‘The one who wins’ inspires the winds of change
Native American traditions benefit inmates

By DEBORAH A. MILES
Still waters run deep. That’s one way to describe Tom Porter, the soft-spoken, compassionate Mohawk chief of the Bear Clan of the Akwesasne Nation.

Porter is nationally recognized as an educator, speaker and author who embraces his ethnicity.

He is also a PEF member who works as a chaplain at the state Department of Correctional Services and shares his customs with Native Americans who are imprisoned.

Approximately, 400 Native Americans reside in the 70 New York state correctional facilities.

Porter refers to these inmates as his “nephews and nieces.”

“When I go to the facilities, I go as their uncle,” Porter said.

“I don’t feel the iron gates slam shut behind me, even though the inmates have committed every imaginable crime.”

His rehabilitation technique is not through preaching, but by quietly inspiring them to rekindle the beliefs woven in the rich tapestry of Native American culture, which shuns alcohol consumption and drug use.

“The inmates rehabilitate themselves. I provide religious instructions in the form of traditions and ancient ceremonies. Many Native Americans have not been exposed to this,” he said.

Claps of thunder
As a result of his efforts, inmates have learned about the seven seasonal tribal ceremonies dictated by nature throughout the year.

For example, the Mohawk religious year begins after the first new moon following the winter solstice and “five nights of sleeping.” A ceremony of song, dance, food and prayer to the Creator is performed for the renewal of “medicine societies.”

“When maple sap appears, we celebrate our re-commitment to the trees and forests,” Porter said. “Trees make our air breathable. They provide wood for homes, heat and fruits such as plums, cherries, apples and oranges.”

Porter’s favorite is the thunder ceremony, which occurs in the spring and late fall, when the first and last clap of thunder is heard. This tradition honors the spirits of grandfathers and is a ceremony when children receive gifts of fruit and candy.

Because rituals such as these have had a positive effect in the rehabilitation of Native American inmates, Porter is assembling a “ceremonial” manual that will be used throughout the state.

The manual will serve another purpose, one that is close to Porter’s heart — keeping the traditions alive.

America’s minority
“There’s not supposed to be any more Indians in North America. It’s a miracle we are still here.” he said. “Religious people and the American and Canadian government colonized tribes. When I was young, my people would degrade themselves and ridicule their own beliefs. There are very few left who possess the knowledge of the ancients. This is one way to pass on our beliefs.”

‘The clean pot’
Porter also passes on these sacred beliefs as the chief spiritual leader at his home — Kanatsiohareke (Ga na jo ha lay gay) — which means, “place of the clean pot.”

It is nestled in a bucolic area in the Central Leather Stocking Region of New York, just west of a six-block hamlet called Fonda.

His home sits behind an authentic Indian gift shop with an adjacent bed and breakfast lodge, owned and operated by the Mohawk community.

A fresh water supply emerges from a spring, that one can only cross by walking on an old-fashioned swing-rope bridge. In spring, tribe members tend to an organic vegetable farm. On the grounds, Porter’s trusted collie stands guard as Black Angus cows and horses graze in a nearby field. There is no extravagance, just a sense of unique purity around the premises.

There, Porter and his wife, a member of the Choctaw tribe from Mississippi, raised five daughters and one son.

Kanatsiohareke also serves as a college exchange program where students from various universities perform community service during a one-week residency and discuss Native American history and philosophy with Mohawk community members at night.

At Kanatsiohareke, where the old Longhouse religion is preserved, students learn other ceremonies such as burning braids of sweetgrass to purify oneself.

Porter shares with them, just as he does with the inmates, the struggles involved in holding on to tradition, such as fighting the system for the use of birth names.

His youngest daughter, for example, is named Tewasontahawitha, which means, “the star that brings the night.” A few years ago, she would have been required to use a first and last name.

Beating the drums
Porter is devoted to a renewal of Native American distinctiveness. His teachings and traditions lead him around the country. He participates in events such as “Drums Along The Hudson,” the only open-air powwow in Manhattan. He speaks about learning various cultures as a path to one’s own soul.

In case you are wondering, Porter’s birth name is Sakokwenionkwas — “the one who wins.”

For more information about Porter or Kanatsiohareke, visit www.lotusarts.com and www.mohawkcommunity.com

The Communicator May 2007

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