Totem Poles

Totem poles are a tradition of Pacific Northwest Coast Indian tribes (Washington state, British Columbia and southern Alaska). They wood they were carved from came mostly from cedar trees. Totem poles stood in a room, or sometimes sat outside tents to represent the status of the people living in the tent. Totem poles were originally part of the Potlatch ceremony, a meaningful feast of the coastal First Nations. They were carved to represent a family, like a family crest. They recognized the family’s accomplishments, adventures, stories and prerogatives.

Totem poles were raised in honors of an elder that had passed away who meant a lot to the clan, to show the number of names and rights someone had acquired throughout their life or to record an encounter with a supernatural being. When a tribal chief died, totem poles were used to bring them honor. A hand-carved totem pole would be raised that showed the accomplishments the chief had achieved over his life. High ranking people might be honored when they died by being cremated, then having their ashes put into a totem pole (near the top in a hollow section).

There was a totem pole called a shame pole. It was used to show the disgrace of a person. It was an effective tool used by a tribal chief against another. The shame pole would stay in a place until the other chief would pay a demanded price or make peace in a different way.

Animals weren’t always carved clearly, but there was always a theme that helped identify them. An example of one of these theme would be a beavers two sharp teeth and its broad shaped tail displayed in front of its body. If a totem pole had an eagle on it, it was either because the owner believed his ancestry stemmed from the eagle, the owner had recently had an encounter with the animal or he had received a supernatural gift from the animal.

Here are some common totem figures and what they stand for:
Wolf- Powerful (most powerful are pure white)
Bear- Caring, must not be insulted or cursed
Whale- Ruler of water, noble
Raven- Powerful, curious, defiant, compulsive, corrupt, deceptive
Eagle- Lord of the sky, brave
Hawk- Regal, stands off but will assist humans if they need help
Thunderbird- Grand lord of the sky, needs homage
Kolus- Thunderbird’s brother, show off, competitive, strong
Two-headed Sea Serpent- Deceitful, evil, can turn enemies into stone with one glance
Beaver- Vengeful
Frog- Misunderstood, underestimated, associated with great wealth

The meaning of some totem poles that told of stories or adventures have been lost over time. The meanings were usually kept within the family, the pole’s owner and the carver. Some owners did share the story of their totem pole, but unless they did, the meaning was not understood by others and totally lost.

Totem poles today are carved for both Natives and non-Natives. They represent Native tradition and pride. The most expensive form of Native art is probably totem poles made during the 1800’s, which were made of one piece of cedar each, which could be up to forty feet. It isn’t really surprising that they are so expensive, because of the cost of a full-grown cedar tree and the amount of carving and painting an artist uses to turn it into a totem pole. On average, a totem pole is $500 per foot. If you find one less than that, it probably isn’t hand-carved, made by a native artist and/or carved from one tree.

Works Cited:

“American Indian Totem Poles.” Native Languages of the Americas: Preserving and promoting American Indian languages. 1998-2007. 13 Jul 2007
http://www.native-languages.org/totem.htm.

“Native American Totem Poles.” Indians. 2007. American Indian Heritage Foundation. 13 Jul 2007
http://www.indians.org/articles/native-american-totem-poles.html.

“Totem Poles and Sculptures.” Native Online. 2000. 13 Jul 2007
http://www.nativeonline.com/totem_poles.htm#Common%20Totem%20Figures.

I believe that the main theme of the book was that justice should heal, not punish. Ben Mikaelsen had wrote about Cole’s life at the detention center. One thing that really sticks out in my mind is when Garvey brought the cake ingredients and left them there, and Cole threw them everywhere. This showed that Cole was an angry person and the detention center wasn’t helping him with his anger in any way. After his attack from the Spirit Bear, Cole began to change. Towards the end of the book he helped Peter change, also. The other form of justice (Circle Justice) healed Cole and helped him with his anger. As you can see, Ben Mikaelsen was trying to prove that justice should heal and not punish.

Circle Justice

After reading to Chapter 16 of Touching Spirit Bear, I became a little confused about the Circle Justice and wanted to research it more. Circle Justice begins when a criminal pleads guilty in court and agrees to accept a sentence imposed by their community. People that attend the meetings can range from teachers, friends, family or just anyone in the community interested in helping the offender. The goals of Circle Justice include making the community safer, satisfying the needs of the victims’ and giving the offender skills to avoid crime. Minnesota was the first state to use the justice of circle sentencing.

Everyone in the circle is equal. The only person that can speak is whoever is holding the feather. The meetings are opened with a prayer by the Keeper, and they are also closed with a prayer. A Justice Center research team in Kake, Alaska observed their community’s adoption of Circle Justice for 18 months. The team’s research was funded by the National Science Foundation.

There was one case where six high schoolers in the town of Hastings put a homemade bomb at their vice principal’s door. They pleaded guilty to arson and property damage in court. The expected number of people to attend the circle was 70, and the time estimated for the meeting was more than four hours. A judge that attended the circle would decide the sentence if the circle couldn’t agree on one.

In an article on the front page of the Minneapolis Star Tribune in August of 1998, a county attorney named Jennifer Fahey made the statement that “In the criminal justice system, all we can do is punish” (Jennifer Fahey, Mille Lacs County, Minessota, County Attorney). The Justic Circle is “a safe, if not sacred place where people feel comfortable enough to open up and talk about what happened, the emotional impact, ask questions and show concert for the offender and his family” (Mark Umbreit, director of the Center for Restorative Justice and Mediation, University of Minnesota). Mark Umbreit also said that Circle Justice focuses on healing everybody and the process “demands real behavior change” (Mark Umbreit, director of the Center for Restorative Justic and Mediation, University of Minnesota), unlike jail.

Jeremy Boyd was 24 at the time when the article was written. He was an Ojibwe living on the Mille Lacs reservation. He pleaded guilty to cruelty to animals after strangling his sister’s cat because he was mad at her. His sister just wanted an apology from him. Jeremy Boyd was involved in Circle Justice. Jeremy Boyd’s sentence included building and installing 14 geese boxes on Lake Millle Lacs, going to an anger support group and fasting. He took 18 months to complete the sentence that was appointed to him.

Examples of sentences include community service, referral to special programs such as anger management, peer counseling, counseling for the offender and their family, curfew rules and restitution/compensation (I.e. replacing a window that they broke). Jail is a last resort.

As to agreeing with the theme “Justice should heal, not punish”, I haven’t come to a definite decision. I believe that jail hardens a person, and it doesn’t necessarily help them in the future to avoid crime. On the other side, Garvey had been to jail when he was younger and hadn’t he turned into a better person? I guess my overall opinion is justice should heal, not punish, but the person has to want to heal for it to work.

Circle Justice should be applied in mid-Maine, but I don’t think it would work very well. Just looking at people around me that commit crimes, I don’t believe they would want to heal and would think of it as a waste of time. The only way that it could work would be if there were people that really wanted to change. I’m not sure if there are enough people that would want to change around here.

Works Cited:

Adams, Jim. “Circle Sentencing.” Freenet. 18 August 1998. Minneapolis Star Tribune. 5 July 2007
http://freenet.msp.mn.us/~fholson/circles-mn/circ-stb.htm.

“Circle for Peace and Justice”. Beloved Community Photo Gallery. 18 November 2006.
http://www.belovedcommunitycenter.org/photos/slides/Circle%20for%20Peace%20and%20Justice.html.

Rieger, Lisa. “Circle Peacemaking.” Alaska Justice: Forum. 6 December 2001. University of Alaska Anchorage. 5 July 2007.
http://justice.uaa.alaska.edu/forum/17/4winter2001/a_circle.html.

“Sentencing Circle: a General Overview and Guidelines.” Native Law Centre of Canada. Tracy Grohs, Yorkton Tribal Council. 5 July 2007.
http://www.usask.ca/nativelaw/publications/jah/circle.html.
**Tracy Grohs is not the author of the article, but the information I used came from her.