The Mendocino Environmental Center, Rural Institute, 7th Generation Fund and the Abelard/Common Counsel Foundation are sponsoring the first ever "Mendocino County Pow-Wow and Area Caucus" slated for June 12 - 14. The purpose of this three day event is to bridge the gap between the Native and non-native communities in our region. This year being the 500th anniversary of the so-called "Discovery of America," organizers of the event (who are Native people), feel it important to let the non-native communities see the rich and diverse culture that surrounds them. The event will feature singers and dancers from the different tribes in our region, i.e. Yuki, Pomo, Cahto, Wailaiki, Concow, etc. There will also be a Native artisan's crafts and food faire.
Our regional Native ancestors were a sophisticated society, contrary to historical recordings. They were and are master artisans, basketmakers, woodcarvers and canoe builders. They established complex religious and social structures that successfully and harmoniously governed their lives thousands of years before the so-called "discovery." Theirs is the culture of the Maru (Dreamers,) and the Earth Cult Lodge. Cora Du Bois, part of a team who recorded the ethnology of the region, chronicled the Ghost Dance Doctrine and its migration into the county back in the early 1900s and published her work in 1939 for the University of California at Berkeley. The Ghost Dance originated on the shores of Pyramid Lake, California which is the land of the Paiute/Shoshone. It was there that Wodziwob (Wovoka), the Paiute Messiah, received the Ghost Dance Doctrine from the Spirit. The Dance was performed to purge the poison from the Earth and return the people to their tribes and homes. The dance spread like wildfire. During the government's initial campaign against the Plains Indians, Sioux and Cheyenne runners were sent to California to learn the Ghost Dance. As people from the continental divide were sending their runners to learn the Dance, the Paiutes sent their messengers to Mendocino, Lake, Colusa and Sonoma counties to inform the people of the new ceremony. Not surprisingly, they found that the Maru and Earth Cult Lodges were already on it. They told the Paiute Runners that the Maru, (Dreamers) had already received a similar doctrine through their lodges. The only difference between the doctrines was the timing. The Ghost Dance stated the change would come immediately, while the Earth Cult Lodge said it would take generations. I speak for myself when I say this; this seems to be the time of the Earth Cult Lodge! A phenomena is happening in the lives of our Indigenous People. Talk of the Maru and their return is evident in the Round Houses. The push for cultural restoration and returning to traditional values are high priorities in the lives of the original people, and the phenomena is strong in the youth. It is they themselves that are saying these things. It is a critical time for the Indigenous People. The Elders living are the last remaining link to the older ways, and people are scrambling to learn what they can.
That is the purpose of the Regional Pow-Wow and the Area Caucus. To provide a neutral learning and meeting ground for the Native and non-native communities. A meeting ground of understanding and sharing. A HEALING GROUND.
The Area Caucus is an event all in its self. Organizers have provided a caucus area outside the Pow-Wow Circle for the different tribal leaders to meet amongst themselves. They will be working to draft a unified list of resolutions of their immediate needs which they will present to members of the County Supervisor's on the last day of the event. It will be an opportunity for them to formally address local government officials and ask of them their plans for dealing with Native American issues for 1992 and beyond. The moment will be simulcast on KZYX 90.7 FM to insure the intentions and or promises made to the Native people are heard by all. In addition to a list of resolves produced in the caucus, the organizers hope that a unified tribal movement will continue to strive for a political space within our local government. Up to now the presence of Native people in the government decision-making circles is non-existent.
We've also provided youth workshops focusing on Tribal Sovereignty, Media Opportunities and Outreach, organization, economic development and career opportunities.
So join us June 14th at the Wellspring Renewal Center in the Anderson Valley for a day of cultural events and the history to follow. For info you can contact the MEC (468-1660) or Joseph Leon at KZYX radio (895-2324).
Copyright Mendocino Environmental Center 2004
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