On October 29, 2021, American President Joseph R. Biden Jr. proclaimed November 2021 as National Native American and Alaska Native Heritage Month. It was actually George H. W. Bush who gave this month long national observance a start. And even earlier President Ronald Reagan had proclaimed November 23-30, 1986, as “American Indian Week.”
Joe Biden is also the first U.S. President to formally recognize Indigenous Peoples’ Day. On October 11, 2021 he signed a proclamation to celebrate this holiday across the nation. Recognizing the sovereignty of American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians. it honors the treaty obligations made to these tribal nations. This holiday began as a counter-celebration held on the same day as the U.S. federal holiday of Columbus Day. The truth regarding this particular historical figure is now undergoing a thorough examination.
“In our Native cultures,
we have faced many atrocities
since invasion, which began the loss of
everything. Yet today in spirit, beliefs,
practices and thoughts, we retain hope
that the missing will return home. Some
actively fight for the return to culture,
family, and community. Some wait
and pray for the return. Some mourn
because we know the return home
will not be possible.”
~ Vision Maker Media
It is a simple idea to be respectful of the cultures which have occupied the North American landmass for thousands of years, but the presence of “the settlers” has brought little but sorrow to people already dwelling upon there. And today the biggest issues facing Native Americans are the exploitation of their lands, dire living conditions, and violence against women, girls and Two-Spirit (gender-nonconforming) people. Still the tide is turning and many from the “outside” are finding ways to help care for the land and support The Indigenous Spirit in all its diversity.
Many strong individuals have held their tribes together through trying times, but our sights are set on the first woman elected to serve as Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. Wilma Pearl Mankiller deserves recognition for her strength of character and management ability. She was born on an Indian reservation in Oklahoma, but her family moved to San Francisco as part of a Bureau of Indian Affairs’ relocation policy. There she became personally active with the social movements of the 60’s including the Occupation of Alcatraz and the Pit River struggles. In the 70’s she moved to back to Oklahoma, divorced, with two daughters.
“One of the things my parents taught
me, and I’ll always be grateful . . . is to
not ever let anybody else define me;
that is for me to define myself . . .”
~ Wilma Mankiller
Wilma Pearl Mankiller, as the elected chief of the Cherokees, oversaw the building of new health clinics, the establishment of ambulance services, and the creation early education, adult education and job training programs. Over time her hard-earned successes earned her national recognition as the Ms. Magazine Woman of the Year in 1987. She was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 1993, and in 1998 she proudly received the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
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  #08 SUN SCO 11/8/1945 Wilma Pearl Mankiller |
Wilma Mankiller was born on a Sunday in the zodiac sign of Scorpio, The Sun rules her INNER self and the planet Mars governs her OUTER self. Individuals born with the #08 Dayology Signature are strong minded and often have hidden agendas. These folks are instrumental in implementing important changes, but it is unwise to ever betray or cross them.
Sun types are leaders, but not necessarily of notoriety. Some receive recognition beyond their communities and family, while others prefer to work unknown for their contributions. Still both types admit that life is a struggle and they enjoy the feeling of having won the battle. Wilma Mankiller would have been appreciated in any culture in which she took root, but she flourished among the Cherokee. She wrote an autobiography Mankiller: A Chief and Her People. She also compiled Every Day Is a Good Day: Reflections by Contemporary Indigenous Women.
After Mankiller’s passing in 2010, journalist, Gloria Steinem stated ” Ancient traditions call for setting signal fires to light the way home for a great one; fires were lit in 23 countries after Wilma’s death. The millions she touched will continue her work, but I will miss her every day of my life.” President Barack Obama spoke to her life, “As the Cherokee Nation’s first female chief, she transformed the nation-to-nation relationship between the Cherokee Nation and the federal government, and served as an inspiration to women in Indian Country and across America.”
THE PROPHECY
The Condor and
the Eagle
Two great birds from two ways of life.