GUILFORD — Tiokasin Ghosthorse, a member of the Cheyenne River Lakota Nation of South Dakota will bring his long history of indigenous activism and advocacy to a return performance on Saturday.
This is Ghosthorse's second time performing at the church and the enthusiastic welcome he received last time encouraged him to return, according to a news release.
Ghosthorse speaks frequently and internationally on the cosmology, diversity, and perspectives on the “relational/egalitarian vs. rational/hierarchal thinking processes of Western society,” according to a news release.
More recently, in writing and at Standing Rock at protests against the DAPL pipeline, he has been an interpreter of “Mni” often translated as “water” in Lakota.
He writes: “Water is a First Consciousness bestowed upon Mother Earth. First Consciousness means the awareness of the movement that sustains life in a continuum. Lakota people have Mni in their creation story as blue blood (water); thus, Water provides a shining mirror to the universe, its transparency offers a model and a path to creation.”
A master musician and a teacher of magical, ancient, and modern sounds, Tiokasin performs worldwide and has been featured at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine, Lincoln Center, and Madison Square Garden.
Ghosthorse is also the founder, host, and executive producer of the 25 year-old “First Voices Radio,” a one-hour live program now syndicated to 70 radio stations in the U.S. and Canada.
The Brattleboro Area Interfaith Youth have come to know Ghosthorse through their shared support of the community of La Plant and of the Simply Smiles Organization, which has hosted the teens the past two summers and will host them again in August.
Through the organization, they provide a summer camp for local children and take on building projects designed by the people of La Plant for the community. It was through meeting the founder of Simply Smiles, Bryan Nurnberger, that the connection with the La Plant community was established.
The youth will also host a “winter” barbecue dinner preceding the March 4 concert, including pulled pork, pulled chicken, macaroni and cheese, coleslaw, beans, and apple crisp from 5:30 to 7 p.m. The meal is $10 for adults and $5 for children under 12. Children under 3 are free. All proceeds go to fund the August interfaith youth trip.
Admission for the concert at 7:30 p.m. is $10 to help cover Ghosthorse's expenses. For more information, call Rev. Lise Sparrow at 802-257-2776.