mdunham@adn.comMay 13, 2014 Anchorage Dimond High School graduate Michelle Brown has become a finalist in a national search for stylin’ footwear with a design that makes ingenious use of salmon skin.
Brown, who will graduate from Parsons The New School for Design in New York City this month with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in women’s ready-to-wear, has one of four designs competing in an online contest sponsored by the upscale Allen Edmonds company.
Brown said she was drawn to use remnants to create a striking design by how the company found ways to make shoes during World War II, when leather was rationed. In that history she found parallels with how Alaska Natives made efficient use of materials.
“Being Native American myself, and from Alaska, I was attracted to the Natives of the Northwest and their own unique approaches to solving design problems,” she wrote in her contestant statement. “I was inspired by their conservative use of materials and wanted to emulate the idea of using resources in a meaningful way. I thought that their use of strips of material and other remnants was a great way to make use of every piece.”
In an email, she describes her “Frontier Boot” as “a classic men’s boot with a twist on the fabrication because of the use of salmon leather. Function was also important, so I finished with the metal lace hooks mounted on cognac-tinged Dublin horween cowhide.”
That sounds fancy, but Brown has also factored in practical features. “The boots are recraftable,” she said, “meaning that the soles can be replaced at least three times through the boot’s life span.”
People can vote on the finalists at allenedmonds.com through May 16. A link to the voting page appears every few seconds in rotation with other links at the top of the home page.
The winning design will be produced and sold as a special edition later this year.
Samuel Johns likes to refer to himself as an artist, a storyteller. He raps, plays traditional Athabascan drums, and gives motivational talks to inspire youth. Johns grew up in Copper Center, a depressed Alaska village on the road system. He cites the availability of liquor in the village as one of the downfalls of the community.
“Growing up in the village, it’s good for some people. Some people find their peace in the wilderness and (aren’t) affected by addiction. But then when they are caught in that life, it could kill them.” It’s a story Johns knows well; many of his friends and family in the village have died after getting stuck in addictions.
“Growing up in the village is hard,” Johns said. “That’s why I have the ability to share my story, because I know where some of those kids are at.” With few opportunities and an epidemic of alcoholism in rural villages, Johns became depressed and after an alcohol-related death in his family he fell into drinking. He finally gave into the depression and desperation he had been feeling and drank away five years of his life. Johns now sees clearly that there has been a lack of sober male role models in his community. He didn’t have a role model and acknowledges that even he wasn’t present for his first daughter during his years of drinking.
Johns now wants to help change that environment for the younger generation living in Alaska Native villages. Through his positive message raps, he’s trying to reach youth in a way that’s relevant to their lives.
“Everybody has heard everything on the radio and I’m the exactly opposite of that,” he said. “Rappers, they talk about cars, money, making it rain. People can fantasize about it, but they won’t have a real connection. But when it comes to lyrics about domestic abuse, they can picture that in their mind if they’ve been around that. They can picture it, they can feel it because it’s real. My target is the younger generation. So they can listen to it and say, ‘Man, I kind of want to make a difference in my community.’”
Johns, who has been sober for almost seven years now, feels that in the village he never found a healthy way to grieve for the deaths of loved ones. Since January, Johns has been bringing his traditional drum to Bean’s Cafe to play traditional music for the homeless community, many of whom are Alaska Native. He plays music for them to “reconnect them to their lost identity.” He says the drumming is healing and traditionally a way to unite people. It’s his way of helping people heal and connect to their Native history.
You can see Samuel Johns’ videos on his YouTube channel.
The University of North Dakota does not organize the Springfest bash for which the shirts were made, so it’s unclear whether the school will take disciplinary action against the students for the questionable apparel.
A group of college students made T-shirts showing a Native American head drinking from a beer bong that read “Siouxper drunk” for a huge party before finals week.
The University of North Dakota does not organize the Springfest bash, scheduled for Saturday, so it’s unclear whether the school will — or can — take disciplinary action against the students for the questionable apparel.
What is clear is that this is far from the first time people came to a head over the representation of Native Americans on the campus.
“There’s a really long history of fighting over the logo and nickname for the university. These T-shirts are just the latest event that connected to that,” Sebastian Braun, chair of the school’s American Indian Studies Department, told the Daily News.
Several years ago, the NCAA pressured the university to drop its “Fighting Sioux” logo and name, which were deemed offensive.
This T-shirt designed for a big, unsanctioned party near the University of North Dakota is being criticized for the use of an American Indian image. Photo: Twitter
University President Robert O. Kelley was appalled that people wore t-shirts that perpetuate derogatory and harmful stereotypes of American Indians.
“The message on the shirts demonstrated an unacceptable lack of sensitivity and a complete lack of respect for American Indians and all members of the community,” he said.
Just last week the Gamma Phi Beta sorority displayed a banner that read, “You can take away our mascot but you can’t take away our pride. Mens 2014 NCAA Frozen Four.” It was quickly removed, the president said in a statement.
Last month, students put up a poster on campus criticizing the old logo and presumably people who are nostalgic for it.
Racist or merely rowdy? ‘Siouxper Drunk’ T-shirts draw smiles, anger at University of North Dakota. Photo: Twitter
Braun said the upcoming party will be held off-campus but nearby.
“Part of it is in a city park and there’s a business in town with a liquor license. It’s a neighborhood with a lot of student residences,” he said.
Students who are upset about the T-shirts on Friday organized a walk from the American Indian Student Services building to the administrative building.
University spokesman Peter Johnson said the situation was under investigation.
The University of North Dakota Fighing Sioux logo has long been a source of controversy. Photo: University of North Dakota
The Tulalip Karen I. Fryberg Health Clinic held their quarterly Diabetes Day Tuesday, May 13. Diabetes Day is held once every three months, and for four hours the clinic makes all the services readily available to patients.
“With diabetes, it’s just convenient to have everybody right there and then to see me,” said Veronica Leahy, diabetes educator for the clinic. “People can come in and do their labs. Some people have had to fast, so we have healthy snacks available for afterwards.”
While Diabetes Day is intended to provide convenient all inclusive same-day service to patients, there is also an effort to bring awareness to people on how to prevent the disease. Clinic nurses used diagrams and models to show the effects of unhealthy lifestyles and how they can lead to or magnify diabetes.
Burleigh Snyder is a patient of the clinic and an advocate for diabetes awareness. He participates in most of the diabetes events, and contributes the gardens at the clinic and at the Hibulb Cultural Center.
He said, “I should be six feet under. My highest number (highest blood sugar level) was 1873. I was found in a coma, I died three times at the hospital. I advocate for diabetes awareness so that maybe what happened to me will help someone else prevent diabetes in their life.”
Rob Taylor, who volunteers at the clinic’s garden, said, “We are showing people how to eat better. Diet is so closely tied to diabetes and obesity. Healthy eating to reduce weight is very beneficial to diabetes. We would like to expand the garden, maybe include an orchard, but that’s a ways out.”
The next Diabetes Days are August 12 and November 18. Stop in at the Tulalip Health Clinic from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on those days to learn more.
Andrew Gobin is a reporter with the See-Yaht-Sub, a publication of the Tulalip Tribes Communications Department. Email: agobin@tulalipnews.com Phone: (360) 716.4188
The weather is heating up, the water is calming, and the canoes are back out on the water. On April 30 at the canoe shed near the Tulalip Veterans Office, families and friends from the Tulalip community gathered to wash the canoes, getting them ready for the year’s activities, including Salmon Ceremony and the annual Canoe Journey. On May 7, the first canoes hit the water, kicking off weekly canoe practice.
Every Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. one of the three Tulalip canoes will be at the marina, waiting to be paddled around the bay. Whether you are a returning, seasoned canoe puller or are just starting out, besure to get there and get on a crew.
As practices progress and pullers get stronger, the practice route will venture outside of the bay. Sometimes the canoes will make a spontaneous stop and have an afternoon at the beach, with hotdogs and marshmallows if you bring them. Even if you don’t plan on going on the canoe journey, it is a good chance to get on the water.
Andrew Gobin is a reporter with the See-Yaht-Sub, a publication of the Tulalip Tribes Communications Department. Email: agobin@tulaliptribes-nsn.gov Phone: (360) 716.4188
The Tulalip Bay Fire Department is updating emergency plans, which includes finding landing zones for patients needing helicopter transport. On Wednesday, May 7, TBFD coordinated an airlift drill with Airlift Northwest, a Med-Evac company that operates in Snohomish County. In addition to finding suitable landing zones accessible to various housing developments, TBFD firefighters reviewed airlift protocols and safety procedures.
At approximately 8:30 p.m. the Airlift Northwest Med-Evac helicopter landed in the field next to the Tulalip health clinic, the old Boom City site. Firefighters set up the landing zone prior to the arrival of the Med-Evac. When the helicopter had landed, the emergency response team from Airlift Northwest reviewed some landing procedures, highlighting what TBFD did well, and what to keep in mind for emergency situations. Airlift Northwest also discussed how landing procedures might vary depending on time of day, weather conditions, the patient condition, and status of a landing zone. They then demonstrated how to properly load a patient into the helicopter.
TBFD has selected and defined five landing zones around the reservation, near neighborhoods and areas with higher population densities. In addition to identifying landing zones, they have developed a protocol for contingent landing zones. For example, the baseball field at the tribal center is a landing zone, but it could be occupied for a game or other event at any time. Therefor the contingent landing zone is the old Boom City site, where the drill was executed. They have also developed a protocol for securing on-scene landing zones, where a Med-Evac chopper could land in a suitable location other than one of the designated landing zones.
The commotion inevitably drew some attention from vehicles passing by, with many stopping to observe what was going on.
Tulalip Firefighter Nikolay Litvinchuk being loaded into a Med-Evac chopper Photo: Andrew Gobin/Tulalip News
Andrew Gobin is a reporter with the See-Yaht-Sub, a publication of the Tulalip Tribes Communications Department. Email: agobin@tulaliptribes-nsn.gov Phone: (360) 716.4188
TULALIP – On May 3, Tulalip Tribes Board of Directors made a historical decision when they selected Tulalip tribal member, Carlos Echevarria, to be the new Chief of Police for the Tulalip Police Department.
The 44 year-old FBI National Academy and Northwest School of Police Staff and Command graduate, is the first Tulalip tribal citizen to hold the office of Police Chief post-retrocession, a process where the Tribe took back jurisdiction on tribal lands in 2001.
Tulalip Police Department’s new Chief of Police, Carlos Echevarria, takes his oath in front of Tulalip Tribes vice-chairman Les Parks and local law enforcement and service agencies on May 7. Photo/ Brandi N. Montreuil, Tulalip News
Echevarria, a Tulalip police officer since 2001, has completed several law enforcement trainings and academy programs including the BIA Criminal Jurisdiction and Criminal Investigations in Indian Country, U.S. Department of Justice FBI Basic Indian Country In-Service Training, and SWAT Basic Tap/ Rack Tactical.
“I was literally in shock,” described Echevarria, upon learning of the Board’s decision, and who had been serving as the department’s Interim Chief of Police for 11 months prior. “I’ve been so humbled by this opportunity and by the outpouring of community support, both internally and externally of Tulalip Tribes, as well as the support of other state and federal agencies that we work closely with. I am truly grateful; I wasn’t expecting it. Words do not describe how excited I am and how I feel to be the first Tulalip tribal member to be the Chief of Police for Tulalip. I am confident I have all the training and experience to do this. I know the community. The community trusts me and my staff trusts me, and I think it was just the right time. I am very fortunate to be in this position.”
Former Tulalip Police Chief, Jay Goss, pins newly appointed Police Chief Carlos Echevarria during the swearing in ceremony held May 7, in the Tulalip Tribes Board Room. Photo/ Brandi N. Montreuil, Tulalip News
Echevarria, whose his goal was always to become an officer, says his objective for the department will be to focus on collaboration with other tribal departments for safety and community outreach and education.
“My number one goal going forward is to reduce the number of our children that are exposed to violence. And that is far ranging from physical and sexual abuse in the home to school safety,” said Echavarria.
Relying on his training and advice from his mentor, former Tulalip Chief of Police Jay Goss, Echevarria will be starting his career as chief during the first initial Violence Against Women’s Act cases being heard through tribal courts. Tulalip Tribes was selected, along with two other tribes nationwide, to implement special domestic violence criminal jurisdiction under VAWA 2013.
Photo/ Brandi N. Montreuil, Tulalip News
“VAWA was a much needed legislation and now the three pilot tribes have taken on that role of working through many obstacles in working with the Department of Justice to prosecute non-Indians who commit crimes against Native American women in Indian Country. Once this process is complete the other tribes will have a template, so to speak, to follow and a number of issues will have been worked out and it won’t be as difficult for them,” said Echevarria, whose department will become a model for other tribal police departments in handling VAWA cases, and who have already received requests from other tribal police departments to be kept informed of the process.
Tulalip Police Chief Carlos Echevarria is joined by (left to right) Marysville Police Chief Rick Smith, Shoreline Police Chief Shawn Ledford, Snohomish County Sheriff Ty Trenary, Lake Stevens Interim Police Chief Dan Lorentzen, and Everett Police Chief Kathy Atwood. All who attended Chief Echevarria’s swearing in ceremony on May 7. Photo/ Brandi N. Montreuil, Tulalip News
“It’s an exciting time. My belief in moving forward is we will find ways together to further the Tribe’s goal as a whole and make this community as safe as possible for everyone,” Echevarria said.
Echevarria was sworn into office on May 6, and was joined by numerous local law enforcement and service agencies in addition to the Tulalip community. You can watch his swearing in ceremony on Tulalip TV’s Tulalip Matters program at www.tulaliptv.com or on Tulalip broadband on channel 99.
For more information regarding the Tulalip Police Department, please contact them at 360-716-4800. In case of an emergency, please contact 911.
Brandi N. Montreuil: 360-913-5402; bmontreuil@tulalipnews.com
The Stz’uminus (Chemainus) First Nation has enacted a blockade that spans its traditional territory in the Gulf Islands of BC. They say they’ve been let down by a recent Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) policy decision to restrict their ability to culture geoducks, a hugely valuable clam species that is already harvested commercially in the area.
“We’re trying to send a message to DFO,” says Ray Gauthier, CEO of the Coast Salish Development Corporation and the man behind the blockade. “If you’re not going to acknowledge our interests… then we’re going to reclaim the area.”
Nobody from DFO was made available speak with VICE, but the agency sent a statement, saying: “Officials are engaged in ongoing discussions with the Stz’uminus to understand their concerns and interest.”
It’s the “ongoing” part that has enraged the First Nation.
Six years ago they applied for permission to conduct a 100-hectare geoduck aquaculture operation in the waters off their reserve near Nanaimo. The undeniably phallic clams grow up to a metre long, and can sell for $50 a kilo to Asian markets.
Band officials saw the lucrative geoduck harvest as a chance to build the local economy and make the reserve more self-sufficient.
“We don’t have our hand out here,” says Gauthier. “We’re not asking for money.”
But the plan stalled. Then, after two years of frustration, the First Nation blockaded commercial operations in Kulleet Bay in 2010, preventing the divers from getting in the water. “The message was, if we can’t have access to the industry, then neither can you,” Gauthier recalls.
They threatened to blockade the bay again the following year, but the commercial geoduck harvesters steered clear. A few weeks ago, the First Nation was given a one-time opportunity to apply to harvest in five hectares. They say it’s not enough. “This new policy that was supposed to address aboriginal interests simply doesn’t,” says Gauthier.
Now they’re blockading much more than just one fishery in just one bay: they’re planning on blocking access to “all vessels including but not limited to commercial fishing vessels, DFO vessels and any non-native civilians and government officials,” within their traditional territory. That territory spans from Active Pass to Gabriola Island, heavily used areas in the Gulf Islands.
Gauthier says the issue is that the government is shirking its duty to consult with First Nations prior to making decisions regarding resources they have the right to use. “It doesn’t mean you have a meeting and it’s all good, he says. “They’re having trouble with the concept.”
That alleged failure to consult has attracted the interest of “10 or 12” other First Nations. Meaning, depending on the outcome, this protest could grow. No confrontations have occurred yet, but Gauthier says the blockade is in full swing.
By MIKE DUNHAM
Anchorage Dimond High School graduate Michelle Brown has become a finalist in a national search for stylin’ footwear with a design that makes ingenious use of salmon skin.
