Tulalip News

‘Inside Out’ shows how various substances affect human organs

Jessica Talevich inspects a healthy brain with organ lady, Shawneri Guzman.Photo: Andrew Gobin, Tulaip News — Jessica Talevich inspects a healthy brain with organ lady, Shawneri Guzman.
Photo: Andrew Gobin, Tulalip News

By Andrew Gobin, Tulalip News Reporter

Tulalip − The unsettling foreign smell of formaldehyde and isopropyl alcohol wafted from a table at the front of the room, lined with bottles, cans, jars of waste and toxins, and trays of human organs. Those who attended the CEDAR group meeting November 7^th were disgustingly captivated by the uncanny presentation. Inside Out tells the gruesome truths of substance abuse, dispelling the misconceptions and myths society has about substances. Thursday’s show was unique, highlighting the effects of specific drugs.

Commonly referred to as the Organ Lady show, Inside Out begins with a glass of vodka and a raw egg. Shawneri Guzman, one of five Organ Ladies, cracks the egg into the glass for all to see, then sets it aside. From behind jars of tar and phlegm, Guzman picks up a set of human lungs, kicking the show into high gear as the audience leans in for a better look. She describes the different parts and facts about these lungs, which are grey and small, but they are healthy. Next she shows the lungs of a tobacco smoker, a marijuana smoker, and a heroin smoker, each looking progressively larger, shredded, and more black.

Bonnie and Bryce Juneau looking at a heart with a Gortex valve. Valve damage was due to heroin use.Photo: Andrew Gobin, Tulalip News — Bonnie and Bryce Juneau looking at a heart with a Gortex valve. Valve damage was due to heroin use.
Photo: Andrew Gobin, Tulalip News

“The goal is to show healthy organs in comparison to damaged organs in order to help people understand what their choices are leading to, and hopefully help them make a change in their life,” said Guzman, an ER nurse at Providence Medical Center who sees people with these conditions on a daily basis.

The show continues with the heart, kidneys, liver, a tongue, and brains. Each specimen comes with a story, which Guzman tells while weaving in facts about drugs and how they are different and more dangerous today than they were ten, twenty, thirty years ago.

“The heroin on the street today is 60% to 70% pure, thirty years ago it was more like 20%. This means you can become addicted the first time, you can overdose the first time, you can die the first time. Today, heroin is commonly cut with horse tranquilizers, which is why so many people that use heroin look like zombies, they are essentially numbing their brain,” Guzman explained.

She continued to unveil brains, picking up slices that resembled Swiss cheese. Brains riddled with holes from heroin, meth, and marijuana, coupled with neural scans showing severe cognitive impairment illustrate a sobering reality. The damage shown in these brains is irreversible.

Guzman pointed out the misconceptions of drug use, such as smoking heroin is less addictive and less harmful than injection. If anything, smoking heroin is more harmful because of the drastic effect on the lungs.

It is important to know that second and third-hand marijuana exposure can cause you to test positive for THC, the chemical that comes from marijuana. Guzman referred to her experience in the ER, how many people come in after having tested positive for THC, and not knowing why it happened.

Bonnie Juneau hold up a pair of lungs ravaged by marijuana smoke. This 19 year old boy and had smoked everyday for five years.Photo: Andrew Gobin, Tulalip News — Bonnie Juneau hold up a pair of lungs ravaged by marijuana smoke. This 19 year old boy and had smoked everyday for five years.
Photo: Andrew Gobin, Tulalip News

She explained, “We don’t realize how much our immediate environment affects us on a daily basis. Exposure to smoke is one example of how your surroundings affect your life. Even though you aren’t smoking, your body still feels the effects and it will show up on a test.” She noted that, “due to fertilizer and pesticides, marijuana today has more THC than what our parents would have smoked, meaning the effects and damage are both more drastic, and we are seeing more people test positive having only been exposed to third-hand smoke, which is the residue left on clothes, hair, furniture, and inside the car.”

As the show came to an end, Guzman picked up the egg floating in a glass of vodka. The vodka cooked the egg white in less than 90 minutes.

“Our brains do not stop maturing until we are about 25,” explained Guzman. “The egg white is immature protein, similar to a teen’s brain and other organs.”

She pointed out a liver from a 17 year-old girl that had drank since she was 13. It was hard and looked like a sponge in the middle.

Afterwards, people could put on gloves and examine the organs themselves, making the effects of substance abuse a tangible experience. Guzman continued to explain how these symptoms of organ damage manifest in living people, describing the signs to look for if you suspect someone is abusing substances. Awareness and understanding are crucial aspects in preventing addiction.

Fawn Sharp: Conference Appreciated but ‘We Need More’

Fawn Sharp, Source: Indian Country Today Media Network

The following are comments by Quinault Indian Nation President Fawn Sharp in advance of today’s 2013 White House Tribal Nations Conference, the fifth of its kind since President Barack Obama took office in a way to improve the government-to-government relationship between federally recognized tribes and the United States government.

Today, President Barack Obama and top officials of his administration are meeting with hundreds of elected chairs, presidents and other key leaders from Indian tribes across the country. It is the fifth annual such gathering, an event promised by the president when he first entered the White House, intended to improve federal/tribal government-to-government relations.

We truly appreciate this opportunity to visit President Obama and listen to his thoughts about the various issues affecting Indian country. But we need much more than a listening session. These annual gatherings do comprise a gesture of good will well beyond any ever made by any president. But we need more than gestures. We need more than progress reports and we need more than promises. Our people are suffering and we need a “paradigm shift,” from the way tribes have been treated by this country in the past to the way they must be treated in the future.

I call upon the president to take a stand—a genuine stand—in favor of a true, democratic, nation-to-nation dialogue regarding the pressures and afflictions facing Indian country today. We need to establish a formalized and permanent intergovernmental framework between the tribes and the United States to, among other objectives, establish agreement on revenue restoration and trust reform through amendment of the self-governance compact.

What this means in layman’s terms is that it’s time for America to wake up to the fact that there are still Indian nations in this country. We haven’t gone away, and we’re not about ready to go anywhere. Our people have been ignored, mistreated, lied to and cheated throughout our history with the United States and the time has come for it to stop.

Indian, Alaskan Native and Hawaiian peoples have endured, and are enduring, the worst possible conditions, from extreme poverty to early death. Our children go to the worst schools. We have the worst health care and we are on the front lines facing the very real impacts of climate change and ocean acidification. The glaciers in our mountains are melting. Our lands and waters are being eroded, poisoned with pollution and displaced by careless development.

Too often, federal agencies ignore our rights and our sovereignty. To name just a few examples:

— Three years after 144 countries passed the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples through the U.N. General Assembly in 2010, President Obama finally decided to sign it—the final country to do so. But even then, the Department of State said the U.S. government didn’t agree with provisions affirming the principle that Indigenous Peoples must directly participate in policies and actions that directly affect their rights and interests. The principle opposed by the U.S. says that indigenous nations have the right to “free, prior and informed consent” before a government’s actions may be carried out. It is a fundamental right of any government. This effectively means the U.S. denies tribes the basic democratic principle that people have a right to know and consent to planned state government policies and actions that affect their livelihood, their social, political, economic and cultural interests and their future survival—a fundamental human right.

— Indians pay as much in taxes as they receive in federal payments under treaties and compacts. So, Indians are paying the U.S. to fulfill its treaty commitments. Also, non-Indian citizens receive approximately 50 times more in return benefit for taxes paid than Indian citizens do. Still, federal appropriations to tribes are being slashed—funds that belong to the tribes and are desperately needed for everything from medical care to education. These are topics for bi-directional dialogue along with implementation of the U.N. Declaration at the World Conference.

We have been supportive of President Obama and his policies, and we hope to continue to do so. But the time has passed when one-sided listening sessions can be counted as true progress in U.S.-tribal affairs. Democratic dialogue between our nations and the U.S. is needed to validate any consent requested of Indians. It’s not happening. Nor will it, until the “intergovernmental framework” to implement the government-to-government policy is formalized.

I challenge President Obama to make his administration a time for real progress for the Indian people—one that will be marked in history as a cornerstone of change, when true intergovernmental dialogue commenced between us and when the tribes finally received some of the respect they deserve.

Audio & Video from White House Tribal Nations Conference

Source: Indianz.com

The White House Tribal Nations Conference began this morning at the Interior Department in Washington, D.C.

Interior Secretary Sally Jewell kicked off the session after an introduction by Jodi Gillette, the Senior Policy Advisor for Native American Affairs at the White House. This is Jewell’s first Tribal Nations Conference since joining the Obama administration earlier this year.

Tribal leaders also heard from five more Cabinet secretaries. They were: Secretary Eric Shinseki, Department of Veterans Affairs; Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Department of Health and Human Services; Secretary Anthony Foxx, Department of Transportation; Secretary Ernest Moniz, Department of Energy; and Attorney General Eric Holder, Department of Justice, who was introduced by David Gipp, the president of the United Tribes Technical College in North Dakota.

After the morning remarks, tribal leaders went into breakout sessions on a variety of topics. The sessions were not open to press.

The afternoon session will resume at 2pm with remarks from three more Cabinet secretaries, to be followed by a listening session of the new White House Council on Native American Affairs. President Barack Obama created the council by executive order in June.

Obama is expected to deliver final remarks at the conference around 3:30pm. The afternoon session will be webcast at www.doi.gov/news/video/live.cfm.

Video from the morning session can be viewed here

Redefining the Tulalip brand

5^th annual Taste of Tulalip combines traditional foods with daring culinary expression

Taste_web — Bravo’s Top Chef Kristen Kish (Right) shown with an audience member, hosts a cooking demonstration at the Taste of Tulalip.
Photo: Andrew Gobin, Tulalip News

By Andrew Gobin, Tulalip News Reporter

Tulalip, WA − “I’m surrounded by artists; artist wine makers, artist chefs, artist celebrity chefs. All of whom have such a lust, such passion for food,” said Chef Perry Mascitti at the opening reception for the 5^th annual Taste of Tulalip, November 8^th. The weekend culinary event, which sells out every year, hosted returning celebrity Chef Carla Hall, Bravo’s Top Chef Champion Kristen Kish, and renowned food anthropologist, chef, and Kiowa tribal member, Dr. Lois Frank. This year’s focus was more on the menu in an effort to redefine the event, and the Tulalip brand.

Lisa Severn, director of food and beverage at the resort, said, “It is a culinary event encompassing both food and wine. We want to define Tulalip as a culinary destination, bringing quality and passion to our brand, setting us apart from our competitors.”

The Taste, as it’s called, is so much more than a wine event, a fact that was brought to the forefront in this year’s preparations as Dr. Frank worked with resort cooking staff for more than six months developing menu ideas inspired by the historic foods of this region. Such indigenous foods were incorporated into each dish served at Friday’s six course reception dinner, as well as those offered at the grand tasting on Saturday. The use of indigenous mushrooms, huckleberries, salmon, shellfish, pumpkin and squash, and indigenous red and yellow corn gave each plate a taste that is truly unique to this region. Branching out into Indian country as a whole, even lamb and buffalo were used as Native meats.

Each year, the Taste welcomes mainly Washington wineries to showcase their finest products, for two reasons. First, these wines are specific to this area, similar to the foods, as each grape will taste different depending on the ground it is planted in. You are essentially drinking the flavors of the northwest infused in each wine. The second is that Tulalip Resort believes in buying local and supporting local businesses.

They have the food, they have the drink, but it is really the skill and passion that defines a culinary experience. In order to prove their skill, chefs and sommeliers from around the Pacific Northwest teamed up for the Rock n’ Roll cooking challenge, where they were given a basket of unknown ingredients. They had to create a dish and select a wine to pair it with. A challenge to understand the relationship between food and drink, three teams were judged by the hosting chefs.

In addition to the fanfare, cooking demonstrations and tastings of elite wines and craft beers brought a level of quality to the Taste that puts Tulalips on the map. Kristen Kish held a cooking demonstration, preparing lobster. Kish stressed the fact that you should cook with your hands. For example, a pinch as a measurement should be between your thumb and three fingers, meaning that the amount of ingredients used will be specific to each chef, adding an identity to each dish. Fielding questions by Tulalip’s Chef Perry and celebrity Chef Carla Hall, Kish shared other tricks of the trade along the way.

The effort in defining the Taste as a culinary experience is exceptional, even in philanthropy. The Taste sponsors a charity each year. This year Fare Start was selected, a charity that assists at risk adults with culinary training. Every aspect of the Taste goes towards an emphasis on the culinary experience.

Redefining the Taste, and Tulalip, as a culinary destination also showcases the diverse options Tulalip offers guests on a regular basis. Although the event focuses on Tulalip hospitality, the Taste of Tulalip has remained one of the top ten grossing weekends in terms of casino revenue since the resort opened.

The weekend concluded with what was called a Native American brunch, where Dr. Frank led an expedition into the traditional foods of Native America; a legacy that will continue at the resort.

Severn was very pleased with the event, saying, “It was a successful weekend that defined Tulalip as a culinary destination, hosting the premier culinary event in the Northwest.”

Washburn Finalizes Administration’s Patchak Patch

By Rob Capriccioso, Indian Country Today Media Network

Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn announced November 12 a finalized rule that aims to resolve some problems created for tribes by a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision, which said that a litigant can sue for up to six years after the U.S. Department of the Interior takes lands into trust for tribes.

The court ruled in June 2012 in Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians v. Patchak that the law does not bar Administrative Procedure Act challenges to the Department of the Interior’s determination to take land in trust even after the United States acquires title to the property, unless the aggrieved party asserts an ownership interest in the land as the basis for the challenge. In the case at hand, it allowed a lawsuit to go forward challenging a tribal casino in Michigan from opening, despite the suit being filed three years after Interior took land into trust for the tribe. More broadly, it left the door open for costly lawsuits years after tribal projects, including casinos, housing and healthcare facilities, have broken ground.

The new rule partially addresses the issues by ending a 30-day waiting period Interior established in 1996 for the assistant secretary to take land into trust for tribes wanting to develop casinos on such land. That so-called “self-stay policy” was meant to give parties a heads up in case they wanted to file suit. The rule clarifies that the assistant secretary’s decision is final, and it allows the assistant secretary to take the land into trust with no waiting period. Lawsuits, though, are still a possibility.

“The reason for staying is just not so compelling anymore,” Washburn told Indian Country Today Media Network in May when he proposed the rule that has now been finalized. “Our argument is that people can still bring their action if they want to after we’ve taken the land into trust—at least that’s what Patchak says.”

The new rule also includes a 30-day appeal period for Bureau of Indian Affairs land-into-trust decisions that do not involve casinos. If parties do not file an appeal within 30 days before the Interior Board of Indian Appeals, then they will lose the right to do so ever.

“If they don’t appeal, then they are out of luck,” Washburn told ICTMN in May. “Kind of like when the minister says, ‘Speak now or forever hold your peace.’”

“If an appeal isn’t filed in 30 days, it’s golden—the land is in trust, and it’s secure [for tribes],” Washburn added.

Washburn previously admitted that there are shortfalls for tribes here because, under the rule, Interior will be providing wider notice of its decision to acquire land. He said the benefit of the rule outweighs that risk: “If people have concerns, we need to get them out of the bushes and get them to raise their concerns within 30 days—not wait 5 years and 11 months,” he said.

He predicted that critics of the administration’s tribal land-into-trust policies, including Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), will appreciate that the policy codifies that parties in opposition will be contacted by Interior. “I think that’s a change that she will appreciate,” he said.

An Interior press release said the new rule “demonstrates the Obama Administration’s continuing commitment to restoring tribal homelands and furthering economic development on Indian reservations.”

Beyond the administration, tribal advocates have been asking Congress to pass a true “Patchak patch” that would say that once the United States takes land into trust for tribes, the decision is completely immune from lawsuits whether the lands are intended for casinos or other uses.

“But we can’t wait for Congress to do that,” Washburn said in May. “We don’t know if they will. We certainly would support such legislation, but, in the meantime, we have to figure out how we protect tribes now.”

According to the Department, 38 tribes and tribal organizations commented on the proposed rule before it was finalized, while 16 from state, county, or local governments and organizations representing such governments commented and 12 members of the public, including individuals, advocacy groups and other organizations commented. Most tribal commenters were supportive of the rule, although there were some tribal objections, while most state, county, or local governments and organizations and members of the public were opposed to the rule.

Michael Anderson, an Indian affairs lawyer with Anderson Indian Law, said the new rule is a positive one for tribes.

“This is a good development and could shorten the current six-year statute of limits under the Administrative Procedure Act to challenge Interior land-into-trust decisions,” Anderson said.

The final rule is online here.

Aid struggles to reach Typhoon Haiyan survivors

Global aid efforts are underway and battling logistical issues to help victims of Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. VPCPhoto: David Guttenfelder, AP — Global aid efforts are underway and battling logistical issues to help victims of Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. VPC
Photo: David Guttenfelder, AP

Source: USAToday.com

TACLOBAN, Philippines — Five days after super Typhoon Haiyan devastated the central Philippines, government and relief agencies struggled Wednesday to get aid through to the worst hit areas.

In the especially hard-hit city of Tacloban, where the mayor’s office estimates that between 5,000 and 10,000 people may have died — though the president’s office says the death toll may be somewhat lower — hungry survivors expressed anger at the lack of help while sporadic looting continued despite armed police patrolling streets that appear part war zone and part garbage dump.

“I live on the road from the airport and I haven’t seen any goods coming out,” said businessman Noel Mateo, 50, who lost five of his seven trucks to storm surge Friday. “I don’t see any reason at all why they can’t give out the stocks,” he said. Mateo said he has heard “good news” on his radio about extensive relief.

To improve the response, the central government is now taking over in Tacloban, said Thelma Barerra, a Dept. of Heath official who led a team of psychological health workers that flew in with 55 doctors from Manila hospitals Tuesday.

“Just like the (2004) tsunami in Indonesia, all service providers have been affected from the mayor on down, so organization has not been good yet and needs central government control,” she said.

“The city government is still trying to be in charge, but we have no capacity,” said Tecson John S. Lim, the Tacloban city administrator Wednesday.

“The central government does what they think they should, and we coordinate,” he said. The city will be without power for another three months, said Lim, although the Philippine energy secretary mandated the process be completed in two months, he said.

According to Barerra, the damage is even worse in Tacloban than in Banda Aceh where she assisted in 2004, when the devastating Christmas-time tsunami struck. Her own team still lacks their medical and goods supplies, stuck at Tacloban airport Wednesday.

Help from abroad is arriving but experiencing similar difficulties.

A 40-strong Belgian emergency response team flew 30 hours and landed Tuesday morning, ready to set up a tent hospital. But all their equipment and medical supplies remained stuck at the airport Wednesday, said Koenraad Schwatgen, a member of the B-FAST team.

“It’s frustrating but understandable. We have to adapt to local conditions,” he said. “We are here to help them in their way, but we always want to help a little bit faster.”

Schwatgen guessed Filipino officials were giving priority to shifting food and water supplies out of the airport. The terminal building was destroyed in the storm but the runway is functional.

Yet residents are seeing little evidence of food and water relief getting through, a scenario that is compounding the pain for survivors still searching for missing relatives.

“No supplies have reached us,” said Edward Bongcaras, 43, who is worried about his two children in south Samar province, a badly hit area where communications have still not been reestablished.

Troopers looking for speeding shoppers on I-5

By Linda Brill, King 5 News

MARYSVILLE, Wash. — In Snohomish County, and north along I-5, the Washington State Patrol has a new holiday speed trap.

It’s aimed at shoppers who are speeding to the mall.

Monday morning, the State Patrol put a plane in the sky to catch holiday speeders near the Premium Outlet Mall at Tulalip.

The pilot measures special markers along Interstate 5, then checks speeds using a stop watch.

With eyes in the air, he radios to troopers on the ground.

On the first day of speed shopping patrol, one trooper nailed a driver going 85 in a 60 mile an hour zone.

The State Patrol says nearly half of the speeders in November and December admit they’re speeding to shop.

“Obviously, holiday shopping is frustrating. It’s a mad dash in and out of stores. We would urge people to be calm and collected as they are driving down the road.” said Trooper Mark Francis.

The special shopping speed trap is extended from Marysville, up through Skagit and Whatcom Counties until the end of December.

The State Patrol has a planned holiday emphasis for Thanksgiving all along I-5.

Jacoby Ellsbury, Navajo baseball standout, in line for deal

Jacoby Ellsbury in his Nike N7 gear. Photo from Twitter

Source; Indianz.com

Jacoby Ellsbury could land a Major League Baseball deal worth at least $120 million, The Boston Globe reports.

Ellsbury just came off a second World Series win with the Boston Red Sox. He’s a free agent and refused a one-year extension with the team, a move that sets the stage for a big deal, the Globe said.

Ellsbury is a member of the Colorado River Indian Tribes. He is Navajo, one of the four tribes in CRIT.

Get the Story:
Three players decline qualifying offers from Red Sox (The Boston Globe 11/12)
13 free agents turn down qualifying offers, including Cano, Ellsbury, McCann (AP 11/11)

Train carrying oil derails, explodes in Alabama

Derailment is latest in string of incidents as US increasingly relies on rail to transport oil

Smoke rises from derailed train cars in western Alabama on Nov. 8, 2013.WBMA via Reuters

Source: Climate Connection

A 90-car train carrying crude oil derailed in western Alabama on Friday, causing flames to burst hundreds of feet into the air.

The train was heading from the oil boomtowns of North Dakota to a Shell chemical plant near Mobile, Alabama. Unlike in recent oil train derailments, there were no reports of injuries or deaths. But the incident was another reminder of the dangers of North America’s increased reliance on a patchwork of railroads used to transport billions of gallons of newly discovered oil across the United States and Canada.

Concern had already been raised after a July accident in Lac-Megantic, Canada, in which 47 people were killed.

In Alabama on Friday, 20 of the train’s cars derailed, throwing flames 300 feet into the air. Those cars were being left to burn down, which could take up to 24 hours, according to the train owner, Genesee & Wyoming.

If full, the train, which passes near schools and crosses rivers in the area, could hold up to 65,000 barrels of crude oil.

It was not initially clear what caused Friday’s accident in Pickens County, Alabama. The train was being driven by two engineers, both unharmed, officials said.

The accident happened in a wetlands area which eventually feeds into the Tombigbee River, according to the Alabama Department of Environmental Management. Booms were placed in the wetlands to contain the spilled oil.

Accidents involving oil being transported via train have become more common as oil production has dramatically increased in places like North Dakota and Canada. That has led to flurry of debate over how to best transport the highly-flammable oils, with some advocating for an increased use of pipelines, and others arguing that rail systems make for more environmentally secure transport.

The East and West coasts in particular turned to rail years ago to draw in U.S. and Canadian crude. With no major oil pipelines in operation, or even planned, rail allowed them to tap into the burgeoning shale market.

In the last three months, crude-by-rail shipments rose 44 percent from the previous year to 93,312 carloads, equivalent to about 740,000 barrels per day or almost one tenth of U.S. production.

The practice shows no sign of slowing down. Analysts expect up to 40 times more oil to be transported by trains in the next five years.

While many are concerned, the alternatives for transporting vast amounts of oil don’t seem to please activists and safety experts either. Environmentalists vehemently opposed the Keystone XL pipeline, one of the biggest proposed pipelines in the country.

And research shows that pipelines, if they leak, can spill much more oil than trains do.

The most recent round of controversy over transporting oil by freight started over the summer when a train derailed in Lac-Megantic.

That incident, which the operator Montreal Maine & Atlantic blamed on a train engineer not applying enough brakes on an incline, fueled a drive for tougher standards for oil rail shipments.

Since then, there have been several new regulations proposed for oil-by-freight operations, including better labeling for what’s contained in each train, but nothing permanent has been signed into law.

Hattie Kauffman’s new book resonates

Source: Buffalo Post

A new book by Hattie Kauffman, the first Native American to do standup-reporting for a national television network, only briefly talks about how she rose through the ranks to beome on on-air correspondent for CBS and “Good Morning America.”

Instead, writes Tim Giago, publisher and editor emeritus of the Native Sun News in a book review also carried at indianz.com, in “Falling into Place” Kauffman discusses a childhood and first marriage marred by alcohol, and a divorce that turned Kauffman toward christianity.

… (M)ostly her book is about the trials and tribulations of her childhood as an Indian torn between the Nez Perce Indian Reservation and cities like Seattle … where her parents, dyed-in-the-wool alcoholics, ranged back and forth dragging her and her six siblings along behind them.

But the thing that tore her world apart and brought her to near madness was the request for a divorce by her husband of 17 years, a request that apparently came out of the blue for her.

Giago writes that, until the divorce, this highly successful Native journalist “thought she’d left the ghosts of childhood behind her.”

Hattie writes about her first marriage as a teenager to a boy who grows up to be a wife-beater and an alcoholic. She writes that it is strange that daughters of alcoholics often grow up to marry alcoholics. In their dual roles as alcoholics Hattie remembers getting beaten so severely that she had to be admitted to a hospital. At least through a haze of drunken deliriums, she barely remembers. She eventually realizes that alcohol is a destroyer of lives and stops drinking.

Giago admits some Native Americans, including himself, may not empathize with Kauffman’s religious views.

Many have turned their backs on Christianity and found their own solace and happiness in their traditional spirituality, a spirituality that was torn from them and their ancestors by the missionaries preaching the Doctrine of Christianity.

But he still believes the book will resonate, in part because he says Kauffman remains “an unassuming Native woman who never turned her nose up at anyone even though she rose to the pinnacle of media success.”

– Vince Devlin

5th annual Taste of Tulalip combines traditional foods with daring culinary expression

5^th annual Taste of Tulalip combines traditional foods with daring culinary expression