S2, E9: ’Nothing About Us Without Us’: Nancy Tecumseh Mason (Choctaw) Empowering Our Native Youth

03/08/22 • 47 min

Although she’s Choctaw, my guest, Nancy Tecumseh Mason is immersed within her husband and children’s tribe (Muscogee Nation). And for years now, Nancy has relentlessly poured her time and energy into supporting the youth of the tribe as Director of the Mvskoke Nation Youth Services. In this episode, you’ll hear about Mvskoke Nation Youth Services: • This program is created by youth for youth, and “Nothing about us without us” is the motto that empowers these youth to make decisions and to have a voice at the table from day one. • Check out Mvskoke artists, including some pieces from these talented youth, where you can even purchase some of their items! https://www.mvskokeyouth.com/mvskokeartists You’ll also learn about: • The story of her dad and her Uncle Amos who both had an eye for Nancy’s mother • The many spellings and versions of the Muscogee name • Nancy isn’t related to Tecumseh, the Shawnee Warrior Chief we’ve read about in history books, but we do talk about the historical rhyme that could correct the way many of us say, “Tecumseh”. How do YOU say this name? Mvskoke Nation Youth Services: • Website: https://www.mvskokeyouth.com/ • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MvskokeYouth • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mvskokeyouth/ All Podcast Episodes: https://nativechoctalk.com/podcasts/ Native ChocTalk Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/nativechoctalkpodcast

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S2, E8: Christianity & Spirituality in the Native American Community: Monroe Tsatoke, Kiowa

Prior to non-Natives settling in what is now the United States, Native American spirituality had solidified over centuries, differing within each tribe. That spirituality included rituals and inner meditations around nature, harmony, community and more. But it wasn’t long after the settlers arrived that missionaries felt called (or were sometimes appointed) to spread the gospel of Jesus to the Indigenous people. Some missionaries grew to love their friendships with the Natives, even adopting some of their culture, language and ways of life, some even creating dictionaries which thankfully today can be attributed to the preservation of languages that otherwise would have become “dust in the wind”. The darker side to the infiltration of the missionaries was displayed by those who had a more sinister goal in mind, “beating” the spirituality, language, culture and traditions out of the Indigenous people so that the non-Natives would be more easily able assimilate them into their own culture and grab their land and resources. You may recall my friend and guest who appeared in Season 1 - Monroe Tsatoke (Kiowa), descendent of Hunting Horse and Monroe Tsatoke of the well-known artist of The Kiowa 5/Kiowa 6. He joins us again to share about: • How some Native Christians still practice their traditional spirituality but face judgement from both the Christian community and the Native community for doing both • The history of the United Methodist Church among Native Americans • His own experience of being talked down to by outside missionaries • How Stumbling Bear was one of the first Methodist Kiowas to convert to Christianity • About his grandparents who would walk 5 miles to church every Sunday to preach • How Monroe almost ruined the Christmas pageant and other hilarious stories from Kiowa country • Monroe himself also sings for us in his Native tongue (Kiowa) You’re invited to hear Monroe preach at Hunting Horse United Methodist Church: 611 S 25th, Lawton, OK at 11:00 am on Sundays. All Podcast Episodes: https://nativechoctalk.com/podcasts/ Native ChocTalk Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/nativechoctalkpodcast

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S2, E10: Shell Shaker: A Chickasaw Opera, Jerod Impichchaachaaha Tate, Chickasaw Composer

“Chickasaw legend tells of a girl who is teased by other children and named Loksi’—Turtle—for her slowness. Upon the counsel of a river, she goes to live in the forest. There, she finds hospitality among the turtle people. One day, the god of the turtles asks her to tell her fellow humans to treat turtles with respect and kindness, and gives her a gift of turtle shells filled with pebbles and seeds to bring back with her. The rattles were adopted by the people of Loksi’ and used to accompany dances and ceremonies, a reminder to treat the natural world with care.”* (from interactive.wttw.com) As a former opera singer with a music degree, I’m ecstatic about today’s Native ChocTalk episode! Here we have something unprecedented - an opera in an American Indian language (Chickasaw), by an American Indian Composer (Jerod Impichchaachaaha Tate), and we all should be celebrating this enormous breakthrough in Native arts! In this episode, Jerod discusses with me (like the music nerds we are): · How there aren’t rules set up yet around how spoken and sung Chickasaw may differ. (In traditional operas with languages such as French and Italian, etc., there are often rules about the differences between spoken and sung.) · The challenges around composing in a difficult language, paired with an extremely demanding genre such as opera, to complete a work that has never been attempted before. This requires a modern Chickasaw speaker (Joshua Hinson) who interprets and translates the words into text, as well as a Dramateur/Librettest (libretto = the wording in an opera), Lyla Palmer, partnering with a Composer such as Jerod who has vision and determination to see this opera to fruition. And voila – you now have something unique and beautiful. Stay tuned for upcoming announcements, as this opera is most likely going live November of 2022 at UMass Amherst! Three cheers for these talented folks, as well as the singers! · Jerod Impichchaachaaha Tate: Composer · Tianhui Ng: Conductor · Lokosh (Josh Hinson): Interpreter/Translator · Margaret Wheeler: Costume Design Find and follow Jerod Tate here: · Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jerodtatecomposer · Website: https://jerodtate.com/ *https://interactive.wttw.com/playlist/2021/11/23/jerod-impichchaachaaha-tate All Podcast Episodes: https://nativechoctalk.com/podcasts/ Native ChocTalk Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/nativechoctalkpodcast