Bahe Katenay: Elders voices and the Longest Walks

Bahe Katenay from Big Mountain, among the most censored voices in Indian country, offers reflections on the Longest Walks. Bahe shares his memories of a vision at Sand Creek and asks where are the voices of the traditional elders:

Lakota elder and wise man, Mathew King, once stated, “The struggle of the red people can only be strong if its warrior nation understands that the struggle is like the Sun Dance. Humbleness is key if you make a vow to such a Sun Dance because all the filth of divisiveness, greed and false accusation will be wiped clean on You! You will be the door mat. Why do I speak to you when you are having your rest from your Sun Dance? Well, because Tunkacula and God want you to worry just like the Sun Dance songs that are supposed to make you worry so that, you will become stronger and maintain your spirit to overcome the pain of hunger and fatigue.”Grandfather Wallace Black Elk told the LW78 in Kansas, “Someday I hope the red peoples will make the victory to save what is left of our country, our sacred places, our ancestral burial grounds, our traditional foods and medicines, and all our relations. This kind of victory is only possible by understanding that we are all One People from South America to North America. I want you all to remember this and pray for all these things as you walk across this Turtle Island (North America).”
Read article on Bahe's blog:
http://sheepdognationrocks.blogspot.com/2008/05/where-have-all-great-traditional-voices.html

Photo: Sand Creek, on the Longest Walk 2 Northern Route/Photo Brenda Norrell