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Sharing the pipe and drum
Native Americans at PDCCI practice traditional religious ceremonies

The spring morning was cool and damp with grey skies that offered little rain showers from time to time. None of the six men gathered around a roaring fire in the courtyard at Prairie du Chien Correctional Institution (PDCCI) payed the slightest bit of attention to the weather. Instead, they busied themselves with adding wood to the fire and covering a dome-shaped bent willow frame with layers of blankets, then old canvas tarps. They spoke quietly among themselves as they worked and to the woman working beside them, Julie McIntyre. No one pays attention to the prison guard who stands to the side of all the activity.

To others the low round structure would appear simple, even crude. But to these men the sweat lodge they were enclosing is a kind of temple.

Native American inmates, like all others at PDCCI, are allowed to follow their religious practices. According to prison chaplain Denis Kuhens, the Wisconsin prison system recognizes seven major religious groups: Catholic, Protestant, Judaism, Muslim, Buddhism, Native American and Wiccan.

Kuhens, a native of Harpers Ferry, Iowa, recently returned to the area after working in information technology in the Twin Cities for many years. Looking for more meaning in his life, Kuhens began working with a church volunteering at a correctional facility, and as a volunteer chaplain at a halfway house for women. It seemed like I just kept doing more and more with corrections," said Kuhens. So when he returned to Harper Ferry and learned that PDCCI was seeking a chaplain, and particularly someone who would work with diverse faith groups, Kuhens knew it would be a good fit.

A part of the prison chaplain¹s job is to solicit volunteers from various faith groups to hold services at the prison for the inmates. Kuhens has been quite successful; about 100 churches from Northeast Iowa and all over Wisconsin now volunteer at the prison.

One of those volunteers is Native American religious practitioner Julie McIntyre of Lansing, Iowa, director of the Center for Earth Relations.

After the sweat lodge is enclosed a small rug is laid at the entry way. The men and Julie sit in a circle around the guest of honor at this gathering‹ a new drum. The drum is a kind of gift, purchased with donations Julie solicited and from money the prisoners themselves donated. This is the first opportunity the men have had to use it.

So they begin a beat, with several men drumming with padded drum sticks, and one man sings in HoChunk. No one seems to mind if someone temporarily gets off tempo, they simply slow down and pick it up again.

After a few songs, the men begin their pipe ceremony. First, the men purify themselves. Holding a shell smouldering with dried sage, sweetgrass and other herbs, the men inhale it, then draw the smoke over their bodies with the hands, passing it to the next person when they are done. It smells sweet and pungent. While the mood is quiet and reflective, as in a church, laughter is welcome too, if someone offers a humorous comment.

Next, a simple, traditional pipe is loaded and lit. When the smoker takes the pipe, he turns it in a circle before bringing it to his mouth. Then he may blow smoke to the four directions. Each man seems to be engaged in his own inner prayer, quiet as he smokes.

The men at the circle are from around Wisconsin and Minnesota, and they represent various tribes. Many of them are young, in their early twenties. They feel that having this spiritual time is important. According to Shawnaway Malone, 19, a Pottawatomie/Oneida of Crandon, Wis., having the pipe ceremony and the sweat lodge helps him "keep the spirit with the brothers," and remember who he is. "It brings us together. It¹s our time," said Lyle Jordan, 37, an Oneida from Green Bay. They also talk about how their spirituality helps them cope with the problems that have brought them to this place.

Charles Little Bear, 22, a HoChunk from Wisconsin Dells, has been participating in sweat ceremonies all of his life, he says. He is in a drug treatment program at the prison and has been in them three times before. He feels more confident in the ability of the ceremony to help him kick his habit. For him, the drum and the ceremony "feels good, feels real good.

Malone, who wear a medicine bag on his neck, speaks up about his spirituality and his plans for the future. "I want to keep strong myself, so I can be good with others. My medicine bag reminds me of what I¹m living for, how I¹m going to get out of here," he said.

After the men have smoked their pipe, Julie begins preparing her more elaborate ceremonial pipe. As the elder at this ceremony, her pipe will be smoked at the closing of the ceremony, after the men leave the sweat lodge. The men once again purify themselves in the sage smoke, Then Julie begins her prayers. Taking a pinch of tobacco in her fingers she raises her hand to the sky, and asks for a blessing. She prayers for the families and children of those present, then places the tobacco in the bowl of the pipe, tamping it down with her fingers. Then, taking another pinch, she asks for strength, clarity of vision, purity of heart. Slowly, prayer by prayer, she fills the pipe.

Then it is time to place the hot rocks on the pit inside the sweat lodge. Two by two, the men take turns changing in a nearby building. They come out wearing shorts in preparation for the heat of the sweat lodge. The sweat lodge is symbolic of the a womb, says McIntyre, and offers purifications and rebirth to those who enter it. Once inside this temple, the men turn loose their voices, each with their own prayer.

As each man enters the dark hut, he pauses at the door and offers a silent blessing before crawling inside on his knees.

Fish and Wildlife Conservation Plan will affect Pool 10 in various ways

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife has released for public review and comment a draft of the Comprehensive Conservation Plan and Environmental Impact Statement for the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge.

The plan is a draft and is not the final plan. In an effort to finalize the plan, public meetings will be held at several locations in municipalities along the 261 miles of the refuge. One such meeting will be held on May 19 at Prairie du Chien High School.

The draft of the Comprehensive Conservation Plan addresses the numerous issues raised by the public through correspondence and at similar public meetings over the past few years.

Four alternatives are presented in the plan to address these issues. Alternative "A" would be to take no action and thus, to continue the current level of effort on fish, wildlife and habitat management on the refuge. Public use programs would remain virtually unchanged.

Alternative "B" would be a "wildlife focus" and would increase the level of effort on fish and wildlife habitat management. Some public use opportunities and programs would remain the same, other would be reduced in favor of wildlife and habitat protection.

Alternative "C" would focus on public use. It would increase the level of effort on public use opportunities and programs. Alternative C would continue the current level of effort on many fish, wildlife and habitat management activities and decrease effort on others in favor of public use.

Alternative "D" is the alternative preferred by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Alternative D involves an integrated wildlife and public use focus. It would increase the level of effort on fish, wildlife and habitat management and would also take a more proactive approach to public use management to ensue a diversity of opportunities for a broad spectrum of users, both for wildlife-dependent uses and traditional and appropriate non-wildlife-dependent uses.

After all public hearings are held and public comments gathered, a decision will be made by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as to which alternative will be the final Comprehensive Conservation Plan. Any one of the four alternatives may be implemented or a combination thereof. The deadline for public comment is Aug. 31.

The final Comprehensive Conservation Plan will guide the management and use of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge for the next 15 years. Once the final plan is adopted, many of the proposals in the plan will be implemented right away and many others will be phased in over time.

Alternative D, the alternative preferred by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, has several proposals that would affect Pool 10 and the Prairie du Chien and McGregor areas.

At the upper end of the pool, the fishing float below the Lynxville Dam would have to adhere to a new set of standards developed for all fishing floats within the refuge.

A little further downstream, Alternative D calls for a proposed Ambrough Slough Canoe Area that would go around a 1,853-acre area.

In the Prairie du Chien and McGregor area, there is a proposal to have a no-hunting and no-trapping zone in Sturgeon Slough that would cover 66 acres.

Immediately downstream from the Campion Boat Landing, in what is known as the "lower bottoms," it is proposed that this area be closed to hunting, fishing and motorboat traffic from Oct. 1 to the end of the State Duck Hunting Season. This area covers 1,545 acres. Motorboats would be allowed to go through Hunter Slough in order to get to the main channel.

There are proposed slow-no-wake zones in Johnson Slough and at Wyalusing State Park. There is also a proposed 9.7-mile interpretive motorboat route in part of Johnson Slough.

There are two areas in Bagley Bottoms where it is proposed to have electric motors only. These areas are a combined 789 acres.

Some of the above proposals are also in Alternatives B and C and others are not.

One refuge-wide proposal in Alternative D addresses public concern over alcohol, boating, beach partying and camping. John Lindell, the director of the McGregor District of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said that under the proposal, camping would be restricted to islands and shorelines bordering the main channel. Some areas may be closed in order to protect wildlife or habitat, Lindell said. Also, there will be a beach maintenance policy and a legal limit for alcohol will be set at a blood-alcohol concentration of .08.

"You can still drink but you can¹t be drunk," said Lindell, who noted that the policy is aimed at promoting responsible drinking.

In addition to the public meeting in Prairie du Chien on May 19, there will also be meetings in Lansing, Iowa on May 23 and again in Prairie du Chien on June 16.