Otoe-Missouria Day: Sept. 21, 2022

Center for Great Plains Studies Author

09/23/2022 Added

155 Plays

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Otoe-Missouria Proclamation Day and Homecoming Celebration on Sept. 21, 2022.

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[00:00:03.662](Native American music)
[00:00:04.495](drums banging)
[00:00:07.703](chanting/singing)
[00:00:14.911](more singers join) (banging drums louder)
[00:00:27.244](chanting continues)
[00:00:42.452](drumming/chanting intensifies)
[00:01:05.785](louder drumming)
[00:01:09.118](chanting energetically)
[00:01:39.326](performance continues)
[00:02:32.159](steady rhythmic drumming/chanting)
[00:02:46.492](drumming/chanting diminish)
[00:02:55.200](chanting/drumming fading)
[00:02:58.533](single loud drum hit) (solo chanting)
[00:03:04.491](group chanting) (drum banging)
[00:03:17.324](rhythmic chanting/drumming)
[00:03:21.407](drums banging louder) (performance ends)
[00:03:30.370]Thank you very much,
[00:03:31.470]to the Lincoln Indian Center Drum Group.
[00:03:33.420]And welcome to each and every one of you,
[00:03:35.250]you may now take a seat.
[00:03:38.051](speaking in Native American language)
[00:03:44.850]Good morning, everyone.
[00:03:46.050]My name is Erin, and I'm so grateful
[00:03:48.780]to see each and every one of you.
[00:03:50.970]Very good morning to every one of you.
[00:03:53.280]I'm a citizen of Cherokee Nation and a resident of Lincoln,
[00:03:56.610]and a very grateful visitor on this land,
[00:03:59.490]the homelands of the Otoe-Missouria people.
[00:04:02.580]We are so happy to be here in celebration today,
[00:04:05.307]and we want to begin with a prayer
[00:04:08.010]by one of our Otoe-Missouria delegates, Kyle Rubido.
[00:04:12.451]Let us pray.
[00:04:13.409](speaking in Native American language)
[00:04:16.200]Thank you again for this beautiful,
[00:04:17.460]wonderful day that you've given to us, father here.
[00:04:20.760]Ask you again, father here,
[00:04:22.080]that you would bless our Otoe-Missouria people.
[00:04:24.120]And father here, that made their way up here again,
[00:04:25.977]and father here, to reconcile, and father here
[00:04:29.067]and to acknowledge here, what's taking place here
[00:04:31.980]with these relatives who, father here,
[00:04:34.350]these friends that we have made here
[00:04:35.880]over the years and father here
[00:04:37.170]and thankful to you today, father here.
[00:04:39.057]And this is a memorable occasion here for us
[00:04:41.670]and father here, a mark in history, father here.
[00:04:44.730]So I ask in you and pray to you today to father here,
[00:04:47.820]that whatever actions take place here today here
[00:04:50.880]into the future would be for our children, grandchildren,
[00:04:54.090]ones that will not even get to see, father here,
[00:04:56.430]but they can understand here,
[00:04:57.540]where they come from here, from this this area, father here.
[00:05:00.739]Our Otoe-Missouria people at one time here,
[00:05:03.210]roamed around here, father here,
[00:05:04.680]and did things that father here,
[00:05:06.390]the spiritual ceremonies that we had, father here,
[00:05:08.460]societies that we had at one time, father here.
[00:05:10.470]All those things like that
[00:05:11.303]that we had as Otoe-Missouria people.
[00:05:13.278]Had you here God had made us here to be, father here.
[00:05:17.160]We're able to come back here to these homelands again,
[00:05:21.210]father here and to continue these conversations,
[00:05:24.570]And continue these thoughts and father here
[00:05:27.900]that these friends here have made a possible here for us
[00:05:32.403]here father, to make our way back home this way,
[00:05:34.980]father here. So I pray to you today, father here,
[00:05:37.380]all the things that's gonna take place here
[00:05:38.700]that your holy spirit will be with us.
[00:05:39.853]I ask all these things, bless our prayer. Amen.
[00:05:46.830]Wa do, Kyle, thank you.
[00:05:48.600]I'd now like to invite Billie Tohi
[00:05:51.330]for our land acknowledgement.
[00:05:58.286](speaking in Native American language)
[00:06:15.510]Good morning one and all my friends and relatives.
[00:06:18.840]I welcome each of you here.
[00:06:20.730]Thank you for being here and thank you for this panel
[00:06:23.430]and for the mayor and the city of Lincoln.
[00:06:28.140]My name is Billie Tohi.
[00:06:29.820]My native name is Real Eagle Woman.
[00:06:34.230]I come from the Otoe-Missouria tribe
[00:06:37.805]and the Ioway, Bah-Kho-Je tribes of Oklahoma.
[00:06:42.390]And I reside in Perkins, Oklahoma.
[00:06:45.540]I'm of the bear clan.
[00:06:47.820]And I'm just thankful to be here on this historical event.
[00:06:53.310]And the statement that I'm going to read
[00:06:57.000]pertains to the land acknowledgement that's happening here.
[00:07:01.620]We want to acknowledge that residents of Lincoln
[00:07:04.950]are living on the past present and future homelands
[00:07:08.610]of the Otoe-Missouria, Pawnee, Omaha, and Kansa people.
[00:07:14.250]The salt basin around the present day Lincoln, Nebraska
[00:07:18.240]attracted many indigenous nations to this region.
[00:07:21.930]The Otoe-Missouria called the area Nebrathka
[00:07:25.830]or flat water.
[00:07:28.050]Under pressure from federal officials and settlers,
[00:07:31.530]the Otoe-Missouria ceded the land that became Lincoln
[00:07:35.490]to the federal government in 1883 and also in 1854.
[00:07:41.400]This forced out the Otoe-Missouria people
[00:07:43.928]who had called the Nebrathka home for many generations.
[00:07:49.080]Native peoples of many nations live in Lincoln today
[00:07:53.250]and contribute to the communities, vitality and diversity.
[00:07:58.080]And today we thank them for that stewardship of these lands
[00:08:02.160]that once belonged to
[00:08:04.080]and still belong to the Otoe-Missouria people.
[00:08:07.349](speaking in Native American language)
[00:08:15.983]Wa do. Thank you, Billy.
[00:08:19.290]At this time, I'd like to acknowledge
[00:08:21.270]our Otoe-Missouria dignitaries.
[00:08:24.120]Chairman John Shotten, vice chairman, Ted Grant,
[00:08:29.130]secretary Darrell Kahiga, treasurer, Courtney Burgess.
[00:08:34.380]First member, Wesley Hudson, second member Myra Pickering,
[00:08:40.500]third member Alvin Moore.
[00:08:44.280]I'd also like to recognize
[00:08:46.050]our Otoe-Missouria organizing delegation,
[00:08:49.380]Corey Derouin, Christina Fafa,
[00:08:53.910]Billy Tohi and Kyle Rubido.
[00:08:58.230]Let's all give them a warm round of applause and a welcome.
[00:09:01.827](audience applauding)
[00:09:07.530]I'd also like to welcome our city of Lincoln dignitaries,
[00:09:10.890]Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird.
[00:09:13.350]TJ McDowell, advisor to the mayor.
[00:09:16.800]Lincoln city council member, Sandra Washington,
[00:09:20.280]Lincoln city council member, Jane Maybold.
[00:09:24.570]Lincoln city council member, Tom Beckias
[00:09:28.140]and Sarah Houseton,
[00:09:29.220]director of the Lincoln human rights commission.
[00:09:32.370]I'd also like to acknowledge and welcome
[00:09:34.890]the Nebraska commission on Indian affairs representatives,
[00:09:37.920]executive director, Judi Gaiashkibos
[00:09:40.800]and Dr. Rudy Mitchell.
[00:09:43.950]Since we are here at the university of Nebraska,
[00:09:45.720]we'd also like to recognize our UNL dignitaries,
[00:09:48.990]Kathy Ankerson, executive vice chancellor
[00:09:52.800]and Nkenge Friday, senior assistant vice chancellor
[00:09:57.420]for strategic initiatives in the office
[00:09:59.820]of diversity and inclusion.
[00:10:03.000]Mark Button, Dean of the college of arts and sciences,
[00:10:06.300]Susan Weller, director of Nebraska state museum,
[00:10:09.000]and office of research and economic development.
[00:10:11.880]Meagan Elliot, director of the Johnny Carson center
[00:10:14.490]for emerging media arts
[00:10:15.930]and Moi Padilla, Nebraska college preparatory academy.
[00:10:20.010]We'd also like to recognize
[00:10:21.750]our homestead national historic park friends,
[00:10:24.690]Betty Boyko, Jonathan Fairfield,
[00:10:27.510]and Amy Yankee, and a big wa do.
[00:10:30.390]Thank you to our organizers, volunteers and supporters.
[00:10:33.810]Who've made this event possible here on the Lincoln side.
[00:10:37.470]And that is Kevin Abourezk, Arden Hill, Judy Hart,
[00:10:42.150]Mary Kay Stillwell, Katie Neeland,
[00:10:45.390]Allison Cloett, Ashley Wilkinson, Casey Seeker,
[00:10:49.611]Miriam Nyato, Daylan Zagerski, Mark Broman,
[00:10:54.000]Tim Knot, Julie Green and Jim Mathie.
[00:10:58.710]Let us all give thanks and a warm round of applause
[00:11:01.800]for everyone involved.
[00:11:03.480](audience applauding)
[00:11:09.405]At this time I'd like to welcome Margaret Jacobs
[00:11:11.910]to the podium to share what brings us here.
[00:11:15.840]Welcome Margaret.
[00:11:25.770]Thank you so much, Erin.
[00:11:26.940]And thank you, to all of you for being here.
[00:11:30.810]This is really a thrilling moment.
[00:11:34.650]So good morning. My name is Margaret Jacobs.
[00:11:37.766]I am the director of the center for great plain studies
[00:11:40.590]where we're meeting this morning.
[00:11:41.850]I'm also the co-director with Kevin Abourezk
[00:11:44.880]of the reconciliation rising project.
[00:11:48.450]And it's really an honor.
[00:11:50.130]It's really a delight to be able to host this historic event
[00:11:54.750]and to welcome home
[00:11:57.000]our Otoe-Missouria friends and relatives.
[00:12:01.410]So welcome my Otoe-Missouria friends.
[00:12:04.410]You are home.
[00:12:05.776](drum banging)
[00:12:08.131](audience applauding/cheering)
[00:12:13.980]So I am to speak on what brings us here today.
[00:12:17.010]Well, that's a big topic and I am a historian,
[00:12:21.510]so that could be dangerous to ask me to talk about that.
[00:12:24.120]We could go back to the 13th century or something like that,
[00:12:27.210]but I will not do that.
[00:12:30.480]So there's a couple ways to answer this.
[00:12:32.730]And here are just a few.
[00:12:35.700]So one I think is a strong passion
[00:12:39.844]for healing and reconciliation.
[00:12:43.230]And I think all of you in the room share that passion.
[00:12:48.360]And this was something that Kevin Abourezk,
[00:12:51.210]who's at the drum with the Lincoln Indian drum group,
[00:12:54.480]and I think we share this passion.
[00:12:57.510]We met for the first time in 2018
[00:13:00.240]and we decided to start a project
[00:13:02.940]called reconciliation rising.
[00:13:06.030]We'd never met before when we had lunch together,
[00:13:09.720]but we discovered that we shared this strong desire
[00:13:14.040]to confront our difficult and painful histories
[00:13:17.790]and then to work toward healing and reconciliation.
[00:13:21.810]And Kevin is a journalist with indians.com
[00:13:26.070]and I'm a historian.
[00:13:27.690]So we both wanted to tell stories
[00:13:31.020]and to uncover stories of native and non-native people
[00:13:35.430]working together who are confronting these histories
[00:13:38.280]and then working toward reconciliation.
[00:13:40.560]So we did this primarily through podcast and documentaries,
[00:13:47.250]but it's kind of funny because we got so inspired,
[00:13:50.850]I think I'm speaking for us both, Kevin,
[00:13:52.980]we got so inspired by some of the people we met.
[00:13:55.650]Whose stories we were telling,
[00:13:57.330]that we were influenced by them to want to work
[00:14:01.290]to bring the OTO Missouri home as a result of that.
[00:14:05.580]So one of the podcasts and films we created
[00:14:09.000]is about the partnership between a Pawnee tribal member
[00:14:12.780]named Deb Echo Hawk.
[00:14:14.400]She's the keeper of the seeds for the Pawnee nation.
[00:14:17.520]And she has had a long term partnership of over 20 years
[00:14:20.447]with a Nebraska white settler named Ronnie O'Brien.
[00:14:24.690]And it's partly through our interviews with Deb
[00:14:27.390]that this event is occurring today.
[00:14:33.000]And this brings me to perhaps the next thing
[00:14:35.910]that brings us here today.
[00:14:37.320]And I would say that's friendship.
[00:14:39.930]So it's the friendship that Kevin and I got to witness
[00:14:44.370]between Ronnie O'Brien and Deb Echo Hawk.
[00:14:48.690]It's the friendship between Kevin and me.
[00:14:51.660]And it's the friendship that we've been developing
[00:14:54.750]with our friends from the Otoe-Missouria nation.
[00:14:57.750]And it just happened that when Deb Echo Hawk
[00:15:01.050]came up here to Lincoln in, I think December, 2019,
[00:15:06.090]she brought with her, her nephew,
[00:15:07.950]her nephew is Cory Derouin,
[00:15:09.510]or one of her nephews, many nephews, is Corey Derouin.
[00:15:12.120]Who's sitting over here.
[00:15:14.226]And I just felt a kind of immediate connection with Corey.
[00:15:19.170]I think Kevin did too.
[00:15:20.430]And we just had a really great time talking with him.
[00:15:24.510]And then we got to reunite with Corey
[00:15:29.370]just about a year ago
[00:15:30.660]when the Pawnee nation came up to our area,
[00:15:34.860]just 15 miles west of here,
[00:15:36.240]they were harvesting their Eagle corn last summer.
[00:15:39.810]And there was Corey again with his auntie Deb
[00:15:42.960]and with his Pawnee relatives.
[00:15:45.120]And we got to talking as we were processing corn,
[00:15:50.310]shelling corn, roasting corn, you know,
[00:15:54.540]joking around the fire.
[00:15:56.760]We got to talking with Corey
[00:15:58.380]about whether it would be possible
[00:16:00.330]for the Otoe-Missouria to also reestablish ties
[00:16:03.240]with their homeland.
[00:16:05.130]And that was something that planted a seed for Kevin and me.
[00:16:09.030]And then we decided after the long winter of the pandemic
[00:16:15.180]that we would really like to work on this.
[00:16:17.250]And so in May a small delegation of four people,
[00:16:22.020]Corey Derouin, Christina Fafa, Billy Tohi, and Kyle Rubido
[00:16:26.340]came up here and they had a whirlwind trip.
[00:16:29.910]They met with a lot of people
[00:16:31.080]and some of the people they met with
[00:16:32.640]included our Mayor, Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird.
[00:16:36.810]And they asked her,
[00:16:38.820]could the city of Lincoln
[00:16:40.860]establish an Otoe-Missouria day?
[00:16:44.850]And it was just such a delight.
[00:16:46.770]Without skipping a beat the mayor said, yes.
[00:16:50.400]It was, it was not a hard thing.
[00:16:52.710]She didn't say, oh,
[00:16:53.543]I gotta go think about that or talk about it
[00:16:55.001]with a committee. (laughing)
[00:16:56.820]She was just, yes.
[00:16:59.640]So that friendship
[00:17:02.059]is one of the things that have brought us here today,
[00:17:06.574]but there's probably some other ways that we could think
[00:17:09.990]about this too.
[00:17:10.823]I know Deb Echo Hawk and Ronnie O'Brien
[00:17:12.930]would tell us that it was the corn
[00:17:15.600]that brought us here today.
[00:17:17.340]The sacred corn that brought us here today.
[00:17:19.530]And I've learned from my Otoe-Missouria friends,
[00:17:23.130]that it was also the prayers of their ancestors
[00:17:26.490]that brought us here today.
[00:17:29.160]So I just want to end by saying
[00:17:31.320]that to me, this event is truly a blessing
[00:17:34.470]for the people of Lincoln.
[00:17:38.220]By returning to your homelands,
[00:17:41.551]you Otoe-Missouria friends and relatives
[00:17:44.940]are bringing the city of Lincoln and its residents
[00:17:47.910]an incredible gift.
[00:17:51.360]You have so much to teach us
[00:17:54.390]about how to persist through hard times,
[00:17:57.120]how to face up to and honor our histories and our ancestors.
[00:18:01.830]How to rebuild and restore one's culture and society.
[00:18:05.460]How to be good stewards to our precious lands and waters
[00:18:10.140]and how to be good relatives.
[00:18:12.480]And I'm really humbled to be here today among you
[00:18:16.410]and hope that this is only the beginning
[00:18:18.600]of a long and fruitful kinship between us.
[00:18:21.600]And thank you so much.
[00:18:25.956](audience applauding)
[00:18:32.070]Thank you, Margaret.
[00:18:33.810]And at this time I'd like to invite Corey Derouin
[00:18:37.260]and Christina Fafa to share the significance
[00:18:40.166]of the homecoming for the Otoe-Missouria.
[00:18:53.436](speaking in Native American language)
[00:18:56.024]Corey Derouin
[00:18:57.028](speaking in Native American language)
[00:19:07.800]Hello, good day my relatives,
[00:19:10.170]my name's Corey Derouin.
[00:19:11.053]I come from the Otoe-Missouria tribe. I'm bear clan.
[00:19:14.040]I come here from my home in Red Rock, Oklahoma,
[00:19:16.170]and today I speak my language.
[00:19:19.110]I just wanted to kind of share the importance of this trip.
[00:19:22.560]You know, I thought we brought a lot of elders
[00:19:25.020]and a lot of our youth with us.
[00:19:26.070]And I thought that was very important, you know,
[00:19:27.450]for our elders to be able to come back and visit this land
[00:19:30.360]that they've heard so much about all throughout their lives
[00:19:32.820]and you know, for our youth
[00:19:33.744]to get to know their roots.
[00:19:36.210]We have a lot of youth here and I'm very glad to see that.
[00:19:39.690]That to me,
[00:19:40.523]shows that a sign of continued relationships here, you know,
[00:19:44.220]when we have our young people here and get them involved,
[00:19:46.519]they're listening, paying attention,
[00:19:48.390]knowing what we're doing
[00:19:49.223]and someday they'll carry these relationships on for us.
[00:19:51.650]So I think that's very important and you know,
[00:19:55.170]it's also important to us in our hearts
[00:19:57.330]that we reestablish our connection with our land here
[00:19:59.550]in Lincoln, Nebraska, around this area,
[00:20:03.450]because it's the land that our old folks once walked on
[00:20:07.050]and they took care of this land
[00:20:09.270]and thank you all for taking care of it for us
[00:20:10.898]for the last couple hundred of years.
[00:20:14.130]So please bear with me, you know,
[00:20:17.237]humor's very important to our people.
[00:20:19.230]So I'm gonna add a little bit of humor in here.
[00:20:22.350]I was telling my group of relatives this morning
[00:20:25.710]that I feel like, in this Nebraska wind,
[00:20:29.640]I just feel like dandelion, you know how,
[00:20:30.984]when the wind blows and those seeds fly off their heads,
[00:20:34.110]Hey, wow.
[00:20:35.790]Think about my hair follicles. Hey.
[00:20:38.250]I was trying to maintain as much as I could.
[00:20:40.320]Hey, and so for me, hopefully, you know,
[00:20:43.110]those hair follicles are just like those seeds
[00:20:45.060]from the dandelions and we're planting seeds,
[00:20:46.980]leaving seeds here, you know, for our people to come back.
[00:20:49.650]And so that's my bit of humor.
[00:20:51.750]And so thank you for bearing with me.
[00:20:54.480]And thank you all for being here.
[00:20:56.070]You know, I'm very appreciative.
[00:20:57.481]I can't express my gratitude enough
[00:20:59.820]and the best way that I know how
[00:21:01.410]and how I was taught was to tell you all
[00:21:03.532](speaking Native American)
[00:21:04.800]which is a deeper sentiment of thank you.
[00:21:06.570]You know, it's not just a regular, thank you.
[00:21:08.820]You know, we pray to you.
[00:21:09.720]I pray to you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart,
[00:21:11.760]for making this happen.
[00:21:13.860]Everybody who collaborated to make this happen,
[00:21:17.010]you brought our elders at first.
[00:21:19.260]It was just a small group of us.
[00:21:20.520]And you've helped us to bring our elders
[00:21:22.320]and our tribal leaders and our youth.
[00:21:24.510]This is a very big deal to us and it warms my heart.
[00:21:27.780]So, (speaking Native American), at this time.
[00:21:30.480]And I'll let my sister Christina take over.
[00:21:35.910](speaking Native American language)
[00:21:54.660]My name is Christina Fafa.
[00:21:56.010]My Otoe name is (speaking Native American).
[00:21:59.160]Everything green.
[00:22:02.550]Makes sense. (audience laughing)
[00:22:04.537]I am owl clan. I'm Otoe-Missouria and Ioway.
[00:22:10.140]I'm from Stillwater, Oklahoma.
[00:22:13.628]I'll ask forgiveness for my elders today
[00:22:17.400]for speaking in front of you.
[00:22:18.690]Traditionally, we're not supposed to do that as women.
[00:22:23.686]I just wanna thank everyone for being here today.
[00:22:28.200]It really fills my heart. I'm not gonna get emotional.
[00:22:32.460]It really fills my heart with happiness and joy.
[00:22:36.360]Comfort to know that so many people
[00:22:38.880]wanted to join us today for this celebration.
[00:22:43.710]Our Otoe-Missouria language department
[00:22:45.390]has been working on an elder project.
[00:22:48.540]So we've been watching these videos of our elders
[00:22:51.450]from the eighties and the seventies,
[00:22:54.420]and they talk about Nebraska.
[00:22:56.070]They talk about it a lot.
[00:22:59.010]To be here today.
[00:22:59.880]During this time,
[00:23:00.713]it just feels like everything is happening
[00:23:02.580]the way that it is supposed to.
[00:23:04.320]That we are back on account of our ancestors,
[00:23:09.208]their prayers do carry on and they brought us back here.
[00:23:13.470]So I wanna say thank you again for everyone.
[00:23:16.260]Mayor Gaylor Baird,
[00:23:19.890]Margaret, Kevin,
[00:23:21.180]everyone that had anything to do with putting this together
[00:23:24.120]and bringing us all together. I just thank you very much.
[00:23:27.539](speaking Native American language)
[00:23:31.771](audience applauding) (drums banging)
[00:23:39.720]And at this time
[00:23:40.553]I'd like to welcome Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird,
[00:23:43.380]to read the proclamation.
[00:23:53.400]Well, hello and good morning, everyone.
[00:23:56.490]It is wonderful to see my colleagues
[00:23:57.810]from the city council here,
[00:23:59.010]Jane Maybold, Sandra Washington and Tom Beckias.
[00:24:01.320]And so grateful to TJ McDowell.
[00:24:03.240]My advisor in the mayor's office.
[00:24:06.810]Who was with us when we first met.
[00:24:09.540]And as mayor of Lincoln,
[00:24:12.120]I want to say welcome home to our Otoe-Missouria relatives.
[00:24:17.550]It's truly an honor to have you home
[00:24:19.740]and to be able to celebrate this momentous occasion
[00:24:22.350]with you this morning.
[00:24:24.270]We're grateful that so many of you
[00:24:25.890]were able to make the journey from Oklahoma.
[00:24:28.260]Old and young.
[00:24:30.000]And we're also grateful, especially grateful to Kyle,
[00:24:34.500]who shared with me when I arrived,
[00:24:36.030]that he had thought about wearing his OU sweatshirt,
[00:24:38.160]but decided against it. (laughing)
[00:24:39.690]Thank you.
[00:24:43.560]There are several other people I want to especially thank
[00:24:46.440]for helping to make this historic event happen.
[00:24:50.280]I wanna thank Corey Derouin,
[00:24:52.290]who led the delegation from the Otoe-Missouria tribe
[00:24:55.414]to Lincoln in late May of this year,
[00:24:57.510]that included a visit in our office.
[00:24:59.640]And Corey, Christina, and Billy and Kyle
[00:25:03.600]initiated this celebration today.
[00:25:05.670]So we really do have them to thank.
[00:25:08.218]And at this time,
[00:25:10.560]I want to offer this proclamation
[00:25:15.360]to mark this day.
[00:25:17.940]This day, that has a past and a present and a future.
[00:25:23.670]Whereas prior to the westward expansion of settlers,
[00:25:27.330]the land surrounding Lincoln was covered
[00:25:29.040]with tall grass prairie
[00:25:30.480]and indigenous people's hunted along Salt Creek
[00:25:33.300]and its tributaries and harvested salt from its deposits.
[00:25:37.350]And whereas by 1714,
[00:25:39.630]the Otoe's were living in a village
[00:25:41.580]on the Salt Creek tributary of the flat river
[00:25:44.490]in what is now Eastern, Nebraska.
[00:25:46.590]A territory which they occupied
[00:25:48.477]for the remainder of the century.
[00:25:51.480]And whereas the Missouria's joined them there
[00:25:53.430]in 1798 after the Sac and Fox
[00:25:56.130]drove them out of Northwest, Missouri
[00:25:57.990]and henceforth, the Otoe and Missouria were one nation.
[00:26:01.320]And whereas the Otoe and Missouria tribe
[00:26:03.180]signed the treaty of September 21st, 1833
[00:26:07.440]and the treaty of March 15th, 1854, and ceded land
[00:26:11.430]on which the city of Lincoln currently exists.
[00:26:15.330]And whereas by signing treaties with tribes,
[00:26:17.040]the US government on paper affirmed and recognized
[00:26:21.300]their inalienable, inherent statuses
[00:26:23.910]as separate sovereign nations.
[00:26:26.490]And whereas the city of Lincoln was founded in 1856
[00:26:30.240]as the village of Lancaster
[00:26:32.220]and became the county seat of the newly created
[00:26:35.070]Lancaster county in 1859.
[00:26:37.620]The township of Lancaster was renamed Lincoln
[00:26:39.703]following incorporation of the city of Lincoln
[00:26:42.510]on April 1st, 1869.
[00:26:45.930]And whereas the city of Lincoln
[00:26:47.430]in the spirit of education and awareness
[00:26:51.090]can integrate land acknowledgements
[00:26:52.830]and inclusion of the Otoe-Missouria tribe
[00:26:54.690]and its citizens into its practices and initiatives.
[00:26:58.380]And whereas the Otoe-Missouria reconciliation
[00:27:01.770]and reclamation movement seeks to
[00:27:03.300]spread awareness of the Otoe-Missouria people
[00:27:06.210]who lived in the Lincoln region
[00:27:07.560]before extensive concessions were made
[00:27:10.800]to understand the significance of these lands
[00:27:13.650]and to provide information
[00:27:14.940]on how people can help the tribe in respecting
[00:27:17.189]and protecting these lands.
[00:27:20.010]And whereas the city of Lincoln
[00:27:21.030]supports the Otoe-Missouria tribe
[00:27:22.590]by acknowledging that our city is on its ancestral lands.
[00:27:26.220]And by thanking the Otoe-Missouria
[00:27:28.230]and other indigenous caretakers of this land
[00:27:30.450]who have lived and who continue to live here.
[00:27:34.230]Now, therefore I Leirion Gaylor Baird,
[00:27:36.600]Mayor of the city of Lincoln, Nebraska,
[00:27:38.940]do here by proclaim September 21st, 2022
[00:27:43.380]as Otoe-Missouria day.
[00:27:45.150]To honor the land and people as an act of good faith
[00:27:48.900]and the reconciliation process.
[00:27:51.848](audience applauding) (drum banging)
[00:28:12.240]Thank you mayor.
[00:28:13.200]And thank you everyone who put in their time
[00:28:16.347]and their efforts, their energy and their prayers
[00:28:18.960]into making this day possible.
[00:28:21.468]At this time,
[00:28:22.530]we'd like to welcome the Otoe-Missouria drum for a song.
[00:28:27.000]They will perform an encampment song
[00:28:29.400]and we'd like to welcome
[00:28:30.690]the Otoe-Missouria tribal princess, Marlene Enlo.
[00:28:34.260]As well as the princess from the Red Rock Creek, Gourd clan,
[00:28:37.740]Lena Black, to dance this encampment song.
[00:28:41.700]If there are other princesses present,
[00:28:44.400]please feel invited to join them in the dance.
[00:28:53.475](drumming begins)
[00:28:57.284](quiet chanting begins)
[00:29:19.139](drumming and chanting continue)
[00:29:38.146](drums banging louder)
[00:29:41.716](drumming and chanting continues)
[00:29:54.310](drumming intensifies)
[00:30:03.481](drumming and chanting continues)
[00:30:32.603](drumming intensifies)
[00:30:34.822](drumming diminishes) (chanting continues)
[00:30:44.087](drumming intensifies)
[00:30:55.161](chanting intensifies)
[00:31:10.066](drumming and chanting continues)
[00:31:25.886](drumming intensifies) (chanting stops)
[00:31:28.045](chanting continues) (quietly drumming)
[00:31:47.522](drumming intensifies and stops)
[00:31:49.905](chanting continues)
[00:31:51.931](drumming begins quietly)
[00:32:04.400](drumming and chanting continue)
[00:32:07.156](drumming intensifies)
[00:32:10.434](music ends)
[00:32:12.690](bells jingling)
[00:32:14.890]Thank you. Again, I want to acknowledge tribal princesses,
[00:32:17.910]Marlene Enlo and Red Rock Creek Gourd clan Lena Black.
[00:32:22.110]And of course our Lincoln Indian center,
[00:32:25.020]powwow princess, Leah Gossard.
[00:32:27.630]Thank you so much for joining us.
[00:32:29.887](audience applauding) (drums banging)
[00:32:35.160]Next, we'd like to welcome another dance.
[00:32:39.810]Otoe-Missouria drum group will perform a victory song.
[00:32:43.440]Brandon Stabler is going to join us in this circle
[00:32:45.960]and we invite other dancers.
[00:32:48.090]Anyone in regalia is invited to dance.
[00:32:51.150]Thank you.
[00:32:56.409](drumming begins) (bells jingling)
[00:32:59.233](chanting begins)
[00:33:01.985](ankle bells jingle louder and in rhythm)
[00:33:05.623](chanting intensifies)
[00:33:20.211](drumming, chanting and bells continue)
[00:33:23.589](drumming intensifies)
[00:33:26.931](drumming, chanting and bells continue)
[00:33:34.577](drumming intensifies)
[00:33:52.093](drumming, chanting and bells continue)
[00:34:05.525](drumming diminishes)
[00:34:12.227](drumming intensifies)
[00:34:20.027](drumming, chanting and bells continue)
[00:34:42.428](drumming diminishes)
[00:34:51.579](drumming, chanting and bells continue)
[00:34:56.180](drumming crescendos to a stop)
[00:35:00.093](chanting continues)
[00:35:03.868](drumming, chanting and bells continue)
[00:35:14.628](drumming crescendos to a stop)
[00:35:18.183](music ends)
[00:35:22.162](audience applauding)
[00:35:28.543]Big wa do. Big thank you to our drum,
[00:35:31.290]our singers and our dancers.
[00:35:33.480]Thank you, Brandon, for leading us in that dance.
[00:35:35.666]We'd like to have another dance
[00:35:38.010]the Otoe-Missouria will sing an inner tribal,
[00:35:40.590]and this will be a blanket dance,
[00:35:42.450]but in lieu of blanket, we have Kyle's hat.
[00:35:45.386](laughing)
[00:35:48.300]So again, we invite you to dance
[00:35:50.490]and this will, it's a big hat.
[00:35:52.560]So fill it up. (laughing)
[00:35:55.110]And this will be to benefit the drum group.
[00:36:01.265]The hat.
[00:36:02.345](laughing)
[00:36:11.336](drumming begins)
[00:36:15.861](chanting begins) (bells jingling)
[00:36:26.240](bells, drumming and chanting intensify)
[00:37:01.409](bells, chanting and drumming continue)
[00:37:30.212](music intensifies)
[00:38:01.472](bells, chanting and drumming continue)
[00:38:20.174](drumming intensifies)
[00:38:31.030](bells, chanting and drumming continue)
[00:38:57.489](drumming intensifies)
[00:39:06.969](bells and chanting continue) (drumming diminishes)
[00:39:25.975](drumming intensifies)
[00:39:37.813](bells, chanting and drumming continue)
[00:39:51.003](drums crescendo to a stop)
[00:39:56.623](music ends)
[00:40:00.936](audience applauding)
[00:40:13.000]Thank you.
[00:40:14.040]Everyone looks so beautiful out there.
[00:40:15.870]Thank you to everyone who joined us for that inner tribal
[00:40:18.450]and we filled up Kyle's hat. Wa do.
[00:40:21.809](laughing) (drumming)
[00:40:23.949](audience applauding)
[00:40:28.770]I just wanted to acknowledge another dignitary that arrived.
[00:40:31.770]Senator Patty Pansing Brooks is joining us this morning.
[00:40:34.768](audience applauding) (drums banging)
[00:40:40.680]Patty is a dear, dear friend
[00:40:43.110]to indigenous people here in Nebraska.
[00:40:44.910]So we're so glad to see her here.
[00:40:46.350]Thank you for being here.
[00:40:47.974]At this time,
[00:40:48.960]I'd like to welcome my auntie Renee
[00:40:50.880]to share a poem with us. Renee.
[00:40:55.950]And this is Renee San Susi.
[00:41:06.450]Well, good morning.
[00:41:08.978](speaking in Native American language)
[00:41:29.880]So today, what I said is, let me introduce myself.
[00:41:33.480]My name is Sacred Horsewoman.
[00:41:36.540]My English or white man name is Renee San Susi.
[00:41:41.190]I'm an Omaha woman.
[00:41:43.980]And first and foremost
[00:41:46.470]to our
[00:41:49.350]Otoe-Missouria relatives.
[00:41:54.000]I want to say welcome home.
[00:41:57.421](speaking Native American language)
[00:41:59.790]It's good you're home.
[00:42:04.410]And
[00:42:07.140]I was sharing last night a bit, you know,
[00:42:09.780]just as you know what nephew Corey said,
[00:42:14.820]we always have to be humorous as well.
[00:42:16.950]We can be really super serious and then turn it on,
[00:42:20.850]you know, on the end and say, you know,
[00:42:22.860]other crazy things.
[00:42:24.986](speaking Native American) I'm crazy.
[00:42:27.420]I will say whatever sometimes. And you know,
[00:42:30.180]not think about it til much later.
[00:42:32.790]But today I just wanted to recite this poem,
[00:42:35.880]but I wanted to give a background as to what this is like,
[00:42:38.790]you know what this poem is about.
[00:42:40.800]And it is a short, I mean, it isn't a long poem.
[00:42:44.130]It is a fairly short poem,
[00:42:46.740]but I had a request and from my brother,
[00:42:49.650]Kevin Abourezk and he asked if I would come
[00:42:53.100]and recite this poem at this event.
[00:42:57.030]And for me,
[00:42:58.170]a lot of times I never know what I'm getting into.
[00:43:03.210]You know, I agree. And I will say, yes, I'll be there.
[00:43:06.030]You know,
[00:43:06.863]and I have no idea what's going on or what has been planned
[00:43:09.360]or anything, but I'm here, you know.
[00:43:11.430]That's how it usually works for me.
[00:43:13.410]And I want to do things in a good way
[00:43:15.960]just as my mom had taught me
[00:43:18.150]and my mom was always my main teacher.
[00:43:20.910]And I can tell you scolded me many times over
[00:43:23.610]because of, you know, maybe my behavior or misbehavior.
[00:43:28.140]And learning though, is part of that process.
[00:43:34.200]I wanted to also say something about, you know, the history.
[00:43:40.230]There's so many history books written about our people
[00:43:43.020]here in Nebraska.
[00:43:45.270]And one of them was the dispossession
[00:43:47.910]of the Nebraska Indians by David Wisher.
[00:43:51.510]David Wisher had come to the Omaha tribe
[00:43:54.660]must have been like 2000 or something like that.
[00:43:57.390]And spoke to us and asked,
[00:44:00.300]you know, what we thought of what he had written.
[00:44:03.510]And we all gave him some thoughts,
[00:44:06.540]the elders that were there that were alive at that time.
[00:44:10.080]But one thing what I wanted to say first off,
[00:44:13.320]before I read this poem,
[00:44:14.550]at the very beginning,
[00:44:17.610]what was written, what stated by one of the Omaha relatives,
[00:44:23.190]ancestors, says now the face of the land is changed and sad.
[00:44:30.510]The living creatures are gone.
[00:44:33.390]I see the land desolate and I suffer unspeakable sadness.
[00:44:39.810]Sometimes I wake in the night and feel as though
[00:44:43.740]I should suffocate from the pressure
[00:44:46.860]of this awful feeling of loneliness.
[00:44:50.160]And this was from White Horse,
[00:44:52.962](speaking Native American) of the Omaha.
[00:44:56.250]August 13th, 1912.
[00:45:00.240]And that unspeakable sadness is what he entitled his book
[00:45:06.150]because each one of us that are from this land,
[00:45:10.577]we have that in us.
[00:45:13.320]We have that and it's ongoing. It doesn't relent.
[00:45:18.930]However, even as that's being said,
[00:45:21.600]we continue relentlessly going forward
[00:45:26.790]in our daily lives,
[00:45:28.800]in everything that we have to do
[00:45:30.360]to take care of our families.
[00:45:32.940]You know, our children, all our loved ones, our elders.
[00:45:37.980]And so with that being said, I wanted to share,
[00:45:42.000]I called this poem when I see them returning.
[00:45:47.610]And last night I shared a bit about that.
[00:45:50.430]I was on my way back from Wisconsin yesterday
[00:45:55.260]and on our way back,
[00:45:58.110]all the clouds were there before us.
[00:46:01.260]And I'm a great believer in that because I always see things
[00:46:04.680]in the clouds and in the sky.
[00:46:06.330]And you know, I always see the signs, as I say,
[00:46:10.260]And I looked as I was driving,
[00:46:13.110]because they were like directly in front of me
[00:46:14.940]and all those clouds that were lined up, looked like people.
[00:46:20.370]And I never seen the clouds look like that before.
[00:46:23.460]Not like that. So distinct the figures.
[00:46:26.550]Each person that was standing there. And faces.
[00:46:30.420]And then I saw horses and I was like thinking
[00:46:34.140]and I told my kids, I said, look, you know,
[00:46:37.350]the ancestors are looking at us.
[00:46:40.950]And then I started to make sense of it.
[00:46:42.870]And I said, those are the Otoe relatives coming home.
[00:46:48.720]Because I knew that you were traveling up here
[00:46:51.210]the same time I was traveling back here,
[00:46:55.230]back to your homelands.
[00:46:57.570]So I titled this poem "when I see them returning".
[00:47:05.190]A clear day was upon us when I saw them returning
[00:47:10.470]between the showers and the Hills.
[00:47:14.310]A new energy emerged when I saw them returning.
[00:47:19.710]Outlines of ancestors in white clouds, above.
[00:47:26.340]A representation of life. When I saw saw them returning.
[00:47:31.350]Of memories and sorrow
[00:47:33.630]embedded in each heart.
[00:47:37.740]A time now of healing.
[00:47:40.357]When I saw them returning.
[00:47:45.652]A time now of healing.
[00:47:49.800]To get back the land, when I saw them returning,
[00:47:56.970]That's how this poem has, you know, shaped out.
[00:48:00.570]I never quite know how a poem's gonna go,
[00:48:04.230]but I wanted to share that with my Otoe-Missouria.
[00:48:08.550]I'm trying to say it correctly.
[00:48:12.210]And I know I'll need that guidance and the language.
[00:48:15.780]And I think it's (speaking Native American),
[00:48:25.320]And I thank you so much, for this honor.
[00:48:29.100]To be able to also be a part of this historic day
[00:48:33.330]and to be able to welcome you back to your homelands.
[00:48:36.329](speaking Native American language)
[00:48:38.250]That's what we say at Omaha.
[00:48:40.080]We call Lincoln, (speaking Native American).
[00:48:42.574]The means "salt town".
[00:48:44.610]That's what we've called it for, who knows how long.
[00:48:48.870]So thank you so much.
[00:48:50.884](speaking Native American)
[00:48:54.833]And what I'll say finally is, land back, baby, let's go.
[00:48:57.913](audience applauding) (drums banging)
[00:49:00.725](speaking Native American)
[00:49:25.770]Thank you so much, Renee San Susi for your beautiful poem,
[00:49:29.460]your words and, and for everything that you do
[00:49:31.950]for this community.
[00:49:34.770]At this time, I'd like to welcome Mike Valerio
[00:49:38.040]who will be offering an honor song
[00:49:40.230]and he'll be joined by his brothers
[00:49:42.660]from the Lincoln Indian center drum group.
[00:49:45.240]Thank you, Mike.
[00:49:46.892](indistinct distant chattering)
[00:49:54.192](drumming begins)
[00:50:00.224](chanting begins)
[00:50:05.857](drumming and chanting intensifies)
[00:50:31.396](drumming and chanting continues)
[00:50:38.381](drumming and chanting intensifies)
[00:51:02.127](drumming and chanting continues)
[00:51:33.535](drumming and chanting intensifies)
[00:51:47.451](drumming and chanting continues)
[00:52:07.337](drumming and chanting intensifies)
[00:52:33.156](drumming and chanting diminishes)
[00:52:36.947](drumming and chanting intensifies)
[00:52:55.822](drumming and chanting continues)
[00:53:08.785](drumming and chanting intensifies)
[00:53:37.315](drumming and chanting build to a finish)
[00:53:43.084](crowd cheering/applauding) (drum banging)
[00:53:47.920]Thank you. Big wa do.
[00:53:49.316]Thank you for that honor song.
[00:53:52.290]For those of you who are joining us for lunch,
[00:53:54.450]I just wanted to let you know that that location
[00:53:56.730]has been changed to the lead commons,
[00:53:59.880]which is just across the street.
[00:54:02.010]And we will have folks help you find your way there.
[00:54:05.700]At this time,
[00:54:06.533]I'd like to re invite my auntie Renee San Susi
[00:54:11.160]back here to offer a closing prayer.
[00:54:14.370]And then the Otoe-Missouria drum group
[00:54:16.680]will offer a closing prayer song.
[00:54:32.951](speaking Native American language) Everyone.
[00:54:39.079](speaking Native American language)
[00:54:51.360]Give a blessing to our (speaking Native American)
[00:55:01.230]relatives who are here today.
[00:55:03.810]Today is a good day.
[00:55:07.380]Thank you for bringing us all together, creator.
[00:55:12.180]Thank you to the ancestors,
[00:55:14.130]to the spirits that watch over us and help us.
[00:55:18.930]Thank you to everyone today. Creator, bring a blessing here.
[00:55:26.160]Bring a blessing to all our families,
[00:55:29.760]to all our loved ones who are in mourning.
[00:55:35.550]All our loved ones who are battling illness,
[00:55:39.330]who are struggling in many different ways.
[00:55:45.180]Help us with understanding, good health and happiness.
[00:55:51.900]Today is a good day.
[00:55:55.110]And we thank you.
[00:55:56.130]I thank you, for the blessings of my family.
[00:56:03.300]And help us as we go forward.
[00:56:05.760]Bring a blessing to the people who are all gonna be a part
[00:56:10.260]of this homecoming, from this time onward.
[00:56:15.090]Help us to look to the future
[00:56:18.120]and that the future for our generations to come
[00:56:22.380]will be a blessed one.
[00:56:24.390]That they will have everything they need.
[00:56:29.250]Thank you so much creator for everything.
[00:56:33.564](speaking Native American language)
[00:56:45.642](drumming begins)
[00:56:50.064](chanting begins)
[00:57:09.208](drumming and chanting continues)
[00:57:39.214](drumming and chanting intensifies)
[00:58:02.479](drumming and chanting continues)
[00:58:12.561](drumming diminishes) (chanting continues)
[00:58:20.626](drumming stops) (chanting continues)
[00:58:26.506](drumming and chanting continues)
[00:58:37.363](drumming and chanting build to end)
[00:58:40.177](audience cheering)
[00:58:45.933]This concludes our proclamation ceremony.
[00:58:48.420]I wanna thank each and every one of you
[00:58:50.100]for being here, for celebrating.
[00:58:52.320]And a big heartfelt welcome home
[00:58:54.570]to our Otoe-Missouria relatives.
[00:58:57.360]Thank you and have a great day.
[00:58:58.771](audience applauding/cheering)

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Otoe-Missouria Day: Sept. 21, 2022

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