are being taken because of oil and natural gas pricing and our bread and milk prices will rise once again.  I hope people are mindful of these things as it is very serious.  I have been keeping a watch because it is interesting to me. 

                We will see the world change in our lives and people need to be ready for the changes.  I do not want to scare people but I want to inform people so they can understand a Little Geo-Political background and how it affects us.  I would like to thank John Hussman Jr. for keeping us up to date on Facebook.  These times will show the world how America will face another aggressor of the smaller countries.  Of course we have seen this over time but we are faced with the deadliest Governments in the history of the world.  I wanted to share with you about my father and what has been on my heart.  Pilimiya (Thank You)

Lakota Gold

A few years ago we started a coffee house in Pine Ridge Village and I have to say I love coffee but I do not really like the super hot kind. I do like my ice coffees and like to drink a cup with at least three shots of espresso. I met an Italian man from the east coast and we were in Chadron, Nebraska and we went to the coffee house and he ordered a mocha chino and I thought it was the coolest thing. I ordered one too and it was really great and that was my drink for a long time. I also like the triple shot iced Americano with a shot of cinnamon dolce with room for cream. When someone orders a latte with Soy milk I call that a John Travolta because he seems like a guy who would drink Soy. But with all of my coffee that I drink and savor at times I love a dark brew. I wanted to develop a coffee that I would be honored to call Lakota Gold.
A few years ago we developed this label and now I have had this coffee label under wraps. Since that time I have come into contact with three coffees from Indian Country. We were selling Lakota Gold because it is bold and strong and today it is the #1 seller at the Higher Ground Coffee House. But the three Indian Coffees came years ago when the Activist turned Actor Russell Means came up with Means Beans and it never really got off the ground but it was a great idea. Then in the last year I heard of Hoka Coffee from Pine Ridge and one of our customers is selling the coffee and developing and has high hopes to develop the company on the Pine Ridge. And now Native Aemrican Coffee Company is growing by leaps and bounds it is run by Jayson Brave Heart and it is going to be a great company. But I have decided to bring out my own label once again for the Holiday Season. I am sure it will be fun to sell the coffee.
When we started the Higher Ground Coffee House it was clear lots of people never thought it would work. A Gourmet Coffee House in the Village of Pine Ridge, one of the poorest places in America and now almost ten years later the coffee house is still growing and developing. I have made coffees since day one and I have also developed my culinary skill and it has been fun learning to make different dishes. I have some favorites but I am excited to bring a steak dinner to the table on Friday. I thought I would drop a few lines and share what I am doing with my time. Who knows where the Lakota Gold will go and how far?

Best Frybread Pine Ridge Village

In the last few weeks I have seen flyers around Pine Ridge Village and I thought this is a great idea.  I have learned to make frybread and it is fun but it is truly a gift. I make yeast frybread but I have seen baking powder frybread done.  I have mostly had the yeast bread and it is my favorite.  I once went to a American Indian youth conference, I had the opportunity to help make frybread and I remember it was hard work because there were lots of us making it for a huge gathering at a Montana State University at Bozeman.  I remember the triangles of tasty bread just off the stove.  It was a great time but exhausting. 
Bread is such a great way to get to know people, I love the idea of breaking bread with people and have some great experiencing remembering what Jesus did and now we can have bread and wine to remember what Jesus did for the world.  I am going spiritual but it is ok because there are so many positive aspects of bread. 
I have learned to make different breads and have sold them at the Higher Ground Coffee House in Pine Ridge Village.  I want to have a chili and frybread contest or join one at some point because I believe I can make some great chili.  I want to see if people will get interested in doing a contest.  It will be fun and I hope we can get lots of people to come and enjoy the food. 
On another note it is great to see people take the effort and get out there and sell a product.  I believe people want to be successful and they want to share their passion.  I have believed for some time when you find someone with passion you should encourage the passion because that is a key in the life of a successful person.  So I hope to try this frybread and hopefully it will be as great as they say. 

Prison Camp and Stolen Indian Lands

The two photos above are tied together in history and a geographical reality.  I found the POW Camp photo on the border near White Clay, Nebraska and the second one Indian Land sale from Facebook but it dawned on me because I have been searching to understand what took place over the last 130 years in Lakota history.  The Dawes Act was the greatest rip off of land because it basically took just over half the lands Indian lands and then sold them off to White settlers.  They were on a mission to assimilate and/or kill the Indian people.  This is the genocide of our people and I am happy to know people are understanding history of what took place in Indian Country.  

I know a guy who actually screamed at me and told me Our people were a conquered people and I should have knocked him out but I took pity on him.  What the United States has done and continue to do today is shocking.  I have been writing in Lakota Country Times about my missionary experience since 1995 and it has been really bad.  I actually try not to tell people I am Christian because some of these people are rotten at the core.  Almost everyone of the Missionaries I have dealt with has tried to take over because of the paternalistic attitudes and their sin of coveting.  I had two corporate take overs and one failed and the other succeeded and these missionaries are still around.  The one that worked was because the land owners believed the White Guy but he eventually failed and has moved back across the border near White Clay.  The other White Missionary couple who tried to destroy me is out to the West of Pine Ridge Village.  It is interesting that they stole most of my support because they lied about me and then again the White donors actually believe the White Missionary.  I was told by some church leaders that they were evil and I should stay away from them. 

I believe our people were targeted for Cultural Genocide and I want to work on developing some paradigms to help our people out of the oppression and devastation.  We are in deep poverty and the onslaught of White Missionaries are still coming and I am not sure it is the answer because they usually end up together and become powerless to help our people.  We as a people need to rise up and begin to take control of our own lives and stop depending on the White Missionary because they do not have enough resources to help us out of our poverty.  I hope to continue to develop ideas to help us and hope people will pray for me and seek to help.   

The land was stolen and then resold and people have continued to take Indian land.  They placed on the Reservations and they were essentially concentration camps and we were not allowed to leave.  They said we were Off The Reservation and could be killed if were caught outside of the Prison Camp.  Today we live on the little left and still they try to take the Indian Land.  We have our history and we know where we have come from, which is from our ancestors.  The Lords of the Plains and we will come to a healing, I believe it will come from the Creator.