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About this episode

In this video I talk about the state bill to change 14 of Minnesota's geographic site names that are offensive to Native Americans. My web site is located at: http://www.towahkon.orgThe following geographic site names are on the bill's list of names we are trying to change. Rum River, West Branch Rum River, Redskin Lake, Cut Foot Sioux Lake, Sioux River, Sioux Lake, Little Sioux River, Indian Sioux River, Savage Lake, East Savage Lake, Snake River, Devil Track Lake, Devil Track River.Information from the Minnesota Historical Society's web site about the derogatory geographic place names that we are trying to change is presented below.The name of Rum River, which Carver in 1766 and Pike in 1805 found in use by English-speaking fur traders, was indirectly derived from the Dakota. Their name of Mille Lacs, Mde Wakan, translated Spirit Lake, was given to its river but was changed by the white men to the most common spirituous liquor brought into the Northwest, rum, which brought misery and ruin, as Du Luth observed of brandy, to many of the Indians. The map of Maj. Stephen H. Long's expedition in 1823 has these names, Spirit Lake and Rum River. Nicollet's map, published in 1843, has "Iskode Wabo or Rum R.," this name given by the Ojibwe but derived by them from the white men's perversion of the ancient Dakota name Wakan, being in more exact translation "Spirit Water."The Little and Big Sioux Rivers, the latter forming the northwest boundary of Iowa, were named for the Dakota or Sioux, who inhabited this region. The name Sioux is the terminal part of Nadouesioux, a term of hatred, meaning "snakes, enemies," which was applied by the Ojibwe and other Algonquians to this people.New Canada has Silver Lake, adjoining North St. Paul, and Savage Lake in sections 6 and 7, the latter being so named because "the Indians frequented its shores in large numbers.""Devil Track River," wrote Gilfillan, "is Manido bimadagakowini zibi, meaning the spirits (or God) walking-place-on-the-ice river." The Ojibwe applied this name primarily to Devil Track Lake, and thence, according to their custom, to the outflowing river. The name implies mystery or something supernatural about the lake and its winter covering of ice, but without the supremely evil idea that is given in the white men's translation.Snake River gets its name from the Ojibwe word Kanabec, or snake, naming it after their enemies, the Dakota, who lived upriver, and who they later displaced.The following information is not from the Minnesota Historical Society's web site. There is also a lake named Redskin Lake. "Redskin" was the word used when European Americans were murdering. They were collecting bounties with the severed ears, noses, pieces of skin and scalp, from the bodies of Native Americans, pleasuring themselves with the thrill of ethnic purging. The hunted "redskinned" animal was forced to run before the tide of hatred. The goal was to exterminate the Native American. No distinction was made between babies, children or adults, they were only seen for their redskins.Videos of the Wakan/"Rum" River can be viewed at http://www.towahkon.org/RiverVideos.htm

• Release Date

  Nov 29, 2007

• Runtime

  00:52