I have to say that this was a very difficult video to make. I want to be clear that the main reason I made it was to raise awareness, and show the pandering of Obama to the Native American community.
As to the problem of poverty and unemployment on allot of our reservations, it is a undeniable fact. With 70% unemployment and no running water, the conditions are unacceptable. Our politicians have ignored this problem for to long. The mere promise of “Change” does not make it so. We need someone who will stand up for all peoples rights.
I have to admit, that until recently I was not aware that they problem was so widespread. I am a mixed blood, from the Eastern Cherokee Band. However, I have lived my entire life in White America. Both my parents were mixed race. Both from a German immigrant fathers and Cherokee mothers. However, my mothers family choose to live as whites, and “pass”. My fathers was slightly different, they choose to live white, and simply ignore my grandmother and her “strange ways”, as the rest of the family called it.
Poverty was not something I knew, as a young child. This was due to my parents living within the white community, I had little contact with my native heritage. My earliest memory of this, was when my father took me to the burial mounds in Southern Ohio. I was about 5, and not really interested. But that day my father told me things, that I still carry with me to this day.
He showed me the mounds, and we looked for arrowheads. The place was called Flint Ridge, and pieces of flint could be found lying all over the ground. My father held up a small piece of flint, and then he said, “never forget where you came from”. I have to say at the age of 5, I had no idea what he was talking about. It was only when I got older I understood the meaning of his words.
It was my fathers words, that lead me on a journey into History. I have learned allot along the way, some good, some bad. Through the rolls, I learned who some of my family members were, most of them I have never met. But most of all, I have learned who I truly am.
it is heartbreaking for me, to see Native Americans fooled again by a politician. This has happened so many times, like a circle that never ends. The problems on the reservations, will not go away by a politician making promises. The issues are real and affect real people. Until we have someone who will stand up for us, and do something, nothing will change.
It saddens my heart to think of the young people who are being so mislead by Obama. The promise of “hope and change’ is very appealing, to those who are in such desperate need. But hope and change are not the answer to our problems. We need real solutions, to real problems.
It is the goal of ‘Native Americans Against Obama’, to educate all who will listen. I hope we can at least, inform voters of the truth. I will not tell anyone who to vote for, but can only hope as a voter they will learn as much as possible and think before you vote.
Debi McLeod
Granddaughter of
Lillie Starr
Eastern Cherokee Tribe
Source: Thread courtesy of Debi McLeod Native Americans Against Obama
(article-sic-prn)
9 responses so far ↓
navyvet48 // July 17, 2008 at 1316
Thank you Debi. When I saw that video I cried my heart out. I have very little Native American in my blood, my great grandmother was MicMac Indian. I never met her. She only possessed an Anglo-Saxon name, Margaret Phelps. I really don’t understand the journey Native Americans have taken to where they are today but my heart is big….and I did grow up poor. I have always maintained that it is the Native American that has never been given its due. I am currently reading more from the view of Native Americans not what we have been told in history books that are woefully inadequate and regurgitate what schools want us to know. Thank you for giving us the view from the Native American world.
AJ // July 17, 2008 at 1327
I saw the petition on the site with regard to the Native American holiday and sent it out to family and friends. My Ex (and thus my s0n) are both of Cherokee descent. It angers me that Native Americans have been treated so atrociously in the past and infuriates me that members of our government would even think about doing for others before taking care of them. Thank you for posting this and helping to get the word out.
nativeamericansagainstobama // July 17, 2008 at 2341
Thanks to Voices Accross America for posting this, and thanks to all that have posted. I am thankful for everyone helping getting the word out.
Debi
Hugh Gagner // July 18, 2008 at 747
Barack Obama will do nothing for Native Americans. He sponsored the Global Poverty Act which requires the US to commit billions of dollars to the UN for world poverty, but there is no money for indigonous peoples of North America. Please take a few minutes and Google “Global Poverty Act” It is an elitist effort to stroke HIS ego and will allow the sovereignty of the US to be maligned by the corrupt United Nations and will do NOTHING for our own people.
Barb // September 15, 2008 at 2047
Are you people for real? Her opinion from an Indian point of view? She said in her biography that she lived as a white person. I am Blackfeet/Cree (enrolled) and have lived as a Blackfeet on the reservation. I can tell you that Obama is the favorite among the Plains people. I ask all you anti Obama people, WHAT HAS MCCAIN DONE FOR NATIVE PEOPLE IN ALL OF HIS YEARS IN THE SENATE? Be honest!
superdog // September 16, 2008 at 1018
Completely disagree with the author of this site. She doesn’t speak at all for Native Americans. Obama’s the choice among my tribe and others by a long shot. McCain has gotten away from his helpful stance of 2000 and completely turned into the type of politician he used to despise. What’s the difference between Bush/Cheney and McCain/Palin??? Lipstick…..
Obama/Biden ‘08
Jim Heffernan // October 5, 2008 at 1608
Sarah Palin has pro-actively worked to ignore, take away or undermine, to the greatest extent she can as Governor, aboriginal rights of Alaska Natives. Her selection by John McCain (with some strong insistence from the infamous James “all should be converted to Christianity” Dobson) as his running mate indicates how he feels about the tribes. An d though he served as Co-Chair of the SCIA, his history indicates he will sell the tribes out for the right amount of money (as happened with Black Mesa). We know McCain/Palin will work against the tribes; supporting them is suicide.
JG...feather // November 1, 2008 at 1914
Do not fall for the anti-Obama fraud:
McCain wants to spend trillions of dollars on foreign wars that do not benefit or defend the US, Native Americans, or anyone else except the moneyed elite. The money McCain would spend on the military, foreign wars, the rapidly growing “police state” in this country, and the ongoing “class war” against the middle class and the poor (so as to further enrich and empower the moneyed elite) dwarfs the money Obama would spend not just outside the US but in total expenditures.
The movement against Obama in support of McCain is a fraud and yet another betrayal (double-cross) of Native Americans.
Any Democratic administration would be much better for the communities, families, health and well being of Native Americans than any Republican Administration. It is shameful to perpetrate this fraud that will lead to more suffering of Native Americans at the hands of the party of racism, the Republican Party.
Native Americans have suffered terribly from the politics of division and vilification as have blacks and other minorities. It is a tactic that the moneyed elites (represented now by those who hold office and control the decisions of the Republican Party) have used since the beginning of recorded history to weaken the people collectively and direct attention away from themselves the real tyrants.
McCain and his family (the 3 generations since the McCain family lost its slaves) of life-long imperialists have sponsored and taken part in genocides around the world. John McCain still does this as evidenced by his policy of the use of coercion as a prelude to war, mass-murder and colonial imposition of brutal tyrannical puppet governments on entire peoples as the main instrument of US foreign policy. That is why he has been the Chairman for many years of the criminal organization, the IRI (International Republican Institute, a euphemistic title to disguise its true purpose), which uses it resources to overthrow freely elected democracies to put those murderous tyrannical puppet governments in place that sell-out and enslave their people for McCain’s moneyed elite cronies and their godless transnational corporations.
Obama would stop the “Redistribution of wealth”, the massive theft by the wealthy from those who do the work and create the wealth, by having a more just economic policy and tax structure than what the Republicans have imposed on us (and McCain most certainly would continue) and unfairly burdens the middle class and the poor.
Don’t fall for yet another double-cross of Native Americans! Reject this vilification of Obama and vote for the change that he would bring.
It is time to heal this nation spiritually and to include all peoples in the “Great Circle”.
As long as the wind blows, the grass grows and the sky is blue,
JG
Shadow Dancer // February 19, 2009 at 008
I have come to know and understand that there is an ongoing “war” between the government and the Native American tribes. Because of the fact that I to am a Native American (Oneida, slightly more then half) I’ve also found it hard to be seen as another human being. I mean honestly, we all have hearts and minds. We all have blood and skin, so what is the big deal if you are white or “red” or even black? It doesn’t give anyone a license to kill. But the basic point here is that I’m sick of being looked at like I’m some piece of trash. (I’m one of the very few Native Americans in my school and have found many problems with it just because of my skin tone or my native background.) What I want to know is… is there anyone out there that can seriously point out to the world (or at least this country) that the world doesn’t bow down to any one person just because of there skin tone? We as natives were here first we should be able to keep our rights, and get out of poverty just like anyone else in the country.