News about the movement to change the name of the Rum River.
An article of mine about a Febuary 20, 2019, Mille Lacs Messenger newspaper letter to the editor of mine about, in part,
the Rum River Name Change Movement is titled
My Revolutionary Mille Lacs Messenger
Letter To The Editor.
On Feb.28, 2019, I posted an article of mine on-line titled
MY REVOLUTIONARY MILLE LACS MESSENGER LETTER TO THE EDITOR
On September 7, 2016, Indian Country Today Media Network, the world's largest Indian news source, published an article
by Steven Newcomb, a world-renowned indigenous peoples' rights activist. The article is entitled
Vicious Dogs and Coercion Unleashed on Original Free Nations. ICTMN posted one comment on
the article. It is my comment. It reads:
Good article Mr. Newcomb! You wrote: "Franklin (Indians + Rum = Land)". In his
autobiography 1706-1757 (Chapter 8) Benjamin Franklin wrote: "If it be the design of Providence to extirpate these Savages in order to make room for cultivators of the
Earth, it seems not improbable that rum may be the appointed means." I, Thomas Ivan Dahlheimer, am the co-founder and director
of Rum River Name Change Organization. In a book published by the Minnesota Historical Society, a book entitled,
Minnesota Geographic Names: Their Origins and Historic Significances, its author Warren Upham wrote, when referring
to the Sioux: "Their name of Mille Lacs, Mde Wakan, translated Spirit lake, was given to its river, but was
changed by the white man to the most common spirituous liquor brought into the Northwest, rum, which brought
misery and ruin to many of the Indians." Upham also wrote: [This] "badly named river", was given its current
name by a "punning translation" of the sacred Sioux name for the river. The name Rum is "the white men's
perversion of the ancient Sioux name Wakan." In the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community's letter of support
for the effort to change this river's profane name, and also help protect this sacred Dakota/Sioux site,
Jim Anderson wrote: "I believe that renaming the river 'Wakpa Wakan' or 'Spirit River' is a great stride in
mending the circle that we share with all four colors of man. The Rum River Name Change Organization's
website is located at http://www.towahkon.org/
On August 26, 2016, Indian Country Today Media Network, published an article by Chief Arvol Looking Horse
entitled Important Message from Keeper of Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe. Chief Looking Horse is widely recognized as the chief and spiritual
leader of the Lakota, Dakota and Nakota nations. He is also a world-renowned Indian/Indigenous activist. He is a guest
columnist for ICTMN and his prayers have opened numerous sessions of the United Nations. He is working to
spiritually unite the global community within a new eco-spirituality movement happening within religions all
over the world to save Mother Earth's life supporting ecosystem from its current in crisis and dying predicament,
and is doing so, by inspiring the world community to honor and protect Sacred Sites around the world. This
article of his has three comments posted on it. My comment is the second comment. It reads:
In the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community's letter of support for the effort to change the faulty-English
translation name, a profane name, for a Minnesota river [the Rum River] and in doing so help protect this sacred
Dakota site, Jim Anderson wrote: "I believe that renaming the river 'Wakpa Wakan' or 'Spirit River' is a great
stride in mending the circle that we share with all four colors of man. ..." I, Thomas Ivan Dahlheimer, am the
co-founder and director of Rum River Name-Change Organization, Inc.. The movement to change this river's name
has local, national and international support. I am also working to bring about a spiritually united global
community so that sacred sites will be protected. My website is located at http://www.towahkon.org/Tomssite.htm
On August 29, 2015, the administration for the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Tribal
Community's website and facebook-site published an online open letter of mine entitled Open Letter To County Commissioners Pondering Rum River Name-Change
Effort. My open letter on these sites can be found and read
here and
here.
On August 20, 2015, the Anoka County Union, Anoka County's official newspaper (having a circulation
of 4,200) published a letter to the editor, by our director, entitled "
Name of Rum River should be changed"
The "Rum" (Wahkon) River flows through Princeton, Minnesota. The Princeton-Union-Eagle is the
city's official newspaper. On August 12, 2015, this newspaper published my "guest columnist"
article entitled
Changing name of Rum River will aid healing process.
On August 7, 2015, Larry Spotted Crow Mann (Nipmuc), an internationally acclaimed writer
and motivational
speaker involving youth sobriety, cultural and environmental awareness, had an
article of his published in Indian Country Today Media Network, the world's largest
Indian news source. The article is entitled,
Booze, Drugs and the Brutal Efficiency
of Unnatural Selection. It has two selective comments on it. One of the comments
is my comment. It's a 470 word comment.
On August 4, 2015, an on-line open letter of mine entitled
Open Letter To County Commissioners Pondering Rum River Name-Change
Effort was posted on my website.
On July 23, 2015, an on-line open letter of mine entitled Open Letter To City Councils Pondering Rum River Name-Change
Effort was posted on my site.
On June 21, 2015, the Star Tribune, Minnesota's best-selling daily newspaper, published an
article titled
Time to fix the Rum River error?,
by Curt Brown, a writer who authors a weekly Star Tribune Sunday feature on
Minnesota's history.
On November 26, 2013 Isanti County News, a Minnesota county newspaper, published a story
about the unveiling of the Cambridge-Isanti Spirit River Trail interpretive sign.
The story is titled
New historical marker in Cambridge depicts history of Spirit River
Trail. The story includes a story by our director
(Thomas Ivan Dahlheimer) about the effort to change the Rum River's profane name.
**********************************************
The Mille Lacs Messenger, Mille Lacs County's newspaper, published a story,
by our director, about the a Isanti county historical event that promoted
the effort to change the "Rum River's" derogatory name. The story is titled
Interpretive sign gets it right
Trail
**********************************************
Isanti County
map sign for a Cambridge-Isanti
Bike/Walk trail. This trail was named Spirit River Trail instead of "Rum River Trail."
To read an Isanti County News article about this trail click
here
*******************************
On October 4, 2012, the Isanti-Chisago County Star published an article titled
Putting spirit back in the Rum
*******************************
On April 16, 2012, Arizona's largest state-wide daily newspaper, The Arizona Republic,
published an article by Dennis Wagner, titled,
Tribes embrace native names to preserve culture; its subtitle is:
Return to original place names preserves cultures, fixes wrongs. The article is about
a national movement to preserve Native culture...by replacing derogatory
English place names, such as Squaw, Redskins, Savages, etc., with (preferably) their original Native names and also
restoring Native names to sacred
places/sites. This same article is published on the
USA Today newspaper's website. At this website it is titled:
ancient echoes: tribes embrace native names
.
A few quotes from the article read:
"Indigenous words denote a sense of culture, and their use reflects an evolving trend
in Indian country. Still, as tribes attempt to resurrect history and instill pride
through native place names, they face a gamut of political, practical and financial
obstacles from Alaska to Arizona."
"Basso, a retired University of New Mexico professor who once lived among the
Apaches, says he does not see a coordinated movement to rename landmarks
in Indian country, but a diffuse trend."
"Manley Begay, a professor of American Indian studies at the
University of Arizona, says the phenomenon appears to be catching
on nationally, in part because of increased cultural awareness
in mainstream society."
Dennis Wagner interviewed me for the article. Mr. Wagner is a reporter
at The Arizona Republic and correspondent
for USA Today, the widest circulated print newspaper in the United States.
The article includes a
segment titled, Translation of insults, in it there are three paragraphs
about my effort to change several Minnesota place names. "Snake River" and
"Rum River" where mentioned.
My effort to change the faulty-translation and insulting place
name ["Rum River"] is also an effort to return or restore the orginal sacred
Dakota/Lakota/Native name [Wakan] to this river or sacred place/site.
Wagner wrote: "Thomas Dahlheimer, a Minnesota activist, helped promote an unsuccessful
bill in his state that would have changed several place names,
including 'Snake River' and 'Rum River'."
"Dahlheimer, who is not Native American, says those words are
English-language translations of insulting names directed
at Lakota tribes by rival Indian groups. In fact, he adds,
the 'Sioux' name is a foreign misnomer for Lakota people."
"Dahlheimer says the legislation was stymied in part by Indian groups:
"They were concerned about getting people mad at them in the dominant
culture, and not going to the casinos."
My internet site for promoting the restoration of Native names to geographic sites is titled:
Restore Native Names To Sacred Sites
.
***********************************************************
I spoke with a prominent member of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe.
He is campaigning to become the Chief Executive of the Mille Lacs Band. We
talked about his campaign. He said he might state in an upcoming Mille
Lacs Messenger column about his political platform... that he wants the
Mille Lacs Band to support the effort to restore the sacred Dakota
name [Wakan] to the "Rum River".
We are working to initiate a movement to bring the Mille Lacs Band
and the Dakota together in the Mille Lacs area... to help heal the hurtful
wounds of past Dakota-Ojibwe conflicts, mostly caused by the people
of European descent who invaded their sacred homelands, desecrated
them, and then took possession of them. And while doing so,
forced the Dakota and Ojibwe to live in a subjugated state of
existence. A state of existence that they remain in to
this present day.
***************************************************************
Wikipedea published, both, Jim Anderson's Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Cummunity letter
supporting the effort to change the disrespectful "Rum River" name and a "Mdewakanton Dakota"
clarification statement.
Wikipedia Anderson's letter
***************************************************************
In Febuary 2012, Dennis Wagner, a correspondent for USA Today, called me. He is writing a story
about the national movement to not only change derogatory geographic place names that
are disrespectful and offensive to Native Americans, but also about the movement to
restore Native names to sacred sites. My movement to change the derogatory Rum River name
is also a movement to restore a Native name to a sacred site.
During Wagner's and my conversation, he mentioned the name of the leader of a
movement to restore Native names to scared sites. His name is Robert Satiacum.
He is the leader of the Restore Native Names Alliance. I recently joined the
Alliance. Wagner was influential in bringing Satiacum and I together.
***************************************************************
Robert Satiacum recently called me. We talked about the efforts in Minnesota to change
14 derogatory names that are offensive to Natives and also restore the sacred Dakota/Native
name [Wakan] to the badly named "Rum River".
***************************************************************
There is now a new Rum River Name Change Organization Secretary. She (Kathy) is one-forth Lakota.
The headwaters of the Wakan/"Rum" River is the ancient spiritual center of her Dakota ancestor's
sacred homeland. Kathy lives in the Wakan/"Rum" River watershed.
***************************************************************
There is a groundswell of support, especially in Isanti County, for the effort
to change the derogatory and profane (faulty-translation) name of Minnesota's
"Rum River". Some evidence of this groundswell of support can be witnesses by
the number of sites that have recently been named "Spirit River" or
"Wakan River". To view a list of sites named "Spirit River" or "Wakan River"
click groundswell of support
.
*************************************************************************
Kriste Ericsson, a supporter of the effort to change the name of the Rum River and the facilitator for the
(currently named) Friends of the Rum River group has been corresponding with me. She has provided me with some
good suggestions as to how to gain support for the effort to change the derogatory name of the Rum River.
*************************************************************************
There is now a retail store front in Anoka, Minnesota named, Spirit River - Gallery & Exchange.
Anoka's Spirit River retail store website
.
Information on the Spirit River website about the store's name associated
with the movement to change the name of the Rum River can be found by clicking Spirit River
.
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Article Minnesota bill to change derogatory names
This article presents information about our directors recent correspondence with Annamarie Hill-Kleinhans, the Executive
Director of the Minnesota Indian Affairs Council, and Representative Dear Urdahl.
*************************************************************************
The following information just recently appeared on Google search engine's [Thomas Dahlheimer] links.
LONG LAKE IMPROVEMENT ASSOCIATION, INC.
NEWSLETTER
November, 2006
BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING
NOTE:
There have also been articles in the local newspapers regarding the name, RUM RIVER. The Dakota Indians
referred to it as SPIRIT RIVER. Rum brought misery and ruin to many of the Indians said Thomas Dahlheimer.
Will they change the name of the Rum River? The Rum runs through many counties, townships, etc. so it
will take a long time if they do decide to change the name to SPIRIT RIVER.
source-newsletter
***************************************************************************
During the December 1st Anoka City Council Meeting, Phil Rice, a member of the Anoka City Council and mayor
elect, spoke about how the Rum River received its current profane name and suggested that the council use the
Dakota Indians' sacred name for the river [Wakan], translated to mean Spirit or Great Spirit, when giving the Rum River Nature Area, recently
designated as a new city park, an official city park name. The park was given the name Anoka Nature Preserve.
The council chose not to use the propane Rum River name when giving the park a name. And in Minnesota's best-selling
state-wide newspaper, the Star Tribune, there is an article that presents the following
statement: "The council decided to mention Wakan in a large interpretive sign bearing the park's new name and
explaining park origins. American Indians have said early white setters, knowing the Indian name meant "spirit,"
used the Rum River name as a derogatory allusion to alcohol spirits."
A televised recording of the Anoka City Council Meeting can be viewed by clicking "council decided to mention Wakan in a large interpretive sign"
***************************************************************************
We recently found another on-line article about the canoe expedition on the Wakpa Wakan (Rum River) that conected Dakota
youth with the past. This article, published in The Circle, can be viewed and read by clicking A scouting party for the future: canoeing the Wakan Wakpa
On August 31, 2008 Indigenous Peoples Literature post our director's update article about the
effort
to change the name of the Rum River. To view and read this article click Prohibition Party's
interest in indigenous Healty Nations Program
. This article, along with links to references, can
also be viewed and read by clicking Care2.com posting.
On August 13, 2008 the Mille Lacs Messenger published our director's letter, titled Change river name
Our director recently submitted the July 2, 2008 Isanti County News article
Canoe expedition connects Dakota youth with past
to the (12,000 member) Sisseton Wahpeton Dakota Nation's newspaper
and it was published in Sota Volume #32 Issue #32 Wednesday, August 6, 2008
addition.
Care2 article: Dakota Indians reclaiming their Wakpa Wakan (Rum River)
A Minneapolis American Indian Center Dakota boy's group canoed down the Wakpa Wakan
(Rum River) to connect with the past and to proclaim that their people's Wakpa
Wakan
Watershead ancestral/traditional homeland is still concidered sacred to
them and other Dakota people.
Dakota boy's group (Isanti County News) article - about
reclaiming the Wakpa Wakan (Rum River)...
The Mille Lacs Times reported Dakota boy's
canoe expedition down the Wakpa Wakan (Rum River)...
Old News:
******************************************************************************
Indian Country Today, the world's leading American Indian news source, recently published
an article which includes a paragraph about the movement to change the profane Rum River name.
It is located at:
http://nativeamericanminn150.org/archives/250
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The Mendota Mdewkanton Dakota Community (MMDC) recently posted a "Rum River Name Change Organization" webpage on, both, its
website and sister website. Its title is "Videos of the Dakota's Wakan/"Rum" River Watershed ancestral
homeland".
Videos - MMDC website
Videos - MMDC sister website
*******************************************************************************
Letter of support from Rev. Sequoyah Kofi bin-Tomas, an internationally regarded
essayist and Indigenist political commentator. He has
been called one of North America's most articulate and
uncompromising post-colonialist voices examining the
motives, means and end results of 500 years of
pro-Eurocentric global exploitation. His highly
informative writings and public discussions have been
studied in university courses and political action
groups in the U.S. and abroad.
Nearly one hundred of his essays and commentaries have
appeared in various international political journals
and periodicals.
His written works and recorded interviews have been
translated into Mandarin, German, French, Japanese,
Tagalog, Spanish and Korean.
Rev. Sequoyah Kofi-Ade website is located at
http://www.geocities.com/angryindian/
His letter supporting the effort to change the name of
the Rum River and regain the Dakota people's Wakan/"Mille
Lacs" Lake ancestral/traditional homeland can be viewed and read at:
letter of support
*******************************************************************************
Letter of support from Roman Catholic Archbishop Harry Flynn:
April 10, 2008
Thomas Dahlheimer
PO Box 24
Wahkon, MN 56386
Dear Thomas,
Many, many thanks for your kindness in writing me on March 29th, 2008. I was happy to hear from
you and happy to know of the progress that has been made in the movement to change the name of
the Rum River back to its sacred Dakota name.
You are to be congratulated. You have been gracious and confident in your great work and it is
my hope and prayer that others will appreciate all the efforts that you have put into this
great work. I send blessings to you and to all those will participate in your great reunion.
With many, many blessings and many good wishes, I remain
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Most Reverend Harry J. Flynn, D.D.
Archbishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis
_______________________________________________________________________________
Indigenous Peoples' Literature (IPL) is an indigenous peoples news website where
internationally renowned indigenous activists articles are often posted. IPL recently posted
a Pioneer Press article about the effort to change the name of the Rum River. It can be viewed
and read by clicking Rum River may flow
back to its roots
Lake Traverse Reservation is located in South Dakota and is home to 10,840 Sisseton-Wahpeton
Sioux (Dakota) people. It is composed of descendants of the Isanti people. Isan means "Knife" and
Isanti refers to the Knife Lake and Mille Lacs Lake people of the Dakota nation. On
March 31, 2008 C.D. Floro, the editor of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Sioux (Dakota) Tribe's
weekly on-line newspaper
Sota Iva Ye Yapi
published the mentioned above Pioneer Press article. The Pioneer Press is a Minnesota
state-wide daily newspaper
_______________________________________________________________________________
Our director (Tom Dahlheimer) attended the March 20, 2008 Anoka Human Rights Commission meeting
and spoke to the commission for about forty five minutes and answered questions for another
fifteen minutes. Tom spoke for quite a while about the true history of the
Wakan/"Rum" River Watershed, mentioning how two 15th century papal bulls and
European international colonial law bases on those papal bulls played a big part
in respect to what happened to the area’s Dakota and Ojibwe people. Tom also
spoke for quite a while about the history of the movement to change the name of the
Rum River back to its sacred Dakota name.
It was a good meeting and Tom was invited to be a guest during the commission’s next meeting in
April. The commission also invited Jim Anderson, the Cultural Chair and Historian for the Mendota
Mdewakanton Dakota Community, and other MMDC members to attend and address the commission
during its next meeting. Tom also spoke to the commission about a friend of his who is
a prominent member of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe. Tom told the commission that he
also supports the effort to change the name of the "Rum River" back to its sacred
Dakota name.
The commission asked Tom what the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community and he would
like for it to do. Tom told the commission that the MMDC and he would be grateful if
the commission would bring up a resolution supporting Representative Mike Jaros’ bill
to change our state’s derogatory names, and ask the Anoka City Council to do the same...
and help us to fully establish an Anoka Dakota Unity Alliance, an alliance similar
to the successful
Winona Dakota Unity Alliance ; and also help us to gain support
for our initiatives from Anoka residents.
_______________________________________________________________________________
The "Rum River’ flows through the Isanti County seat (Cambridge, Minnesota), a city with a
population of 5,520. Recently, our director called the Mayor of Cambridge and told her that
Jim Anderson, the Cultural Chair and Historian for the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community
(MMDC), and himself would like to meet with her and discuss topics such as (1.) the plan to,
hopefully, have a small MMDC Pow Wow in Cambridge this summer and during the Pow Wow thank
and honor the City of Cambridge, Anoka-Hennepin Cambridge Campus administration and the
Isanti County Living By Design administration for creating Spirit River Nature Area and
changing a street name from Rum River Drive to Spirit River Drive (2.) requesting an
official city council letter of support for the effort to change the name of the river
(3.) establishing a Cambridge Dakota Unity Alliance and holding annual Pow Wows, cross
cultural education programs, blend spirituality services, etc.
The mayor told our director that she would like to have Jim Anderson address the city
council and that she would notify the Anoka-Hennepin Cambridge Campus administration to
let its members know that the MMDC would like to collaborate with the
City of Cambridge and the Anoka-Hennepin Cambridge Campus as well as take part in
reconciliatory and unity events. The Mayor then told our director that she would call
him in the near future to let him known when Jim Anderson can address the Cambridge
City Council.
_______________________________________________________________________________
The "Rum River" flows through Anoka, Minnesota where it also finds its confluence with the
Mississippi River. The president of Anoka’s Windego Park Society recently contacted our
director and informed him that she and the
Windego Park Society support our effort to change
the name of the river and that she will be sending us an official letter of support in the
near future. She also informed our director that WPS is presently planning two outdoor spring
and summer events in Anoka and that she would like to find a way to promote the mission of
the Rum River Name Change Movement at these events. In addition, she informed our director
that she would suggest to the Windego Park Society (WPS) board of directors that WPS
encourage members and patrons to support the renaming of Anoka’s Rum River Nature Area to
Spirit River Nature Area. This Anoka society is an influential society. One of it's
board members is the President of the Anoka County Historical Society.
_______________________________________________________________________________
The Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community (MMDC) has a new website and there is a link on this
Mdewakanton community's home-page titled: Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community's letter of support.
The letter is about the MMDC's support for the name-change of the Rum River.
You can go directly to the information on this link
by clicking
MMDC letter . Another MMDC home-page website link is
titled: Derogatory name changes supported by Mendota Mdewakanton
Dakota Community Pow Wow. You can go directly to the information on this link
by clicking
MMDC pow wow support . If you click the MMDC website's
NEWS & POLITICS link and scroll down to the booklet titled "Mdewakanton
Dakota Rights Activist Initiatives" you can view and read more information
about the movement to change the name of the Rum River in this booklet. Or you can go directly
to this booklet by clicking the MMDC's sister website link
Mdewakanton Dakota Rights Activist Initiatives
_______________________________________________________________________________
Greg Peterson, the volunteer media advisor for the Turtle Island Project
, is helping us with our project to change the name of the Rum River. Mr.
Peterson recently informed us that he is going to publish the March 10th, 2008 Saint Paul Pioneer
Press article
about our effort to change the name of
the Rum River in many places. Indigenous Peoples Literature, a news website with a large
global readership, recently posted
the Pioneer Press article on its news site.
_______________________________________________________________________________
An article about our movement to change the name of the Rum River was recently published in
Minnesota's Aitkin County newspaper, the Aitkin Independent Age. This article can be viewed
and read by clicking Aitkin Independent Age article
________________________________________________________________________________
On March 10th, 2008 - the Saint Paul Pioneer Press, a Minnesota state-wide daily newspaper,
published an article about the effort to change the name of the Rum River. It can be viewed and read by clicking
Saint Paul Pioneer Press article
_______________________________________________________________________________
Cambridge, Minnesota named a nature area located along side the "Rum River" Spirit River Nature Area
instead of "Rum River Nature Area". And Cambridge also changed the name of West Rum River Drive
to West Spirit River Drive. In a newspaper article an Cambridge official said that the city
took up the cause of Dahlheimer (our director) when renaming West Rum River Drive.
Our director has been trying for ten years to influence Anoka to change the names of streets,
parks and a nature area that are named Rum, such as Rum River Drive, Rum River Park and
Rum River Nature Area, etc..
During a recent meeting with the mayor of Anoka, Bjorn Skogquest, Anoka's mayor, told
Jim Anderson, the Cultural Chair for the Mendota Mdewkanton Dakota Community, and our director
that he was quite sure that there is a movement to change the name of Rum River Nature Area.
His brother [Eric] recently informed our director that there is a "park naming contest" and
that the nature area named Rum River Nature Area will be recieving a new name.
It's now officially a park, without a name, and two new park properties
will also recieve names.
City of Anoka newsletter information about this issue:
Park Naming Contest
:
** A 200-acre Conservation Area on the property currently referred to as the Rum River Nature
Area located north of CR 116 and west of 7th Avenue (deadline June 1st).
Suggestions for park/facility names must not infringe any trademarks or licensed products.
Please no local or nationally recognized sports teams, athletic associations, or living people.
Names associated with the natural features of the landscape (rivers, wetlands, etc), natural
resource related attributes (wildlife, vegetation, geologic feature), historic significance
or amenities are preferred. Include a brief statement of support for the suggested name.
Suggestions may be made by phone or e-mail to the Parks Department. Leave a message
at 763-576-2983 or send an email to parkadmn@ci.anoka.mn.us.
The winning submission for each location will receive one (1) season pass to the Anoka
Aquatic Center.
*******************************************************************************
Claus Zundel, a German musician who’s worldwide album sales is estimated to be over 15
million copies (Sacred Spirit being his most successful project), has
his Scared Spirit
album advertised on mp3cow. A Star Isanti
County newspaper article
about our movement to change the
name of the Rum River back to its sacred Dakota name Wakan, which translated means
Spirit or Great Spirit, is presented beneath Mr. Zundel’s mp3cow picture of his Sacred
Spirit Album. For each Sacred Spirit album sold, a donation is made to the Native
American Rights Fund, the non-profit American Indian organization devoting all
its time to restoring the legal rights of the native American people. Sacred Spirit
album is Zundel’s second multi-million selling project.
*******************************************************************************
While looking at Yahoo.com search engine’s "Rum River Name Change Movement" links we recently
discovered that a segment of our site’s "News" page was posted in Inteligentaindigena Novajogervo,
an international Indigenist newswire, and that it was posted by "The Angryindian" an
internationally recognized Indigist activist.
The Intelligent Aboriginal Indigenist Newsblog is the only non-partisan international
Indigenist newswire that consciously monitors, deconstructs, and challenges neo-liberal,
neo-conservative and neo-colonialist propaganda in the Europocentic dominated, anti-Indigenous;
anti-African corporate mainstream media.
Reporting from: Indian Country, North America, United States
Data: "The Angryindian" is an internationally recognised Indigenist activist and an
outspoken critic of U.S. colonialism practised against Aboriginal societies in America and
abroad. He is editor of the Indigenist newsblog InteligentaIndigena and the host of Radyo
Intelligentaboriginal, an independent, non-partisan international Indigenist podcast. He
has given his support for the effort to change the name of the Rum River back to its sacred
Dakota name Wakan (Spirit), the traditional name for the Dakota-Lakota-Nakota’s
Great Spirit.
The post can be viewed and read by clicking
Inteligentaindigena Novajogervo
*******************************************************************************
A nature area in Cambridge, Minnesota was name Spirit River Nature Area instead of Rum River
Nature Area. It was named Spirit River Nature Area to show respect for the Dakota
Indian’s cultural history and language. And more recently a street located near Spirit
River Nature Area, a nature area that is located alongside the Wakan/"Rum" River,
was named Spirit River Drive. It is located next to the Cambridge Campus of Anoka-Ramsey
Community College.
In an article posted on IsantiCountyNew.com where are the words: "Johns further noted the
college will pursue more building projects in the near future, thanks to an additional
21.5 acres of land and the realignment of the newly named Spirit River Drive."
The IsantiCountyNews.com article that mentions the "Spirit River Drive" can be viewed and read by
clicking Spirit River Drive
To view a picture of this Cambridge street sign click Spirit River Drive
*******************************************************************************
Anoka Minnesota is a city located at the confluence of the Wakan/"Rum" and Mississippi rivers.
It has a population of around 18,076. Bjorn Skogquist, the mayor of Anoka, scheduled a meeting with
Jim Anderson and our director on the 29th of February. Jim Anderson is the Mendota Mdewakanton
Dakota Community’s Cultural Chair and Historian. An Anoka-Hennepin Indian Education School District
11 Parent Committee and Staff meeting that was scheduled for the 25th of February was canceled.
Therefore, Jim Anderson and our director will not be addressing the committee and staff until
April 31st.
*******************************************************************************
The editor of Native American Times [Liz Gray] recently contacted our director and informed him
that the letter he sent her about the effort to change the profane "Rum River" name
and some other Native rights activist initiatives of his was posted on the Native American
Times website.
Native American Times, operating in both print and electronic media, is the largest
independently owned Native American newspaper in the United States. Native American Times’
reporters and columnists provide a daily digest of news that is often utilized for national
news outlets such as CNN, NBC News, ABC News, Los Angeles Times and others.
Our director's Native American Times letter can be viewed and read by clicking
Native American Times letter
. Originally you could go directly to the letter. However, you now
have to be subcribed to Native American Times to read the letter.
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The Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota Nation’s on-line newspaper posted our director’s recent (in part)
update article on the progress of our movement to change the profane "Rum River" name. It can
be viewed and read by clicking Sota Iya Ye Yapi
and then scrolling down to the article titled: Restoring The Fundamental Human
Rights Of Indigenous Peoples. The Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota Nation is an approximately 12,000
member nation located it South Dakota. The Wakan/"Rum" River watershed is where their
ancestral/traditional homeland is located.
This article can also be viewed and reads by clicking Restoring The Fundamental Human
Rights Of Indigenous Peoples
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An article by our director, Thomas Dahlheimer, was recently posted on Indigenous Peoples
Literature (IPL). It is, in part,
an update article about our effort to change the profane Rum River name. IPL is a website
where internationally renowned indigenous activists articles are often posted. This most recent
IPL posted article of our directors can be viewed and read by clicking Restoring The Fundamental Human Rights
Of Indigenous Peoples
*******************************************************************************
Our director recently met with the mayor of Anoka to talk about, both, the movement to change the
name of the "Rum River" back to its sacred Dakota name [Wakan] as well as issues/intiatives
associated with this movement. Anoka, Minnesota has a population of around 18,076 and is located where
the Wakan/"Rum" River merges with the Mississippi River.
Prior to our diretors most recent meeting with the mayor of Anoka, Jim Anderson, the Cultural Chair
and Historian for the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community, and our director met with the mayor.
Therefore, this most recent meeting with the mayor was a follow up meeting. During the first
meeting, Mr. Anderson let the mayor know that Anoka was a part of the Dakota people’s
traditional/ancestral homeland and a sacred site and that the Dakota people would be returning
to appreciate and protect this sacred site of theirs as well as to try to unite with the residents
of Anoka. At the time, Mr. Anderson and I also let the mayor know that we would like to [fully]
establish an Anoka Dakota Unity Alliance and have annual Pow Wows, cross cultural educational
classes, blend spirituality services, etc.. The mayor liked our plan and agreed to help get thinks
moving in that direction.
We also talked to the mayor about the U.S. government’s and Roman Catholic Church’s cover up of
the real history associated with the colonial pirate and genocidal maniac Christopher Columbus
and how he was, according to an United Nation World Conference Against Racism document, following
the edicts of 15th century popes when he and his knights committed atrocities against the native
people they came in contact with, and that, therefore, we believe that Anoka’s Knights of Columbus
organization, a Roman Catholic Organization, has a extremely racist name and that this was a
serious problem that would have to be resolved if the residents of Anoka and the Dakota people
were ever going to be united. Mr. Anderson also asked the mayor about how he could get an opportunity
to talk to the city council about these issues or initiatives.
During our directors most recent meeting with the mayor he mentioned that he had addressed
the Anoka-Hennepin Indian Education Parent and Staff Committee during a public hearing and
that the meeting went great and that the members of the committee liked the work he is doing
and that they invited him to address the committee during their next meeting in January.
Cambridge, Minnesota is a city located on the Wakan/"Rum" River corridor and
our director also told the mayor that the City of Cambridge, the Cambridge branch of the
Anoka-Ramsey Jr. College, and an Isanti County department named a three mile long nature area
"Spirit River Nature Area" instead of "Rum River Nature Area", and that the city of Cambridge
also changed the name of a City street from "Rum River Drive" to "Spirit River Drive". The mayor
then told our director that there is an organization in Anoka dedicated to helping to improve
the city’s parks and that this organization is trying to influence the City Council to rename Anoka’s
"Rum River Nature Area".
Our director also told the mayor that he knew about Anoka’s Knights of Columbus building and
racist logo and that he was making a protest video/movie with Anoka’s Knights of Columbus building and
racist logo in it and that he would be displaying it on his youtube.com site. The mayor did not have
a problem with his plan. The meeting went great and plans were make for another meeting in the near
future.
After our director sent Leonard Wabasha, a hereditary chief of the Mdewakanton Dakota people,
manager of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Dakota Community Cultural Resource Department and our director's
cheif adviser an e-mail about his recent meeting with the mayor of Anoka Chief Wabasha asked
him to ask the City of Anoka to write letters to the Minnesota Dakota Reservation Tribal
Councils inviting them to get involved with Anoka’s mission to unite and reconcile with
the Dakota people. Our director recently did what Cheif Wabasha advised him to do.
Indigenous Peoples Literature, a very popular Indigenous Peoples on-line news site where often
internationally renowned Indigenous activists get their articles and videos posted, recently
posted our directors mentioned about video/movie. It includes video clips of the
Wakan/"Rum"
River in Anoka as well as the Anoka’s Knights of Columbus building and racist logo. An
internationally renowned Indigenous activist who is the leader of the movement
to put an end to the glorification of Columbus contacted our director and said:
"time to go after those 'Knights' guys..." Our directors video/movie titled, "Protesting The
Racist Name Of The Knights Of Columbus" can
be watched by clicking
youtube.com video
An article associated with this video/movie can be viewed and read by clicking
Changing The Racist Name Of The Knights Of Columbus
Another article associated with this video/movie can be viewed and read by clicking
Restoring The Fundamental Human Rights Of Indigenous Peoples
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On youtube.com's internet TV braodcasting website and on a number of other internet TV broadcasting
websites there is a video of our director talking about the Minnesota bill to change the profane
"Rum River" name and 13 other derogatory geographic site names
that are offensive to Native Americans. To view youtube's display of this video click
youtube video
We recently added a new link to our Rum River Name Change Movement website's home page called "River
Videos". To view the new
videos of the Wakan/"Rum" River click
River Videos
*******************************************************************************
Barry Scanlan, the Anoka-Hennepin school district's Indian Education Coordinator, invited Jim Anderson,
the Historian and Cultural
Chair for the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota Community and a leading Mdewakanton Indian activist, and
I to address the parent
advisory committee on November 26. Mr. Scanlan also invited us to address the parent committee during
a future monthly meeting,
and do so in order to have more time for our presentation. In respect to a future monthly
presentation Mr. Scanlan wrote:
"I would be happy to set aside some time for this very important project."
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Tony Casyanha (Tiano), an internationally renowned indigenous activist who is leading the international
campaign to revoke two 15th century
Papal Bulls that were primarily responsible for the atrocities committed against his descendents
when Columbus and his knights invaded his
people's homeland in 1492, sent our director, Thomas Dahlheimer, a response e-mail praising him
for the "great work" he is doing, and Mr.
Casyanha also asked Thomas to keep him updated on the progress of his work.
More information about Tony Casyanha can be found at the bottom
of the web page located at:
http://www.towahkon.org/Changeknights.html
Tony Castanha is a representative of the United Confederation of Taino People (UCTP) and he is this
coalition's focal point for
the campaign to revoke two 15th century Papal Bulls. The leaders of this internationally renowned
Indigenous Peoples' advocacy coalition
are the descendants of the first "American Indians" to encounter Columbus in 1492.
A picture of Mr. Casyanha along with some information about him can be found by clicking
http://www.uctp.org/hawaii.htm
THE UNITED CONFEDERATION OF TAINO PEOPLE (UCTP) is an international coalition of Caribbean Indigenous
Peoples dedicated to the promotion,
and protection of the cultural heritage and spiritual traditions of their aboriginal ancestors for
their present and future generations.
With the historic establishment of the UCTP, the descendants of the first "American Indians" to
encounter Columbus in 1492
