NEWS


	Conference sheds light on Native American issues


	By David Hawkins The Metropolitan


	The Metro American Indian Student Empowerment club organized a two-day conference March 9 and 10 to showcase guest speakers to shed some light on the state of Native Americans in the past and present. ãWe are trying to make people more aware of some Native American issues,ä said Oneida Meranto, MAISEâs faculty advisor and a Metro political science professor. The conference also included several workshops on health issues, and political and legal challenges that Native Americans face. One of the keynote speakers, Maria Yellow Horse Brave Heart, a writer and psychologist, discussed the psychological connections between the Jewish Holocaust and the ãIndian Holocaust.ä She suggested different therapies to deal with repercussions of the Indian Holocaust.

Millions of Native Americans were killed during Europeâs colonization of America, she said.

ãAmerican Indian cultures are extremely important,ä said MAISE member Sarah Echohawk Vermillion, a member of the Pawnee nation of Oklahoma and vice president of Administration and Finance for Metroâs Student Government Assembly. ãUntil we are aware of the issues, nothing can ever be solved.ä

Other speakers included John Echohawk, the executive director of the Native American Rights Fund, and Walter Echohawk, an attorney for the Native American Rights Fund.

Meranto said she hoped the conference showed the value of Native American Studies. MAISEâs mission is to promote Native American study programs at Metro and other colleges.

ãThis is just a beginning,ä she said. ãThe students are trying to put together a genuine effort to see Native Americans as a legitimate area of study.ä


	Meranto also noted her studentsâ hard work and dedication when they organized the conference. ãThis is something that they are very proud of and they worked very hard,ä Meranto said. ãThey are working to make people proud.ä