"I don't claim to be a expert in politics. But I do think there is something presidential candidate John Kerry could learn from my Arikara grandmother. That something is "hand talking," a talent at which she was expert.

I attended the speeches of Kerry and President Bush. Bush when they spoke to journalists of color at our UNITY conference in Washington a week ago.

I disagreed with much of what Bush said, but I must admit he spoke well, and people who met him said he is charismatic.

Kerry, on the other hand, was stiff. He made a thoughtful presentation and carefully, intelligently answered questions asked by Native American, Hispanic, black and Asian representatives. But the words out of his mouth didn't quite match his gestures. They made him seem rigid and unbending."

Get the Story:
DORREEN YELLOW BIRD COLUMN: Kerry could use lesson in Indian hand talking (The Grand Forks Herald 8/14)

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