"One of the many questionable activities by Turning Stone is their desecration of the Native American sweat lodge ceremony. They are selling it by misrepresenting the Oglala and Lakota Sioux tribes of South Dakota as partners. These tribes have NEVER joined with the Oneidas of Turning Stone to sell their (Lakota) ceremony. Yet they make this outright false claim on their Turning Stone/Skana Spa/Sweat Lodge page.

It is an insult to the Lakota people who endure third-world conditions, while the wealthy Oneidas exploit the culture of the Lakota. Why does Turning Stone need such a sweat lodge anyway? Why doesn’t Turning Stone market and sell one of their own sacred Iroquois ceremonies? It’s because the Iroquois would never tolerate such a transgression.

So Turning Stone uses the Lakota sweat lodge, which is equally an offensive transgression to those whom cherish that way of life. Thus, Ray Halbritter has ill-aligned his unscrupulous actions directly to James Arthur Ray, who notoriously oversaw a pay-to-pray sweat lodge in which three people died last year. Obviously this group of exploiters is really only interested in one tribe, the almighty tribe of Benjamins.

Actions speak for themselves, and for these characters to play dumb is their final act of contempt to us all. Lastly, the Oneida leadership insults the integrity of their own people, of whom the vast majority does not condone such exploitive behavior."

Get the Story:
Nick Swan: Oneida Indian Nation wrong to exploit sweat lodge (The Oneida Dispatch 9/27)

Also Today:
Terri Davis: Writer worked at sweat lodge (The Oneida Dispatch 9/26)
Chuck Fougnier: No tribal ceremony at sweat lodge (The Oneida Dispatch 9/26)