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<br />By Peggy Lowe 3. ,q.qg
<br />D~nver Post Staff Writer 'f'. I tI fl
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<br />Lazy. Murderous. Savages.
<br />Those are jusl Ihree of Ihe
<br />words Elia Fisher heard aboul
<br />American Indians while he was
<br />in Denver Public Schools.
<br />. Fisher, who is Apache, lold
<br />the Senate Education Commit-
<br />tee on Wednesday that those
<br />words made him feel isolaled,
<br />made him not want to go 10
<br />school.
<br />"It was really tough 10 put
<br />wilh all the lies and misc ep-
<br />tions on Ihe one side a Iwo-
<br />sid)'d story," he sa" ." A lot of
<br />people felt reall trange aboul
<br />me because 0 e lies about my
<br />people.
<br />"Kno . g Ihal our side oUhe
<br />slory ould be told would
<br />cha e my atlilude about going
<br />to cbool."
<br />Fisher's side of the story
<br />would be told under- a hill the
<br />Senate Education Committee
<br />approved 6-0. HB lIS6 requires
<br />the teaching of American Indian
<br />
<br />.. .1..1 II,. .....,."..... '" 1..1 ~ .........
<br />
<br />ralely be placed in the Four
<br />Corners region where Ihe Mesa
<br />Verde ruins are located.
<br />"Very liltlehas chang.<<!-<I._
<br />We're still fighting the anle ig-
<br />as he leaned on his cane and norance and sl . Ity that's
<br />lold lawmakers.of Ihe atrocIties plagued us fo er," he said.
<br />of Ihe Sand Creek Massacre. There 27,000 American
<br />.. .' Led by Col. .John Chivirlgton, . India colllpassing 200 tribes ...~
<br />the U.S. Army slaugh . . e'.ln. orado/according to'the:'~
<br />than 200 Che s In Novem~.. 0 ce'nsus;"Two tribes are"
<br />ber 1864 aslem ColoradO.in eadquartered in Colorado, the'.
<br />what' now Kiowa County. . Ute Mountain Ute and Southern
<br />, he U.S. Cavalry - t Ute. .
<br />orne hoodlums, the U.s. al- Of Colorado's 176 school dis-
<br />ry -took on old men men (ricts, lIS. report American In-
<br />and children. The wo n were dian students enrolled in their
<br />raped. skinned. Chll ren were schools, said Karen Rogers, ex-
<br />used for target practice. We ecutive secretary of Ihe Colora-
<br />need 10 deal with what's here," . do Commission on Indian Af-
<br />he said. ."We cannot go on living fairs.. .. . .
<br />lies." Darius Smith, director of Ihe
<br />Howell said the history muSt DPS Indian Education Pro-
<br />. be changed 10 tell the accurate gram, said leaching American
<br />slory. For instance, Howell said Indian history gives Indian stu-
<br />be asked former Gov. Dick dents better self esteem. .
<br />Lamm to change a highway sigu And, .he said, Ihey tend to do
<br />calling San' Luis "Colorado's much better when placed to-
<br />'oldest cIty," That designation, .' gelher, as In Ihe '.Jndian Focns .
<br />Howell said, should more aceu- School. . . ..
<br />
<br />Law would require public schools
<br />to teach Native American history
<br />
<br />culture and history in Colorado
<br />schools. Slate law already re-
<br />quires the teaching of Hispanic
<br />. and African-American history.
<br />Fisher, 20, who graduated
<br />from DPS's I' oCUS hool.
<br />. ,
<br />in Jan , told Ihe panel Iha!
<br />be' with other Indian students
<br />e ped him slay in school. An~
<br />learning Ihe true story about Jris
<br />people would help even m e
<br />he said.
<br />"I feel a lot of racis
<br />from ignorance. If yo
<br />more about Indians,
<br />curb a lot of racism,'.'
<br />said.
<br />No one spoke in opposition to
<br />the bill, sponsored in the Senate
<br />by Ken Chlouber, R-Leadville.
<br />It already has been approved by'
<br />the House of Representalives.
<br />Dr. Ferrill Howell, a retired
<br />DPS administrator, brought the
<br />packed hearing room to silence
<br />
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<br />
<br />St~ckman's Wat. er threats no more erre.ctive. 'in San Luis than AWI)Jlsi<
<br />\) .P, o-IQ.18 p..oe . ... ..... .. . , . _.m~.
<br />Not so many years ago, MaurIce and ferent and bas the good of the valley at "dlvlde-aDd-conquer" tactics. use<t'\.'il...
<br />Hanna Strong were inviting citizens of the heart. It never lalks about its California A WDI..... .; ... .... _ .'. '. . .. :n~t'lj..
<br />San Luis Valley to elaborale dinners in an financing from Farallon .partn~ .orlts Its ballot Initiatives against the'.S' ....
<br />effort to .persuade them 10 support relained profit interest in AWDI. But you Luis Valley represent the same Sod ~(;.:
<br />A WDl's water project. They promised to can be sure that those two would not be tactics: Stoclmian's Is running ads'! ~''''
<br />bring jobs and prolect the environment, hanging around if not for the big moiley misleading quotations to try to fool ".'
<br />and they complained how the "selfish po- they think they can make from the Stoclt- Does Stockman's think that if It thre8
<br />tato farmers" were trying to keep ~o~ man's Project, '. . us, we wUl give In? If so; It must not He.
<br />fro~ the valley. When AWDI falle~ In Now, faced with a law that would re- been paying attention to what hap. '.'
<br />fooling the people, It re:o!ied to b~l!ymg, 9~ire Stockman's to repay the true water at A WDI~ . },2 ~.~..
<br />threats and efforts- to diVIde the CItizens. Injury to be caused by Its scheme, It has . State Rep. LEWIS H.$l'
<br />Stockman's Waler Co. claims it is dif- resorted 10 the same bullylng,threats and .:. H' ~ .
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