This is not what I see him saying, though. If that is what he were saying, I would agree with him.
He starts out with a falsehood--that the occupations are only about the distribution of wealth and income.
His story then does not consider what I consider to be a reasonable goal to hope for--that these kids can start the process of healing the earth.
-----Original Message-----
From: Hunter Gray <[email protected]>
To: Friends of Hunter Bear <[email protected]>; SycamoreCanyon <[email protected]>
Cc: marxist <[email protected]>; Redbadbear <[email protected]>
Sent: Wed, Nov 9, 2011 6:55 pm
Subject: Re: [BearwWthoutBorders] [SycamoreCanyon] Re: the IroquoisTwo-Headed Serpent Legend
I think Ray Cook is much on target. For the most part, Sam, Native people and their struggles have been consistently ignored by much of Anglo America, including the various historical waves of Anglo social justice protesters. And, when they haven't been ignored by such, it's simply that those particular Americans have been attacking Native interests, especially treaty rights, sovereignty, land, resources -- and more as well. As a consequence, I doubt if there are many Indians at all at Occupy. As I say, it's two different worlds. For a long time, some of us in the Indian world have tried to be bridge-people but successes re the Anglos have been minimal -- and our loyalties, of course, always lie in the Native world. Many Blacks and Chicanos have been more open to Native causes -- and with some Native reciprocity.
Best, H
HUNTER GRAY [HUNTER BEAR/JOHN R SALTER JR] Mi'kmaq /St. Francis
Abenaki/St. Regis Mohawk
Protected by Na´shdo´i´ba´i´
and Ohkwari'
Check out our Lair of Hunterbear website with a vast
amount of social justice material: www.hunterbear.org
See A Little Family Stuff (Wolfskin and other Native things: http://www.hunterbear.org/wolfskin.htm
And see this on the new, expanded and updated edition of my book,
Jackson Mississippi -- the classic and fully detailed account of
the historic and bloody Jackson Movement of almost 50 years ago:
http://hunterbear.org/jackson.htm
----- Original Message -----
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected] ; [email protected]
Cc: [email protected] ; [email protected]
Sent: Wednesday, November 09, 2011 4:12 PM
Subject: Re: [BearwWthoutBorders] [SycamoreCanyon] Re: the IroquoisTwo-Headed Serpent Legend
I had read those posts of yours indeed, with great interest.
My point on this is appreciative of that which I understand--but is also raising the point that Cook (and perhaps others) may be misinterpreting the occupation movement. As we all know, the early days of a movement are hard to "read," and I claim no special insight into this one. But there are clear and evident tendencies in it that are strongly environmental and spiritual in various ways, and that may reach forward in time to becoming the "Native boy" of the story.
And in some areas, there seem to be Indian participants from what I hear--though I do not know much about that.
-----Original Message-----
From: Hunter Gray <[email protected]>
To: Bear Without Borders <[email protected]>
Cc: Redbadbear <[email protected]>; SycamoreCanyon <[email protected]>; marxist <[email protected]>
Sent: Wed, Nov 9, 2011 3:54 pm
Subject: [SycamoreCanyon] Re: the Iroquois Two-Headed Serpent Legend
Ray Cook is a well known Mohawk scholar and writer. His point is obviously that the Whites -- or Americans -- are fighting over money, having already taken most Native lands and resources. That obviously exemplifies the nature of the two-headed Serpent and its mushrooming greed that eventually climbs to the skies and leads each of the serpent's heads to attempt to consume the other . The Native boy has a Vision, goes to the [very powerful] clan mothers, fashions the means of deliverance and carries that out successfully by slaying the serpent, cutting open its belly, freeing all that It has eaten. The serpent gone, balance and harmony are restored. The symbolism should be pretty clear.
Yesterday, after I posted the piece, Reber commented on RBB: "I received this while in a classroom substitute teaching. The regular teacher's assignment was sadly inadequate to fill the time and had no hooks in it for me to talk about. So I read them the story and had a discussion. The students, especially the 2 Indians (Zuni and Taos), liked it. But almost none saw, without prompting, any meaningful analogy."
I wrote a rather long two-piece follow-up on RBB which you may have missed. My basic point, drawing on years of teaching, is that it's very tough to convey Native values and concerns to non-Indians -- two very different worlds -- but it can be done to some extent by solid teaching over time, if the non-Natives are willing to listen.
I did comment that, with some notable individual exceptions, I haven't noted much interest at all in Native values and concerns on any of these discussion lists. Haven't seen much at all, frankly, from any of the left or liberal groups.
Best, Hunter
HUNTER GRAY [HUNTER BEAR/JOHN R SALTER JR] Mi'kmaq /St. Francis
Abenaki/St. Regis Mohawk
Protected by Na´shdo´i´ba´i´
and Ohkwari'
Check out our Lair of Hunterbear website with a vast
amount of social justice material: www.hunterbear.org
See A Little Family Stuff (Wolfskin and other Native things: http://www.hunterbear.org/wolfskin.htm
And see this on the new, expanded and updated edition of my book,
Jackson Mississippi -- the classic and fully detailed account of
the historic and bloody Jackson Movement of almost 50 years ago:
http://hunterbear.org/jackson.htm
----- Original Message -----
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected] ; [email protected]
Cc: [email protected] ; [email protected] ; [email protected]
Sent: Wednesday, November 09, 2011 11:08 AM
Subject: Re: [Redbadbear] A traditional Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) opinion of Occupy
I found this a very interesting story. Like all such stories, its interpretation does not seem to be easy. A key part of the interpretation is:
Then young boy would come and address the Clanmothers with a vision how to destroy the Serpent
Who or what is this young boy? Is it the kids in OWS? The writer gives little attention to this possibility, probably due to knowing little about OWS and perhaps also having an "observer" perspective rather than the perspective of an organizer.
Kind of like some apocryphal tales I have heard about some "Old Left" types who dismissed the sit-ins of 1960 as not really being class struggle.
But I do not know Ray Cook or his works. So I may be missing something.
HUNTER GRAY [HUNTER BEAR/JOHN R SALTER JR] Mi'kmaq /St. Francis
Abenaki/St. Regis Mohawk
Protected by Na´shdo´i´ba´i´
and Ohkwari'
Check out our Lair of Hunterbear website with a vast
amount of social justice material: www.hunterbear.org
See A Little Family Stuff (Wolfskin and other Native things: http://www.hunterbear.org/wolfskin.htm
And see this on the new, expanded and updated edition of my book,
Jackson Mississippi -- the classic and fully detailed account of
the historic and bloody Jackson Movement of almost 50 years ago:
http://hunterbear.org/jackson.htm
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