Penobscot Indian Nation installs tribal officials
1/17/09 | 15 comments

Penobscot Indian Nation installs tribal officials


By Dawn Gagnon
BDN Staff

INDIAN ISLAND — In a ceremony Friday night that was both forward-looking and steeped in tradition, the people of the Penobscot Indian Nation officially installed their new elected officials.

Held in Sockalexis Center, the traditional installation ceremony featured some elements that date back thousands of years to the era of traditional chiefs and others to 1816, when the tribe inducted its first elected tribal governor and lieutenant governor, according to Butch Phillips, a tribal elder and spiritual leader.

Among the elements were traditional drumming and song and a smudging — spiritual cleansing — ceremony in which the wing of an eagle was used to spread smoke from a small pot of burning sweet grass over the newly elected officials and their guests.

Tribal elder Arnold Neptune conducted a sacred pipe ceremony in which rising smoke was used to convey the tribe’s thoughts and prayers to their ancestors and the Great Spirit.

Among the inductees were Chief Kirk Francis, who is beginning his second two-year term, Vice Chief Bill Thompson, who is serving his first term, and new and re-elected tribal councilors.

The tribe also has a new representative to the Maine Legislature, Wayne Mitchell, though Mitchell was unable to attend Friday’s ceremony due to illness.

During the event, Francis called his continuing role as chief “one of extreme pride and honor.

“When you think about the people who have sat in this seat before me and this tribe’s rich history, it’s surreal that this is happening to me and I’m extremely grateful,” he said.

In his remarks, he touched upon two major themes he said he would continue to emphasize during his current tenure.

ä Economic success.

“This is extremely important and I remain committed to this effort as it is imperative to our success as a people. Again, economic success for us would not focus on individual wealth but give us the tools to provide an adequate quality of life to our citizens and long-term fiscal stability for our nation,” he said.

To help ensure that success, Francis said, tribal leaders are putting the finishing touches on Penobscot Indian Nation Enterprises, the tribe’s economic and business development corporation, which was federally chartered in 2005. PINE’s federal status as a Native American-owned entity gives it and its partners bidding advantages on defense and other government contracts.

“It has taken some time to get our board properly developed, to put a structure in place that maximizes our potential, but we are now there and I’m very excited about the opportunities,” he said.

ä Maintaining Penobscot tribal culture and asserting American Indian rights.

“One thing I have learned is that there is nothing we do that [our culture] is not a critical part of. It is who we are and without that being incorporated in our day to day functions I believe we stop being Penobscots.”

Tribal leaders have and are taking steps to ensure their culture and traditions thrive long into the future.

Francis, however, said it was his personal aim to uphold the rights of his people.

“To me, this is the most important. It is important that we always fight vigorously against anyone who tries to minimize our status as Indian people,” he said, drawing applause from his audience.

“And you have my word that as long as I’m the leader of this great nation, we have apologized for who we are for the last time.

“Our citizens should hold their heads high and be able to say proudly, when asked, ‘I am a Penobscot Indian,’” he said. “And any organization or entity that does not give [us] the respect that we deserve simply will not be in our life.”

“We are not children that need to be told what to do, but rather a complex, capable government that has been here for thousands of years with a clear long record of success during [a] period of time when there was no interference” from other levels of government, he said. The remarks alluded to the strained relationship Maine’s Indian tribes have had with state officials in recent years.

“Others have no right to direct the Penobscot people. Our ancestors did too much for us to drop this ball,” he said.

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Comments
15 comments on this item
On 1/17/09 at 1:44 PM, Mainelyme wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Happy to read yet another forward moving article that illustrates the Penobscot Nation has leaders capable of leading their members through the bureaucracy and red tape that has been forced on all of them by individuals of lesser capabilities than themelves.

All of this will lead to sucess because it sounds like the tribe leaders, and elders continue to be far thinking, stoic and calm in their plans to achieve what they want, and what is rightfully theirs.

The younger generation must take an active part in backing their officials in these actions, also.

The past has been strong, the present looks bright, and the future will only be as strong and bright as the young people who prepare to step forward when their leadership days arrive, too!

Perley J. Thibodeau

Mainelyme

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On 1/17/09 at 1:54 PM, David889327 wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Where did the Indians come from?

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On 1/17/09 at 3:10 PM, Mainelyme wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

David889327;

I could say their mothers, stupid.

But the right answer is across the Bering Straight from Asia 12 to 15 thousand years ago after the huge ice glacier that covered the northern half of North America receded, and exposed a pathway to the promised land beyond..

Mainelyme

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On 1/17/09 at 4:48 PM, David889327 wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Well Perley, I thought maybe Mars, but I wasn't sure. Thanks for clearing it up. And you - you're from Venus?

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On 1/17/09 at 4:55 PM, Mainelyme wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

, David889327

As a matter of fact I lie in my bed on the 20th floor and stare out the window at her every night.

She's very flashy and beautiful.

Because of the city lights we don't see many stars.

It's the only planet I can recognize.

Perley

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On 1/17/09 at 5:02 PM, David889327 wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

So, Perley, if the Indians crossed the Bering Straight, does that mean they're Chinese? I knew Chinese were trouble. They've been plotting against America for 15,000 years?

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On 1/17/09 at 5:30 PM, BobByn wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Chief Francis sounds like a good leader. The Penobscots must be very proud, and the future looks bright as long as you distance yourselves from the control of Augusta!

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On 1/17/09 at 6:12 PM, Mainelyme wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

David889327:

I don't know as they even called it China or Asia that many years ago

Don't put down the Chinese.

The inventions they have attributed to them are as modern as today and as old as cooking with fire.

When the Black Race came up from Borneo off the West Coast of Africa they settled in what is now Asia, and then filtered down into Australia and nearby islands.

The Asian settlement then wandered east across the face of Europe and settled as far away as the British Isles, and Scandanavia.

You know of course that the Vikings explored the northern coasts of Iceland, Greenland, and what is now North America.

All of this North American exploration took place 12 to 15 thousand years after the Asians traveled the Bering Straight Route from what is now Russia and filtered down through North America to the tip of South America.

Yes, the descendants of these very first Asian travelers became our Indians, or eventually the Native Americans,

So, you see that it's true that when the white explorers got here 12 to 15 thousand years later, the Native Americans were already here to greet them.

When ever you see a Native American you are actually looking at your own ancestors descendants who came to this country much earlier then our ancestors did, and we are now meeting them from an opposite geographical route

Perley J. Thibodeau

Mainelyme

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On 1/17/09 at 7:02 PM, ProudN8iveMama1984 wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Wow David, you truly are an uneducated moron. And yes, Kirk was and will continue to be the best leader for our Nation thus far! and congrats to Andy Sockbeson on making Council, you deserve it and I know you will help accomplish great things for our tribe!

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On 1/17/09 at 8:00 PM, Mainelyme wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Please make that, "The Asian settlement then wandered WEST across the face of Europe.

The sun travels East to WEST so the first Native Americans traveled EAST across the Bering Straight to what is now Alaska.

I've got a whole new chest cold on top of all my other lingering ailments, and I'm seriously considering just whether or not I want to even bother lasting through the night.

Perley

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On 1/17/09 at 8:03 PM, whitnmeme wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

What are you saying Perley, in your last statement? Don't make me worry about you.

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On 1/17/09 at 8:30 PM, Mainelyme wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

whitnmeme:

Not to worry, Darling.

I've decided to live as my thumb would get awfully cold hiking it back to Mount Pleasant."

Perley

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On 1/17/09 at 9:21 PM, whitnmeme wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

I am happy to know that. I for one would miss you on here. Take care Perley my dear.

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On 1/18/09 at 9:07 PM, 4Him2day wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

sounds like global warming was alive and well 15 thousand years ago

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On 1/18/09 at 9:18 PM, Mainelyme wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

4Him2day

Yeah but, by the looks of here in New York City right now it seems to be going right back to the ice age, again!

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