The Red Road

In the vision of Black Alce, Grandpa describes the concept of the Red Way, which extends from where the giant resides (the north) to where you always look (el sur). Your nation must follow the path of good and follow it. It is a sacred path that connects the past and the future, a path that everyone can travel.

The Red Way can be defined as a way of addressing the current problems of Indians using native traditional values such as courage, spirituality and respect for the family. The Red Way contributes to strengthening Indian identity in the dominant society. First of all, it is the way that Native Americans control their own destiny.

Many Indians use the Red Way approach to address contemporary social problems such as alcoholism and drug addiction, which in some cases affect many families. For example, alcoholism is one of the main factors contributing to domestic violence and increased suicide rates among native youth. Various programmes called the Red Way have been created to address these problems. The Gene Alce Delgado Program in eastern South Dakota prepares monitors for the rehabilitation of alcoholics and drug addicts through retreats, classes and traditional ceremonies. The results have been remarkable: in the communities that have opted for this programme, Alce Delgado’s proposal has been more successful than Alcoholics Anonymous.

The Red Road approach has also been applied to the problem of unemployment in India, which in some communities exceeds 85%. Despite the gravity of the situation, local plans for economic growth based on the classic values of commitment and generosity are yielding good results. In the 1980s, Wilma P. Mankiller, the Chief Supreme Chief of the Cherokee country, and her husband, Charlie Soap, created a small business advisory and credit system to help and cooperatives in areas with high unemployment and low wages.

The resurgence of native values has also affected tribal government. The Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 imposed on tribes Euro-American rules of representative government, mainly in the form of elected tribal councils. However, representative democracy violated numerous traditions of assembly government, in which all members of the tribe had direct consultation on important decisions. Currently, some Indian nations have tried to regain more traditional forms of tribal government, which work parallel to the official system, although all tribes must maintain their tribal councils to deal with the Office of Indian Affairs and other federal or state agencies. For example, the ihanktonwan tribe (sioux yankton) has restored a consensual system in which the 7,000 census members of the tribe can intervene directly in the tribal council to influence the drafting of laws and regulations, from the awarding of casino gains and the curricula of the new community university to the preservation of traditional culture.

The Red Way can also facilitate often conflicting relationships between natives and non-natives. Some Indians, such as the Lakota Wallace Black Swan (a sacred man who, although he has no blood kinship with the famous black swan, considers himself his spiritual kinsman), strive to spread the Red Way among the whites. Not all Indians agree with the idea of revealing to strangers the traditions and sacred practice. The Red Way has been used as a basis for inter-ethnic reconciliation programmes in South Dakota and Minnesota, where Indian-White relations have often been unstable.

The success of the Red Way initiatives demonstrates that traditional Indian methods remain dynamic and can be applied to current problems. For many Indians, the Red Way is crucial toining a native lifestyle in the twenty-first century.