American Holocaust of Native People (video)

Watch more documentary here, http://documentarytrove.com/ 
The powerful and hard-hitting documentary, American Holocaust, is quite possibly the only film that reveals the link between the Nazi holocaust, which claimed at least 6 million Jews, and the American Holocaust which claimed, according to conservative estimates, 19 million Indigenous People.

It is seldom noted anywhere in fact, be it in textbooks or on the internet, that Hitler studied Americas Indian policy, and used it as a model for what he termed "the final solution."

He wasn't the only one either. Its not explicitly mentioned in the film, but its well known that members of the National Party government in South Africa studied the American approach before they introduced the system of racial apartheid, which lasted from 1948 to 1994. Other fascist regimes, for instance, in South and Central America, studied the same policy.


19 Million Native People is a HOLOCAUST! Trace

American Holocaust of Native People (video)

Watch more documentary here, http://documentarytrove.com/ 
The powerful and hard-hitting documentary, American Holocaust, is quite possibly the only film that reveals the link between the Nazi holocaust, which claimed at least 6 million Jews, and the American Holocaust which claimed, according to conservative estimates, 19 million Indigenous People.

It is seldom noted anywhere in fact, be it in textbooks or on the internet, that Hitler studied Americas Indian policy, and used it as a model for what he termed "the final solution."

He wasn't the only one either. Its not explicitly mentioned in the film, but its well known that members of the National Party government in South Africa studied the American approach before they introduced the system of racial apartheid, which lasted from 1948 to 1994. Other fascist regimes, for instance, in South and Central America, studied the same policy.


19 Million Native People is a HOLOCAUST! Trace

American Holocaust of Native People (video)

Watch more documentary here, http://documentarytrove.com/ 
The powerful and hard-hitting documentary, American Holocaust, is quite possibly the only film that reveals the link between the Nazi holocaust, which claimed at least 6 million Jews, and the American Holocaust which claimed, according to conservative estimates, 19 million Indigenous People.

It is seldom noted anywhere in fact, be it in textbooks or on the internet, that Hitler studied Americas Indian policy, and used it as a model for what he termed "the final solution."

He wasn't the only one either. Its not explicitly mentioned in the film, but its well known that members of the National Party government in South Africa studied the American approach before they introduced the system of racial apartheid, which lasted from 1948 to 1994. Other fascist regimes, for instance, in South and Central America, studied the same policy.


19 Million Native People is a HOLOCAUST! Trace

American Holocaust of Native People (video)

Watch more documentary here, http://documentarytrove.com/ 
The powerful and hard-hitting documentary, American Holocaust, is quite possibly the only film that reveals the link between the Nazi holocaust, which claimed at least 6 million Jews, and the American Holocaust which claimed, according to conservative estimates, 19 million Indigenous People.

It is seldom noted anywhere in fact, be it in textbooks or on the internet, that Hitler studied Americas Indian policy, and used it as a model for what he termed "the final solution."

He wasn't the only one either. Its not explicitly mentioned in the film, but its well known that members of the National Party government in South Africa studied the American approach before they introduced the system of racial apartheid, which lasted from 1948 to 1994. Other fascist regimes, for instance, in South and Central America, studied the same policy.


19 Million Native People is a HOLOCAUST! Trace

WE NEED YOU NOW! New Bill in WA state

IMPORTANT!! New WA bill for OBCs and Non-ID! 


Write these lawmakers! I did!



Penni writes on Soaring Angels:
Hello- We have a new bill this year that would release original birth certificates (OBC) to Washington State adoptees AND would also compel counties and adoption agencies to give out ALL possibly non-id (changes the 'shall' to 'will' in the non-id RCW - YAY!!).

This bill is House Bill 2211:
http://apps. leg.wa.gov/ billinfo/ summary.aspx? bill=2211

Because there are certain legislators who are extremely anti-open records, we did have to agree to a compromise this year. This compromise would add an option for birth parents to file an affidavit of non-closure, which would
mean the adoptee couldn't get their original birth certificate. 

The good thing about this particular compromise is that it would expire every 2 years and the birth parent would have to renew it. Also, even if a birth parent would file an affidavit of non-disclosure, the adoptee would
still be able to get their non-identifying information.

WHAT WE NEED FROM YOU:

1. CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVE! 
We need all of you with a WA connection to contact your state representative and ask them to support House Bill 2211 (HB 2211). 

You can find your representatives here:
http://apps. leg.wa.gov/ DistrictFinder/ Default.aspx

2. IF YOUR REPRESENTATIVE IS ON THE HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE, SETUP A MEETING!
If any of you live in a district with a representative on the House Judiciary Committee, and would be willing to set up a meeting, we could arrange to have someone from WA-CARE go with you to the meeting. 

Here are the members of the Judiciary Committee:
http://www.leg. wa.gov/House/ Committees/ JUDI/Pages/ MembersStaff. aspx. 

3. SETUP A MEETING WITH ONE OF THESE SENTATORS!
Do any of you live in the districts belonging to Sen. Becker, Sen. Keiser, Sen. Stevens, and Sen. Pridemore?? If yes, we also need to try to set up meetings with one of these sentators in the event that the bill passes the
house and moves on to the senate, need to find a potential senator to sponsor the bill.

For more information about the efforts in WA to get the adoption laws changed, see the WA-CARE website: http://wa-care.com/default. aspx

Next WA-CARE meeting: Wed, Jan 18, 2012, 11.30am at Cutter's Point Coffee, 5750 Ruddell Road SE, Lacey, WA.

Any comments or questions, please email WA-CARE at washingtonadopteerights@gmail. com
Thanks! Penni


From Trace: Write a letter to the legislators and email Penni and tell your story - good and bad - adoption secrecy is like a cancer and needs maximum exposure aimed at the lawmakers. The adoptee and their stories are critical to change these lawmakers minds.

TO:	Representative Tina Orwall
FROM:	Ms. Trace A DeMeyer
BILL:	2211 (For Adoptee Rights)
	Dear Rep Tina Orwall I did live and work in WA state for many years but currently live in MA. I am an adoptee and an author. My struggle to find my identity, my medical history, my ancestry, my family and my tribe is detailed in my memoir ONE SMALL SACRIFICE: Lost Children of the Indian Adoption Projects. My book is on Amazon. My blog (www.splitfeathers.blogspot.com) has research and history and many articles by and about adoptees who are also struggling with archaic laws. Not all have American Indian ancestry. Do you know who you are? Do you know what it is like not to know? Or date someone who could be your relative? Or get sick and not have medical history? Or have a fake birth certificate and now with the REAL ID ACT you may not be able to get a new drivers license or passport. My friends Wanda and Tom are WA state adoptees and cannot find their parents. Is that right? They are adults, not children. It's possible their parents are dead but they remember their siblings before they were taken to CT to be adopted. That was a part of the Indian Adoption Project. Excerpt from my second book SPLIT FEATHERS: TWO WORLDS Administered by the Child Welfare League of America and funded by a federal contract from the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the U.S. Children’s Bureau, the Indian Adoption Project lasted from 1958 through 1967. During an era when matching dominated adoption practice, it placed 395 Native American children from 16 western states with white families in Illinois, Indiana, New York, Massachusetts, Missouri, and other states in the East and Midwest. (Only 14 children were adopted by Southern families and one child was adopted in Puerto Rico.) Approximately fifty public and private adoption agencies cooperated with the project, but the largest number of children were placed by agencies that were leaders in African-American adoptions and services to children of color: Louise Wise Services and Spence-Chapin Adoption Services (both of New York) and the Children’s Bureau of Delaware. Because tribes are legally considered sovereign nations, the incorporation of Indian children into non-Indian families constituted a kind of international as well as transracial adoption...The Indian Adoption Project was perhaps the single most important exception to race-matching... It aspired to systematically place an entire child population across lines of nation, culture, and race. (85% of Indian children in 16 states were placed in CLOSED ADOPTIONS)(Each state had its own program after IAP using the ARENA projects which moved thousands of Indian children from Canada and the US to non-Indian adoptive families. I have more proof in book 2.) In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Native Americans challenged the idea that the Indian Adoption Project was a triumph and denounced the project as the most recent in a long line of genocidal policies toward native communities and cultures. In June 2001, Child Welfare League Executive Director Shay Bilchik legitimated Native concerns, formally apologizing for the Indian Adoption Project at a meeting of the National Indian Child Welfare Association. He put the Child Welfare League of America on record in support of the Indian Child Welfare Act. “No matter how well intentioned and how squarely in the mainstream this was at the time,” he said, “it was wrong; it was hurtful; and it reflected a kind of bias that surfaces feelings of shame.” Source: http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~adoption/topics/IAP.html When you consider all the lies and secrecy and harm that surrounds adoption, how does that make you feel? Trace A. DeMeyer
RESPONSE:	Ms. DeMeyer has requested a response to this message.

Adopters battle with Cherokee Father

Couple battles tribe over adoption

Columbia, South Carolina (WLTX) - A Lowcountry couple with a Midlands connection is working to get back the little girl they adopted two years ago, after a judge granted custody to the biological father under the Indian Child Welfare Act.

"I'll always remember her crying when we had to - we had to walk out of that office and leave her there," says Melanie Capobianco. Two years ago, she and her husband Matt first helped to welcome Veronica into the world.

According to their website, her birth mother selected the Charleston couple to adopt her and they remain close. They also say her birth father signed a document saying he wouldn't contest the adoption. But after a court battle, Veronica's birth father claimed custody under the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978. "Specifically, it says that tribes have to be notified when children of their members, or eligible members, are being placed outside the home. Tribes have to be given a chance to intervene," explains David Simmons with the National Indian Child Welfare Association.

He says their culture is an important aspect of the Native American community. "Their culture, nobody else can provide that for them. And they have a right to be able to experience that relationship with their tribe," says Simmons.

On New Year's Eve, Veronica's birth father took her with him to Oklahoma, where he lives. While Simmons is sympathetic to the Capobiancos' struggle, he's seen similar cases before. "Oftentimes, when we hear about cases like this, we find out that there hasn't, the person who was facilitating - sort of the expert in doing this work - wasn't following the Indian Child Welfare Act as closely as they should've been," he says.

The couple did get to talk to Veronica on the phone earlier this week. "She said, 'Hi mommy! Hi daddy!' She sounded really excited to hear us and she said, 'I love you, I love you,' numerous times," says Melanie. 

But they're still fighting to have more than just her voice back in their home.

Melanie is originally from Winnsboro. She and her husband's appeal to the South Carolina Supreme Court is already underway, but the case probably won't be heard until this spring.

News19 did leave a message for Veronica's birth father's attorney, but has not yet heard back. Click here for the TV broadcast

My thoughts:

The slant in this story is the child is/was better off with the adoptive parents and the bio-dad is not enough Indian to matter - if you read the comments after this story.

The idea behind the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) was to protect children. Adoption does not protect us if the courts place a child outside of their tribal family. The courts should respect a father's right to parent and have custody... in this case the mother had given consent for adoption of Veronica but not the father who is Cherokee.

If both parents consent to adoption, if that is the only option for a child, then other family needs to raise the child within the tribe...

Disregarding federal law and the sovereignty of Native American people is obvious in too many cases of adoption in the last 30 years since ICWA. South Carolina is among them.

Trace

What you need to know about REUNIONS

The Reunion
http://library.adoption.com/articles/search-and-reunion-etiquette-.html 

Reunions come in many styles and with many variations, but the essence is still the same. This is the "meeting" - the reconnection - of two people who for all intents and purposes are closely related, but who are relative strangers. Like the development of any relationship, that of adoptee and birth relative takes time and effort. There is something profoundly mystical and magical about reunions. They require lots of work, lots of concentration and, above all, a sense of humour. Rules of etiquette which have been developed through experience may make things run more smoothly.

Do be honest. There have been enough lies and secrets.

Do share information as appropriate, both in the initial call (if there is one) and later, when you meet. Sometimes questions come as a reflex and may not need to be answered that very moment. For example, to "How did you find me?" you might respond "It was not easy. I'll tell you the whole story sometime. Right now let's enjoy this wonderful meeting." To "Who is my birth father?" one might respond "I will tell you the whole story, but right now I need some time to reflect on what has happened. But I promise I'll tell you the truth." A related principle is that if an immediate answer to your questions is not forthcoming, try to be patient-within reason-with the other person.

Do try to laugh. This is a joyful situation. Don't make it into a frightening experience. There is enough inherent drama in the incredible event taking place without adding to the tension. Be prepared to go whitewater rafting and hang on tight!

Do try to keep it simple. In birth parent searches, do not try to find both parents at once (unless, of course, they are still together). The emotional upheaval that may ensue could spoil the hope of future successes.

Do plan your first meeting in a place where either party can feel confident and safe. The situation is emotional enough without adding to it the fear of not being able to "get away" if there is a problem. A cozy corner in a public place (behind the potted palms in a large hotel lounge) can be just fine. If you decide this is working well, you can move to somewhere more private.

Do keep the first meeting shorter rather than longer, if possible. This gives everyone time to take a breather, re-assess the situation and consider the future relationship. It is always easier meeting for the second time. (If you have to travel some distance to meet, the "second time" may be the day after your initial meeting.)

Do try to avoid a huge family picnic as the way to introduce your new-found relative to the clan. It can be very overwhelming to meet 50 relatives at once.

Do keep an open mind. The birth family may be very different from the adoptive family. Try not to judge one against the other until you get to know them better.

Do have realistic expectations. The moment of reunion is not the time to decide you really only wanted "medical information" or that you are not ready to pursue a relationship. It is cruel to set the other party up to expect more than you are prepared to give. Be honest with yourself and try to look at your reasons for searching and the limits of what you can accept. Talk with your support system ahead of time about the limits; if you're in an uncomfortable situation, try to resolve it directly and privately. 

Do have a frank discussion of how the adoptee will address the birth parent and other birth relatives, and vice versa, following the reunion. Some birth mothers want their surrendered children to call them "Mom," but adoptees already have one "Mom" in their life and may not be comfortable using that title for anyone but their adoptive mother. Likewise, some adoptees are eager to call their birth mother "Mom," but the birth mother may not be comfortable being called "Mom" by a child she did not raise. Good manners would also direct that any discussion of how the adoptee will refer to his or her birth relatives not take place in the presence of a roomful of relatives. One needs to be very flexible. If this issue becomes one of contention, a re-examination of expectations may be in order.

Don't try to compete with established family holiday procedures unless everyone agrees. Like the name issue, this is not worth the anguish it can cause. Keep it simple. Many reunited relatives get bogged down in the minutiae of names and festivals instead of being thrilled that they have found each other.

Do try to respect the other person's wishes about sharing the reunion with other members of the family. For some birth parents, a reluctance to share can go on too long. Try to set limits to your impatience and wait it out. At some point adoptees in this situation may need to re-assess their expectations and make decisions about the future path of the relationship. Advice from an experienced searcher or support group is recommended.

Do be stoic if the other party feels a need to pull back for a while. It is very wise to agree without a huge fuss, great grief, or gnashing of teeth. Such need to pull away is often seen in the reunion process. It allows the person to take stock or re-assess the reunion and its effect on his or her life. Although very painful to the other person, it is best treated with patience and lots of reading. Support groups are great for dealing with the sadness. No one can fix anyone else. They can only fix themselves.

Don't blame yourself for problems in the other person's life. Birth mothers often feel great guilt if the child they relinquished did not grow up as advantaged as they might have hoped, or if religion is not as important in their child's life as it is to them (or vice versa). Adoptees can sometimes feel guilty if the relinquishment experience had a negative impact on the birth mother's life. We cannot turn the clock back no matter how much we might want to. Your relationship starts from the day you meet again. Keep it positive.

Don't plan on moving in with your new relatives. They may be delighted to meet you but they are not looking for a permanent house guest.

Do enjoy the reunion. It's a gift from God.

So...is Search and Reunion a good thing? You bet! Should it be carefully thought through? Absolutely! Will it be 100% successful? If we knew the answer to that, we'd be setting up shop in Las Vegas!




[I wish I had known more prior to my reunions in 1994 - this is very good advice...Trace]

Help for Minnesota Adoptees (I am one, too)

I am an adoptee who was born in Minnesota in 1956.
When I was searching, I did call Catholic Charities since they handled my adoption. This was in the late 1970s and they, of course, were shocked I was asking for my birth certificate and wanting to know who my parents were. They didn't slam down the phone but they were no help at all - but times have changed somewhat since then and this is the  link  to contact Minnesota for access to your birth records and birth certificate.
It is "conditional" access - which means your birthparent has had to file a consent form - and if they have done that, the adoptee will be able to have a certified copy of the original birth records. (read below)
You can check my blog here about what was in my adoption file from Wisconsin; the judge ordered an investigation before my adoption was finalized and the investigator had to get a copies of my files which listed days spent in a Minnesota Catholic orphanage, other records from Minnesota, my foster care address in Wisconsin - prior to my being legally adopted. (Yes, states did transfer children around like Minnesota-Wisconsin-Illinois). I was born in MN but adopted in Wisconsin - which meant I had two places to look. A Wisconsin judge let me read my files in 1979.
In 2010, I did contact Minnesota to request a copy of my original birth certificate. Because records are still sealed, they said NO. My birthmother Helen died in 2007, so she obviously will not ever give her consent.
This also presents a problem since the government will be refusing to give certain people with strange-looking birth certificates a driver's license in the not-too-distant future. (REAL ID ACT OF 2005)
My friends at Soaring Angels on Yahoo Groups (search angels for adoptees & birthfamilies) posted this so I wanted to share it with adoptees who need help in Minnesota!

Access to Original Birth Record in MN


A child, age 19 or older who was adopted, may request a non-certified copy of the original birth record. To request a non-certified copy, complete the Adoptee's Request for Original Birth Record Information and Search for Affidavit of Disclosure or Non-Disclosure( Interactive PDF: 60KB/1 page)
<http://www.health. state.mn. us/divs/chs/ osr/disclosesear chnew.pdf> . 
Mail the completed form with a fee of $13 to the Minnesota Department of Health, Central Cashiering - Vital Records, P.O. Box 64499, St. Paul, Minnesota 55164-0499.

If a birth parent has given permission to release the original birth information to the child, MDH will send the child a non-certified copy of the original birth record. If no Affidavit of Disclosure or Non-Disclosure
has been filed, MDH will notify the child that a non-certified copy of the original birth record cannot be released at this time. MDH will also notify the Department of Human Services for the purpose of conducting a search for
the birth parent(s) according to Minnesota Statutes, section 259.89. The search may take up to six months. MDH will contact the child when the search is complete.

Searches for Information about Siblings or Parents who were Adopted
The Minnesota Department of Health does not retain adoption information. The Office of the State Registrar retains:

1) current birth records that include the post adoption names of adopted persons and their adopted parents; and
2) the original birth record that includes original birth information.

The original birth record may be released only:

1) by court order
2) to the adopted person if the parent(s) named on the original birth record have been given permission; or
3) to a parent named on the original birth record.

Other than releasing the original birth record as described above, the Office of the State Registrar does not provide post adoption services and cannot help with searches for information about siblings or parents. If you are looking for information about a sibling or a parent who was adopted, please contact the adoption agency or the Minnesota Department of Human Services at 651-431-4682 or write to: Minnesota Department of Human Services, Child Safety and Permanency Division, Adoption Assitance Program, P.O. Box 64944, St. Paul, MN 55164-0944.

Telling interview with adoptive mother Joan Didion

The Leonard Lopate Show

Joan Didion's memoir Blue Nights (radio interview)

The comments are much better than the interview with this famous adoptive mother who clearly doesn't get ..IT..

Here's a few comments about the release of Blue Nights shared via NYMag.com/arts/books back in Oct 2011:

"Didion is an gold medal narcissist. Look at it in her face, her deathly cool self-obsession. She wrote the book to "get IT off her mind?" how telling. IT? Funny name for a daughter. Face it: There was no room in her life/drama for a beautiful daughter full of life who would draw attention away from Didion (look at the daughter at age 8 or 9 and see a vibrant life force that would outshine her mother in a matter of time). I could barely stomach the narcissistic prose bleating about her husband's death. No one could/would out live her. Her daughter would die before her, she had to, it was an unspoken rule, there was not room for both of them. Didion is surrounded by enablers. And yes, she can write, well, but who can read IT?" - Candida Worthington

"Why do people care about such stupid, self-indulgent, abusive people? Why does anyone want to enter the world of these precious non-entities? And it is sad how the psychological abuse of the daughter is glossed over. Instead we are supposed to be fascinated, somehow, by these people's oh-so-important "work". I just don't get it." - JS7

"It's hard to believe someone as bright as Didion could really be so clueless as to why her daughter was so 'troubled'.

As an adopted adult, I can tell you that Quintana was hardly unique. THOUSANDS of adoptees cannot make sense of the abandonment, the unacknowledged grief of losing their families,and the weathering the shift a CHILD must make into a family of strangers. Adoptees overpopulate residential treatment centers, prisons, etc. We are not an emotionally healthy lot.

Didion really ought to consider psychologist David Kirschner's theory 'adopted child syndrome' to understand her daughter, as opposed to the tired 'bi polar disorder' explaination. Everything Quintana lived through as a depressed child and a lost adult is outlined in the lifelong work of the late Betty Jean Lifton and adoptive mother and author Nancy Verrier's book, "The Primal Wound".

Didion claiming ignorance as to why her daughter was so emotionally pained is frustrating to those of us who have experienced life much like Quintana did, no matter who we came from, or to whom we were given to: the commonality is *being* adopted. It really is a life long condition as opposed to an 'event'."- Michelle Booth

http://www.wnyc.org/shows/lopate/2012/jan/02/joan-didions-emblue-nightsem/

The Time to Mourn

First, let me say Happy New Year to everyone.

Let me share a bit about the past month... while I have been mourning and tending my spirit.

Mourning ignited with the loss of Edie, the only mother I knew for 50+ years, when a cruel disease, dementia, erased her memory and caused her death on December 9 in Oregon. 

Until her diagnosis in 2007 and her move to Oregon in 2010, I had a very close and loving relationship with my mom. We spent months together each year, goofing off in Wisconsin, or if I was in Massachusetts, we spoke daily on the phone. Over the years, we grew inseparable. Our love was real.

Also last year two cherished aunts in my adoptive family died, and I had not properly grieved them and I needed to... and with mom gone, I had to... suddenly, grief erupted like a volcano and swallowed me up.

During my grieving, I felt it was important to be “real” about the people and events that shaped my life. I lived far too many fantasies as a child-young adult and never will go back into that “fog” mode. I choose to be as clear and real as humanly possible. 

The mind will naturally want to block what is painful so I made time to look at old photos, an important part of a grieving process. I looked at them with heart and eyes wide open. 

I could see in the photos how my parents adopted a stranger's child yet pretended it wasn't relevant to them they’d adopted me. They decided not to talk about it. (At least they didn’t in front of me.)

I see my a-parents unaware of how my emotional edges grew raw and ragged. I see my spirit go cold and numb in the photos. They ignore the child staring back at them and simply pretend everything is fine and normal. After many years, it does get to the point when we do become family. Your adoptive parents are the only parents you’ve known and the only truth you have known.

But this taught me a lesson. Adoption was forced, when parents force us to adapt and accept them as parents or you go insane. 

I admit I had a very difficult childhood which can kill you or make you strong. There was alcoholism and abuse at home. I will never completely understand what happened. I comprehend some parts as the child and others parts as an adult. 

Never could I tell them of my decision to open my adoption or when I did it. They would have seen it as my rejecting them. Still I had to do something about it and I did. Adoptees learn quickly what is possible and what is impossible with each parent and each situation. At home I was expected to adjust and adapt without any discussion or therapy. That’s the juggle for adoptees.

We know THAT needs to change. Adoptees confirm this on blogs and in books and in support groups.

No great surprise, the adoption industry didn't educate my parents before my adoption that I would have emotional difficulties being their adopted daughter.  That apparently wasn't discussed.

Sadly, there is too much the adoption industry will not disclose to adoptive parents. 

In 2012, ignorance is no longer an excuse.

Today's adoptive parents can turn to the internet and numerous books on how to deal with our emotional hurt, grief and adoption trauma. They can understand adoption better today because of adoptees. Parents can educate themselves and advocate for the child they adopt or foster. Some of these parents deal in truths and get their child into therapy. There isn't a cure for the primal wound (post-traumatic stress disorder, or severe narcissistic injury) but there are new treatments discussed every day on the internet.

I was not able to speak to Edie about my reunion with my natural father and my siblings. She had no interest in this or my search or how I felt. That was not a part of our relationship.  

Edie's death also made me realize I had not mourned my other mother Helen who I never met. I do admit it's a delayed reaction - because when you lose someone so important to you , other losses and grief can surface and erupt out of nowhere. I'll cry in spurts. I'll cry for myself. I'll cry because I miss their voices and the many stories of our life.

With my parents (adoptive and natural) all gone, it felt to me like my own history was disappearing.  

I know it's very important to mourn our relatives, and then let them go.  It would be selfish of us to try and keep their spirits here. The dead visit us in dreams. We can still speak to them.

Grief simply pours out of our soul because it needs release. I made the time to mourn. 

i have no indian name

http://youtu.be/BhC5-Myj6gs

Rita Coolidge explained in an interview she met a young woman who was adopted and the result of their meeting was this song…. beautiful song…tragic, too…

i have no indian name

http://youtu.be/BhC5-Myj6gs

Rita Coolidge explained in an interview she met a young woman who was adopted and the result of their meeting was this song…. beautiful song…tragic, too…

i have no indian name

http://youtu.be/BhC5-Myj6gs

Rita Coolidge explained in an interview she met a young woman who was adopted and the result of their meeting was this song…. beautiful song…tragic, too…

i have no indian name

http://youtu.be/BhC5-Myj6gs

Rita Coolidge explained in an interview she met a young woman who was adopted and the result of their meeting was this song…. beautiful song…tragic, too…

i have no indian name

http://youtu.be/BhC5-Myj6gs

Rita Coolidge explained in an interview she met a young woman who was adopted and the result of their meeting was this song…. beautiful song…tragic, too…

i have no indian name

http://youtu.be/BhC5-Myj6gs

Rita Coolidge explained in an interview she met a young woman who was adopted and the result of their meeting was this song…. beautiful song…tragic, too…

Minnesota's Healing Spirits

Healing Native Spirits in MN Long-Term Foster Care

MINNEAPOLIS - A unique program in south Minneapolis is finding success helping American Indian boys in long-term foster care. The director of the Healing Spirit program for boys, Kirk Crow Shoe, says the group home they operate takes in teens with a history of running away, skipping school and runs-ins with police. Many have been placed in multiple foster-care situations without success.



"They go into these homes and they're not making it. They're not connecting; they're not getting their needs met, so then they go back to the emergency shelter. They wait for yet another placement; they go to another placement, then they disrupt from that placement. Healing Spirit was developed as an answer to this particular problem."



At Healing Spirit, Crow Shoe explains, the focus is not just on school and living skills, but also on the sacred Native American culture, which he calls a significant part of helping the kids believe in themselves.



What makes Healing Spirit effective, Crow Shoe says, is that the teen boys are overseen by staff members who share the same Native American background.



"Many of them have been in long-term foster care themselves. They struggled greatly in their upbringings, and as adults they have the heart to give back to the community. The kids know that they've been in their shoes, as well, so there's an immediate sense of respect that's paid to one another in that relationship."



It is key for the troubled teens to connect with their culture and community and feel a sense of family - particularly in a system in which they've been shuffled from one place to another, Crow Shoe adds.



"These kids, after a period of time, they feel like they're throwaways and they're very broken kids. Because we understand that and because many of us have lived that life, they know that we are going to be more patient, more generous - and we're not going to give up on them quite so easily."



Since Healing Spirit was founded in 2003, the average length of stay has grown to around 2.5 years, and most boys now stay until they "age out." Crow Shoe says with that success, the program has generated interest from across the country.



"Because we have done as well as we have over the years, there are other communities that are interested in what we're doing; and as such, we then shared our model at the National Indian Child Welfare Act conferences."



A similar foster home for girls opens in south Minneapolis in January. American Indians make up just over one-percent of Minnesota's population, but account for 12 percent of the children in the state foster care system.



More information is available at http://diw.gmcc.org/programs.php.

Public News Service - MN » December , 2011

Minnesota's Healing Spirits

Healing Native Spirits in MN Long-Term Foster Care

MINNEAPOLIS - A unique program in south Minneapolis is finding success helping American Indian boys in long-term foster care. The director of the Healing Spirit program for boys, Kirk Crow Shoe, says the group home they operate takes in teens with a history of running away, skipping school and runs-ins with police. Many have been placed in multiple foster-care situations without success.

"They go into these homes and they're not making it. They're not connecting; they're not getting their needs met, so then they go back to the emergency shelter. They wait for yet another placement; they go to another placement, then they disrupt from that placement. Healing Spirit was developed as an answer to this particular problem."

At Healing Spirit, Crow Shoe explains, the focus is not just on school and living skills, but also on the sacred Native American culture, which he calls a significant part of helping the kids believe in themselves.

What makes Healing Spirit effective, Crow Shoe says, is that the teen boys are overseen by staff members who share the same Native American background.

"Many of them have been in long-term foster care themselves. They struggled greatly in their upbringings, and as adults they have the heart to give back to the community. The kids know that they've been in their shoes, as well, so there's an immediate sense of respect that's paid to one another in that relationship."

It is key for the troubled teens to connect with their culture and community and feel a sense of family - particularly in a system in which they've been shuffled from one place to another, Crow Shoe adds.

"These kids, after a period of time, they feel like they're throwaways and they're very broken kids. Because we understand that and because many of us have lived that life, they know that we are going to be more patient, more generous - and we're not going to give up on them quite so easily."

Since Healing Spirit was founded in 2003, the average length of stay has grown to around 2.5 years, and most boys now stay until they "age out." Crow Shoe says with that success, the program has generated interest from across the country.

"Because we have done as well as we have over the years, there are other communities that are interested in what we're doing; and as such, we then shared our model at the National Indian Child Welfare Act conferences."

A similar foster home for girls opens in south Minneapolis in January. American Indians make up just over one-percent of Minnesota's population, but account for 12 percent of the children in the state foster care system.

More information is available at http://diw.gmcc.org/programs.php.
Public News Service - MN » December , 2011

Minnesota's Healing Spirits

Healing Native Spirits in MN Long-Term Foster Care

MINNEAPOLIS - A unique program in south Minneapolis is finding success helping American Indian boys in long-term foster care. The director of the Healing Spirit program for boys, Kirk Crow Shoe, says the group home they operate takes in teens with a history of running away, skipping school and runs-ins with police. Many have been placed in multiple foster-care situations without success.

"They go into these homes and they're not making it. They're not connecting; they're not getting their needs met, so then they go back to the emergency shelter. They wait for yet another placement; they go to another placement, then they disrupt from that placement. Healing Spirit was developed as an answer to this particular problem."

At Healing Spirit, Crow Shoe explains, the focus is not just on school and living skills, but also on the sacred Native American culture, which he calls a significant part of helping the kids believe in themselves.

What makes Healing Spirit effective, Crow Shoe says, is that the teen boys are overseen by staff members who share the same Native American background.

"Many of them have been in long-term foster care themselves. They struggled greatly in their upbringings, and as adults they have the heart to give back to the community. The kids know that they've been in their shoes, as well, so there's an immediate sense of respect that's paid to one another in that relationship."

It is key for the troubled teens to connect with their culture and community and feel a sense of family - particularly in a system in which they've been shuffled from one place to another, Crow Shoe adds.

"These kids, after a period of time, they feel like they're throwaways and they're very broken kids. Because we understand that and because many of us have lived that life, they know that we are going to be more patient, more generous - and we're not going to give up on them quite so easily."

Since Healing Spirit was founded in 2003, the average length of stay has grown to around 2.5 years, and most boys now stay until they "age out." Crow Shoe says with that success, the program has generated interest from across the country.

"Because we have done as well as we have over the years, there are other communities that are interested in what we're doing; and as such, we then shared our model at the National Indian Child Welfare Act conferences."

A similar foster home for girls opens in south Minneapolis in January. American Indians make up just over one-percent of Minnesota's population, but account for 12 percent of the children in the state foster care system.

More information is available at http://diw.gmcc.org/programs.php.
Public News Service - MN » December , 2011

Minnesota's Healing Spirits

Healing Native Spirits in MN Long-Term Foster Care

MINNEAPOLIS - A unique program in south Minneapolis is finding success helping American Indian boys in long-term foster care. The director of the Healing Spirit program for boys, Kirk Crow Shoe, says the group home they operate takes in teens with a history of running away, skipping school and runs-ins with police. Many have been placed in multiple foster-care situations without success.

"They go into these homes and they're not making it. They're not connecting; they're not getting their needs met, so then they go back to the emergency shelter. They wait for yet another placement; they go to another placement, then they disrupt from that placement. Healing Spirit was developed as an answer to this particular problem."

At Healing Spirit, Crow Shoe explains, the focus is not just on school and living skills, but also on the sacred Native American culture, which he calls a significant part of helping the kids believe in themselves.

What makes Healing Spirit effective, Crow Shoe says, is that the teen boys are overseen by staff members who share the same Native American background.

"Many of them have been in long-term foster care themselves. They struggled greatly in their upbringings, and as adults they have the heart to give back to the community. The kids know that they've been in their shoes, as well, so there's an immediate sense of respect that's paid to one another in that relationship."

It is key for the troubled teens to connect with their culture and community and feel a sense of family - particularly in a system in which they've been shuffled from one place to another, Crow Shoe adds.

"These kids, after a period of time, they feel like they're throwaways and they're very broken kids. Because we understand that and because many of us have lived that life, they know that we are going to be more patient, more generous - and we're not going to give up on them quite so easily."

Since Healing Spirit was founded in 2003, the average length of stay has grown to around 2.5 years, and most boys now stay until they "age out." Crow Shoe says with that success, the program has generated interest from across the country.

"Because we have done as well as we have over the years, there are other communities that are interested in what we're doing; and as such, we then shared our model at the National Indian Child Welfare Act conferences."

A similar foster home for girls opens in south Minneapolis in January. American Indians make up just over one-percent of Minnesota's population, but account for 12 percent of the children in the state foster care system.

More information is available at http://diw.gmcc.org/programs.php.
Public News Service - MN » December , 2011