<nettime> Peyote Law

[diana@mrf.hu]

Monday, December 6, 1999 
Peyote Law Has Navajos in Bind 

The Associated Press 

SHIPROCK -- As illegal use of hallucinogenic peyote buttons rises,
including Navajo teens who are smoking it, Navajo Nation legislators are
looking for ways to restrict the drug's usage without obstructing those
who use it for religious purposes. Under federal law, only Native
Americans can use the hallucinogenic cactus button as part of their
religion. Native American Church members ingest the peyote cactus in a
tea, mush or powder form. Seeing visions is part of the spiritual
experience. Sun Dancers and Navajo traditionalists also use the cactus
button for religious purposes. 
 
It is the nonbelievers who use peyote to get high or to make money the
Navajo lawmakers are concerned about.  The Navajo tribal government held
its first public hearing late last month in Chinle, Ariz., where the
Native American Church of Navajoland's central office is located. The
discussion will continue this week in Shiprock. In a Nov. 14 letter,
Navajoland Native American Church president Jesse Thompson, said, "It has
been documented by law enforcement and the courts of the Navajo Nation
that a stricter policy is needed to reduce unauthorized use and discourage
abuse of the peyote." Chief Legislative Counsel Steven Boos says some of
the problems stem from the current law, which lists peyote as a controlled
substance -- alongside hashish and five other substances -- but then
creates an exception for the religious use of peyote. If police seize
peyote from a bootlegger, for instance, the prosecutor must show that the
cactus was not used "in connection with recognized religious practices,
sacraments or services of the Native American Church" before the peyote
can be destroyed. 
 
NAC leaders have asked legislators to remove peyote from the controlled
substance list out of respect for what is considered a holy sacrament.
Nonetheless, Navajo lawmakers would like stricter criminal laws.

A proposed new section of the law would authorize the use, possession,
sale, trade and delivery of peyote by an Indian for bona fide ceremonial
purposes in connection with a Navajo religion or a Native American Church. 

An "Indian" would be defined as an enrolled member of a federally
recognized tribe with 25-percent or more Indian blood. Violators would be
sentenced to a maximum of 180 days in jail or fined a maximum of $2,500,
or both. Seized peyote would be given to a Native American religious
leader or Native American Church leaders chosen by the parents of the
convicted person.

Boos said the blood requirement must be deleted, because the federal
American Indian Religious Freedom Act does not require it. It also would
violate the free exercise of religion clause of the Navajo Bill of Rights,
he said. The federal law protects the use of peyote as a part of any
Indian religion, Boos said. Some practitioners of the traditional Navajo
religion and the Sun Dance ceremonies have incorporated peyote into their
rituals.  In New Mexico and Arizona, there are Anglos who practice the
peyote way. An occasional non-Indian can be seen inside prayer meetings on
the Navajo Nation, too. So, Navajo lawmakers must decide how strict the
law will be for those people, including non-Indian spouses of Indians.
Shiprock Council Delegate Wallace Charley suggests that those people can
partake in the ceremony if the roadman running the meeting or a NAC leader
has invited them. "The bottom line is it's religious," he said. "It has to
do with your faith."

The Navajo criminal code -- which covers all kinds of offenses -- has not
been revised since it was adopted in 1978.



-----
Sent using MailStart.com ( http://MailStart.Com/welcome.html )
The FREE way to access your mailbox via any web browser, anywhere!

#  distributed via <nettime>: no commercial use without permission
#  <nettime> is a moderated mailing list for net criticism,
#  collaborative text filtering and cultural politics of the nets
#  more info: majordomo@bbs.thing.net and "info nettime-l" in the msg body
#  archive: http://www.nettime.org contact: nettime@bbs.thing.net