

Boujou! Today's edition is going to be a bit different. If you've been reading New Day over the last couple of days, you know that on Saturday, navajo attended a gathering in White Eagle, Oklahoma, in honor of Carter Camp (Ponca), also known here as Kossack cacamp. On Saturday, she posted a preview here of her plans for the day; yesterday, she gave us a few photos from her visit; and tomorrow, she'll be posting photos, footage, and an in-depth look at the gathering itself. So for today, I thought it might be useful to take a look at Carter's people, the Ponca, a small tribal nation that has survived in the face of great odds, but about which much of the rest of the country knows virtually nothing. The Ponca Nation's recent history (i.e., beginning before European contact) centered around the area of the Niobrara River in what is now Nebraska. Like many nations, the Ponca have a migration story, which suggests that at one time, they may have lived further east. But for generations of Ponca during more recent centuries, their traditional home has been the fertile lands of the Niobrara. Four existing tribal nations claim contemporary Nebraska as their indigenous homeland: In addition to the Ponca, the remaining three are the Omaha (for whom the city is named), the Santee (Sioux), and the Winnebago. Today, some scholars believe that the Omaha and the Ponca were once a part of the same tribal nation, although I suspect that today, both nations also point to discrete origin stories. The original Ponca Nation was not large - according to some estimates, in 1780, it numbered only some 800 people. This was not necessarily unusual for the time, nor was it an indication of cultural instability or weakness. However, with European contact came disease and destruction, to the extent that census records 24 short years later recorded a population of some 200. That's a 75% reduction in total population in less than a quarter of a century. The culprit? Smallpox. Fortunately, the population restabilized, and over the next quarter-century, trebled their numbers once again. And despite the best genocidal efforts of the U.S. government, the Ponca's numbers have risen steadily since that time. With contact eventually came the curse inflicted upon all of our peoples in one way or another: Removal. The Ponca were not exempt. And in their case, removal was not that long ago; Carter has written at some length about the pain of his parents and grandparents, forced from their traditional lands over the border into what was then the "Indian Territory" of Oklahoma. One brief excerpt: [S]o many Americans think it's ancient history[. I]t isn't. My Grandpa and Grandma were rounded up by troops and marched to a reservation in Oklahoma. Not ancient historical figures... my GRANDPARENTS. One third of my Ponca Nation died then. Both my grandparents lived to see a modern America but they always mourned for their homelands on the Niobara River in Nebraska. I still do too. At first glance, there appear to be two dominant-culture narratives regarding the history of the Ponca. On closer inspection, however, what exists is really one narrative, composed of two apparently divergent but actually intertwined strands. Had I not read Carter's own words recounting the actual history of his people, I would not have known differently. The main narrative, of course, reflects the one we all have been taught in American schools, regardless of tribal affiliation: one that whitewashes the actual practices of removal, sanitizing genocide beyond all recognition. It's a narrative that replicates itself all over the country; change the tribal names, perhaps the names of a few Indians and a few places, and you'll see the exact same words over and over again. But with the Ponca, there's a secondary narrative: one that privileges the story of particular Ponca historical figures . . . without noting that the Ponca themselves see both those figures and the overarching story in a very different way. [And this is one reason why I consistently caution non-Indians about the dangers of citing Wikipedia for anything related to our peoples. Too often, it's written by non-Indians, and too often, with other agendas. Its pages on the Ponca are a case in point.] As noted above, the Ponca eventually recovered from the European-introduced epidemic of smallpox, but the dangers to their survival were far from over. In the ensuing decades, Sioux incursions into their territory pushed them into ever-smaller land areas, while drought and the destruction of the buffalo brought starvation. And while the Ponca had long since entered into treaties with the federal government, the U.S. predictably betrayed them, refusing to uphold the treaties and instead handing even more Ponca lands over to the Sioux. Finally, in 1877, the federal government "'removed" the Ponca from their own lands, forcibly marching them to so-called "Indian Territory" (now Oklahoma). Equally predictably, the removal was a disaster - an act that, probably through equal parts malice and negligence, would result in the deaths of one-third of the tribal nation's members during the very first year of relocation. At this point in the narrative, most accounts cite Standing Bear approvingly, Wikipedia included: Among them was the oldest son of Standing Bear, a Ponca chief, whose body he returned to Nebraska for burial in traditional lands. There he was arrested by the Army for having left the reservation, but he gained the sympathy of Brigadier General Crook. With help from prominent attorneys working pro bono, Standing Bear filed a habeas corpus suit challenging his arrest. The US District Court judge's decision in Standing Bear v. Crook (1879) established the right of habeas corpus and the legal status as citizens under US law for Indian people. Standing Bear is regularly hailed as a "warrior," a "hero," a "leader of his people," a "great chief." And then there's the Ponca version as recounted by Carter, who is thoroughly versed in his people's history: [T]he story of Standing [B]ear as told by history books seems one of victory and success by he and his small band from my tribe. How ever the truth is much more involved. Those Ponca who went back north with Standing Bear were only his extended family and not the majority of our tribe. Standing Bear wasn't too esteemed by the Ponca because he had adopted white mans ways and religion. He had also sold some of our land to white ranchers which was forbidden by the Chiefs and people. If you read his statements you'll see he says he no longer wants to follow the old ways of his people and intends to become a christian farmer just like his conquerors. In the eyes of the Ponca he was a sellout. But that's a different and long untold story in itself. The other tragedy of his victory in court is that his brother who had remained with our tribe in Oklahoma decided to test the courts decision. (Remember all of us wanted to go back to our ancient homelands. My grandparents had also been forced on the long walk down to Oklahoma and they never quit mourning for their homes on the Niobara river. One third of my people died before they bought our Oklahoma rez from the Cherokee Nation) Standing Bears brother was named Big Snake and shortly after the courts decision he also left the reservation to go home. The Indian agent, fearing all of us might leave the rez and try to return home, had Big Snake arrested on the Cheyenne reservation and brought back to the agency. Once there the soldiers beat him to death as a lesson to the rest of my relatives not to try to leave the reservation legalities be damned. Since that time we have never had the right of return and we still suffer the effects of that genocidal removal. Today - at least, according to the U.S. government - there are two Ponca nations: the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska, and the Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma. But rather than thinking of the Ponca as split in two, with the sense of dilution that that implies, I think it's useful to think of them as the Ponca squared - a whole that is stronger and greater than the sum of its parts. The Ponca Tribe of Nebraska [note: link includes autoplay music] were once known as the Northern Ponca. In 1962, they became a victim of the federal government's ruinous post-war termination policy, which destroyed more than 100 tribal nations and bands (to say nothing of their lands and other resources). Within four years, the termination of the Northern Ponca was complete; nearly 450 tribal members had been disenrolled, not by the Ponca themselves, but by the federal government, and their entire land base was dissolved and given over to outside ownership. They did not regain federal recognition until 1990 - they were one of the last "restored" tribes - and though they are now federally recognized, their lands were not returned to them. From the account of the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska itself: By 1989, the Northern Ponca Restoration Committee drafted language for Federal Restoration of the Northern Ponca Tribe. The first challenge was to secure a member of the Nebraska Congression to sponsor the legislation. In 1989, Senator J. James Exon and Senator Bob Kerry agreed to introduce and sponsor the "'Ponca Restoration Act" in the United States Senate. Achieving this same support in the House of Representatives proved to be much more difficult. In fact, the original Ponca Restoration Act was opposed by the Tribe's "home" district representative. There was a concern that the Poncas would one day choose to re-establish a reservation in northeastern Nebraska. Once language was added to the bill to specifically deny the Ponca Tribe the ability to establish a reservation the bill passed unanimously. The process was completed on October 31, 1990, when then President George Herbert Walker Bush signed the Ponca Restoration Act into law. There are, however, fifteen "Service Delivery Areas" (twelve in Nebraska; two in Iowa; and one in South Dakota) where tribal offices and other resources are now located. These include everything from tribal headquarters and cultural departments to a health clinic and a tribal cemetery to a community center and powwow grounds. Today, the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska counts more than 2,800 members. A member of the Inter-Tribal Bison Cooperative, it maintains an Adopt-A-Buffalo program. It maintains a local museum, archives, library, and learning center. The tribe has developed efforts to encourage education at all levels. It has established its own Environmental Protection Department. A new health clinic opens a week from today. And it maintains a variety of youth programs and social services. The Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma, on the other hand, has retained its land base. Not its people's original lands, it's true - those, of course, are in Nebraska, and are now in other hands. But for those forcibly removed to a reservation in Indian Territory (now Oklahoma), their "Long Walk" ended at a 101,000-square-acre parcel of land that would become their new home. Since that time, the tribe has in many ways become an Indian Country success story. The Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma now counts nearly 3,600 enrolled members, most of whom live on local reservation lands. It operates a lengthy list of tribal projects, programs, and services, including health programs, childhood development services, a food distribution program, a tribal housing authority, education and youth programs, a language preservation program, domestic violence prevention services, utilities and public works, and a transit program, among others. The tribe also operates the White Eagle Health Center and the Two Rivers Casino. Each August, it hosts a powwow in Ponca City. Interestingly, the Wikipedia page for the Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma mentions a few historical figures, including Standing Bear; the two Ponca founders of the Native American Church; the founder of the National Indian Youth Council; and one contemporary Ponca artist. Yet it utterly fails to mention the man who is probably the Ponca Tribe's most well-known living member: Carter Camp, co-founder of the American Indian Movement [AIM] and one of the organizers of the occupation at Wounded Knee '73. Searching for "Carter Camp" redirects to a page entitled "Wounded Knee incident." The sources cited on that page do not universally inspire confidence in its accuracy. That glaring omission strikes me as yet another attempt to rewrite history. So I'm going to end today's edition with a passage written as a comment in opposition to the war in Iraq - Carter's own story, in his own words: Why I oppose the war on Iraq Recently I was asked why I fight against America's foreign wars and speak against them so often. The reason lies in the recent history of my people, I'm a Ponca. My history, like many Indians, is so much different than other Americans that they can not understand where I'm coming from... so, here's where I'm coming from; I oppose the war on Iraq and I am proof that the American excuse of benevolence is condemned by the life of my own small Nation. We too became the target of American "benevolence". It has lasted three generations with no end in sight and like most acts of genocidal magnitude it was/is and always will be, based in greed. In the late 1870's the Americans decided their treaties with our Nation were mere paper so they sent their army to round up my Grandfather, my Grandmother and all the rest of my relations from the land guaranteed to them forever and made them walk to a concentration camp on the Quapaw rez, close to Baxter Springs, Kansas. Nine died on the walk, all were sickened heart and soul. We stayed there for three years and one third of my family, my clan and my Tribe died before they made us buy another reservation and told us it was ours to live on forever. My Great Grandfather led his family in a great struggle for survival, holding them together as those we had long befriended turned viciously upon us and drove us from our homelands. My Great Grandmother carried four rocks from our homeland on the Niobara River all the way to where I stand today, it was all she could save of the circle of life they were leaving. Luckily for me my grandparents survived the death march, my Mother was born on the new rez in Oklahoma. She was the child of genocide and I am the grandchild. Soon after we arrived on our new hot land, the Americans decided we had too much and forced our leaders to accept individual allotment of the land we had purchased in common from the Cherokee Nation (some people think we were given our reservation lands but we bought ours as a Tribe). By holding the land in common, land thieves were held at bay and the Ponca could stave off starvation. Allotment meant individuals could be pinned down by greedy white people and robbed. All across "Indian Territory" our leaders fought allotment and my Grandfather resisted also, they were jailed, abused and finally defeated again, this time by the courts. Allotment and the white "land runs" happened, suddenly the Ponca were surrounded by jackals in all their hues, just like the ones who had driven them from our ancestral homelands. The land runs created a white majority, this allowed the creation of the State of Oklahoma in 1906 and all powers of self-government were stripped from my people. The Ponca had been reduced from a few thousand relatives to about five hundred or less, and my Grandpa had changed from being a buffalo hunter to a farmer on the poorest dirt America could find. Our family and my people were thrown into the very bottom of the okie melting pot and then the great depression hit what economics we had left and forced even more of our people to sell their allotments, ending even farming. Need I mention the BIA was busily trading on Ponca misery by stealing the land in collusion with the new, white, Oklahoma powerstructure. My Grandpa still lived then and would not sell our land as long as he was alive but finally he died and most of the land quickly went to whites. It was called "dead Indian land" which meant the BIA would let them buy it from the heirs. My whole Ponca Tribe still lives on the remnants of the original twelve square miles, not much is left. Ask yourself, what was your Grandfather doing when he was a young man and what did America do to (or for?) him. You now know what they were doing to mine and to every other Ponca family. While America concerned itself with the world series, world wars and the stockmarket, a small nation of onetime allies was told a superior people had decided to remake them in their image. But first the scourge, before Standing Bear can become a man, god's work must be done. The first whiteman came among the Ponca around 1800, by 1880 we were one half dead from his disease, then by 1930 a third more had perished, and along with them our land was taken from under us twice by the American government. He stole our children and outlawed our religions, he banned our language, denigrated our history and enslaved our mentality. All this during the lifetime of my Grandfather and Grandmother. In 1908 the Ponca Chiefs were forced to put away the sacred Pipe, Sundance and our Clan system. Ten thousand years of Ponca, erased by an "agent". In 1917 one hundred percent of eligible Ponca men volunteered to enlist for WW1. In return, in 1924 he gave us the right to vote, called us the "first americans" and told us to forget our past. This is what my immediate family has lived through in America, each Tribe goes through their "time of horror" when he comes, the Ponca horror was not that long ago and we are not yet whole nor healed, nor assured of a future. Some Tribes are going through it today and I hear their cries every bit as loud as I do 9-11. A hundred thousand Maya, whole villages, follow the Ponca path. My life has intermingled me with their Tribal elders who remind me of my Grandparents, in their gentle ways and in their loss. I think maybe only Jewish Americans, (whose parents and grandparents went through their own holocaust of death-by-government) can understand why it's too soon to ask us to trust the people who did this to us, just because they've moved on to loot other tribes. History has a way of coloring ones view of America, my history sees that what he has given to his chosen few in rich, white, America, was taken in Red blood and my Grandfather and Grandmother witnessed it, lived it, suffered it, survived it. My history has rendered me unsusceptible to the patriotic brainwashing needed to excuse the killing in Iraq. I am Carter Camp...Ponca.