NOVEMBER IS NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH
By Valerie Chandler
Note: All photos, with the exception of the image of Margaret Chandler and her husband, are in the public domain, Creative Commons or Fair Use.
At Thanksgiving time, people tend to think of Native Americans peacefully sharing a meal with the pilgrims, and that may be the extent of their “awareness” or knowledge of the Anishinaabek. I always grew up knowing I was Native American, but I admit that I didn’t learn a lot of our traditional teachings or ceremonies and language until I was a young adult.
My paternal great-grandparents were survivors of Indian Residential Boarding Schools. Due to the unspeakable atrocities they experienced, my great-grandmother vowed her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren would never experience the same. To ensure this, we were not taught our language, ceremonies and other traditions. It was a topic we didn’t speak of, but of course we were curious. Some crafts and survival skills were passed along; others were learned by silent observance. Once those generations grew, some became self-taught or, in my case, learned from Elders or teachers we sought out or already knew.
My late paternal grandmother, Margaret (nee Bailey) Chandler, was a well-respected and recognized Elder of the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians and amongst other Native Americans throughout Michigan. Prior to the Tribe’s reaffirmation, she held office with the Northern Michigan Ottawa Association, a group formed to politically address the needs of Native Americans in Michigan since the 1940s. Margaret fought for the Native Americans’ reaffirmation as Tribes, the return of lands that were negotiated in treaties, and the restoration of our treaty rights to hunt and gather. Her efforts were successful, and on Sept. 21, 1994, the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians was federally reaffirmed. Margaret continued serving our people as part of our Tribal Council until her death in 1997. In October 2009, she was inducted into the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame. (Read “Women’s History Month: The Enduring Legacy of Margaret Chandler,” Freshwater Reporter, March 2021.)
In 1990, by signed law, November was declared Native American Heritage Month by late President George H.W. Bush. The intent was to recognize Native Americans who have made notable achievements and contributions to the world. Having a special time of recognition and celebration of culture, traditions and history has enhanced pride, self-esteem and awareness among youth and younger Native Americans. The strength and acknowledgment also sparked crucial movements to create awareness and support, such as the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Children group. There are countless Native women, children, and even men who go missing each year, but their plight is not given the public acknowledgment needed to help find them, as are those of other races. To take part in this initiative, show your support or learn more, visit the National Institute for Law & Justice: www.nilj.org/missing-murdered-indigenous-women-children.
Native Americans have made significant contributions to all spectrums of life. In recognition of the month, some distinguished individuals who are lesser known or may have been forgotten in history are shared with you here.
Jim Thorpe was from the Sac and Fox nation, had a twin brother named Charlie and attended Carlisle Indian Industrial School. His greatest accomplishment was as an athlete, becoming the first Native American Olympic gold medalist in 1912 in the pentathlon and decathlon. He also played collegiate and professional football, baseball and basketball, and participated in high jump, hurdles, discus, javelin, shot put, pole vault, long jump, metered dashes, lacrosse and ballroom dancing. During Olympic competition, someone stole his shoes. He found a mismatched pair from the trash to replace his and won the gold medal. Sadly, Thorpe was stripped of his Olympic medals after it was found that he had been playing semi-professional baseball for two seasons prior to the Olympics, which violated their amateur rules.
Later in life, Thorpe starred in a few movies and became a U.S. Merchant Marine during WWII. He married three times and had eight children; he died in 1953. The Pro Football Hall of Fame inducted him into their inaugural class in 1963. In 1983, the International Olympic Committee restored his Olympic medals with replicas, presented to two of his children, after ruling that the decision to strip him of his medals fell outside their requirements. Thorpe’s original medals were placed in museums but later stolen and never recovered. In 2022, the IOC decided to fully restore Thorpe’s status as sole champion in both of his Olympic events.
Maria Tallchief from the Osage Nation is considered America’s first prima ballerina and the first Native American one. She moved to New York City at the age of 17 and met choreographer George Balanchine who co-founded the New York City Ballet. Tallchief became the company’s first star. Balanchine and Tallchief married in 1946 but had their marriage annulled in 1952. She was married to Elmourza Natirboff, a private airline pilot, for two years and in 1956 she married Henry Paschen Jr., a Chicago businessman. Tallchief’s only child was award-winning poet Elise Paschen. Tallchief was the first American to perform in Moscow’s Bolshoi Theater and with the Paris Opera Ballet. She was recognized for her achievements with a Kennedy Center Honor and is in the National Women’s Hall of Fame. Tallchief stayed close to her Osage culture and spoke out about stereotypes and Native American misconceptions. She passed away in 2013.
Fred Begay was a nuclear physicist and instrumental in the alternative use of lasers, electron and ion beams to heat thermonuclear plasmas to use as alternative energy sources. He was Navajo and Ute and served in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War. Begay was also part of a NASA-funded space physics research team to conduct studies on the origin of high-energy gamma rays and solar neutrons.
An Ojibwe White Earth citizen, Winona LaDuke is an economist and activist for the environment as well as tribal land claims and preservation. She founded the Indigenous Women’s Network, Honor the Earth, and the White Earth Land Recovery Project. LaDuke has also worked with Women of All Red Nations to bring awareness of the forced sterilization of Native women. Her programs have been successful in buying land and creating businesses to provide work for Native Americans. Her programs also reforest lands and cultivate traditional foods. She founded projects for wind energy and to teach the Ojibwe language. An activist, she remains an integral part of oil pipeline protests. In 1996 and 2000, she ran as a vice-presidential candidate with Ralph Nader on the Green Party ticket. In 2016, she became the first Native American woman and Green Party member to receive an Electoral College vote for vice-president. This year, she received the “Mother Earth (Lady of Agriculture) Award” for her hemp farm operations. LaDuke has authored and co-authored many books and appeared in several documentaries.
A Standing Rock Sioux citizen, Vine Deloria Jr., was a noted author, activist of Native American rights, historian and theologian. He served as executive director of the National Congress of the American Indians, board member of the National Museum of the American Indian and was a founder of the Institute of American Indian Law and the Institute for the Development of Indian Law. While a professor at the University of Arizona, he established the first master’s degree program in American Indian Studies in the U.S. Deloria was an expert witness for the defense in the Wounded Knee trials and advocated for treaty rights of Native tribes. He published more than 20 books addressing stereotypes, assimilation, justice for Indian issues, recognition of tribal sovereignty, education, religion and history. Deloria died in 2005.
Deb Haaland is currently the 54th U.S. Secretary of the Interior and is a member of the Laguna Pueblo Tribe. She served as chair of the New Mexico Democratic Party and as New Mexico’s 1st congressional district U.S. representative. Haaland is one of two Native American women elected to the U.S. Congress. She was nominated to her current position by President Joe Biden and was sworn-in on March 16, 2021. During her tenure, Haaland has announced a new unit within the Bureau of Indian Affairs to address the crisis of missing and murdered Native Americans as well as the creation of the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative to investigate long-time claims of abuse.
Floyd “Red Crow” Westerman enjoyed a career in country music but was also an actor and activist. He served two years in the U.S. Marines before his career in and advocacy for cultural preservation and Native American causes. Westerman had several solo recordings in addition to collaborations with Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Harry Belafonte, Bonnie Raitt and more. He later became interested in acting and starred in many films, such as “Dances With Wolves”. Westerman made appearances on television series such as “Walker, Texas Ranger”, “Dharma & Greg” and “The X-Files”. He died in 2007.
I encourage everyone to take part in the abundant Native American heritage by reading a book, visiting a museum, attending a pow wow, taking an Indigenous history class or seminar, partake in language classes or conversing with Native Americans you may already know. The Little River Band of Ottawa Indians has a language website that allows you to hear the word pronunciations and provides interactive games, stories, videos and more at: www.anishinaabemdaa.com .
Valerie Chandler lives in Wellston. She is a citizen and employee of the Little River Band of Ottawa Indian and loves to spend time with her family, including husband Matthew and their mixed border collie/Australian shepherd.
FOR MORE ABOUT NATIVE AMERICAN CULTURE IN MICHIGAN AND/OR NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH, READ:
She has Words Like Thunder
Positively Supaman
The Pen that Built Bridges and Helped Preserve a Culture
The Art of Flintknapping
‘First Americans’ art show is first for Ramsdell
‘First Americans’ exhibition seeks artists
Meet the sturgeon: There are big fish and then there are Big Fish
‘Good berries’ grow wild in Hamlin Lake
The Enduring Legacy of Margaret Chandler
