An Open Letter And Invitation To Brooke Medicine Eagle

We, the people of the American Indian Movement in Asheville (AIMAsheville), invite you to our benefit for Leonard Peltier and First Nations People – this Sunday – 3pm til ? – at Spirits on the River.

We want you to come and join with American Indians and other people of good hearts who are coming together for the betterment of our People. People you claim to be one of.

We have questions for you regarding your actions. We have questions regarding your claims of heritage – not your blood quantum – your commitment to the people you claim to be a part. We don’t see that in your actions – we don’t see that on your websites – and we don’t see that in the lies and garbled nonsense in your books.

In your book you say that the Sun Dance and the Ghost Dance must become one. How dare you assume that you have the authority or power to influence people of non-native blood to affect this kind of change? How dare you be so arrogant to assume that you, one who cheats people of all races, has any kind of authority to change what these – people, these nations were given, protected, and then died for? How dare you trivialize White Buffalo Calf Woman by repeating an ego filled account of how Mother and her Children were or will be? Are you authorized or supported by the Lakota/Nakota/Dakota people? Is that your blood?

You say all “primary cultures” do this – how are you defining “primary”?

So there is no question regarding the above, here is the quote from your website and your book:

The Rainbow Sundancer painting reminds us that the Sun Dance is a dance done by men and women honoring the Light of Father Spirit, which gives us and our world the flowering of life from year to year; all primary cultures have such a dance that invites our ancestors' help in the new century's awakening of a renewed Earth, with the full flowering of Spirit in each individual. Here we see that to form the Rainbow Bridge, the Sun Dance must be blended with the Ghost Dance. These powerful rituals must now come together in one great ceremony, one eternal dance of renewal for Mother Earth and all her children.

Our time of awakening has come. It is the time for the new Ghost Dance, which in fact becomes the last Ghost Dance. This time we will be able to dance the vision fully into the ground of Earth and make it real. This book takes you with me on a journey toward that renewing dance of life, toward the bright new world that awaits us and All Our Relations.

You say you are Indian – you say you honor the ancestors – you do not.

Through the blood of the First Nations People you make your living. You collect money so that you can build your buffalo ranch – a nice cushy retirement home for you I believe. You ask for donations so you can put up your 150 thousand dollar prefab home on foundation with sewer and running water – Do you have any idea how many people don’t even have solid walls in their homes or enough firewood to keep them warm in the winter? And you ask for outrageous sums of money for YOUR home – when we have trouble raising enough money to send winter clothes and supplies to schools and elders.

You say on your website that you are going to have a sustainable community – with everything from organic gardening to raising buffalo and spiritual retreats – all at a price and all with the help of a chosen few. There are Indian communities all over Turtle Island that could use help starting programs to bring true Indians out of their despair and poverty. Not from your so-called healing center. Real earth people know that each region is unique in its resources, climate, and needs. So don’t tell us you are doing this as an example for Indian people to live by. Indian people know how to live – but our resources have been taken by the Euro man – big money corporations. We need to rebuild – and flowery nonsense words spoken to people who have a new calling every week are not the answer – for any of the many Nations of Indian People. Remember? Your people?

You say you are Indian – yet you take the money you get from people seeking answers – the rich ones – and you spend it on yourself – for your ego and your bank account.

You portray yourself as a leader – a “leader” in Indian way was described in many cultures as the First Servant of the people. You serve only yourself.

There are real people – with real needs – people whom you profess to be one – yet you have your talks and your seminars and you sell ceremony at high priced white-run resorts. You profess to have answers for the people who own gas guzzling urban assault vehicles and wear designer shoes assembled most likely by young children making less than a dollar a day. You hang out with these people because they will buy your bullshit – they believe your nonsense because they don’t know any better. Why would it be wrong to make money selling books and pretending you are something you are not? It is done all the time in the dominant culture – created and fueled by those that are raping Mother. Taking her lifeblood – killing the elements – destroying homes and lives – all in the name of PROGRESS! Whose progress – who is profiting from all of this wanton consumption? You for one – as you collect money for yourself disguised as some kind of service to our people.

I am not the only one that sees you as a fake and a liar. Your name has become synonymous for wanna-be, shame-on, and apple. Your books are used as an example of what to avoid when choosing written material to gain knowledge.

You say you are for the Earth and all her children – yet you waste resources by jetting across the country in order to sell your trash. You kill more trees and dump more chemicals into the bosom of mother with the printing of these false words – these lying leaves – not talking leaves as some of our ancestors called the books when they encountered them. Is your book printed on recycled or hemp paper? Do you walk to the places where you mislead the people?

How much money have you donated to the defense fund for Leonard? Where were you when they marched for Leonard?

How many times have you fought for our collective dignity by speaking out against the wrongful use of Indian mascots?

Where are you when the children cry because their daddy or mommy just came home drunk again – with no money – with no food? Where do you spend your money? On your ego and your select few followers?

Can you look our Indian Grandmothers in the eye and say you are part of our hoop? Can you tell them what you have been doing for the health and well being of the next seven generations?

Your answers are most likely flowered with half-truths and double speak and you would not be welcome with traditional Indian people – they see you for who you are and you know it. It is painfully clear to us that you don’t do any of the things you are bound to do as an Indian woman and you avoid any contact with those that would appose the harm you do.

Yes – we want answers. We know we won’t get them. We know we will either get ignored or you will issue some kind of statement saying we are racist against non-Indians.

For those that know us – they will laugh and you will loose more credibility – and more people will know you for your actions and not those empty words you sell to make yourself prosperous. Our group is mixed with people who are committed to and have spent most of their lives as activists of one kind or another. We have AIM, LPSG, Earth First, Direct Action Network – and more. Our associations are many and we are respected because we all try to walk our talk everyday. We try to tread lightly on Mother – educating, sharing all that we have, caring for our elders, and trying to break the cycles of abuse and neglect.

We do require from the people we work with and associate with a certain amount of respect, sense of responsibility, and knowledge of Indian ways. There are many of all races that share common ground and they ask you now to answer for your lies and deceit. It is beyond most of us how you sleep at night – what kind of peace do you get from knowing you are cheating people.

We struggle each day to try to come up with the resources we need to protect our families – our environment – our dignity. You fight against us – you take away from the resources that could be used to truly heal the people you say you are related to.

You cloud the issues and make it even more difficult for us to find the support our people so desperately need. How about sending some of that money up to Tom Porter and his total emersion school? How about sending art supplies and books for libraries to the children at the Cheyenne River Tribal School and for tribal schools across our lands?

Don’t tell us you have costs – don’t tell us you aren’t making money. We’ve heard all of this song and dance before. Your associates like Sun Bear and Wind Daughter (oh yeah we ran the Bear Tribe Medicine Society out of town) And in the course of confronting them we were able to educate the Christian community here in this area – those shame-ons are no longer welcome in WNC at any of the camps or retreats. The wannabes showed their true selves to the pastor that day – he heard their words but their actions didn’t match! Liars and cheats of any race or creed are not welcome when people see them for who they really are.

Just so there is no confusion where we got the idea that you were all about yourself - this is an excerpt from your website:

Help Needed

Dear Friends,

We are in great need of help at the home ranch which is held by Sacred Ground Int'l non-profit. Because we have not received a grant that was faithfully promised by November, we are now in need of money to simply get through the winter.

As many of you know who have been following the story, some of our family there are still living in tents in the freezing cold of Montana winter. Our first priority was to get housing up for them. In October we were promised a sizable grant to put up a lodge and handle operating expenses for the winter. Based on this and the grantors encouragement, we went ahead and put our resources into preparing water, sewer, power and basement for the pre-fab home. Due to an illegal transaction by a partner in his investment operation, this grantor cannot now come through with the assistance. This leaves us having spent our limited resources very differently than we would have if this had not occurred. Now we are in dire need of help to simply feed family, buffalo, and horses, and to operate for the winter. In the end the grant may come through, yet right now we are in immediate need of:

· $15,000 to sort, feed and care for our buffalo and horses.

· $25,000 for ranch wages and general operating expenses (food, heat, taxes, phone, etc.)

· We also need a miracle of $150,000 to pay for the pre-fab home that is waiting on trucks to be delivered.

It would also help us very much to have:

· $1000 to sponsor the donation of a buffalo robe we have had prepared for, and given to, a Crow Indian elder. He was surprised and thrilled!

I have been shown an image of 144 Rainbow Warriors each giving $1000 in support. Yet any small or large amount will help as many of you respond. Putting our energy together, we can make it happily through a long, cold winter, and get on with the beauty of our intentions there.

Send your contributions to Sacred Ground International, POB 78, Pryor, MT 59066. Be sure to include the foundation's non-profit federal ID# 81-052-1256 when you make a tax-deductible gift, and please also note BME on the memo line.

Thank you for your love, prayers and monetary support.
For the Sacred Ground family,