Roy Barnes

[Karonia:a]

I've known of this man for years and observed him as he pops up often....another non-native claiming to be mikmaq....he drops William Commanda's name as sanctioning his sundances in Ontario....very disrespectful of Our Way of Life & Ceremonies.  My experience is from being in a Sunrise Ceremony, where he was supposedly leading with a zillion other pipes....in ceremony everyone has the opportunity to offer prayers and nasema into the sacred fire, when I approached the fire offering my prayers, he stood up and spoke above me to the circle, breaking the flow...I prayed harder to stay focused on my prayers, asked for help from the Ancestors to have patience until the circle was complete....I saw where this person was at and what he worked with at the time....this experience is not any different from a lot of other threads in this forum....


http://unitysundance.weebly.com/.....................he

[Karonia:a]

Was not sure if this was the place to post these threads....here is another link.....he claims to speak for all natives living on the rez.....hmmmm....well i live on a rez and he surely does not speak for me.....

http://www.eoccc.org/content/pdf_aboriginal/Our_Thinking_Made_Visible.pdf

[Karonia:a]

Found another ink

https://www.facebook.com/grandmotherdawn.skyweaver/posts/4377599690570

[Defend the Sacred]

Yes, this is the right place to post threads.

Kokom, I am fixing the link to one of the pages since it didn't format right:  http://unitysundance.weebly.com/

[Epiphany]

Photo from his Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/roy.barnes.549

Link on his FB About info is for http://unitysundance.weebly.com/

Lots of Idle No More posts on his FB.

In notice of August 2009 "Sweat Lodge Ceremony with Roy Barnes" is "Roy Barnes is a Sun Dancer and lodge keeper in the Lakota Sioux tradition" (Pine Gate Sangha, Ottawa, newsletter .pdf http://www.ianprattis.com/Pine%20Gate%20Fall%202009%20Issue%2031%282%29.pdf )

[Epiphany]

Some of what "Our Thinking Made Visible", 2012 Eastern Ontario Catholic Curriculum Cooperative, grade 12 Native Studies course http://www.eoccc.org/content/pdf_aboriginal/Our_Thinking_Made_Visible.pdf says on Roy Barnes:


Micmaq man
well respected spiritual leader in the First Nations community and recognized by many elders
he is people's sacred pipe carrier, Inipi leader and has been dancing traditional Sundance for 22 years
Sundance keeper & chief of Unity Sundance in Richmond Ontario
spoken at high school classes for last 5 years Ottawa Catholic School Board
training at Algonquin College as certified Trauma & Addiction Counselor
certified chef
assisted Ken Crowshane's sundance in Sageen Manitoba in July 2012
asked to assist at Farm Four Sundance in Standoff Alberta by Leonard Day Rider
Grandmother Dianne Otter Eyes Reed asked him to attend a Gathering of the Grandmothers of the North  gathering as the sacred fire keeper
"Roy Barnes speaks from the perspective of First Nations peoples on reserves."

[Odelle]

http://davalonstables.weebly.com/past-events.html

Here's a drum-making workshop, marketed as though it has a spiritual element, that he taught with someone else:

"Traditional Native Drum Making Workshop
It is said that the POWWOW drum was brought to the Native people by a woman and therefore it contains a feminine spirit within and therefore to be treated with respect and care. There is a strict code of contact expected of anyone coming into contact with the drum.
The drum is helps bring the physical and mental aspects of a person in touch with their spiritual and heart side. As in many things in the Native culture the drum is used to bring balance  and rejuvenation reflecting the heart beat of our mother......earth

Join us January 29, 2011, 1:30 - 4:30 to make your own drum.
Facilitators will be musician and drum maker David Finkle www.myspace.com/davidfinkleflute as well as Roy Barnes - Lodge Keeper and Sundancer"


Cost of workshop is  $120.00 all materials supplied for a medium size drum

[Karonia:a]

Nia:wenko'wa  Kathryn....did not realize that happened....

[twoturtles]

Hi! Roy is my Uncle. While I understand this topic is "Research Needed" I feel strongly to show him respect as my elder by clarifying aspects of his life that were mentioned here and that he shared with me. I am also vouching for his most sincere and genuine intentions and respect of protocols in leading his community in Ottawa, Canada.

Roy is Native by blood and was adopted by a Christian family. To my knowledge he has never charged or ask for money for any ceremonies he's holding. My first sweat with him was is 1998 on Victoria Island and I've participated in many sweats, a fast and a sun dance he was leading.

He is the most dedicated, generous and inclusive leader I've ever met. The ceremonies is holding are sanctioned by Grandfather William Commanda, whom main teachings were about inclusion and tolerance. I feel Roy is walking in his steps with grace and purpose. He is a humble man. The biographical information found on the web was surely not written by him, I sincerely doubt that he would describe himself in these ways. Also, he has been involved very closely with the Idle No More movement, in my understanding he was supporting Chief Theresa Spence on Victoria Island during her fast.

While I understand that Karonia:a (all my respects Kokom) might have a poor opinion of him in regards to specific actions, I believe this is a personal matter. He is also flawed in his ways like we all are... and I love him nonetheless.

[milehighsalute]

well he sure dont look injun to me.....maybe he is a thinblood.....but i aint here to argue blood quantum

if he isn of a sundance tribe he has no business participating in sundance PERIOD....much less holding them....even if he is indian he is no better than any other twinkie out there

so i would go ahead and call him FAKE if it were up to me

**NOTE**other than the utes, all the other sundance tribes are plains tribes, and this ceremony has not been "given" to anybody

AIM also has a sundance once considered powerul now considered FAKE.....real sundances are usually remote and private with ndn security keeping non-indians out.....believe me i worked security at them.........crazy, even when you dont invite twinkies they have a way of showing up anyways.....but thats not happening any longer

william commanda was a respected spiritual leader but i dont think i ever heard of him holding sundances but i could be wrong....either way he was not of a sundance tribe so cannot sancion any sundances

you say he leads sweats.....and it says here "of the lakota tradition".....does he speak fluent lakota? being a whitboy....er...i mean thinblood raised by christians i kinda doub that....so does he know all the songs? does he know the meanings and the stories behind the songs? how about the prayers? does he know them in lakota? he is the one saying "in lakota tradition" so he should be able to answer all that in lakota language....if not its just another twinkie sweat

[Sturmboe]

It is possible for someone who was adopted and raised by a christianity family, to become an authorized sundance leader?

[milehighsalute]

It is possible for someone who was adopted and raised by a christianity family, to become an authorized sundance leader?

what you mean "is it possible for someone not being raised in his tradition to become a leader of sid tradition".....cmon man....you know the answer

[Sturmboe]

I'll rephrase the question a little differently and mor common .

Must be someone who leads ceremonies or lives as a healer, having grown up in his culture?
If someone was adopted  as a baby or critter by a white family and thus torn from his culture, could he can come back after years or decades on the reservation and then become a ceremonial leader or medicine man (I can not find a suitable word)? Is this possible or not?
Natives who can not grow up in their culture, are different formed / affected in their human being and this character "being Native" can not be easily learned or acquired. Is there a lack in the foundation of native way of life to learn about it?
Anyone can acquire knowledge, how a ceremony is conducted, how to perfom healings. The question is not just "how" and from "whom" the knowledge is acquired, the question is: Can a person who did not live on the res, develop a deeper and correctly  understanding for this work? Or is this foundation missed?

The various opinions are determined controversial, the moderate opinions of one, the strict views of the hardliners. And it is surely different from the kind of ceremonie, the tribe etc.
I think this is a discussion by Natives ...

[milehighsalute]

Short answer....remotely possible YES  but NOT very likely

[milehighsalute]

Most of the old timers will tell you it takes a LIFETIME to learn....many will admit that they can live 10 lifetimes and still not learn anything...  So yeah we are all aware of adoptions and injuns whose parents may have chosen Christianity....but I don't think an instant Indian will carry any more weight than a twinkie.....nor do I think a holyman would pass that kind of thing down to someone......you don't know the minds of injuns....if someone is entrusted with that gift, they usually didn't choose that life...the life chose them....they are intended to serve their people.....if they are serving non-injuns and the like were they really chosen? Or are they just name dropping.....i can't drop big names too.....but I admit to being a less than zealous follower of my own traditions.....but I still hate seeing them abused