Scarlet Kinney & The Standing Bear Center For Shamanic Studies

[TrishaRoseJacobs]

Weheli

I think you're right.

Just too bad that someoen is willing to further victimize women who may already be survivors of abuse by taking advantage of their ignorance and offering them made up ceremonies as something they are not.

[Barnaby_McEwan]

The inner child really came to light during the Dr Bradshaw era [...] find the wounded,frightened child, whether boy or girl, reconnect with that part of yourself ,and to begin to mother that wounded part. By so doing you are able to move on by using adult coping skills.

You're right, Weheli, it's just John Bradshaw dressed in 'Indian' clothes. As Michael Yapko points out:

As a result of its relentless promotion through books, lectures, and tapes, the ''inner child'' is now a fact of life to countless Americans. They talk to it, write about it, interpret its dreams, indulge it in carefully constructed fantasies, and most of all, they try to fix it. "Healing the inner child within" has become the goal of therapists across the country, and a handy, highly publicized framework from which to launch their clinical practices and workshops. [...] So, what's the problem? There is no inner child! It is a metaphor, a representation, a suggested way of thinking about your experience; it is not the experience itself. But, for some people, the suggestion has transcended mere metaphor and become a reality. When I have publicly discussed it as an illusion, I've seen these people become angry and defensive, as if I've just called into question the legitimacy of one of their most precious beliefs. To be truthful, I have. Isn't it interesting, though, how so arbitrary a perspective can assume such personal importance and intensity?

Further:

The "recovery movement" consistently falls back on the claim that it does not encourage people to blame their parents for their problems. Rather, John Bradshaw says, he wants them to be held "accountable." While Bradshaw may be able to differentiate between "blame" and "accountability," a great many Americans are not quite so discriminating. [...] Bradshaw's steady fanning of the flames of anger and resentment as a necessary path to eventual acceptance of things that happened and a greater sense of personal responsibility (which he claims are his goals) sends a very mixed message.

Kinney and other would-be 'feminist' gurus go further: patriarchy is to blame, not just parents! I'm sure you're not agreeing with Kinney that this is a way to help women become more adult, her stated purpose. If the likes of Ernestine Rose, Emma Goldman, or Voltairine de Cleyre could see what's perpetrated in the name of feminism these days they wouldn't just turn in their graves, they'd rise from them.

From a review of a biography of Ernestine Rose:

Also setting her apart from her contemporaries in the women’s movement was her refusal to buy into the then (and still) popular notion of women’s “special spiritual nature.

[Le_Weaponnier]

Hi Le_Weponier

I understand your concern , but this puberty ceremony does not sound anything like the fraudulant Cherokee fire person initiating childern into sexuality at puberty , that you were rightfully so concerned about , before .

Below is a link to the advertisement for this puberty ceremony . I doubt any one could read anything into this that could help them justify any perverted act with a child , although , if this commercial ceremony , did involve children at puberty , in my opinion , it could be seen as exploiting a childs developing sexuality ? . But I do not think it does , because I do not think any real children are involved ? .

From the link you provided I can see that they do not make the connection to actual exploitation of children.
However, the wording is very very similar to the wording in the the Quodoushka sex cult thing. And THAT is the fraudulent fire person group.
I am going to give them the benefit of the doubt and assume that it is either coincidental wording or they just liked the wording of that passage and decided to use it themselves.

[weheli]

Barnaby,
I absolutely do not agree with the teachings of Scarlet. The movement of the inner child was a BIG thing in the 80's. Yes Bradshaw always used the blame game, both parents. What I see Scarlet doing is blaming all the problems women have on the MEN. This alone tells me that she herself has much healing to do. Highly feminist.

Everything she is speaking about I have heard before,"inner child work","women restoring thier power","becoming all we can be". Yes hers is dressed in a different package but in reality is the same ,only her workshops and seminars ect. come at a much higher price $$. She uses the "native" twist to draw and prey on women who are wounded with little to no self worth. What a terrible thing to do. Yes these women make their own choices but many do not know they have any and are looking for anything that "seems " to give them hope.

Thats where women and men like Scarlet step in with this "magic potion" of I will heal you, but it will cost you.
                                                                           Weheli

[Moma_porcupine]

Even for people who do find the concept of the "inner child" a helpful way of working with their problems , I do not see any reason to include a puberty ceremony for middle aged women , except that it adds some fake Native American /tribal flavour .

None of the teenage girls I know of , who have gone through puberty in a tribal society, have magically activated their inner Warrioress . For many years after puberty young women are still very much in need of protection . There is no connection whatsoever with going through puberty and transforming the inner "Little Girl" into a "Warrioress " ? Except , I guess , having a puberty ceremony sounds cool .

It is a bit ironic that Scarlet complained in her last post that her words were either misunderstood or intenionally misrepresented , when this EXACTLY the complaint and feelings many Native people have when they see their words , teachings and ceremonies misunderstood and or intentionally misrepresented .

I wonder if she notices , that it does not feel good ....

[Defend the Sacred]

It looks there's also a http://www.standing-bear.com/index.htm

I don't know if they're connected. I came across their site because they were advertising sweats, sundances and "the Way of the Pipe" on a Neopagan forum.

[zoi lightfoot]

Ok lets not play anymore huh? Tell me this Scarlett and Co, what are the names of these ellusive women who taught you as you claim,what is thier exact traditional position within their Band/Nation and what qualification if any did they claim to have that enabled them to 'educate' anyone outside their own communities.I happen to work directly with the women title holders of the Mohawk Nation Scarlett,so lets have that womans name, vague posturing doesn't work with me.

[frederica]

Look like this a different bunch. Scarlet was in Maine, this group seems based in Maryland, then holds Ceremonies in West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. An offshoot perhaps. No memtion of Miss Scarlett. Couldn't find her on the internet either. But didn't look very hard.