Prisoners Religious Freedom

[PaxMan]

I'd like to hear some opinions on Indian prisoners who really get very little choice when it comes to taking on another tribe's ceremonies and traditions. Prisons don't care that a LaKota Sweat Lodge is not what a Hopi would think of as a way to exercise his constitutional right to the Indian Freedom of Religion Act. Either you gotta go to the LaKota lodge or stay in your cell and sulk. Any opinions? Suggestions?
(Speaking from experience) Thanks.

[Kevin]

I think a person gets out of life what they put in. A guy going into a sweat to purify his mind and body is going to get some of that , whether they are speaking Lakota or Hopi. When I was in boot camp, we used to love to go church on Sun. morning because it was held inside a big movie theatre where it was cool, dimly lit with very comfortable seats. Most us slept because they were literally working us like mules. I would think the power of any sweat is diminished  by simply being on prison property. There isn't much sacred in the joint.

[PaxMan]

Thanks Kevin. I am right there with you up to the part where any Sweat in prison is diminshed in power. My experience is the opposite, the same way, perhaps, as a song sung in a concentration camp might have been the strongest, purest, most powerful song sung to the hearts and ears of those who sang or heard it. In the midst of oppression, after everything, including dignity, is stripped away, sometimes that's when the spirit can soar, unhampered. Thanks again, Bro, boot camp church sounded familiar to all those 'rehabilitation' programs guys go sit in on, just for a change of scenery - bigger box, same bars and razor wire.

[Chaska]

Public Law 95-341...Native American Religious Freedom Act....1978.....
In the State of Nebraska in 1977-78, the NDN inmates there went on a Hunger strike, because there were no rights and protections for their way of belief.....many were forced fed by court order and eventually their legal suit made it to the higher courts....where they won the right to exercise their Religious Belief as others exercise their Religious Rights under the Constitution.....THIS is where the right to have Sweatlodge in Prisions  "ORIGINATED" and therefore spread out into both Federal and State institutions.  From that day in 1978, the rights of our NDN people as well as Prisoner Rights was uplifted and it has been a struggle ever since to maintain or improve upon the definitions within P.L. 95-341....these Wardens and Staff always try to interpret it to their benefit, as IF they were Congress (who determines the language and meaning within the law), which is where they then become violators of their own law.......IF the NDN prisoners do not utilize the area within a institution to practice their way of belief then the prison staff will move to eliminate it.....participation is monitored....therefore I encourage all who are incarcerated to participate as much as possible, even if it is going there and sitting, thats better than being in a cell......I know many who would participate and Pray in their own particular way, doesnt matter what tribe, as long as they had a way to offer prayers......It is difficult and there is suffering going on in these prisons, but in those places is where prayer is heard....pray where and when it is difficult....even in the Hole...Ad Seg...etc.....and always remember to Pray for your enemies......so, for those who were not present in 1977-78 to fight for these spiritual ways in Nebraska...then this is a history reminder of where it began and believe that there were sufferings going on there with the NDN inmates over this issue......BUT they were determined and eventually established these Prisoner Rights to NDN ways in Prisons......at the same time the Religious Freedom Act was coming into LAW......I also want to mention Mr. Len Foster, of the Navajo Nation Corrections Project....whose voice represents our Religious Rights for NDN's in Prisons, Institutions and other places of confinement.....The Navajo Nation Corrections Project, was and probably is the only Tribally funded Prisoner Rights program in NDN country......they could use some help from these Casino tribes for our NDN people, oh I forgot they too busy to remember the forgotten ones.......

[Chaska]

These Non Indians who participate have a place as a supporter....they cannot lead any ceremony or have a voice in decisions, because of Traditional Ways, Spiritual Ways and the ways of the Law in P.L. 95-341....they may participate ONLY......IF they are not allowed to participate, then it sets up a law suit against NDN's.....under the freedom of religion.....but the actual conducting of ceremonies and leading of a NDN group in any other way is not allowed.....they can assist NDN's in legal support and filings, but cannot spearhead it.....and they can file on religious discrimination IF a guard, warden, or staff try's to prevent them from PARTICIPATION with NDN's in Religious ceremony......of course we want it NDN ONLY...but the way the law is interpretted and the definitions within the law set by congress makes it be as other religious beliefs......same as catholic, protestant, muslim...etc..etc...so within Prisons and institutions, the prison Staff must adhere to the law....they cannot interpret it in their favor...they always use "Security" issues as a leverage to deny NDN's.....this is wrong and once it gets to a higher court if filed on, the court always rules against them and not to be interpretting the law, thats congress's job not prison staff or wardens......if researched there will be many cases against Prison Staff where they denied NDN's and lost.....they always come up with something "ridiculous", something they made up or think will fly....but it doesn't......many NDN's have suffered in Prisons and Institutions over the right to Pray in the NDN way....its limited and the NDN must not give up and must know the parameters of the law according to P.L. 95-341 and ammendments to it since 1978.......each state and warden try to set their own particular interpretation of NDN religious rights....and eventually they lose when a NDN takes them into the higher courts.....they ALL have to be in compliance with NDN Religious Freedom Act and ammendments.....

[Chaska]

THOSE NON NDN persons who try to self appoint themselves into being Pipe Carriers or Leaders of a NDN group within a Prison or Institution must step aside.....for there is no such thing under P.L. 95-341...This law that the Prisons and institutions follow does not apply to Non NDN's and defeats the true purpose of P.L. 95-341 if a non ndn try's to include himself or herself into it....so those non ndn must understand it that true NDN have suffered for it.....to have it......
ALL non ndn's who attend ceremony or NDN group meetings are only a guest...they cannot be leaders....because they are not NDN.....they can help but never lead......

[Tsisqua]

An Insight Into Native American Spiritual Freedom, Or Lack Of, Within The Prison Walls

Told In Inmates Own Words

Question one; As a Native American in prison, what rights do you personally think prison authorities have violated? In other words, what do you believe that prison authorities have done to punish you, to make you feel less worthy as a Native American, to take away your spirituality, to make you feel less than whole?

Alex Montana (Direct descendant of the Noconi and Penateka band of the Comanche Nation, Incarcerated in Texas): Prison officials have a tendency to strip an individual his/her identity. In my case, while prison officials have not succeeded in doing so, the lack of religious and spiritual programs for Native Americans on a whole creates an environment where Native American spirituality is accorded less acknowledgement and/or respect as a legitamate religious faith requiring the equal protection that other faiths in prison are given. This type of unequal protection makes it even more difficult for Native prisoners to overcome the racial prejudice and discrimination, at the hands of the prison officials, in their struggle to practice the religious culture associated with Native Americans.

Ravens Voice (Direct descendent of the Ani'tsa'lagi (Cherokee). Incarcerated in Washington State): In our system here, we all (Full bloods and other breeds) have had to continually stress the need for Native peoples to practice, observe, and participate in ceremony, fast, sweats and other areas of our spirituality. It is a way of life, not some pseudo religious practice. The DOC officials here seem to think that they know how it is that we are to practice and observe our spiritual beliefs. They purposefully create internal policies and directives to restrict, inhibit, and interfere with our practices and beliefs. As Native prisoners practicing our 'faith', we are continuously under fire because of our implements, our herbs, roots and barks, our pipes, drums and lodge areas. Our 'personal privacy' in all these things is totally non-existent. We have no privacy to even use the toilet, let alone perform and partake in Sweat Ceremony, Pipe Ceremony, etc. There is always someone in a state blue uniform, totally ignorant of the prison's policies, not to mention federal and state laws allowing our practices and involvements, who comes along and violates the particular practice or Ceremony. We are constantly stressed over our personal 'Sacred items' (Their terms), and must have violated by means of institutional inventory, each rock, feather, piece of hide or implement of our personal or Circle's use so that they can find ways to restrict, inhibit, and further disrespect our ways and each of us as individual, intelligent thinking human beings. To be more specific would be to get into legal arguments and it's well known that when the two (Cultural spirituality and Constitutionality) collide, there are wars both on and off the battlefield.

Chris 'Black Crow' Bousquet (Wampanoag descent originally (Adopted into a white family as a baby - so he is not sure of his exact Native descent) Incarcerated in Massachusetts: It is all about religious freedom - the giving and taking of sacred items, personal things and Council items. There is also the mental torment - of making one feel less worthy, less than whole....for the prison officials want the control - to squeeze us down, to opress us, to make fun of us to fill their egos.

Owisnii' Oswiiguh (Sandusky Seneca/Mingo-Zaishta, member of the High Swan Tribe (Blue Snake Clan) Incarcerated in Washington State: Ban of head bands, except for those with Eagle or Buffalo design. Refusual to put in proper toilet in lodge area. Men have to use the porta-potty design, leaving them without privacy of any kind. Religious items are left up to the non-Indian Chaplin to decide if they are sacred or not. Fry bread, when blessed, is sacred and for ceremonial purposes, but whenever Indians receive it, the entire institution gets it too, ruining the sacredness of it. Personal hair is very important and has a lot of power, but we are not allowed to keep ours when we cut it.

Pierre (Iroquois Seneca (Turtle Clan) Incarcerated in Washington State: The continued harrassment behind allowing us all our sacred rights. From sweats and pow wows to smudging in our cells.

Lone Wolf (Apache) Incarcerated in Washington State: I feel that we dont have the proper amount of time on Sweat Day to do the ceremony in the proper manner. Three and a half hours isn't enough time, without rushing, to do things completely. Often we dont have time to have our Pipe Cermony. Whenever a Native goes out to smudge, he is harrassed by the police and the smudge area is located in a common smoking area where the verbal negative is prevanlent and one feels like he is on stage for the rest of the population. We have been forced to make our four seasonal fast available to the whole population in as far as our traditional food (Fry bread) is served to the whole population. No other group has its spiritual or religious foods served to everyone. I explained to a female officer about out spiritual beliefs concerning a woman being in the lodge area when on her Moon Period. At the time she said there was no disrespect in what I told her. But two hours later, after she talked to a white Chaplin, she infracted me for sexual harrassment. There were three Native Americans present when I talked to the officer and all wrote witness statements, but it had no bearing on the outcome of the hearing.

Sean Maney (Yankton Sioux) Incarcerated in Washington State: White men have no understanding of our spirituality. They believe the only religion is 'their' religion. They look at our circle as some type of modern day 'gang thing'. We can't wear our traditional red head bands because of the color. They will never understand an ancient religion such as ours. They show us this all the time, in one way or another.

One With Fire (Apache) Incarcerated in Washington State): Over an eight year period of time Ive been in different prisons, and I have seen most of 2000bb Religious Freedom Act overlooked it at different times. It seems prison officials try to make inner institutional policies work in their favor by overlooking federal laws if they can get away with it.



Question Two; What aspects of your Native American spirituality are allowed? Which ceremonies are you allowed to participate in at the prison facility?

Alex Montana: Sweat Lodge Ceremonies and smudging are prohibited. A medicine pouch is allowed, however, it must be kept within a prisoner's locker, inside his cell. Nevertheless, many unit wardens so not adhere to institutional policy in this regard. Also, a prayer Pipe Ceremony is allowed, however, it is only conducted indoors, in either an enclosed booth or locked cage, and only permitted once per week, at the descretion of unit officials. Many wannabes participate in the Pipe Ceremony under these conditions.

Ravens Voice: If I am willing to have my spirituality and personal privacy invaded, my ceremony and practices 'observed', then and only then am I allowed to participate in these activities. I am allowed, to a point, to possess many of the implements of my spiritual practices, but I am oppressed and restricted both (I feel) illegally and immorally, because if it's not their way, then it's no way at all, and this is simply and clearly unjust and ethically wrong and a direct attack upon my 'chosen religion' (I hate that terminology for my culturally sound practices and beliefs!)

Chris Black Crow Bousquet: Smudging, Pipe Ceremonies, prayer, meditation, listening to music and solstices. Long hair is allowed as long as there's no appearance change, otherwise we must pay for new ID, head bands are worn by the older members...new members are harrassed.

Owisnii' Oswiiguh: Long hair is allowed. Medicine bags are generally not worn because of problems with a few of the guards, who, in most cases, do not realize the powers of them (that the power will sometimes go out totally by their handling or that it will go into them in a bad way). I could go to all the ceremonies, but I refuse (As many Elders do) to contaminate myself, our medicines, or our power by association with Street Indians whose main idea of sacred is to two-face and deny Elders entry without bad words, if those Elders are Christian, Shakers, etc, or if they do not agree with the generic teachings of the book Sioux...or disagree in the running down and casting bad feelings and words to some of the brothers who are in prison for any crime of a sexual nature...in fact, shunning them when they should be helping these brothers. The crime should be left in the courtroom of the white man's place, not carried into prison for so-called brothers to cut down their own kind of people by race.

Lone Wolf: We have the Sweat Lodge on Saturdays from 12pm to 3.30pm. No special Pipe Ceremonies are allowed or done. We can have long hair, wear head bands (Of certain designs and colors). Medicine bags are permitted, but subject to inspection if asked. No beaded necklaces or chokers are permitted, unless worn during ceremonies. I wear a medicine bag and an eagle headband.


Question Three: Do you have a Chaplain who runs the ceremonies? If so, is this a Native American Chaplin? Does the non-Indian Chaplain honor and respect your spiritual views?

Alex Montana: To the best of my knowledge, not one Texas Dept of Criminal Justice (TDCJ-ID) Unit has a Native American spiritual advisor. Unity Chaplains fall into the category of Protestant, Catholic, and Muslim. If a Native prisoner wishes to consult with a medicine man/spiritual advisor, he must do so by placing the individual on his visitation list, consulting with the individual during visitation hours in the visiting room.

Ravens Voice: Here you touch on a very VERY sore subject. Especially with this man. Because..the Chaplains that work for the Dept. of Corrections are little more than just a glorified title of 'Chaplain' from 'officer'. Yes there are local Native peoples that 'volunteer' a DOC contractual amount of time to the prison facilities in this state. Does the DOC Chaplain honor or respect my Native views? Absolutely not! He is neither a minister or even a 'holy' person in my book or in many, many others either. He is instructed to inhibit, to agitate, to restrict and to make life miserable for the Native American prisoners who practice our beliefs. My relationship with Jesus people is naught. It is truly the hidden design of this particular Chaplain that, if your 'religion' is not DOC, then he does not recognize it and does little to encourage or assist you in it. Biased? Yes he is. Absolutely and totally. His views and beliefs or none. Occassionally (but rarely) our outside 'advisor' does perform ceremony for us.

Chris Black Crow Bousquet: We have no Native Chaplain. We have/had our medicine people come in and get the circle started. When they are not here, inmate Randell Trapp runs it, and if not him, then myself. Medicine people come when they can. One is sick right now and can't come. Another comes once a month.

Owisnii' Oswiiguh: The Chaplain respects and honors my views as much as he possibly can, under existing circumstances. I believe the Chaplain is doing good. He is not Indian. He respects my personal spiritual views, but does not necessarily agree with them.

Pierre: We have a Native Chaplain who works under the Christian Chaplain. Our Native Chaplain is constantly stepped on, disrespected and dismissed out of turn.

Lone Wolf: A white Nazarene Chaplain is in charge of our spiritual program. My relationship with him - he leaves me alone and I leave him alone. There isn't, as I see it, any use in getting in a spitting contest with a snake.

One With Fire: As far as I am concerned, the Chaplain here tries his best to take things away from us and tries to tell us what medicines we can and can't have for our personal bundles. I don't think he cares about our way of life or what it means to an Indian person. To me, it's a way of life, not a religion, and it's a very sacred way of living life - to be in balance with all of creation. I believe he would like to see more taken from us. He believes our spiritual ways are satanic.


Question Four: Was your Native spirituality something you practiced before you were incarcerated, or is it something you discovered while in prison? How has it changed your outlook on life or brought you closer to your Native roots?

Alex Montana: My spirituality has been a part of my life always. And I have always preferred to follow the traditional ways of my people, something of which I am very proud.

Ravens Voice: I grew up learning the ways of not only the old, but the contemporary Native. I traded with many of the various tribal reservations, hunted and gathered, grew my own food, and lived in the mountainous areas of the Northwest. I have traveled to the Southwest and visited the Native peoples there. There are those who come to prison, having grown up in urban cities and small towns, who have little or no understanding or idea of their 'roots'.

Chris Black Crow Bousquet: I did not know about it. I was raised by whites. I discovered it while in prison. It has changed my outlook, yes, closer to my Native roots and also to how life is supposed to be as a human being.

Owinii' Oswiiguh: I grew up with it. Closer and more respectful of all religions not like mine. It brings old power closer each day.

Lone Wolf: I've practiced my Native spirituality for over 25 years both in and out of prison. It has brought me into closer contact with myself and with humans in general.

One With Fire: I have practiced it all my life. It has made me a better person to live the old ways. It is when I stray away from the ways that I get our of balance with all that is. That's when I get into trouble. It has brought me closer to Creator and helped me to be a better person in life and to become in balance with all things around me.


Question Five: How do other ethnic/religious prisoners treat you as a Spiritual Native person?

Alex Montana: Most others prisoners support me in the struggle. Prisoners know, as a percept, the success of even one prisoner against prison officials opens the door for similar challenges of institutional policy.

Ravens Voice: Honestly, many are very resentful of my knowledge, of my spiritual centeredness. They are biased in their Christain upbringing and the cultural genocide that has been pounded into their heads since birth. They are perjudiced and make daily half hearted plays for the gate (release through their 'prison bible thumping'). We as Native peoples, desire only to be left to our ancestral ways.

Chris Black Crow Bousquet: Most treat me okay because I'm big. When in spirit people have to respect you at the at the moment.

Owisnii' Owiiguh: Some are resentful. I am treated with respect by most others and with minimum respect by the street Indians.

Lone Wolf: Most prisoners respect Native American spiritual rights and don't have negative comments about it.

One With Fire: Overall, I feel that most people accept us for who and what we are.


Question Six: What do you think it is that makes Native prisoners different from other ethnic or religious groups in prison? Do the Native prisoners stick closer together than other groups? Are you less likely to engage in violent encounters with others?

Alex Montana: Native prisoners have a tencency to be more spiritual in their religious beliefs, recognizing that their race is more attune with creation and nature itself. Native prisoners have a great sense of how religion can benefit character and build greater pride in one's race. Native prisoners do stick closer together, and not so much because they are not many in some prisons but rather, because of the bond affiliated with Native Americans in overcoming adversity and joining in a common cause of struggle.

Chris Black Crow Bousquet: Most feel that we want too much - to be special. When we really don't want much at all.

Owisnii' Oswiiguh: The difference is, that even those street Indians have the residue of the old ways in their blood and although they do not use it in a good way, they know they have it. Some stick together, but they do not do it out of mutual respect, in most cases, but just to have a 'gang' behind them. A safety thing for them. Most Elders and a few of the youngsters seem to group at times, to discuss traditions and the old ways of power from various tribes. Indians are the least violent faction in the prison systems.

Lone Wolf: A common background in which we all believe in honoring Mother Earth and in giving back and sharing. In some cases, we do stick closer together but some lines are drawn according to what a person is locked up for. There isn't much violence at all at this place. Brothers have a tendency to put their own down and point fingers and talk about each other. This goes against most tribal beliefs. What does being a convict have to do with being an Indian and walking in balance? They should be helping each other and reaching out a hand to a brother.

Sean Maney: One thing about us Brothers is that we're always there for each other. We keep our problems in the Circle.

One With Fire: Most Indian people who walk a true red road stick close together and try to help others to do the same. They try to help each other grow spiritually and keep culture and traditions from being forgotten and lost.


Question Seven: What is it that you personally would like the people who read your comments to know and understand about you and our Native brothers and sisters in prison?


Alex Montana: The Native American religion deserves the respect and recognition of other mainstream faiths. When Native prisoners are denied a reasonable opportunity to practice the respective religious beliefs of their tribe, they are effectively being denied to live their lives according to the culture and tradition of their ancestors. Fot the Native American, religion and culture are inseparable. We are prisoners, true, but we are Native Americans above all, and as anyone who belives in God, we also love the Creator, and only wish to worship Him as our ancestors did, as we were taught.

Chris Black Crow Bousquet: We are not asking for much. People should get off their high horses and listen -maybe they'll learn something.

Owisnii' Oswiiguh: That we need spiritual assistance at all times. We are generally in need of medicines and we need people with law training to speak for us without charging us alot of money. We need mail of a good kind always. We are a people not used to walls for the most part and we need prayers in the old ways to help us, as we cannot help ourselves very much in here. We need them to not let the Creator abandon us.

Pierre: We need spiritual leaders to step in and take a more active role.

Lone Wolf: To understand that this isn't the 16,17 or 18 hundreds and that we have a right to our heritage and spiritual beliefs. Just because it isn't written in a book, a lof of the whites in charge think we're making it up. They look at us like some kind of freaks because we honor rocks and trees and grass and all kinds of life.

Sean Maney: To know that we're keeping our traditions alive and learning to pass it on to the young ones.

One With Fire: They shouldn't look down on us because we messed up and got locked up. Keep praying for us - that we stay strong and that we heal while we are in prison, if we are drug addicts or alcoholics or just spiritually broken down. Remember that most are pretty good people who made some bad choices in life and that a lot of the people locked up got here because of being suppressed and kept down as a minority people. This caused them to turn to drugs, alcohol, crime, etc. There needs to be more places for Brothers and Sisters getting released from prison to go if they don't have anywhere else to go.

I just thought this may be of some interest.

Tsissy

Added: Sorry I had this written up in my files for sometimes, but did not have the address from where it came.

http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/9118/rf.html

Thank you Barnaby.

[Kevin]

Sweatin' in Quentin:

http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=1096417412

Indian Country news reports the men there are allowed to conduct sweat lodge ceremonies

[Tsisqua]

ACLU represents inmate in lawsuit

CHEYENNE -- The American Civil Liberties Union has agreed to represent an American Indian inmate in a lawsuit against the Wyoming Department of Corrections claiming the state violated his constitutional rights by depriving him of bald eagle feathers for use in religious ceremonies.

Andrew John Yellowbear Jr., a member of the Northern Arapaho Tribe, is serving a life sentence for the beating death of his 22-month-old daughter in 2004.

Yellowbear drafted and filed his own lawsuit early this year against the state corrections department claiming that he's a victim of religious discrimination because he hasn't been allowed to get eagle feathers. The ACLU last week filed papers in court saying that it will represent him.

Stephen Pevar, a lawyer with the ACLU's Racial Justice Program, issued a statement Wednesday saying the Northern Arapaho use eagle feathers to "communicate prayers to the Creator and to receive answers to prayers. Denying Mr. Yellowbear these highly spiritual feathers is akin to denying Catholics access to a rosary or crucifix."

Pevar said the Wyoming State Penitentiary generally allows American Indian prisoners to have three feathers, but said Yellowbear has been limited to one feather. Prison officials confiscated that single feather after Yellowbear filed his federal lawsuit in January, according to Pevar.

In his handwritten lawsuit, Yellowbear charged that the state corrections department and its employees "have consistently violated my U.S. Constitutional right to practice my religion." Yellowbear said he wanted to get 10 feathers -- the most the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will allow an American Indian to have from the birds, which can't be hunted under federal law.

John W. Renneisen, deputy Wyoming attorney general, filed a response to Yellowbear's lawsuit last week denying that the state has violated his rights.

Renneisen said Corrections Department Director Robert Lampert acknowledged that Yellowbear hasn't been allowed to participate in group religious services.

"(Yellowbear) has been held in long term administrative segregation based in part on threats made against him, and in part based on the assessed risk that (Yellowbear) poses to others," Renneisen wrote.

The issue of Northern Arapaho access to eagle feathers for religious purposes has also been in the federal courts recently in the federal government's prosecution of Winslow Friday of Ethete. He was charged with illegally killing an eagle after he shot one of the birds for use in the tribe's 2005 Sun Dance.

U.S. District Judge William Downes in Wyoming dismissed a misdemeanor charge against Friday in 2006, saying that the federal government has shown callous disregard for the religious needs of American Indians. Downes ruled that it would have been pointless for Friday to apply for a permit to kill the bird because the Fish and Wildlife Service would have denied it.

A three-judge panel of the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned Downes' decision in May and reinstated the criminal charge against Friday. The panel ruled that Friday didn't have standing to challenge the permit process because he didn't apply for a permit. The full appeals court this week denied Friday's request for a full court hearing on the issue.

http://www.jacksonholestartrib.com/articles/2008/07/10/news/wyoming/47f95ea2a891894187257482000293eb.txt

[MatoSiWin]

Public Law 95-341...Native American Religious Freedom Act....1978.....
In the State of Nebraska in 1977-78, the NDN inmates there went on a Hunger strike, because there were no rights and protections for their way of belief.....many were forced fed by court order and eventually their legal suit made it to the higher courts....where they won the right to exercise their Religious Belief as others exercise their Religious Rights under the Constitution.....THIS is where the right to have Sweatlodge in Prisions  "ORIGINATED" and therefore spread out into both Federal and State institutions. 

Thanks for posting this