https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMhrcxxN7/
A few months ago, I received a few phone calls. A team of
committed investigative reporters were interested in the Nathan Chasing Horse
story. They obviously saw the Fifth Estate’s Documentary aired December 2, 2023,
and of course the many news media posts throughout the United States. Keeping
in mind that I am in the country called Canada. Much social media does not get
to me as laws around Canadian content changed. It’s one of the reason for me to
continue posting as my connection to my sources is still connecting me to their
situation involving Nathan Chasing Horse.
“A positive note, hoping this potential documentary underscores the vital role of cultural resilience and ancestral knowledge in promoting well-being within tribal communities.”
Yesterday was a National Holiday call ‘Every Child Matters.’ I’ve posted
a few indigenous women’s content as to the seriousness of fraudulent claims of
identity. Why, you may ask does this have to do with Nathan Chasing Horse on
may ask. It does in understanding the human behaviors of childhood trauma based
on the history of genocide. This disconnection with cultures and languages is very
real. When someone has no references to their community, family of origin, tribal
customs and laws, it like reinventing the wheel all over again.
In my conversations with these investigative reporters, I received.
“Once we know the future home of the project, we will be happy to
have a deeper conversation about your potential involvement. “
It’s a direct quote from the email. I sent my contact news
clippings that were sent to me via SMS from the USA>
Living in Canada like within the USA there are so many people
falsely identifying as being indigenous to the land. Many pretendians pass
themselves off as direct descendants of the survivors of ‘Indian Residential
Schools, Adoption, fostered out and disconnected to indigenous communities. So,
I am sceptical about who they will be sourcing. I’ve lived within the United
States amongst adopted, fostered indigenous people who have little or no
contact with their parents’ communities. They have access to financial funds
and those agencies that give them research monies or scholarships have no
access to proving their status.
Decades ago, I was fortunate to meet a PHD professor who explained
what being a proud indigenous person meant to him. He grew up in foster home
after foster home until he was adopted. When I first met him, he said he didn’t
know what is was like to grow up in an indigenous community but showed me two
of his status cards from two communities that claimed him. He also said because of this lack of experience not being
connected to an indigenous community he never accessed any funding at ALL. Sadly
to say, not too many self identifying indigenous people dare to claim their
lack of knowledge in what is like to grow up within an indigenous community
knowing ones culture and sovereignty. They think its so easy to erase us cause nobody challenged them.
My concerns about their ethical guidelines throughout their entire
production process as they tend to distribute their documentary on major television
networks within the United States. It was further mentioned that when they do
partner up with a network, they are planning on bringing on an Indigenous Director
to oversee the project for the storytelling.
This is where I began sceptical. When I was interviewed in Canada
there was criticism from indigenous staff members from Ontario, as well as other indigenous people. I never
questioned their background, never asked if they had any proof of being an authentic
indigenous person whose parents or grandparent attended Indian Residential
Schools, Foster Homed or Adopted. I did ask the investigator why they were
questioning her about me, an indigenous elder with Indigenous
ways of knowing being questioned by these young staff members. Who for all I
knew may never ever lived within an indigenous community.
This indigenous Director is going to oversee the storytelling
process is cringey to say the least. I don’t mind sharing my own experience
with Nahan Chasing Horse. My blog may seem like a soup opera tale, but it my
story, from my own personal experience bringing forward my concerns of such a young
exploiting indigenous children, girls, teens, young women, married women, and
other women like myself. One needs to step back and visualize a predator who
did not feel any emotional ties to anyone, not even his own home community.
I know these investigative reporters have experience with sexual
abuse documentaries and say they treat all stories with care, respect and
sensitivity. Yes, I know from my own personal experience how complex this story
is, and I’ve made mistakes in trusting certain spiritual leaders other than
Nathan Chasing Horse. I have so many stories from childhood of false spiritual people trying
to revitalize the Dakota, Lakota and Nakota cultures. Its harder to reach the language than it is to pass oneself off as a medicine person. Believe me, when I say Nathan was not fluent in his Lakota language like so many Lakota elders who listened to him talk. If he wished he was never guided to teach the language only to exploitation. So I warn people, if they do not know their indigenous language fluently or have the tenacity to struggle teaching the language that holds our culture then they are lazy with claim of possessing revitalizing a culture. Look within your own indigenous communities for your own healers. It takes a community to heal itself.
I know from working the Fifth Estate the care and respect it took
to tell this story here in Canada. I am not too confident about being a
POTENIAL respected Elder for this project. I feel there is a preconceived
notion about what it is to live within an indigenous community. All one needs
is an educated indigenous storyteller to give further direction ensuring it is
told with the utmost respect and care it deserves, but is this indigenous person, this storyteller home grown with the knowledge of their Indigenous community. If they are then there are some spiritual Lakota people I will not work with.
As I’ve said, defining what a good ally constitutes so many
layers. In the city of Calgary, home of the greatest wild west show in the
world, I think we are sophisticated enough to see through these layers of false
identifying, even for Americans who claim they are indigenous or are a long
lost princess.
Don’t forget we Canadians had a very famous poster child called “Buffy Saint
Marie.” Underneath all her false claims the government knew she was not Canadian. An imaginary poster reads: 'give up your child to
foster homes, let them be adopted into the greater world, and become a
millionaire like her.” I say this in gest, as the Canadian government knew and they both used each other. I believe the higher purpose was to recruit our indigenous chikdren. Church and cults
have done this for centuries. We do not need more indigenous people to serve someone's' higher good. I feel its why I continue to write within my blog. It's my voice! It's my personal experience of telling what it feels like to be exploited, not from just non-indigenous people, but from within our own. It was a tool Bathan Chasing Horse used to convince people he was real.
So, yes, it’s a wait and see attitude that I take in potentially
being involved in this production that's being conquering up in
NYC. There are so many barriers.
I hope you will also search out these two ladies I attached to this blog. The insights they carry is so vital in what it is to self-identify versus what is a result of forced assimilation throughout our histories in both the USA & Canada.
