(Native American Heritage Month Presentation at the National Defense

University, November 10, 2008

H!"ha"ni #a$t%
(hee&hahn&nee
#ah&sh'ay(
)oo' Morning
*t is a great honor to be #ith yo+ here to'ay to reflect on the many
contrib+tions ma'e by Native Americans to this co+ntry, an' to
free'om an' ,+stice aro+n' the #orl'-
* have al#ays 'ra#n ins.iration from the #is'om an' bea+ty of Native
American c+lt+re, an' ho# *n'ians 'efine both lea'ershi. an' o+r
obligations as ste#ar's of the earth-
/ne of my favorite 0+otations abo+t o+r role as environmental ste#ar's
is an *n'ian .roverb1
We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, We borrow it from
our children.
* thin2 it is .artic+larly fitting that the National Defense University
s.onsors this observance of Native American Heritage Month, for a
co+.le of reasons-
3o'ay, more Native Americans serve in the U-4- arme' forces5
a..ro6imately 2-1 .ercent of the serving military5than any other
ethnic gro+., a tra'ition that goes bac2 to the beginning of the
7e.+blic-
3here are 28 *n'ians #ho have receive' the 9ongressional Me'al of
Honor for having serve' in battle #ith co+rage above an' beyon' the
call of '+ty-
*n a n+mber of Native American tribes, there is no .recise e0+ivalent to
the :nglish verb, ;to learn-<
3he closest they come is the .hrase, ;to stan' by-<
=o+ learn by #atching the e6am.le of those aro+n' yo+-
Here at NDU, beyon' the #on'erf+l library an' the many cre'entiale'
aca'emics in o+r mi'st, #e also learn by standing by the many .eo.le,
.artic+larly o+r civilian an' military el'ers, #ho come here to share
#ith +s their insights, e6.eriences an' e6am.les-
3here is Native American story that * #o+l' li2e to share #ith yo+, as *
have #ith my yo+nger brother #hen he #as gro#ing +., an' #ith my
'a+ghters-
3he Navaho .eo.le tell the story of ho#, in a time of great nee', the
Hero 3#ins, the symbolic re.resentation of their .eo.le, ,o+rneye' to
tal2 to the 4+n )o', #ho ten's to all things-
>hen they met him, the Hero 3#ins com.laine' abo+t the .estilence,
famine an' other trage'ies that ha' befallen the Navaho-
3he 4+n )o' then too2 them before three 'oors-
3he first t#o o.ene' +. to vistas of great material #ealth an' #ell&
being-
3he thir' 'oor o.ene' +. to 2no#le'ge-
Before you choose, I must warn you, the 4+n )o' tol' the Hero 3#ins,
that knowledge has no end-
An' that #as the 'oor they chose-
For the Navaho, knowledge is the greatest treasure, even when passing
through troubled times. There is a lesson there for all of us.
?inally, before * intro'+ce o+r g+est s.ea2er to'ay, * #o+l' li2e to
gently remin' everyone of the 'ebt #e still o#e to the ?irst Nations here
in the Unite' 4tates-
*n the 1@A0s the great legal scholar ?eli6 4- 9ohen #rote something that
to me seems so a..ro.riate in to'ayBs #orl'1
ike the miner!s canary, the Indian marks the shift from
fresh air to poison gas in our political atmosphere, and our
treatment of Indians, even more than the treatment of other
minorities, reflects the rise and fall of our democratic faith.
3here is still so m+ch that nee's to be 'one to both re'eem solemn
treaty .romises an' to tr+ly sho# o+r gratit+'e to Native Americans for
all of the contrib+tions they have ma'e to this #on'erf+l co+ntry-
As the late C+stice H+go Dlac2 observe': )reat nations, li2e great men,
sho+l' keep their #or'-EE
>ith that in min', * ho.e o+r g+est s.ea2er #ill say some thing to ma2e
+s a little bit +ncomfortable- >e are tr+ly .rivilege' to have her #ith +s
here to'ay-
Fillian 4.ar2s, a Fa2ota #oman of the 7oseb+' an' /glala 4io+6
3ribes, c+rrently serves as the e6ec+tive 'irector of the National *n'ian
:'+cation Association-
3he N*:A, locate' in >ashington, D9, #as fo+n'e' in 1@G@ to give
American *n'ians, Alas2a Natives, an' Native Ha#aiians a voice in
their str+ggle to im.rove access to e'+cation o..ort+nities-
Prior to ,oining N*:A, Miss 4.ar2s #as a staff attorney #ith the
National 9ongress of American *n'ians (N9A* #here she #or2e' on
international in'igeno+s rights, sacre' sites an' religio+s .rotection,
an' iss+es relate' to yo+th an' healthcare-
A former Miss *n'ian >orl', she #as name' as one of H yo+ng lea'ers
in *n'ian 9o+ntry-
Miss 4.ar2s receive' her D-A- in Political 4cience from Morgan 4tate
University, locate' in her hometo#n of Daltimore, MD, an' her C+ris
Doctorate from )eorgeto#n University Fa# 9enter in >ashington, D9-
"iss #parks, welcome to the National $efense %niversity. &