Post by blackcrowheart on Mar 24, 2006 9:58:16 GMT -5
With eagle feathers their spirit will soar
With eagle feathers their spirit will soar
Tribe president Paul Weeden says the Pokanokets are not seeking state
recognition to sue for land or open gambling casinos.
01:00 AM EST on Wednesday, March 22, 2006
By KIA HALL HAYES
www.projo.com/eastbayandmass/content/projo_20060322_blcov22.884e4\
dc.html
<http://www.projo.com/eastbayandmass/content/projo_20060322_blcov22.884e\
4dc.html>
Pokanoket tribe seeks recognition
BRISTOL
At the sacred grounds of Mount Hope, in full ceremonial garb, Pokanoket
chief William Guy touched the faux-eagle feathers on his headpiece and
said it's just not the same.
"If I could get hold of some eagle feathers, I would put them in my
bonnet," he said after the Renewal of the Convenant ceremony, held on
March 21 every year to renew the tribe's connection to its spiritual
leader.
The tribe needs state and federal recognition to obtain headdresses with
real eagle feathers.
"These are turkey feathers," Guy said.
Standing in a circle beneath the great rock of Mount Hope, the tribe
gathered here to thank the Creator for his blessings and to recognize
his presence, but Guy said not having the proper symbols weakens that
connection.
"It's a spiritual thing," he said.
Tribe historian Paul Weeden likened not having eagle feathers to
Christians not being able to wear the cross. As the tribe's historian,
he should also be wearing the traditional eagle feathers.
For now, tribe members will have to thank the Creator without them.
"It's what you have to do," he said.
The Pokanokets hope they don't have to make do with turkey feathers for
much longer. Earlier this month representatives of the tribe spoke at
the State House in support of a bill that would give the group official
standing.
"Our quest for recognition has honest and good ambitions behind it,"
tribe president Michael Weeden told members during the ceremony
yesterday.
The representatives told legislators that they are not seeking state
recognition to sue for land or to open gambling casinos, as other groups
have done, Michael Weeden said.
"We stood there and told them, 'We are not those people,'" he said.
The bill, sponsored by Rep. Raymond E. Gallison Jr., was introduced to
the House of Representatives last month and has not been scheduled for a
vote. Last year, Gallison, D-Bristol, Portsmouth, introduced similar
legislation for the tribe that never went up for a vote by the full
House.
Tribe members and supporters should write their local legislators in
support of this bill, Michael Weeden said.
"The ability to stand here with true eagle feathers in our hair, that's
what we're talking about when we talk about state and federal
recognition," he said to the tribe.
But it's not just about eagle feathers. Recognition also gives the group
an official claim to the Pokanoket name and to the heritage and history
that comes with it, said Deanna Guy, William's wife.
"It's knowing who you are," she said.
Weeden said the Pokanokets have played a large role in American history.
Simeon Simons, a Pokanoket, served as George Washington's personal
bodyguard, and the tribe participated in the first Thanksgiving with the
Pilgrims in 1621.
"We welcomed them with open arms, we're just asking for that same
acknowledgement," he said.
Federal recognition means the tribe would be accepted under the federal
Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, which allows
tribes to obtain and inter the remains of deceased tribe members.
The tribe has been recognized by the town councils in Barrington,
Bristol and Warren, but the Pokanokets' application in the Bureau of
Indian Affairs is still under consideration.
Guy said the tribe has to ask Brown University for permission to hold
ceremonies at Mount Hope, where they have gathered for centuries. He
said Brown manages the land.
The university has always been cooperative, but "It's a thing that once
belonged to our people, and we have to ask to come here," he said.
With eagle feathers their spirit will soar
Tribe president Paul Weeden says the Pokanokets are not seeking state
recognition to sue for land or open gambling casinos.
01:00 AM EST on Wednesday, March 22, 2006
By KIA HALL HAYES
www.projo.com/eastbayandmass/content/projo_20060322_blcov22.884e4\
dc.html
<http://www.projo.com/eastbayandmass/content/projo_20060322_blcov22.884e\
4dc.html>
Pokanoket tribe seeks recognition
BRISTOL
At the sacred grounds of Mount Hope, in full ceremonial garb, Pokanoket
chief William Guy touched the faux-eagle feathers on his headpiece and
said it's just not the same.
"If I could get hold of some eagle feathers, I would put them in my
bonnet," he said after the Renewal of the Convenant ceremony, held on
March 21 every year to renew the tribe's connection to its spiritual
leader.
The tribe needs state and federal recognition to obtain headdresses with
real eagle feathers.
"These are turkey feathers," Guy said.
Standing in a circle beneath the great rock of Mount Hope, the tribe
gathered here to thank the Creator for his blessings and to recognize
his presence, but Guy said not having the proper symbols weakens that
connection.
"It's a spiritual thing," he said.
Tribe historian Paul Weeden likened not having eagle feathers to
Christians not being able to wear the cross. As the tribe's historian,
he should also be wearing the traditional eagle feathers.
For now, tribe members will have to thank the Creator without them.
"It's what you have to do," he said.
The Pokanokets hope they don't have to make do with turkey feathers for
much longer. Earlier this month representatives of the tribe spoke at
the State House in support of a bill that would give the group official
standing.
"Our quest for recognition has honest and good ambitions behind it,"
tribe president Michael Weeden told members during the ceremony
yesterday.
The representatives told legislators that they are not seeking state
recognition to sue for land or to open gambling casinos, as other groups
have done, Michael Weeden said.
"We stood there and told them, 'We are not those people,'" he said.
The bill, sponsored by Rep. Raymond E. Gallison Jr., was introduced to
the House of Representatives last month and has not been scheduled for a
vote. Last year, Gallison, D-Bristol, Portsmouth, introduced similar
legislation for the tribe that never went up for a vote by the full
House.
Tribe members and supporters should write their local legislators in
support of this bill, Michael Weeden said.
"The ability to stand here with true eagle feathers in our hair, that's
what we're talking about when we talk about state and federal
recognition," he said to the tribe.
But it's not just about eagle feathers. Recognition also gives the group
an official claim to the Pokanoket name and to the heritage and history
that comes with it, said Deanna Guy, William's wife.
"It's knowing who you are," she said.
Weeden said the Pokanokets have played a large role in American history.
Simeon Simons, a Pokanoket, served as George Washington's personal
bodyguard, and the tribe participated in the first Thanksgiving with the
Pilgrims in 1621.
"We welcomed them with open arms, we're just asking for that same
acknowledgement," he said.
Federal recognition means the tribe would be accepted under the federal
Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, which allows
tribes to obtain and inter the remains of deceased tribe members.
The tribe has been recognized by the town councils in Barrington,
Bristol and Warren, but the Pokanokets' application in the Bureau of
Indian Affairs is still under consideration.
Guy said the tribe has to ask Brown University for permission to hold
ceremonies at Mount Hope, where they have gathered for centuries. He
said Brown manages the land.
The university has always been cooperative, but "It's a thing that once
belonged to our people, and we have to ask to come here," he said.