The Circle

Tonight, Will Peters came to speak with us at the Center. He is a renowned Native American activist, has served on Tribal council, teaches Lakota Studies, and has won a NAMMY (Native American equivalent of a Grammy). He actually came and spoke at Belmont last year. His main focus was explaining the structure of Lakota family. He explained that women are considered the backbone of the Lakota. In his culture, women are "stronger" than men. They are fierce lovers, nurturers and protectors. He then used the back of a traditional drum, a series of layered circles made from buffalo hide, to help us visualize the structure of Lakota society. In the very center is the "wakanheja," meaning the "sacred ones" (there is no word for child), surrounding them are the elders, next are the women, followed by the men. Their sacred animal, the buffalo, carries many important characteristics of Lakota culture. When a buffalo is born, it knows it's family unit. The man's purpose in Lakota culture is to give his entire life to protecting the inner circles. Thus, the"wakanheja" are the most protected, so to speak. In order to access them, one must first get through the men, then women, and elders. He then explained that the women are considered stronger because not enough men learn how to cry. To be an agent of change and to be a true protector, one must be able to empathize. "If a man doesn't know how to cry, he is not to be trusted. He cannot know Tunkasila (God), because he thinks he already knows everything. Those men...those people...have no place of honor." Crazy Horse was a leader selected by his people, he did not choose himself or ask to become a leader. People chose him not only because he was a brave warrior, but he had a humble way of showing respect. When he hunted, he would bring meat to the elders, women, and children first. He then explained how heartbroken he was to see that in many ways, "darkness" (thats the term he used) has penetrated the circle and harmed the "wakanheja," the sacred ones, the children. As a teacher, he has seen children lost to substance abuse, rape, and suicide, among many other things. Even on a day to day level, the way the children speak to, and refer to, one another is like they have lost their identities; they don't know who they are, what they stand for, or where they come from. There is no pride among most of them. He continued to convey how disgusted he was that the rest of Turtle Island (the original title that Natives gave to America) treated their war veterans like dirt when they should be welcomed like warriors, with honor and dignity. He carries a lot of resentment for being stuck on a  reservation, and explained that it often feels more like a concentration camp. It is so sad to see a strong people fighting one another for limited resources.

Crazy Horse.