Historical reading...

"On our coming near the house, two mats were spread to sit upon and immediately some food was served in well-made bowls;

two men were also dispatched at once with bows and arrows in quest of game, who soon after brought a pair of pigeons which they had shot….

The natives were good people, for when they saw I would not remain, they supposed I was afraid of their bows and arrows, and taking the arrows they broke them into pieces and threw them into the fire."

Henry Hudson in 1609 sailed up the river that later would bear his name. The Indians he found living in circular bark lodges were friendly and hospitable.

From the novel "I have Spoken" (American History Through the Voices of the Indian),compiled by Virginia Irving Armstrong. Published by The Swallow Press

Featured Tribe - Cahuillas - California

The Cahuillas are Takic-speaking peoples who reside in Southern California in what are now Riverside and San Diego counties. Many, but not all, of the Cahuilla peoples live on reservations-Cahuilla, Agua Caliente, Santa Rosa, Torres-Martinez, Cabeson, Morongo, Los Coyotes, Ramona, and Saboba. These reservations were established after many years of conflict with local and federal authorities in the 1870s. Today the Cahuillas number about twenty-four hundred people. Prior to European intrusion, however, when they occupied the better part of Riverside County and the northern portion of San Diego County, they numbered from six thousand to ten thousand people.

Within their language-speaking group, the Cahuillas were divided into about a dozen independent clans containing five hundred to twelve hundred people each. These clans controlled separate territories of several hundred square miles each and maintained their own political authority. Each clan was allied through ritual systems that provided political stability and networks for economic exchange. Each clan was dialectically different from the others.

Community beliefs were clearly stated in various song cycles (epic poems) and historical accounts that described a clan's sacred and secular history and provided guidelines for behavior. These beliefs were reinforced on a regular basis, usually annually, in clan ritual centers where the texts of the song cycles were presented in their entirety-a process requiring several days to complete. The most important parts of these gatherings were the nukil ceremonies, which honored those members of a clan who had died since the last nukil ritual had been performed.

For the Cahuillas, cosmological values and concepts were established when the world was created by Mukat. The Cahuilla creation story tells of the origin of the world, the death of god (Mukat), and the consequences of that death for humans (e.g., the need for death, social roles, and so forth). It also describes the basic concepts of supernatural power and its proper use in the contemporary world.

Want to know more? Click here: http://www.manataka.org/page550.html

Native American Week Kicks Off in Palm Springs

Monday, September 24th marked the beginning of Native American Week in Palm Springs. The city made a proclamation in support of the week and the Agua Caliente band of Cahuilla Indians.

Statewide, Friday is Native American Day but the Agua Calientes say they're celebrating their heritage for an entire week to promote and honor their past.

"What we're trying to do is make people in the Coachella Valley aware of the contributions that native populations have made to our way of life," Michael Hammond of the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum said.

The first event of the week was at Palm Springs High School where Olympic athlete Billy Mills, an Oglala Lakota Indian, spoke.

Also Thursday at Villagefest in Palm Springs, the tribe will have Native American dancers perform.

And Friday and Saturday, the public is welcome to the cultural museum for free.
For complete information on the Native American Week events, go to www.accmuseum.org.

Construction begins on Duwamish longhouse

By: Richard Walker

Recognition bill stalled in committee despite partnerships

SEATTLE - Construction was scheduled to begin the week of Sept. 17 on a Duwamish longhouse and cultural center, the first longhouse in the city since 1894.

''It's emotional for me,'' said Cecile Hansen, Duwamish chairman and great-great-grandniece of Si'ahl, the Duwamish/Suquamish leader for whom the city of Seattle is named.

''We've been working 30 years for [our] own place. In the last five years, people have gotten involved that said we need to have [our] own place, our people have suffered so much.''

Mary Lou Slaughter, a direct descendant of Si'ahl, added, ''I'm very excited. It will give a presence in the city which we haven't had, a place to show people what we do and teach our youngsters.''

The longhouse is being built on Duwamish-owned land along the Duwamish River. The site is just west of two ancestral village sites: Ha-ah'-poos, which means ''where there are horse clams,'' and Tohl-ahl-too, which means ''herring house.''

The two-story, carved cedar longhouse will consist of a greeting area featuring the names and representations of Duwamish leaders going back more than a century; a ceremonial space; a cultural resource center, where archaeological materials will be displayed; and a commercial kitchen specializing in preparing traditional Duwamish foods.

This article includes a piece regarding the struggles of the Duwamish for recognition. Click here: http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=1096415784