Lakota Elder and JSC Student to Talk about Lakota Oglala Sioux
On Monday, November 16, 2009, in Bentley 207 on the JSC campus, Lakota elder Paul WhiteDress (Chili) from the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota and JSC student Deborah Nevil will give a talk called "Lakota Oglala Sioux: Values, History, and Traditions of a Cultural Community." The presentation begins at 7 p.m.
WhiteDress and Nevil will talk about the culturally and spiritually rich (however economically poor) traditions and the community culture of the Lakota Oglala Sioux. Nevil will give a PowerPoint presentation on her trip to Pine Ridge and immersion in this culture last summer. Over the last two centuries, Native Americans, including the Lakota of Pine Ridge, have been forced into reservations and subjected to a life of dependency and poverty. The decimation of the buffalo resulted in loss of self sufficiency and loss of sacred ceremonies. This is only part of the story that we will hear, though; the Lakota are survivors, and over the last several decades, sacred traditional ceremonies, such as the Sun Dance, the Wiping of the Tears, and Naming ceremonies have been revived and practiced (coming back after being outlawed by the US Government in the 1800s).
WhiteDress will tell about Lakota spiritual values: generosity, deep connection to and reverence for the earth, the belief that all things are connected, and the deep sense of community. He will lead a question and answer session on current Lakota life, and will end with a unity song, which will give the audience the opportunity to partake in a simple ceremony. The program is free and open to all who are interested.
This presentation is sponsored by Johnson State College, and supported by grants from the Robert A. Ellsworth Trust, President Barbara E. Murphy’s presidents Fund for excellence in Teaching and Learning, and the JSC Humanities Department. For more information, contact Sally Laughlin at 653-1241 or sally.laughlin@jsc.edu
