Charles Benson AKA Chuck Two Fingers

[educatedindian]

Update: I received information from what I believed to be initially several extremely credible sources telling me about this Christian minister posing as a Lakota holy man online in Lakota language courses on a yahoo group. As of now that information is in dispute, but will continue to be updated if we know anything more.

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Charles Anthony Benson, Jr. of Lilburn, GA 
 
Goes by Rev. Charles A. Benson for the Door of Hope Christian Ministeries
 
His boss is Pastor Warner.
 
Chuck A. Benson, Jr. is owner of a Yahoo Group Site called lakoliyapi@yahoogroups.com
 
and he goes by Lakoliya and and sometimes by  the name chucktwofingers.
 
He was born in Arlington, VA in 1957 to an Irish father and a cuban/panamanian/french mother.  His father moved to Aberdeen, SD in 1968 and Charles Benson, Jr. attended school in Brentford, SD, and Melette, SD, in the Melette-Northwestern School District from 1968-1973. He attended Aberdeen Central High, in Aberdeen, SD.  He attended school there with Diane (Arthur) Zahn , Aberdeen, SD.  She recalls that Charles A. Benson, Jr. always wanted to be an Indian.
 
Charles (Chuck) Benson, Jr., learned Lakota and is fluent because of total immersion on the Pine Ridge Reservation.  He was adopted by the Jonson Bear Robe family in Oglala, SD and claims to be adopted by a well respected man by the name of Leonard Little Finger.  He is claiming to be a Wicasa Wakan (Holy Man) because of getting instruction through a man by the name of Richard Bear Nose from the Pine Ridge Reservation.
 
He has a yahoo group site called Lakoliyapi@yahoogroups.com and the site claims that the Lakota courses are taught by fluent Lakota speakers.  He is the only teacher of record and he is not a Lakota.  He speaks Lakota fluently.  He has fooled many for years.
 
He and his sons have a drum group called Sa Ste takoja (ShaStay Tah KO jah)[little Finger Grandchildren] and they participate in powwows throughout the SW.  His children are 1/2 Papago (Tohono O'odham) and do not speak any Indian language. Chuck Benson, Jr. recently (Aug. 2006) was assigned to pastor in the Atlanta, GA area by the Door of Hope Christian Ministeries re: Pastor Warner in Tucson, AZ
 
People in his classes have criticized actual Lakota when they tell the truth about Chuck Benson Jr.,  and ostracize them.

[Skully]

Uncle Chuck is good people. Let him be.

[earthw7]

Prove it to us

[Skully]

Prove it to us

All I know him by is personal contact.  He's never did anything bad as far as I know. He's been around for awhile, and a lotta people know him around here.

I've never heard him make any crazy claims or claiming to be a Holy Man...and a lotta Sioux people I know from SD and ND seem to know and like him (I'm sure there are some who DON't like him too...but then some people don't like me either...hard to believe as that may be!!!).  It seems odd that he'd come up as some sort of fraud....a fraud "what?"  No one I know knows him as other than a pastor we call Uncle Chuck.  I know he speaks Aboine (Sioux) but we'll overlook that shortcoming.
 
He's a real pastor, and a pretty good singer, and a somewhat funnee Emcee.

Why don't you just call him up and talk to him. I'm sure he knows more about himself than me.

I know his boys would beat ya down if you diss their dad.

That's all I know.

Edited Out Number

[educatedindian]

The complaints against him come from Lakota, all in tribal govt and recommended to me by traditionalists. All the complaints involve an online language class. The class itself is not open to the public, and is hidden. You won't find it listed in yahoogroups either, which is all very strange.

Until the questions are resolved, this stays under Research Needed.

[Skully]

author=educatedindian link=topic=1431.msg8752#msg8752 date=1199803170

Until the questions are resolved, this stays under Research Needed.

Call him and find out what he has to say then. That should be your speciality, the FOLLOW UP.

[Skully]

The class itself is not open to the public, and is hidden. You won't find it listed in yahoogroups either, which is all very strange.

So WTF are ya squawkin' about bud? Delete this case totally.

[educatedindian]

Are you kidding? What legit reason could there be to hide a language course? And do you really expect that someone whose been accused of these things would just out and out admit to it? Talk about naive.

It's still unresolved, and this is where it stays. And that includes your vouching for him BP. Other people who've had questions raised about them and been resolved in their favor are also under Research Needed.

And if we deleted it, you bet there'd be people accusing us of censoring or trying to hide our mistakes. But we've never claimed to be perfect and say so upfront in our Who We Are link.

But here's a question you could help answer, BP. If these charges from several sources are wrong, who has something against Benson and why?

[backatya]

 Chuck does not offer a Lakota course.  That's insane.  He, and others, who by the way are LAKOTA, set up a place for friends and family to meet and discuss language, culture, tell stories, and anything else they'd care to share.   He has never claimed that he was Wicasa Wakan, but is in fact a Christian minister.  I wasn't aware that this was a crime.   He is not the only fluent speaker in the group.  There are several full-blood LAKOTA members, so you're wrong again.   Richard Bear Nose; wrong yet again.  He went to school in SD?  That he speaks fluent Lakota?  He was adopted by the Bear Robe family?  That several friends and family members started a yahoo group that was not made public?  That Chuck's family has a drum group?  That he's a Christian pastor?  Or could it be, the heinous crime of moving to Georgia?  GASP!!   There isn't one thing here that points to plastic shaman, so what exactly is your point in putting this up?  The real crime here is that someone has a wild hair in an uncomfortable place, is mad at Chuck, and using YOU.  Someone is feeding you misinformation for their own edification. ..   Please delete the topic matter this time,  rather than deleting my post.

[Al's note: Childish remarks removed a second time. A third time will get you deleted.

You might make a better case if you were upfront about who you are, and if you didn't toss out wild accusations yourself.]

[Skully]

But here's a question you could help answer, BP. If these charges from several sources are wrong, who has something against Benson and why?

I have no idea who has something against Chuck...all of us in life have our evil nemesis at one time or another....so be it.  Jealousy and slander cut across all races, ethnic groups, interest groups, socioeconomic stratum, etc.

My main concern is that when one is placed on this "needs research" list even after the person has been vouched for (I believe I have the insight, experience, and common sense to vouch for Chuck), it almost feels like such an accusation is justified. In this particular case, we can see no evidence of the individual's misdeed(s).  A "hidden language course?"  So what!?!?

I think we've subsumed one of the oppressor's way of silencing the "ye olde superstitious, childe-like and sub-human Indians with their ignorant customs."  This seems akin to telling me that I'm too stupid to think for myself, and that I need someone "wiser" to do my thinking for me.  To THAT treatment, I certainly take umbrage.

[educatedindian]

Paulie, hidden online groups, disguised as language courses, have been used by exploiters before. Think back to all the threads about the Cherokees of Kentucky-Chickamauga. The Binay use them too. These hidden groups often get used to string people along. The worst case I knew of was Jerry Edwards trying to talk an underage girl into running away and come to him.

So far we have your word, and that of a spammer who mysteriously joined right when the topic came up and refuses to say who they are, who is not helping either you or Benson at all.

That vs the two others who came to me, who I will contact and ask to come forward in public and talk about this. If they don't, obviously everyone here will draw the right conclusions about whether they can be trusted. That's where it has to stand for now. I'll let you know what they say.

And what you're asking, that we delete a whole topic because you don't like it, has never been done before. You'e asking for one person to be given special treatment like no else have ever received, based on your word and that of the spammer.

[Skully]

Paulie, hidden online groups, disguised as language courses, have been used by exploiters before. Think back to all the threads about the Cherokees of Kentucky-Chickamauga. The Binay use them too. These hidden groups often get used to string people along. The worst case I knew of was Jerry Edwards trying to talk an underage girl into running away and come to him.

So far we have your word, and that of a spammer who mysteriously joined right when the topic came up and refuses to say who they are, who is not helping either you or Benson at all.

That vs the two others who came to me, who I will contact and ask to come forward in public and talk about this. If they don't, obviously everyone here will draw the right conclusions about whether they can be trusted. That's where it has to stand for now. I'll let you know what they say.

And what you're asking, that we delete a whole topic because you don't like it, has never been done before. You'e asking for one person to be given special treatment like no else have ever received, based on your word and that of the spammer.

Well then, do what you gotta do.

[backatya]

So far we have your word, and that of a spammer who mysteriously joined right when the topic came up and refuses to say who they are, who is not helping either you or Benson at all.

That vs the two others who came to me, who I will contact and ask to come forward in public and talk about this. If they don't, obviously everyone here will draw the right conclusions about whether they can be trusted. That's where it has to stand for now. I'll let you know what they say.

And what you're asking, that we delete a whole topic because you don't like it, has never been done before. You'e asking for one person to be given special treatment like no else have ever received, based on your word and that of the spammer.

Of course I just joined.  I was made aware of this topic, and joined in order to comment.    That doesn't make me a spammer.   It's not fair to say I've refused to give my name, because I've not been asked for it.  Truth is, I am afraid of giving out information on myself.  I don't want to be the next one hung out to dry. 

I'm a good friend of Chuck's.  I know the real deal about what's going on here.   That aside, I'll wait to see how these two accusers step up to the plate, with hard evidence, and based on what criteria.   Would you tell me how long this process takes?   How long do they have?

[Skully]

It seems like once Al has his mind made up, then one is as good as guilty.


Maybe Al should come after a BIG kid like me!

[Moma_porcupine]

Personally I'm always a bit uncomfortable whens someone says someone is a fraud just because someone else says they are. People say all sorts of things for all sorts of reasons, and if it is just what someone is saying who knows what is true. The thing is, that works both ways, both for or against.

I'm always more comfortable when there is proof of what a person is doing, because they have a website saying they are doing it. 

I don't know anything about this situation, but reading through this thread all I see is now, with this being listed in research needed, is some questions being asked. I really doubt anyone who is legit would have a problem with people being encouraged to do that.