Return to Iowa City

This has been quite a homecoming here in Iowa City. Last night an incredible dinner cooked by and at the home of Professor Linda Bolton. The evening ended with several of Linda's students and Linda and I in a circle. Linda addressed the power of teaching. She was my student years ago when I taught at the University of Arizona, in one of the best classes I ever had in Native literature. It gets passed on. As I looked around the circle at the burning bright students I realized they were my "grand-students" and told them so. Yes they are--I must have many around the country! And I am the grand-student of many, including the teachers of N.Scott Momaday, Leslie Silko, Gene Frumkin, Nappy Napolean, John Coltrane, Karen Leialoha Carroll, Leilani Sheldon....so many teachers in this life....they make a powerful matrix in each of our lives.

Health Care Standoff

Last night I wrote to my state senators, both Republican. They may not read the letters, but they need to know that not all of the constituency for whom they are responsible is in favor of their destructive stance. This standoff is dangerous. It is a stand of the rich against the poor. Revolutions are made of this. Ironically, most of the tea partiers need this healthcare, yet they've organized against Obama because of his race. We have to step carefully, and always with compassion.

People need the opportunity to buy affordable health care without being shut out because of pre conditions or because of inability to pay high premiums.

I believe race was and is a huge motivation for anti-Obama movements, but of course, not for all. We all need to be able to speak with each other. No, we shouldn't be forced to buy health care. All citizens should have access to health care. I don't have health care. The cost would take a third of my income, and I have no pre-existing conditions.

This week begins Tuesday Night Blues Jam Session /Workshops with Blues Musician and Singer Selby Minner, of the Blues Hall of Fame in Rentiesville, OK for Creek Nation Citizens

For eight weeks September 10 through October 29, every Tuesday for two hours per session. All Creek community citizens invited, any age, any level. For students of guitar and bass and other players/ singers - drums, keyboard etc..

Glenpool Creek Indian Center, the Community Building at 13839 S. Casper, Glenpool, OK 74033.

Please note: On the second Tuesday of the month the jam session will be held in the larger Activity Building at 191 West 140th Street, Glenpool, OK 74033.

(P.S. Will not be available by phone this week until Friday night.)

The Cutthroat Online Writing Mentorship Program

Dear Readers, Here is your chance to work on your writing for a month one-on-one with one of our noted writers! We are registering for fall writing mentorships now. CONGRATULATIONS to our mentor, Joy Harjo, for winning the 2013 PEN CENTER USA CREATIVE NONFICTION AWARD for her memoir, CRAZY BRAVE.

2013-2014 FACULTY

ENVIRONMENTAL ESSAYS: LINDA HOGAN

MEMOIR: JOY HARJO and DOUG ANDERSON

MIXED GENRE: SEAN THOMAS DOUGHERTY

NOVEL EVALUATION: DONLEY WATT

POETRY: DOUG ANDERSON, JOY HARJO, T.R. HUMMER, RICHARD JACKSON, PATRICIA SPEARS JONES, WILLIAM PITT ROOT, PATRICIA SMITH and PAM USCHUK

POETRY MANUSCRIPT EVALUATION/POETRY IN TRANSLATION MANUSCRIPT EVALUATION: RICHARD JACKSON and MARILYN KALLET

SCREENPLAY: STEVE BARANCIK

SHORT STORY: BETH ALVARADO, LORIAN HEMINGWAY, WILLIAM LUVAAS, DARLIN NEAL and DONLEY WATT

Work one-on-one with master writers. $1000 for a full month online mentorship in poetry, short story, memoir, essays, novel, or poetry-in-translation. $2000 for a six week detailed full-length manuscript evaluation in poetry, short story, memoir, screen play or poetry-in-translation. Our fee costs less than writing programs and writers conferences. Students pay one fee only: no academic papers, no academic credit, no travel, meals or housing. Go to www.cutthroatmag.com or call 970-903-7914 or write us at cutthroatmag@gmail.com Register early. Space is limited.

Child Theft

Native child theft isn't just the obvious, like the Cherokee case we are following where the child was trafficked by an attorney and "given" to a South Carolina couple, it has to do with education. In my elementary school in Tulsa, which was essentially on tribal lands, we learned that we were "other" and on the outside. We need our own Mvskoke schools with Mvskoke values. This will make for healthy cultural exchange. Respect is the keyword here, and there has been no respect. The State of South Carolina has never honored the place of indigenous peoples.

CONTEST in honor of the paperback release of CRAZY BRAVE

First, thank you/mvto to all those who have supported the story, my poetry and music.
I'm having a contest.
I will send a signed, hardback copy of CRAZY BRAVE and a CD of my original music to the best crazy brave stories I receive from you, from your life--one page or less, via FB. I'll pick the top three to ten, depending on the number of stories I receive. I'll post the best here and on my blog. You have until 5PM Friday August 2nd Oklahoma time.  The winners posted next week!

Fire Study

Study in Fire, Taos, 2013 c Joy Harjo and Mekko Productions Inc.

Glenpool Creek Indian Community Demonstration and Dance Party Tonight

Tonight: 
*Indian Tacos by Autumn Star Catering, a Mvskoke/Creek business by Tricia FieldsAlex Alexander
*George Coser's Wednesday Night Stomp Dance Group
*Selby Minner and her Blues Band (I'll be sitting in)
* D.j. Sapphire Satepauhoodle spinning tunes for a community dance. I've requested funk, soul, r and b, etc.
Starts at 6PM at the Glenpool Creek Indian Community Center off of 141st and Highway 75. 
Come out!!

Green Corn

Green Corn or busk, our Mvskoke new year is inherently about the acknowledgement and honoring of the plant world. We become in harmony with it. Our human worlds and plant worlds are utterly interdependent. Or rather, we are more dependent on them, than us, but our decisions matter, not just to seven generations and more of human descendants, but to the seven or more plant descendants, animal descendants and elements descendants. We make sacrifices to take care of each other. To understand each other is profound beyond human words.

Independence Day

I celebrate independence anywhere it happens. The question here is how. When a diversity of peoples is destroyed or diminished in a holocaust of outrageous proportions for independence, does this truly result in liberty, justice and freedom for all? In a few generations indigenous peoples of America have been reduced to one-half of one percent. Imagine Africa with one-half of one percent Africans. We have been essentially disappeared in the story of America. Our massive libraries of knowledge, rich cultural and intellectual gifts have been disparaged, destroyed and broken by interloper religions and a hierarchical system of thought in which indigenous people exist only as savages. What then does this say about liberty and justice in this country? 

For healing the wound needs to be opened, purged and cleansed. Our stories need to be allowed. Our traditional ways and languages need to be honored. This country needs to apologize and reparations must be made. We all need to come together, every one of us to make a true plan for liberty and justice for all. As long as indigenous peoples are disappeared and disparaged, or surface only in Hollywood movies like The Lone Ranger, this country will remain as a child without parents, who has no sense of earth, history or spirituality.