Exploiters in Sweden

[educatedindian]

"vikinglady03" <banfield@algonet.se>  
Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 22:22:31 -0000
Subject: [nafps_again] American exploiter in Sweden

* The Viking Princess takes out Thors Hammer and her Viking sword *

Anyone who wants to help me protest?
There is an American guy living in Sweden since about 2 years back ( WHY did he move from the States, I wonder...? ) selling sweats, pipe
ceremonies, drum journeys, vision quests, you name it, and he gives workshops in "NA culture and spirituality......" He approached me since he knew I am a lecturer and that I work with NativeAmericans
on and off, he asked if we could work together and not knowing him, I asked him to send me some information. I got this horrible flyer filled with eagles and NA symbols and courses in "Native ceremonies".
So I sent him a mail protesting to what he was doing and I asked an Ojibway friend of mine to help out, so he wrote him a mail from Canada. Then I heard nothing for 6 months.
Until one day, I noticed that one of the biggest Speaker´s Agencies in Sweden had him as one of their front figures! They´re selling him to the biggest companies in this country charging loads of money for his ceremonies. I think he charges roughly 1500 US dollars for a workshop with a sweatlodge.
Now, there is no point for me to protest any more, I will just be regarded as "an envious competitor" since we´re in the same field. But this makes me really furious....this is not even down to New Age
level but all this garbage is being sold to businessmen and managers and really does a lot of harm!
I think this agency should be told!
( I used to be signed up with them but I have left now.... )
Sooo....don´t know if you feel that Sweden is too far away but it would SURE be fun to let them know that you know what is going on...!
I´ll give you more information if you want to help out
Annika
PS...He is also involved in a festival called "No Mind Festival" ( what an appropriate name !! ) which takes place every summer here.

[educatedindian]

vikinglady03" <banfield@algonet.se>
Date: Thu, 26 Jun 2003 23:20:07 -0000
Subject: [nafps_again] Re: American exploiter in Sweden

--- In nafps_again@yahoogroups.com, educatedindian wrote:
> Tell us his name and what tribe he claims, maybe we can dig up > something on him. Then we can write to the businesses and let ythem > know they are being ripped off. Possibly we could also inform the > police this guy is guilty of fraud is he is not who he says he is.
>
> And have you ever thought about building a webpage in Swedish to warn > people about the exploiters?

To your 2nd question:  Oh Yesssss...and that´s one of my plans for my summer holiday....I just haven´t had time. I will include a "how-to-
spot-a-fraud" page on my other site.

AND...about this guy, Mr. Robert Larkin ( I´ve asked some other activists in USA but they haven´t been able to dig up anything but maybe you have got more information.....) He called his "enterprise"
Stargate and it was located in Santa Fe, New Mexico. His website is gone, I noticed....

I don´t think he is claiming to be native at all....I think he just says he has studied with Natives. I noticed that his name came up in connection with Harley´s gang, he participated on one of their
gatherings, but as far as I know he is not a member there....he just does his own thing and some of the Indian Clubs here book him.

Here he is:   www.stamina.se  

Just click under his name where it says "Läs mer", it is all in English. The flyer ( which I threw away, unfortunately )was much more related to NA culture and my son happened to end up on one of his workshops since his business had booked Mr. Larkin....my son said it was just horrible and refused to participate. ( I´ll check with him
when I see him next what this guy actually said. )

www.nomindfestival.com    

No Mind Festival 2003, he was involved last year.

Thaaaaanks !
Annika

[educatedindian]

vikinglady03" <banfield@algonet.se>  
Date: Fri, 27 Jun 2003 19:07:32 -0000
Subject: [nafps_again] Re: American exploiter in Sweden

THANK YOU for all your help.

I hope that Volvo doesn´t sign him up, they are usually very open for this kind of things (I know, I´ve been there with my Native Friends). Volvo is partly owned by Ford now, so - just like you said - it is not a good thing that this agency is giving him the same dignity as all the other management consultants they have signed up.
I know he is doing Men´s Movement and includes NA ceremonies.....and no, we didn´t have that in Sweden until Mr Larkin came along.
Nuagers here are pretty harmless ( I think Trisha would agree on that ) but this guy causes me concern.....
And of course I will inform companies if I happen to hear they are booking him.....
I must get started on my "warning-for-freuds" website soon...
Thanks again!
Annika

--- In nafps_again@yahoogroups.com, educatedindian wrote:
> What he does on the Stamina site seems to be "generic" pseudo Lakota > stuff, he makes no claim of any tribe or elders. That alone should
be > reason enough to warn people. I think it's only a matter of time > before he injures someone in his phony version of sweatlodges. You > could try pointing that out to businesses. I'd guess Swedish > companies don't like to take chances on lawsuits anymore than > American ones.
>
> The lack of authenticity is also an approach you could when you talk > to the Indian Clubs.
>
> The No Mind website seems to be offline, just like Stargate. The most > I could find on Larkin was that he used to be of the Men's Movement.
> I don't know if you have that in Sweden. Here in the US, it's largely > middle class white men doing things like drumming in the woods and > talking about how their fathers never hugged them, in some kind of > confused way trying to rebuild a new idea of what being masculine is.
> At its worst, sometimes the groups get misogynistic or women bashing.
> Larkin and a chiropractor named Chaz Schultzle wrote an article.> http://www.nmmenswellness.org/man_alive/maspring00.pdf