Friends,
I am watching and reading all this and really appreciate the attention to detail and follow up that has been done to document Steve's circus and sideshow. I met Steve many many years ago, he always introduced himself as the "only white man at Wounded Knee". He always told the story that he was the son of a Christian minister there. From all reports of people who were on the ground there at the time Steve took pictures and film alot. He deserves to be commended for what he did at that time as a good WHITE ally doing what was asked of him.
Sometime around 1991 Steve started telling people he was Shawnee. In 1992 at he announced at Uniontown KY that he was bringing medicine men to Indiana to perform the sundance at Salt Creek to "honor the ancestors" desecrated at Uniontown? Why? That is a couple of hundred miles away. Why would he do that? Well the reason is that Uniontown was an AIM event and he knew the American Indian Movement would never go along with that. In fact at the time there were many who said "why do you want to bring the sundance outside of Sundance territory"?
The people desecrated here were not Lakota. The elders who performed the reburials at Uniontown and since at other desecration sites have been from nations that were once here who have been moved to Oklahoma. Not the Lakota.
This "Ask Me" says "have you ever witnessed on of his ceremonies? My answer is yes, I was sent to witness for AIM and reported back the fiasco I saw there. I know fo ra fact that the first year he did this thing the American Indian Movement called him to a regional meeting in Cincy Ohio where Vernon Bellecourt and every Indian there Lakota, Ojibwe, Cherokee, Navajo and many others demanded he shut it down. He then said he "must finish out the 4 years and then he would be done. That was over two decades ago and he is not Chief Red Spider and the Spear of Destiny. Folks this is how a small thing gets out of hand.
I have a question and I do not mean to be rude to my Lakota friends nor anyone else but I feel as I have been meeting recently with Pokagon Potowatomis and others who have original tribal ties to the Ohio Valley and the state of Indiana. My question has been backed up by Rosebud and Pine Ridge friends I have met with face to face recently.
Why are Sundances being conducted outside of Sundance territory at all?
I think this is a fair question. I think that those conducting ceremonies outside Sundance territory have lost site of something a good friend from Rosebud pointed out recently. You travel to Sundance territory much like a pilgrimage if you do not live there. Those grounds stay sacred year round and are guarded by the people. Ilive near the Salt Creek site and I can tell you that White hunters and fishermen come there on a regular basis and drink and do all sorts of things on those grounds in between Sundances. I can tell you that the people of the nations who inhabit Indiana the Pokagon and others in Oklahoma who used to are watching all these dances curiously to see what the elders in Sundance territory will do. Many Pokagon find what Steve is doing in their territory to be offensive, as do Miamis, Shawnees, Delaware, and others. This is for certain the land of the 20 tribes who fought at Prophetstown, where the Potowatomi death march began that sent many West. Steve needs to realize that the people of this land are watching and after watching politely for many years are ready for he and his circus to go away, Momfeather Ericson the fake who proclaims herself a Cherokee elder, and the rest who charge money for ceremonies at their "Wisdom of the Elders" event in September in Marion KY need to stop their charade. They proclaim themselves protectors of the Mantle Rock sacred site there. I can tell you we are at that site on a regular basis and are watching closely. We see the players in their pictures with Steve, Momfeather, and even or or two native people supporting them and are disturbed. They now call themselves the Overhill Cherokee group when just a year ago they called themselves the "Southern Cherokee Nation of KY".
All of this will be opposed. It is not going away. Now we know that now many in Indiana are calling themselves the Metis Nation of Indiana
http://usmetis.weebly.com/ and that they are printing fake enrollment cards to make money and cover their asses. We are hearing rumors that Steve is now calling himself Metis but do not have direct confirmation of that. We do know of a group calling themselves the United Metis sponsoring a powwow in Bluff City Indiana near Rockport in September that is very troubling and found this article about one previous.
http://city-countyobserver.com/2010/08/21/bluff-city-pow-wow-at-lincoln-pioneer-village-rockport-in/We are hoping some light could be shed on any knowledge of this group? Anyway the cowchips are getting deep and ridiculous.
Thank you for all the due diligence that has been paid to detail here. I will tell you as someone who has opposed Steve's activities from the beginning that most of the claims folks are making about him are true. Except the ones by this "Ask Me". I can tell you we were very happy he was not able to get his permit at Salt Creek again and will work extremely hard to see it does not get renewed again.
His activities in Europe have been absurd and I hope now people are paying attention. I think the most disturbing thing I saw in 2 years was his appearance alongside Wes Studi, Gary Farmer, and many other celebs at the DreamCatcher awards in Canada where he was an honored Indian Chief there.
http://www.exposay.com/chief-steve-mccullough-2011-dreamcatcher-foundation-heart-and-soul-gala-fundraiser/p/51243/1/?f=Chief+Steve+McCulloughWe need to stir up quite a ruckus about this as now he is being passed in Indian Country without opposition as a chief alongside our legitimate artists. It must be stopped.
Let me also mention that we have the original applications for permit at the National Forest where he is listed by the title Medicine Man? Alongside Mr. Cross printed name. We know the Cross family is adamantly opposed to this. He needs to stop and realize he is a retired coal miner who took some great pics at Wounded Knee.
Migwetch
