Our Introduction and our team
André de Sà Pessoa – Born in Portugal. Graduated of fine Art School of Lisbon in 1989 – Jewellery master class.Than at FIT-Fashion Institute of Tecnologiy - New York in 1990. Before joining on aura tout vu he worked as jeweller,and as cristal designer in Portugal and at Dome France. He created also hat collections.
Yassen Samouilov - Born is Bulgaria Graduated at Applied Arts School of Sofia in 1991 –Master class textile design and toys design.Than Fine Arts School of Versailles in 1994. Before joining on aura tout vu he worked in consulting trends agency and develope accessories, ready to wear collections.
Livia Stoianova -Born in Bulgaria. Graduated at Fine Arts School of Sofia in 1992 – master class Graphic Arts.Than Fine Arts School of Paris in 1996 Before joining on aura tout vu in 1998 she present her art works in France and collaborate in contemporary art galeries in Paris.
Brand history
The company ” ASP “was founded in 1995 and in 1998 under “on aura tout vu” as a brand /a French expression in translation : You think you v’seen it all / and made its name at first by creating and producing exclusive fashion accessories, embroideries, buttons and garments for the famous Haute Couture Brands before starting its own collections of ready-to-wear, accessories and couture clothes.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was proclaimed and adopted by the UN General Assembly sixty years ago. Regardless of race, religion, or nationality, all men and women, everywhere in the world, are entitled to the human rights and fundamental freedoms set forth in it's thirty articles. Since it's adoption in 1948 the declaration has been and continues to be a source of inspiration for national and international efforts to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms.
Build community by promoting the principles embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights...to promote cultural diversity as well as the desire for global cooperation and dialogue between different cultures; Unity and Diversity.
http://www.unesco-club-vienna.org/ ...The UNESCO Clubs movement has developed hand-in-hand with UNESCO since the establishment of the first club in Sendai, Japan, on 19 July 1947.
For Immediate Release January 20, 2009
Contact: Sally Stevens
Sally@CulturePAC.com
(504) 473-0709
(New Orleans, LA) Announcing CulturePAC, a Public Action Coalition for inclusive effective citizen-driven economic development in New Orleans.
As the City of New Orleans and the Horizon Initiative begin the formation of a new public private economic development agency that will determine the strategies, policies and spending of many millions of dollars over the coming years it has opened an opportunity for economic development processes in New Orleans to become a truly inclusive and effective process in our city. However, in order for this to be the case, wide citizen involvement is necessary. CulturePAC has been organized to this end. The City of New Orleans has committed $6 million over the next three years toward formation of this new agency and it is our responsibility to ensure these public funds are used wisely and to the benefit of the wider community.
Among the issues CulturePAC will address within economic development in New Orleans, and the formation of this new agency, are the use of public funds, poverty, falling wages, underemployment, rising joblessness, erosion of worker rights and other pressing concerns, needs and issues that previous economic development efforts have also failed to acknowledge and address. Within these issues CulturePAC will also work for the sustainability and growth of the region’s cultural economy and the entry and participation of New Orleans creative cultural workers into the new markets of the national and international cultural economy; and to ensure that the new economic development agency being formed by the City and the Horizon Initiative recognizes the vitality of the creative cultural sector, accept recommended strategies developed by the cultural sector, as well as funding.
CulturePAC views working for growth of the creative cultural sector as a poverty reduction strategy for New Orleans, since the vast majority of the creative cultural products and services the city and its tourism industry trades upon come from our most neglected and marginalized neighborhoods that remain unacknowledged by the old-guard economic elite that rules economic development.
President Obama's own words present a great argument to call for our country to increase its support for artists.
"Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions, who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short, for they have forgotten what this country has already done, what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose and necessity to courage." - from Barack Obama's Inaugural Address
Artists REMIND. Artists IMAGINE.
So there is this guy, Guy Dubord, Who wrote a pamphlet named, "The Society of the Spectacle" http://library.nothingness.org/articles/SI/en/pub_contents/4 Wikipedia has an excellent overview of the pamphlet. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Society_of_the_Spectacle Guy Debord and his group , the "Situationists" are pretty interesting and worthy of an afternoons reading but I digress.
I present this pamphlet because the points it makes are so relevant to culture today and ultimately our experience day to day. In it he asserts that, "All that was once directly lived has become mere representation." I spent a few weeks in the early Nineties going to various churches with my dear friend Linda who, by the way has recently lost her husband Victor; Jesus Linda what can I say. We were looking for Gospel of the homespun variety. What we found were churchfulls of people who participated entirely in the service. Although it is true that the "Spectacle" was present in the form of preachers and choirs and bands of various sizes doing their thing on risers above the faithful, the dynamic had a call and response feel in which the events on the stage served as foci from which a maelstrom of activity and emotional intensity emerged. This was not mere group participation. It was more like a merging.
I write about this because, A. It was beautiful and if you've not done it you should, and B. because it is an example, I think, of how the human spirit prevails within the context of the "Society of the Spectacle". Our very closest assumptions about culture and our places in it are formed in the thickest muck at the bottom of the lake of our collective subconscious. Those assumptions form the boundaries or parameters of our expectations of self and society. This lake of subconscious is ultimately fed and grows through streamlets and rivers of myth, ever changing and evolving. Myth is the story we tell ourselves over and over, the story that we tell our children. It is a recursive phenomenon. On one hand it may be presumptuous to think that "Spectacle" has any power over this process. On the other hand one might assert that our self image as a society is based on an assumption of passivity. An assumption that we are, if only until we get out our wallets, like princes and princesses in court fanning ourselves while a parade of spectacles parades before us.
"Ah Me!"
We are seduced by the spectacle while being entirely unaware that it is the spectacle insidiously that forms our definitions of self and society by replacing the function of myth within our society. We feel empowered by the parade but are constrained by it's very nature to not merge with it. It has become an industry, one that exists throughout the world and one that is, once seen for what it is, extremely interesting.
So what's it all about Alfie?
Well first of all, I think, we gotta yell in church. Second of all we gotta not abandon the root of our myth as served up by our predecessors because it is only through evolution that myth can change. Third we gotta mix it up and see what comes. Most of all we gotta see the process for what it is and know that life is far richer than we are led to believe, that the sky is the limit. K.
-Understanding Our World- www.theworldflag.org While The World Flag aims to inspire unity in matters of global concern, The Flag and related products make excellent tools for basic lessons in geography, world history, and international studies. Flashcards, apparel, flags and the web site make teaching and learning about each other interactive and fun. The World Flag works with organizations focused on global education efforts and outreach. Let us know if your organization needs assistance.
-Events / Fundraising- Flying The World Flag at events exposes your local population to your groups message alongside the message of world unity. The Flags celebration of all cultures makes it a natural flag to fly for global warming, the environment, world healthcare, and other universal interests. Raise The World Flag at your event and spread the word!
-Fundraise for Global Causes-The World Flag provides a great way to engage a wide array of people. As a vehicle in fundraising it complements a myriad of causes while teaching cooperation and cultural diversity. Whether you are raising funds for medical groups or saving for a relief trip, The World Flag’s message applies. The World Flag Project will work with you on a fundraising kit for the non– profit cause of your choice.
-Carry The Flag with You- The world Flag is an amazing conversation piece and makes a great gift for your favorite classroom, world traveler, international group, student, venue, or business. The Project can customize packages for your event, organization, cause or company upon request. Bring the World Flag into your community!
Many people who know me and my pioneering equality work in the UK will find this post, in particular, rather strange, and might, in fact, fall off their chairs in some surprise! But that is the beauty of evolving in life from one stage to another. If we are learning, we are always developing and always changing perspectives. If we are entrenched in what we believe and have closed minds, we've stopped learning and are in danger of solidifying into fossilised rocks of dubious certainty. It has to be far more exciting to learn!
Being on a holiday in Chicago by myself has allowed for a lot of free thinking time and I believe the most profound thought I might have had on the whole trip was triggered by a comment from a member of an online diversity group I had joined. Some members had not taken kindly to comments by two other French members and had blasted them somewhat for their views. One member, in particular was so upset by this, she wrote:
"I am very disenchanted with a group entitled Diversity for Obama that does not welcome diverse comments from its members and does not stop to think that everyone may not be familiar with email etiquette."
She had made an excellent point which immediately gave me a new insight into my own work, as I had spent the last 15 years advocating diversity in very strong terms. Retired from it now, it was easier to see the wood from the trees and appreciate that accepting true diversity, not the cosmetic form like our recent 'Black History Month' etc., actually comes with a cost for each group/individual.
Resolving Your Obama Race Dilemma -- How You Got it and Where to Put It
by
David Scheinman
Are you reluctant to vote for Obama because he is black? Hesitant to pull that lever or punch the keyboard even though his ideas and character are compelling? Do you think, if only Hillary had won I wouldn’t have this dilemma? To make matters even worse, are you hesitant to share your latent – and somewhat embarrassing -- uncomfortable feelings with others? Did you grow up in the 1940’s, 50’s or 60’s? If so, your feelings are perfectly understandable, especially if you grew up in a home where equality wasn’t taught. Have you always thought you were an open minded person, yet here you are, surprisingly reluctant to vote for Obama?
Where Were the Black Professionals When You Were Growing Up?
Did you have relatives who told you blacks were dumb, lazy, and good for nothing? That’s what an uncle told my good friend Dennis in Tennessee in the 1950’s. When Dennis came home and told his mom he met the niggers, his school teacher mom was furious. She set Dennis straight and banned the uncle from her home. Dennis clearly remembers being taken around a poor black community and receiving the racist indoctrination from his uncle. “Dennis, these are niggers, and this is how they live. “ If his mom hadn’t sternly told him his uncle was full of crap, Dennis could be experiencing a similar dilemma. Dennis wound up marrying a black woman. They have three adorable teenage girls and are still married.
My mom drummed equality into my soft head. In the 1950’s my mom told me about a black singer named Marian Anderson who was not allowed to perform in Washington’s Constitution Hall in 1939 by its owners, the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) , because she was black. It was one of the earliest incidents that brought racial discrimination to our attention. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt invited Anderson to perform in front of the Lincoln Memorial. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQnzb0Jj074 ?
She was introduced by Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYZoeMKkxkg&feature=related
Where We Were and Where We Are Today -- From Slavery to Obama
Due to many factors, the black people you encountered growing up were probably maids, factory hands, garbage men, and laborers. They lived in segregated run down communities on the wrong side of the tracks. They spoke funny slang, hung around together, ate weird foods like collard greens, weren’t seen at the restaurants your folks ate in – except as busboys and waiters – BUT they were easily identified by their color.
So how did all this happen, and why in 2008 is our society suddenly chock-a -block with black professionals? Go to any school now and you will see black teachers, administrators, and principals – not just janitors. Go shopping and you will meet black supervisors. Buy a car, insurance, or clothes and you will often see black personnel. Turn on your TV and there is a black anchor or expert being interviewed in his area of expertise, which is not race relations.
And most intriguingly, why did many African students studying here in the 1980’s and 90’s return to Africa and tell me they had more white friends than black ones on campus? Why were black Africans readily accepted into white social circles when black Americans were either excluded or segregated themselves into all black dorms?
To get to the bottom of this, and to get you off the hook, let’s return to how black people wound up living on the wrong side of the tracks and how in 2008, many more of them are your neighbors or workmates. What in world changed? Why do kids of all colors in my son’s high school eat lunch together in 2008?
Blacks were the only group that came here involuntarily, in chains. They were captured by rival black tribesmen and sold to Arabs who subsequently sold them to slave dealers. Coming from different tribes, most of the slaves couldn’t even communicate with each other in a common language. Thousands of slaves from all over Africa converged in the American south and didn’t even share a common language or history. They were ripped away from their familiar world and, unlike prisoners of war, couldn’t even talk to each other initially. They weren’t allowed to learn how to read, write, or even swim.
They eventually had kids, but these kids could never be taught the legends or stories that make up a culture. They lacked the fundamental accouterments of culture that include shared beliefs, art, language, institutions, manners, dress, religion, rituals, and so forth. All they knew was the plantation and their narrow world. So when freed from slavery in 1865, they had no skills, capital, land, or even literacy. Their real culture was agriculture – plus what they created as slaves. They had the slang they created and, of course, each other. Since whites gave them few responsibilities, they developed few skills and consequently had the reputation of being lazy, shiftless, and dumb. They learned to believe they were inferior -- and often reinforced that stereotype by acting commensurately.
Imagine for a moment how that gets into your head. Most of what we become as adults is tattooed onto our soft brains as toddlers. My mom used examples to teach me that all people were equal. Having the term inferior branded onto your character often relegates a person to life’s junk heap. Ambition and dreams are snuffed out. People who define themselves as being not good or smart enough just shuffle along life’s paths. They don’t feel they can succeed, so often don’t even try.
If you think the effects of slavery and segregation have vanished, you are wrong. I recently chatted with a racially mixed mom – her dad was white mom black – at a football game both our kids were playing in. We started chatting about where we were from. She was from Louisiana so I asked about segregation in the 1950’s.
“My dad made me lay down on the rear floor of our car when we stopped to eat. I wasn’t allowed to go inside so he’d buy my favorite food and bring it to our car.” So imagine growing up and not being allowed to have a fun vacation meal with our parents on the way your Florida vacation. From the day she was born, society told her she wasn’t good enough to enter public facilities in her home state. And do these feelings trickle down to her 16 year old son in 2008? Probably.
After slavery ended, blacks had freedom FROM, not freedom TOO. Since they had no access to the adequately funded schools we white kids attended by the accidents of our births, they never learned the essential survival and social skills we white kids acquired naturally. Their segregated educations were inferior; they were banned from attending the flagship state universities in the south until 1962 when James Meredith was escorted to class at the University of Mississippi by federal marshals.
During the hundred years from emancipation in 1863 to 1962, black people just shuffled around generally carrying out jobs immigrants perform today. Consequently they banded together for community and self preservation. They lived in segregated communities, founded black churches and over 100 black universities and colleges, developed their own way of speaking English, and lived in an inferior parallel society.
Results of School Integration and the Civil and Voting Rights Acts Are Huge
The civil rights movement sprung out of the black churches in the 50’s and 60’s. This led, after much bloodshed, to the civil and voting rights bills being passed in the mid 1960’s. Prior to the voting rights act of 1965, many blacks were excluded from voting due to poll taxes, literacy tests, and residency requirements that were applied only to black voters, particularly in the south. That was barely two generations ago! When the Civil and Voting Rights bills were passed in 1964 and 65 and the Supreme Court ruled segregation was unconstitutional in 1954, the doors of limited privilege began to creak open.
As these doors opened in the 1950’s and 60’s, blacks began slowly entering mainstream society. In the 1970’s and 80’s we began seeing black reporters on TV and some blacks were featured in TV commercials. More and more black faces were seen on college campuses. Yes, many felt insecure and kept to themselves. Many had congenital inferiority complexes caused by lying on the floors of cars and being banned from selected business and public places, like bath rooms and schools. They also knew from their parents that keeping a low profile was a survival skill. Who wanted to wind up lynched like Emmet Till?
Now, just 46 years after James Meredith integrated Ole Miss, 20% of the student population there is composed of students from minority groups. Most surprisingly and positively, the university sponsored the prestigious first presidential debate this season. And who could have imagined in 1962 that this would occur and that one of the major candidates would be black? Black professionals are in every profession and serve all customers, not just blacks.
Beneath Our Radar, Dynamic Shifts are Taking Place in Schools Today
Folks my age just shake our heads in bewildered awe. It happened again yesterday at another football game on a glorious afternoon. I chatted with a well dressed white woman – native Houstonian -- from an oil services company.
As helmets loudly cracked on the field, we discussed Obama and, more importantly, how much racial mixing there was at both our high schools. She was astonished that her son once dated a black girl without the slightest sense of scandal or tittle-tattle. According to her son, kids of all colors shared lunch table in the cafeteria, and there was no racial tension. She was also astounded that these changes were occurring out of the blue and beneath her radar.
My son’s school is 30 percent each black, brown, white, and 10 percent Asian. They hang around together, enjoy the same lousy music, and don’t cluster in segregated groups. Looking at the legs of the football players from the stands provides a vision of the new America – every shade of human color is represented. It is the same watching 3000 kids as they stream out of school in the afternoon, chattering away in diverse groups. And when I ask my son about racism – he is mixed – he sighs and says “Dad that is such an old school question.” I don’t even ask any more.
Black accents are fading as more and more blacks enter mainstream society and worry more about their job prospects, portfolios, and retirements than racism. Parents of racially mixed kids (me) are dumbfounded and thrilled that the racism I anticipated when my little girl was born in 1986 never materialized. Problems arose more from selected black peers who felt there should be black solidarity. Like my African friends experienced, the racism came from the blacks, not the whites.
This occurred amongst some old-school Blacks when Obama initially declared his candidacy. Some blacks felt because he didn’t grow up in the ghetto he wasn’t a legitimate black person. They slowly came around, but initially there was much skepticism and resentment. Finally many realized that their sacrifices paved the way for an Obama to emerge.
Relax, Your Racial Dilemma is Normal
When you saw a fellow white person, you had no idea who he was, where he came from, or what he stood for, especially if he dressed appropriately. There were many poor whites, but their skin bestowed immunity on them. They blended in and did not have the stigma of coming to America as involuntary slaves. No one owned their great grandparents.
Since your impression of blacks was forged prior to blacks entering mainstream society, those old programs are still running in the background of your brain. And that is as normal as all the other values you picked up as a kid like rooting for your favorite sports team, liking a certain food, or knowing hard work is a virtue. You grew up seeing black people as chronic underachievers. Of course many were. They had no access to the institutions you accessed due to the lucky accident of your birth.
It Is Class, Not Color
These negative ideas do not automatically make you a racist. Now I’ll demonstrate that you really aren’t racist after all. When I quizzed African students who studied here, some mentioned that American blacks often gave them an ultimatum. Don’t hang out with whites. Choose us or them! If you hang out with whites you will not be welcome in our black society. A black girlfriend I had in 1979 when in grad school received the same treatment from her black peers. “Why are you dating a white boy? Aren’t we good enough?
It eventually dawned on me that racism was a socioeconomic phenomenon. And people were “racist” only because blacks stood out like sore thumbs due to their color. But why were Africans welcomed into white society, why did they readily accept the friendship of their white peers, and why didn’t they care about the threats they received from black Americans? One Somali friend of mine even hung out at a redneck country bar in Michigan where he was the only black person. He went because he liked the music and it was the easiest place to pick up girls. “And the redneck guys?” I asked. “I was polite, sized up the situation, wasn’t pushy, and gradually got to know everyone and became a regular. No one cared that I went home with white girls. They even asked around if I missed a few days.”
Soon I realized that the Africans were middle to upper class kids who had much more in common with middle to upper class white kids on campus than they did with black students who grew up in poor segregated communities . It was culture that mattered, not color. The Africans never defined people by color. They discriminated instead by tribe. Where they came from, everyone was black. Consequently they had little in common with black American students, aside from their shared skin color. The American blacks were yet another alien tribe to them – and a subservient one at that! Color counted for nothing, just like white skin is not the number one catalyst for white bonding.
The Africans were never denied anything in their home countries due to race. So they naturally hung out with their social class peers, white middle class kids. Few reported any racial problems in the 15-20 years I posed the question. They knew some of their most brutal repressive dictators, like Idi Amin from Uganda and Mengistu from Ethiopia, were black.
Now You Can Vote For Barack
And your perceived racism? A myth. You just want to hang out with your peers and don’t want to spend time with people you have little in common with. Since African students and white kids shared a common class background, they were well matched -- far better than black Americans whose criteria for friendship were based on shared discrimination and color. Black Americans and black Africans shared little in common at all, just pigment. Hence the reluctance of the African students to be friends with them just because they shared a common color.
Back to Barack. You are attracted to him. You like his message of hope. You admire how he took withering fire over Reverend Wright and survived. He is battle tested. You also recognize that McCain clumsily stumbles from issue to issue and has a weak grasp of economics. He said the fundamentals of our economy were strong, and then abruptly reversed himself just fours later. You like Obama’s choice for vice-president and think McCain used poor judgment and acted impulsively and irresponsibly when he chose Sarah Palin. You thought when McCain suspended his campaign it was a gimmick. You worry about your retirement, yet McCain offers no solutions. And you know you would vote for Obama in a heartbeat if only he were white.
tanga4@yahoo.com
Available for Distribution:
www.tashi48.wordpress.com
Please copy and distribute to all wavering voters.
"We have to change the culture of America." This idea of of changing the culture of America takes on a contradictory message depending upon the context in which the phrase is used and upon the background of the speaker. When Barack Obama speaks of "change" and "culture," I fully believe that he speaks of a progressive vision for our country, one that acknowledges the diversity of American experience and the complexities of our modern day lives. I fear not for my lesbian daughter. I trust that she, too, will someday celebrate a marriage to her partner. I fear not for the pregnant and troubled woman who chooses, from a place of profound decision-making, not to carry her pregnancy to term. I fear not for the homosexual senior, at the high school where I teach, who enlists in the US military that he or she could be "found out" and dishonorably discharged from service.
But, when John McCain states, as he did during last week's debate, that "We have to change the culture of America. Those of us who are proudly pro-life understand that," I shudder. I cringe. I fear. I genuinely fear. I fear for the separation of church and state. I fear the impostion of a singular ideological paradigm upon the whole of our nation, in as much as I believe it not possible, still I fear.
So, today, I proudly cast my vote, in an early ballot, for presidential candidate Barack Obama!
To view this blog post with music and Barack Obama messages taped on his podcast in the past access this link
By Daniel Kurtzman, About.com
"They say I need to be seasoned; they say I need to be stewed. They say, 'We need to boil all the hope out of him -- like us -- and then he'll be ready.'" (Watch video
********************************
'Eye Without A Face' by Mark Bellinghaus, Copyright 2008
Life is all about signs...seeing the signs....understanding the signs...acting upon the signs
--Mark Bellinghaus
Extract & Photo caption/description posted on OUR MARILYN BLOG - you can find the entire blog article here: blog.ourmarilyn.com/2008/08/31/marilyn-monroe-would-have-voted-f .. and also here: my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/markbellinghaus/gG5W75 Ella Fitzgerald & Marilyn Monroe, in 1955 (above) and in 1962, (below), the year Marilyn Monroe passed away. In 1955, when racism was still a big issue in the United States of America, Ella Fitzgerald became the first African-American to perform at the Mocambo, after Marilyn Monroe had lobbied the owner for the booking. The booking was instrumental in Fitzgerald's career. Marilyn would promise the owner that she would appear every night (and be on time), and this way also fill the house--and she did, she was there every night, and she filled the house and: she was always on time! Their close friendship lasted for many years and Ella would sing Marilyn Monroe's famous 'My Heart Belongs To Daddy' in honor of her wonderful friend Marilyn Monroe, who died almost 34 years before she passed on in 1996, at age 79. Barack Obama Quotes: 'They say I need to be seasoned; they say I need to be stewed. They say, 'We need to boil all the hope out of him -- like us -- and then he'll be ready.' 'I have nothing to hide, I enjoy being myself. I'm not going to change who I am just because it's Halloween." -appearing as himself on Saturday Night Live as part of a skit that featured Hillary Clinton dressed as a witch at a Halloween party * 'It's like I was shot out of a cannon. I'm so overexposed that I make Paris Hilton look like a recluse.' 'Hillary is not the first politician in Washington to declare 'Mission Accomplished' a little too soon.' Marilyn Monroe singing Happy Birthday to President John F. Kennedy, who was a Democrat
Greetings All;
My chief storybook character JustaMouse-In-A-Corner, (see profile), writes this blog as JustaMouse In a Corner For Barach to comment on the campaigns and issues as seen through her eyes. JustaMouse has experienced and seen first hand the sacrifice and commitment it takes for a new lawyer to forsake fortune to work among the disadvantaged as a Community Organizer and other lifelong endeavors to serve. JustaMouse was absolutely thrilled to hear Barach's first speech a few years ago at the Democratic National Convention and predicted greatness for him AND his CAUSE!!
She also feels and sees the inner conflict of wanting the first woman president or the first president of color to serve our Nation, to start to see those causes happen here and in the world. How JustaMouse wanted a double ticket!! BUT .. this was not to be, so JustaMouse yielded to her experience that there is a greater WILL than hers at work in worldly affairs, and prayed for united purpose. JustaMouse was relieved to see a united front in the Democratic party to achieve greater purpose.
JustaMouse has been a part of tribal and indigenous people's issues and challenges and so was quite interested to see how the Republican party, under Governor Palin, was treating Native issues in Alaska. She decided to post these comments which were from blogger, "Bearsense" reposting the noted and respected Alaskan tribal attorney, Lloyd Miller, as she greatly respects his analysis of issues. This was reposted from Free Speech TV Community blog of Bearsense at the url:
http://community.freespeech.org/palin_opposes_alaska_native_life,_tribal_sovereignty_and_voting_rights .
I am forwarding a post I received that gives voice to Alaskan Native's first hand experience with Gov. Palin's politics. The request is for any and all to get the word out. If these are her politics in Alaska...well you connect the dots on what she will do all over this Nation and the Earth. "In sum, measured against some [of] the rights that are most fundamental to Alaska Native Tribes - the subsistence way of life, tribal sovereignty and voting rights - Palin's record is a failure." Thanks, BearSense
Sunday Sept 7, 2008
Sarah Palin's Record on Alaska Native and Tribal Issues
1. Palin has attacked Alaska Native Subsistence Fishing
Perhaps no issue is of greater importance to Alaska Native peoples as the right to hunt and fish according to ancient customary and traditional practices, and to carry on the subsistence way of life for future generations.
Governor Sarah Palin has consistently opposed those rights.
Once in office, Governor Palin decided to continue litigation that seeks to overturn every subsistence fishing determination the federal government has ever made in Alaska. (State of Alaska v. Norton, 3:05-cv-0158- HRH (D. Ak).) In pressing this case, Palin decided against using the Attorney General (which usually handles State litigation) and instead continued contracting with Senator Ted Stevens' brother-in-law' s law firm (Birch, Horton, Bittner & Cherot).
The goal of Palin's law suit is to invalidate all the subsistence fishing regulations the federal government has issued to date to protect Native fishing, and to force the courts instead to take over the roll of setting subsistence regulations. Palin's law suit seeks to diminish subsistence fishing rights in order to expand sport and commercial fishing.
In May 2007, the federal court rejected the State's main challenge, holding that Congress in 1980 had expressly granted the U.S. Interior and Agriculture Departments the authority to regulate and protect Native and rural subsistence fishing activities in Alaska. (Decision entered May 15, 2007 (Dkt. No. 110).)
Notwithstanding this ruling, Palin continues to argue in the litigation that the federal subsistence protections are too broad, and should be narrowed to exclude vast areas from subsistence fishing, in favor of sport and commercial fishing. Palin opposes subsistence protections in marine waters, on many of the lands that Natives selected under their 1971 land claims settlement with the state and federal governments, and in many of the rivers where Alaska Natives customarily fish. (Alaska Complaint at 15-18.) Palin also opposes subsistence fishing protections on Alaska Native federal allotments that were deeded to individuals purposely to foster Native subsistence activities. All these issues are now pending before the federal district court.
2. Palin has attacked Alaska Native Subsistence Hunting
Palin has also sought to invalidate critical determinations the Federal Subsistence Board has made regarding customary and traditional uses of game, specifically to take hunting opportunities away from Native subsistence villagers and thereby enhance sport hunting.
Palin's attack here on subsistence has focused on the Ahtna Indian people in Chistochina. Although the federal district court has rejected Palin's challenge, she has carried on an appeal that was argued in August 2008. (State of Alaska v. Fleagle, No. 07-35723 (9th Cir.).)
In both hunting and fishing matters, Palin has continued uninterrupted the policies initiated by the former Governor Frank Murkowski Administration, challenging hunting and fishing protections that Native people depend upon for their subsistence way of life in order to enhance sport fishing and hunting opportunities. Palin's lawsuits are a direct attack on the core way of life of Native Tribes in rural Alaska.
3. Palin has attacked Alaska Tribal Sovereignty
Governor Palin opposes Alaska tribal sovereignty.
Given past court rulings affirming the federally recognized tribal status of Alaska Native villages, Palin does not technically challenge that status. But Palin argues that Alaska Tribes have no authority to act as sovereigns, despite their recognition.
So extreme is Palin on tribal sovereignty issues that she has sought to block tribes from exercising any authority whatsoever even over the welfare of Native children, adhering to a 2004 legal opinion issued by the former Murkowski Administration that no such jurisdiction exists (except when a state court transfers a matter to a tribal court).
Both the state courts and the federal courts have struck down Palin's policy of refusing to recognize the sovereign authority of Alaska Tribes to address issues involving Alaska Native children. Native Village of Tanana v. State of Alaska, 3AN-04-12194 CI (judgment entered Aug. 26, 2008) (Ak. Super. Ct.); Native Kaltag Tribal Council v.DHHS, No. 3:06-cv-00211- TMB (D. Ak.), pending on appeal No 08-35343 (9th Cir.)). Nonetheless, Palin's policy of refusing to recognize Alaska tribal sovereignty remains unchanged.
4. Palin has attacked Alaska Native Languages
Palin has refused to accord proper respect to Alaska Native languages and voters by refusing to provide language assistance to Yup'ik speaking Alaska Native voters. As a result, Palin was just ordered by a special three-judge panel of federal judges to provide various forms of voter assistance to Yup'ik voters residing in southwest Alaska. Nick v. Bethel, No. 3:07-cv-0098- TMB (D. Ak.) (Order entered July 30, 2008). Citing years of State neglect, Palin was ordered to provide trained poll workers who are bilingual in English and Yup'ik; sample ballots in written Yup'ik; a written Yup'ik glossary of election terms; consultation with local Tribes to ensure the accuracy of Yup'ik translations; a Yup'ik language coordinator; and pre-election and post-election reports to the court to track the State's efforts.
In sum, measured against some the rights that are most fundamental to Alaska Native Tribes - the subsistence way of life, tribal sovereignty and voting rights - Palin's record is a failure.
From Lloyd B. Miller Lloyd@sonosky. Net
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There is no such thing as one person being right in how they believe because belief is based on sheer perception, and perception is dictated by culture, gender, experience and personal aspirations. Thus the 'truth' will be many faceted. One person's truth is likely to be someone else's lie, depending on our alignments. No one person has a monopoly on the 'truth' because it really just boils down to our knowledge of the real facts, our desire to cooperate or to blame, and our own personal agenda to be significant, to be valued and to be included in what matters to us.
To cope with their routine lives, and the aspects which overwhelm them, people tend to develop belief systems which offer them security, comfort and a degree of control and power over others and their environment, of which, for example, the idea of a heaven that rewards them, and a hell, that punishes others, are core elements. It's the most natural thing to do for inner contentment and sense of power. Such belief systems expand our knowledge of the world around us.
Not everyone can be a business person. If we didn't have people to clear the rubbish, for example, we would all be down with various illnesses within two weeks. However, no matter what the individual aspires to do, make no mistake about it, in any diverse society, there will be a majority group who has the power base and who dictates the standards, mores and identifiable culture already in existence. For the outsider to thrive in such an environment, regardless of their brain power or personal merit, and particularly within the administrative and political systems, they have to be given the access to do so by that majority.
People of African origin, the world over, gravitate towards the caring professions (45% of NHS staff is Black and Asian, yet they make up only 10% of this country) and in the USA, 68% of people serving that country in various administrative posts are African Americans. The trouble with those professions is that they might earn the gratitude of the public but they tend to trap their staff in low paid, low status professions, at the mercy of the government, which lack the opportunity for wealth creation, personal influence or genuine advancement.
Social Cognitive Science and the emerging conversations of deep-rooted biological paradigms are pointing to the fundamental social loving nature that constitutes, sustains and maintains human beings. This new conversation is offering an exploration of grounded understanding of human beings as social loving animals and opens an exploration into the 'plasticity' for the dynamic temporal architecture of our living system that is capable of opening possibilities beyond our current imaginations.
We experience social relations everyday in the domain of friendship! Friends are social relations where the standard practice is to presence ethical legitimacy-in-coexistence with another! All of us at heart desire to be accepted and valued enacting care, feeding and nurturing one another. Humanity has the capability now to make a quantum leap into designing a world together and for future generations!
This blog focuses on Native American, First Nations, Cognitive Science, and Integral Movements developing worldwide.
Thanks
Patric
Many African Americans are happy Barack Obama is running for president, but they regard him as 'half black' or not 'not black enough', and not someone who has gone through a 'typical black American experience'. But what is a 'typical' black American experience? No one in the world has a typical experience. Each person's life is unique and no matter what part it might share in a human trend, no one knows the other person's pain, joys, laughter or sorrow.
It is a kind of arrogance to believe that because we all share an outward skin colour that we all share the same 'typical' experiences. Not even when we are in the same proximity with each other, we don't share anything exactly with our neighbour. We might share a world perspective, and a particular cultural view, or even similar aspirations, but we are not clones of each other. That difference is guaranteed by personal perception which dictates our reality.
Prejudice is a natural by-product of making choices in life. We are presented with a diversity of choice daily, from which we are required to select what matters to us most, what we like best, the things which keep us in our comfort zones and anything that enhances us the most, while resisting the rest. From choosing a partner to choosing a fashionable item, we are exercising the prejudice of accepting one thing while rejecting another. So we are all guilty of exercising prejudice in some form and we all have our prejudices relating to lifestyle and culture.
