Post by Okwes on Jun 2, 2006 8:43:26 GMT -5
Artist must choose between two tribes
By Erny Zah The Daily Times
May 30, 2006, 03:05 am
www.daily-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006605300307
<http://www.daily-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006605300307>
FARMINGTON -- Ambrose Teasyatwho, 50, owns a gallery in Aztec and sells
his Hopi carvings and art work.
But if he wants to sell his artwork as representing the Hopi portion of
his ethnicity, which comes from his father's side, at the Heard Guild
Indian Fair and Market in Phoenix, he can't.
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3434376631643030> For Teasyatwho, that wold require documented proof
that his is Hopi, which he could do, he said.
But that would also require him to give up his Navajo citizenship. He is
enrolled with the Navajo Nation and, to become an enrolled member with
the Hopi Tribe, he would have to forfeit his citizenship with the Navajo
Nation.
He said he doesn't want to do that.
"I don't want to give up my Navajo census number. To me, we have to
chose between our mom and our dad, that's not right," he said. "We
should have dual (enrollment)."
The Bureau of Indian Affairs allows Indian Nations to determine who is a
member of each tribe. For both the Navajo and Hopi Nations, they use a
minimum one quarter blood quantum requirement for a person to be
enrolled in either tribe. In addition, both tribes don't allow dual
citizenship.
So when it comes to showing his Hopi carvings and sculptures at the
Heard Museum Guild Indian Fair and Market, Teasyatwho is an outsider.
The Heard Museum Guild didn't return calls about Teasyatwho, but in a
January 2005 article in The Daily Times, Phyllis Noone, a volunteer with
the Heard Market Guild, said Teasyatwho was excluded from its 2005 show
because the Guild was following guidelines from the Indian Arts and
Crafts Board, which was created by the Indian Arts and Craft Act of
1990. The board monitors Indian arts and crafts for their authenticity.
According to the Indian Arts and Crafts Act, an artist can't
misrepresent his or her work.
But not every Indian art show has the same requirements as the Heard
Museum Guild Indian Fair and Market.
The Santa Fe Indian Market, which is slated to take place in August,
does require that artisans have documents proving they are a member of a
federally recognized tribe but doesn't mandate that art can only be
reflective of the artist's enrolled tribe, said Staci Golar, coordinator
of marketing for Southwestern Association for Indian Arts, the
organization that hosts the Indian Market.
She said there are categories where art and crafts are judged on tribal
iconography, or certain tribal tradition, but the market doesn't dictate
what an artist should be creating based on his or her tribal ethnicity.
"That decision is best left up to the artist," she said in a phone
interview.
"We might distinguish between traditional versus contemporary, or have
categories that do delineate a tradition specific to a certain tribe,
but we are also inclusive of work that is not reflecting a specific
tribe's symbols or art forms," she said. "We're not in the business of
policing artwork on that level. People's histories, backgrounds, and
needs to express and communicate different things are too complex," she
said.
But there are the Five Tribes in Oklahoma-- formerly recognized as the
Five Civilized Tribes-- who have a system where blood from other Five
Tribes are recognized, though the person doesn't have to be enrolled in
that particular tribe.
In the Five Tribes -- Choctaw, Chickasaw, Cherokee, Seminole and Creek
Tribes-- their tribal members and non-members have an option of carrying
a Certificate of Indian Blood (CDIB) card, which lists blood quantum of
other tribes, said Gina Brown, director of tribal government services of
the Chickasaw Nation in Ada, Okla. Brown's office handles tribal
enrollment for the Chickasaw Nation.
The CDIB works for the Five Tribes because they use the same Dawes Roll,
a list of tribal members that was compiled 1890s, she said.
Individuals are issued CDIB cards that show all applicable five tribes'
blood quantum, according to Brown. The person is not considered a member
of a particular tribe until the individual actually fills out a separate
application for membership, enrollment or citizenship, depending on how
their own tribal ordinance recognizes their tribal enrollment.
"CDIB means that you possess American Indian blood, and by using a CDIB,
a tribal member could show that they also possess blood of another
tribe," Brown said.
"If (tribes) went with a CDIB nationwide, then (Teasyatwho) could stay
enrolled Navajo, but have a card saying his possess Hopi blood."
She said the CDIB are federal cards that come from Eastern Oklahoma
regional BIA office.
The Navajo and Hopi Tribes don't have a card or a similar way of
recognizing other tribal blood quantum.
Teasyatwho said that a CDIB system, or something similar, would be a
step in the right direction, but still advocates for dual citizenship.
"Why can't I be acknowledged for both?" he asked. "The more I think
about it, the more I think about down the road -- not for myself but for
my kids and grand- kids. At least they'll have proof."
Dave Watson The Daily Times Ambrose Teasyatwho, an Aztec artist who is a
citizen of the Navajo Nation and Hopi by his father's side, is not
allowed to sell his Hopi artwork at the Heard Guild Indian Fair and
Market in Phoenix because the Navajo and Hopi Nations do not allow dual
citizenship.
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By Erny Zah The Daily Times
May 30, 2006, 03:05 am
www.daily-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006605300307
<http://www.daily-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006605300307>
FARMINGTON -- Ambrose Teasyatwho, 50, owns a gallery in Aztec and sells
his Hopi carvings and art work.
But if he wants to sell his artwork as representing the Hopi portion of
his ethnicity, which comes from his father's side, at the Heard Guild
Indian Fair and Market in Phoenix, he can't.
ADVERTISEMENT
[http://gcirm.elpasotimes.com/RealMedia/ads/Creatives/default/empty.gif]
<http://gcirm.elpasotimes.com/RealMedia/ads/click_lx.ads/news.farmington\
.com/stories/1036257400/ArticleFlex_1/default/empty.gif/6434396563623936\
3434376631643030> For Teasyatwho, that wold require documented proof
that his is Hopi, which he could do, he said.
But that would also require him to give up his Navajo citizenship. He is
enrolled with the Navajo Nation and, to become an enrolled member with
the Hopi Tribe, he would have to forfeit his citizenship with the Navajo
Nation.
He said he doesn't want to do that.
"I don't want to give up my Navajo census number. To me, we have to
chose between our mom and our dad, that's not right," he said. "We
should have dual (enrollment)."
The Bureau of Indian Affairs allows Indian Nations to determine who is a
member of each tribe. For both the Navajo and Hopi Nations, they use a
minimum one quarter blood quantum requirement for a person to be
enrolled in either tribe. In addition, both tribes don't allow dual
citizenship.
So when it comes to showing his Hopi carvings and sculptures at the
Heard Museum Guild Indian Fair and Market, Teasyatwho is an outsider.
The Heard Museum Guild didn't return calls about Teasyatwho, but in a
January 2005 article in The Daily Times, Phyllis Noone, a volunteer with
the Heard Market Guild, said Teasyatwho was excluded from its 2005 show
because the Guild was following guidelines from the Indian Arts and
Crafts Board, which was created by the Indian Arts and Craft Act of
1990. The board monitors Indian arts and crafts for their authenticity.
According to the Indian Arts and Crafts Act, an artist can't
misrepresent his or her work.
But not every Indian art show has the same requirements as the Heard
Museum Guild Indian Fair and Market.
The Santa Fe Indian Market, which is slated to take place in August,
does require that artisans have documents proving they are a member of a
federally recognized tribe but doesn't mandate that art can only be
reflective of the artist's enrolled tribe, said Staci Golar, coordinator
of marketing for Southwestern Association for Indian Arts, the
organization that hosts the Indian Market.
She said there are categories where art and crafts are judged on tribal
iconography, or certain tribal tradition, but the market doesn't dictate
what an artist should be creating based on his or her tribal ethnicity.
"That decision is best left up to the artist," she said in a phone
interview.
"We might distinguish between traditional versus contemporary, or have
categories that do delineate a tradition specific to a certain tribe,
but we are also inclusive of work that is not reflecting a specific
tribe's symbols or art forms," she said. "We're not in the business of
policing artwork on that level. People's histories, backgrounds, and
needs to express and communicate different things are too complex," she
said.
But there are the Five Tribes in Oklahoma-- formerly recognized as the
Five Civilized Tribes-- who have a system where blood from other Five
Tribes are recognized, though the person doesn't have to be enrolled in
that particular tribe.
In the Five Tribes -- Choctaw, Chickasaw, Cherokee, Seminole and Creek
Tribes-- their tribal members and non-members have an option of carrying
a Certificate of Indian Blood (CDIB) card, which lists blood quantum of
other tribes, said Gina Brown, director of tribal government services of
the Chickasaw Nation in Ada, Okla. Brown's office handles tribal
enrollment for the Chickasaw Nation.
The CDIB works for the Five Tribes because they use the same Dawes Roll,
a list of tribal members that was compiled 1890s, she said.
Individuals are issued CDIB cards that show all applicable five tribes'
blood quantum, according to Brown. The person is not considered a member
of a particular tribe until the individual actually fills out a separate
application for membership, enrollment or citizenship, depending on how
their own tribal ordinance recognizes their tribal enrollment.
"CDIB means that you possess American Indian blood, and by using a CDIB,
a tribal member could show that they also possess blood of another
tribe," Brown said.
"If (tribes) went with a CDIB nationwide, then (Teasyatwho) could stay
enrolled Navajo, but have a card saying his possess Hopi blood."
She said the CDIB are federal cards that come from Eastern Oklahoma
regional BIA office.
The Navajo and Hopi Tribes don't have a card or a similar way of
recognizing other tribal blood quantum.
Teasyatwho said that a CDIB system, or something similar, would be a
step in the right direction, but still advocates for dual citizenship.
"Why can't I be acknowledged for both?" he asked. "The more I think
about it, the more I think about down the road -- not for myself but for
my kids and grand- kids. At least they'll have proof."
Dave Watson The Daily Times Ambrose Teasyatwho, an Aztec artist who is a
citizen of the Navajo Nation and Hopi by his father's side, is not
allowed to sell his Hopi artwork at the Heard Guild Indian Fair and
Market in Phoenix because the Navajo and Hopi Nations do not allow dual
citizenship.
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<http://www.daily-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060601/NEWS01/6\
06010304/1001>
• Officials: 'Human error' cited in crash
<http://www.daily-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060601/NEWS01/6\
06010303/1001>
• Lighting Old Man Gloom: Aztec celebrates Fiesta Days
<http://www.daily-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060601/NEWS01/6\
06010302/1001>
• Expansion of ski area possible
<http://www.daily-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060601/NEWS01/6\
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• True family
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