Mike,
The American Indian Arts and Crafts Act finalized in 1996 was pushed through
during the first Bush administration as a way of eventually eleminating all
tribal entities, i.e. if you require a blood quantum and a membership card
that allows for no "naturalized" members of an Indian Nation, then
eventually the blood quantum will drop to the point where the tribe will be
declared exstinct by the Federal government and the land will be open to
settlement by non-Indians. It was supposed to protect Indian people from
contraband art and craft work from China and Taiwan that was killing the
authentic articles. The issue is the same as any intellectual capital
anywhere. However the first Bush administration saw that drawing the lines
very narrowly would eventually cut off the Indian nations from the
replenishment of the blood from non-Governmental Indian people who were
family but not enrolled.
The AIACA begins by declaring only card carrying members who relate back
"in a direct line to an enrollee", i.e. your great uncle by blood won't do,
are considered tribal members according to the government. Tribal
membership constitutes a "trademark" owned by the tribe and so any artist
whose ancestors weren't collaborators (or were good enough to evade capture
by the army and jailed for same purpose ) cannot call themselves an Indian
or their art in the tradition of their family. Any gallery that exhibits
their art as such is liable for over a million dollar fine for each article.
In the Cherokee nation there were around 6,000 traditional Cherokees who
practiced the old religion and spoke only Cherokee who were never enrolled.
The count is still high and they still practice the old religion and most
are still Cherokee language only speakers. Something that is not the case
in either of the authorized Cherokee nations East or West.
This is not an issue with the people in either nation but with the
government and its equal treatment of Citizens within the country as a
whole. For Indian people it is a classic Batesonian Double bind.
Welcome to the world of Indian People Mike. This has been the shell game
practiced for over 300 years in the world's most "Christian" Nation.
Artistry is not a part of their fundamentalist traditions and to them we are
just another Pagan to be eleminated or converted. For a long time they
weren't sure that we were human since we aren't in their holy book. All
of the Middle Eastern Fundamentalisms are hard on artists and pagans.
REH
----- Original Message -----
From: "mckeever" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "Magic Circ Op Rep Ens" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Monday, April 30, 2001 10:56 AM
Subject: Re: Musings on the FTAA
> Ray:
>
> Are serious?
>
> Let's find an up-the-establishment gallery and put on an exhibition.
> especially if the artist is broke - being judgement proof is a good thing
> sometimes.
>
> Mike
>
> PS Loved Susan George, am distributing the piece to interested parties on
> the ipe list.
>
> Mike
>
> Like the
> Cherokee sculptor Jimmy Durham whose ancestors resisted the government,
> refused to collaborate with the thieving state governments who acted like
> Nazis and banned Indian religions from 1880 to 1978 and enrolled Indians
to
> keep track of them. Most of the traditional people hid in the mountains
> rather than be jailed for speaking Cherokee or practicing the religion.
> Today, the latest gloss is that no Indian without an enrollment number
from
> that period can earn a living as an Indian artist without it. Fines are
> from $250,000 to over one million per infraction. The same being true to
> any gallery that exhibits their work as Cherokee or even Indian.
> Michael Pierce McKeever, Sr.
> Economics Instructor, Vista Community College, Berkeley, CA
> URL: www.mkeever.com [Note: no 'c' in mkeever]
>
