Category: Delaware Tribe

There is growing concern within Oklahoma’s Native American community that citizens will face fines for their tribal tags after a recent uptick of enforcement of rules regarding taxes and license plates.

The Delaware Tribe of Indians, which is headquartered in Bartlesville, issued a statement Friday saying that their tribal tags should be valid. Chief Brad KillsCrow says Delaware Tribal tags are issued through the Cherokee Nation and covered by the compact. KillsCrow says if any Delaware Tribal member gets pulled over by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol and issued a ticket for having a tribal tag, they should immediately contact his office.

Letter to Delaware Tribal members from Chief Brad KillsCrow

Osage Nation Principal Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear told Osage News his office has not received any communication from Gov. Kevin Stitt’s office or OHP about a change in policy on tribal tags. Standing Bear says if Osage Nation elected officials come to a consensus that the tribe needs to enter into a new compact with the state, he will work on that quickly.

Currently, the state of Oklahoma only has tribal tag compacts with the Cherokee, Chickasaw and Choctaw Nations.

Our partners at News On 6 and News 9 reached out to Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt this morning and received a statement from his team:

“This is addressing a significant public safety issue that puts law enforcement and others at risk. If tribal governments won’t share vehicle registration information with DPS, we can’t keep our officers and our streets safe. Members of tribes with valid compacts that provide needed car registration information will not be ticketed. Oklahoma Highway Patrol is simply enforcing the law and following U.S. Supreme Court precedent.”

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Appearing on COMMUNITY CONNECTION, Jeremy Johnson, Cultural Education Director with Delaware Tribe of Indians, said he name by which the tribe calls itself is Lenape [pronounced as if spelled “lun-NAH-pay”], and this name means something like “The People.” It is common for many groups of people around the world to use a name that has a similar translation. Johnson said, “We do not know how long that name has been in use, but related tribes use similar words, so we think it has been in use for many hundreds of years.”

In the short time we shared with Jeremy on the show, we learned a lot. Jeremy said,”It has long been known that the name applied to the Native people who lived along the Delaware River was taken from the title of an Englishman, Lord de la Warr, whose name was Sir Thomas West. He was appointed governor of the English colony at Jamestown, Virginia in 1610. One of his followers, Captain Samuel Argall, once sailed into a majestic bay which he named “de la Warr Bay” in honor of the governor. The river that flowed into the bay was given the same name, and they both were later contracted into Delaware.”

Jeremy said that the tribe has lost a number of things on their forced trek west to Oklahoma. He said, “Many old traditional ways included making things, such as clay pots to cook and store food in; flint knapping to make arrowheads and flint knives; and decorating things with dyed porcupine quills. We also lost knowledge of sea creatures that we would have known on the east coast, and some of our songs and dances. But we have also been able to preserve many things also.”

…

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The Native American Studies Program at Eberly College of Arts and Sciences hosted the Peace Tree Ceremony Monday, along with and a forum that started Monday and continues today with Native leaders.

The events highlight Native Nations’ ancestral, cultural and historical connections to the land now known as West Virginia.

The Native American Studies Program at Eberly College of Arts and Sciences will host events on October 9 and 10 that will highlight Native Nations’ ancestral, cultural and historical connections to the land now known as West Virginia.

The annual Peace Tree Ceremony was held in recognition of Indigenous Peoples Day. WVU’s Peace Tree is between Martin and E. Moore halls on WVU’s downtown campus.

The Peace Tree, per Haudenosaunee (Iroquoian) oral history passed down for hundreds of years, centers on the Creator sending the Peacemaker to unite the warring Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida and Mohawk nations. He planted the original white pine Tree of Peace at Onondaga to symbolize these Five Nations forming the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. With the addition of the Tuscarora, it is now the Six Nations.

WVU’s first peace tree was planted on campus in 1992 by Chief Leon Shenandoah, Tadodaho of the Grand Council of the Haudenosaunee Six Nations Iroquois Confederacy. This year, Tadodaho Sidney Hill presided. Other guests of honor included Haudenosaunee Faithkeeper Oren Lyons, Delaware Nation President Deborah Dotson, Delaware Tribe of Indians Chief Brad KillsCrow, Shawnee Tribe Chief Ben Barnes, Eastern Shawnee Tribe Chief Glenna Wallace and Cherokee Nation history and preservation officer Catherine Foreman Gray.

The Peace Tree Ceremony included traditional Native music by singer John Block (Seneca Nation) and flute player Boe Nakakakena Harris (Turtle Mountain Chippewa). Wendy Perrone, executive director of Three Rivers Avian Center in Hinton, presented Regis, a bald eagle, symbolizing the eagle sentry the Peacemaker placed atop…

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People gathered on Old Main lawn on Monday afternoon to celebrate and recognize Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

Flags representing different tribal nations waved on the lawn just below the steps of Old Main, where speakers and performers stood to celebrate.

Tim Benally opened the rally with a speech which included a land acknowledgement.

Penn State’s campuses are located on the original homelands of the Erie, Haudenosaunee (Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, Mohawk and Tuscarora), Lenape (Delaware Nation, Delaware Tribe, Stockbridge-Munsee), Monongahela, Shawnee (Absentee, Eastern and Oklahoma), Susquehannock and Wahzhazhe (Osage) Nations.

“We mark a historical occasion where we recognize the legacy and contributions of Indigenous peoples from around the country,” Benally, a graduate student studying recreation, parks and tourism management, said. “The very structures that once sought to erase us still persist in today’s educational systems.”

“I’ve been grateful for the opportunities that its presented, but it’s also a poignant reminder that I,” Benally said, “like most of you, are visitors to this land, and we are missing its original stewards.”

Several speakers talked about the importance of this day to the community, including Al George, a Cayuga faith keeper in the Allegany Seneca territory.

“Native Americans all over Turtle Island have a customary responsibility to give thanks to their creator for all the things that he provided us, sustain us in our lives and keep us happy as we walk this earth,” George said.

Akwesasne Women Singers, Las Cafeteras and the Jake George family performed music and traditional dances.

Errol Wizda, an assistant program director with the Millennium Scholars Program, was in attendance at the rally.

“I think this sort of thing is really important for the university (to acknowledge) everything that’s happening,” Wizda said. “I think it’s important for … advocacy to happen on campus.”

Erica Brown said “it was a really good opportunity.”

“It’s something I have never seen before, so…

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by Cari Carpenter

The City of Morgantown, one of hundreds of places proclaiming the second Tuesday in October as Indigenous Peoples’ Day, is the site of the Oct. 9-10 free public forum “This Land Was Already Loved.”

WVU’s Native American Studies Program welcomes esteemed leaders from the Shawnee Tribe, Eastern Shawnee Tribe, Delaware Nation, Delaware Tribe of Indians, Cherokee Nation and Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy for this historic forum. They will discuss their nations’ ancestral connections to West Virginia, providing Indigenous perspectives on history, culture and outlooks for the future.

We are so fortunate to have these important leaders visit our town for this pivotal occasion. Their presentations will help answer some of the lingering questions everyday West Virginians have about the state’s first peoples.

The Haudenosaunee nations, the Shawnee, Lenape (Delaware), Cherokee and other historic tribes regard West Virginia as being within their ancestral lands, and there are still individual descendants living here today. The U.S. has more than 570 federally-recognized Native Nations, and the 2020 Census cites nearly 10 million Native people nationwide.

Indigenous people, also referred to collectively in the U.S. as Native Americans or American Indians and Alaska Natives, have lived upon this land since time immemorial. This is evidenced by both oral history and archaeological sites in Morgantown and throughout our state. The nearby 2,000-year-old Hopewell Earthworks in Ohio were named a UNESCO World Heritage Site just last month.

As a professor who has taught Native American literature for 20 years, I cannot express how excited I am to have the opportunity to witness this event firsthand. I am especially eager to hear renowned Haudenosaunee Faithkeeper Oren Lyons give the keynote, “Truth to power: History from Indigenous perspectives” tomorrow, Oct. 9, at 6 p.m. in the Gluck Theater of the Student Union.

I also look forward…

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GNA Staff: Past and Present. Photo and caption by Erica Thompson, university photographer.

“These small preserved areas of our natural world are the symbols of our appreciation and concern for the heritage of Chester County, one of the truly beautiful areas in Eastern North America,” said Dr. William R. Overlease — a WCU professor from 1963-1986 — in his 1973 “Remarks for the Dedication of GNA for Environmental Studies.”

The weekend of Sept. 23, WCU celebrated the Gordon Natural Area’s (GNA) 50th anniversary, which highlighted the efforts made to protect the forest land. The natural area was dedicated in 1971 to a science faculty member at WCU, Professor Robert Gordon, and was established as protected land. 

The GNA is approximately 126 acres worth of land, located on West Chester University’s south campus. This area serves as a refuge for native plants and local wildlife, as well as an area for people to enjoy nature.

In 1970, before the land was established as protected land, it was subject to proposed development of student housing by university administration. 

In an article written in Quad Angles in 1971, Terry Cohen expressed concerns about GNA’s land. “The 200 acres, known as a ‘climax forest,’ is one of the only plots of land of its type in Chester County, supporting an eco-system containing a wide variety of plants and animals,” Cohen wrote.

This build was halted by two undergraduate students, David Fluri and Brad Gottfried. A movement was started by Fluri and Gottfried for the University to recognize how valuable the GNA land was for scientific studies. 

Cohen mentions Fluri in his article, stating, “Fluri said that the swampland could not compare with what they have now; there wouldn’t be as many types of plants or animals to study.”

Fluri proposed an…

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Indianz.Com > News > Native America Calling: The hit-and-miss progress of tribal cannabis sales All Episodes on Spotify | More Options

Native America Calling: The hit-and-miss progress of tribal cannabis sales

Wednesday, October 4, 2023

The hit-and-miss progress of tribal cannabis sales

Citizens of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians overwhelmingly voted in favor of allowing recreational cannabis use on the tribe’s reservation in North Carolina. If approved by the tribal council, the Qualla Boundary could be positioned as the only location for legal marijuana sales in the southeastern United States. Supporters say it is necessary to diversify a tribal economy heavily dependent on gaming. But they’ll have to persevere against opposition including some tribal officials and at least one North Carolina congressman who proposes withholding public funds from tribes that utilize their sovereign right to sell cannabis. A sign welcomes people to the home of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina. Photo by Sogospelman

Guests on Native America Calling

Forrest Parker (member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians), general manager for Qualla Enterprises, LLC Mary Jane Oatman (Nez Perce and Delaware Tribe descendant), founder of the Indigenous Cannabis Coalition & THC Magazine and the executive director of the Indigenous Cannabis Industry Association Tom Rodgers (Blackfeet), founder of Carlyle Consulting and the Global Indigenous Council, an advocacy organization focusing on Native American issues

Native America Calling

Listen to Native America Calling every weekday at 1pm Eastern.

Alternate Links: Native Voice One | NAC

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On Saturday, September 23, West Chester University celebrated 50 years of forest preservation with a “forest fest” commemorating the dedication of the Robert B. Gordon Natural Area (GNA). Rain could not dampen spirits as University and community members came together in Sykes Student Union Ballrooms to learn more about the area that students and faculty enjoy as a living laboratory.

WCU Anthropology Professor Heather Wholey and WCU President Christopher Fiorentino talk with Chief Brad Kills Crow and Jeremy Johnson, both from the Delaware Tribe of Indians, at the GNA 50th Anniversary. (Photo courtesy of WCU)

Key to the celebration were several members of the Delaware Tribe of Indians, now based in Oklahoma, who consulted on the Lenape language displayed on new signage WCU will erect in the GNA. In addition to delivering greetings, Jeremy Johnson of the Delaware Tribe of Indians invited those present to join in a celebratory dance.

Of West Chester University’s 406 acres, more than 126 acres is a preserved forest and open space on South Campus used for environmental studies, reflection, and recreation: the Robert B. Gordon Natural Area for Environmental Studies (GNA). On the heels of the first Earth Day in 1970, the GNA was protected from development in 1971 and officially dedicated in 1973. It has been since designated a Wild Plant Sanctuary by the PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Robert B. Gordon was a respected professor of biology who taught at the institution from 1938 until 1964. He was a specialist on the natural vegetation of the northeastern United States.

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Image via West Chester University.

Of West Chester University’s 406 acres, more than 126 acres is a preserved forest and open space on South Campus used for environmental studies, reflection, and recreation: the Robert B. Gordon Natural Area for Environmental Studies (GNA). On the heels of the first Earth Day in 1970, the GNA was protected from development in 1971 and officially dedicated in 1973. It has been since designated a Wild Plant Sanctuary by the PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the GNA’s dedication, the university will host a free “Forest Fest” on Saturday, Sept. 23 with tours and activities suitable for all ages. It will take place rain or shine from 1 to 4 PM in R Lot below Farrell Stadium on South New Street. Parking will be in Q Lot, from which people can take a short path leading to R Lot.

WCU Biology Professor Jessica Schedlbauer, who chairs the committee organizing Forest Fest, said, “Those of us who work in and care for the Gordon Natural Area are very excited about bringing the campus and community together to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its dedication.” Hikes, demonstrations, family-friendly activities, and takeaways are on the schedule.

Those planning to attend are asked to bring a reusable water bottle to help minimize waste.

Exhibits and music from campus radio station WCUR will open the event at 1 PM. At 1:45 PM, Chief Brad Kills Crow and Mr. Jeremy Johnson, members of the Delaware Tribe of Indians, will invite those present to join a traditional participatory dance. Now based in Oklahoma, the Delaware are among the…

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