Wednesday, March 9, 2011

A Letter About March to Mandaree

March To Mandaree- friends please read... and act
by Art Zuke on Thursday, December 30, 2010 at 1:32pm

Friends, I want to encourage you all to step on board and support Steve Fraase's upcoming "March To Mandaree". I would especially like to ask my First Nations friends to lend their support to this effort, for reasons that will become more clear as you read this note.


Steve is a friend of mine from my university days who is now a veteran of the war in Afghanistan, and while he was there he lost several close friends to the war. In the summer of 2011 he will begin his march from Wahpeton, North Dakota, the home of Christopher Kleinwachter and his grave. From there he will make his way across the state to the gravesites of Travis Van Zoest, and of Curtis Mehrer. After 413 miles of marching, Steve will conclude his symbolic journey at the gravesite of Nate Goodiron. Steve wishes to draw attention to the sacrifices of all soldiers, but the circumstances of Nate in particular are compelling. Steve writes the following on the March To Mandaree wall:


"i'm doing this for nate. i'm doing this for Van Zoest, Mehrer and Kleinwachter. for me, however, the reason to end it in mandaree is to really focus on nate's sacrifice, his family's sacrifice and the rich, proud heritage of the Hidatsa warrior. i'm dumbstruck that nate lived his patriotism not because of, but in spite of, a government that systematically robbed an entire nation of its resources, murdered its people, and failed to fulfill its promises of compensation. i have the greatest respect for native americans.. i truly do."


Do a search on "March To Manderee", and add your name to the list of people who believe in the meaning of Steve's march. Help him to honour all soldiers who have sacrificed- especially Nate, his family, his community, and the added significance of that sacrifice he made serving a country that had let him and his people down.

Art

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