"There are many definitions for real American Indians.

One is a racial definition, another is a cultural definition; in the United States we are also defined as a political body, a Nation if you will.

But our communities are defined in much more complex ways.

One distinction of our communities is that we remain together in a homeland for generations over thousands of years.

There are other civilizations which have existed over long expanses of time but few which have the same bloodlines and families.

In Native communities, we tend to know one another; we know each other's relatives and we relate to one another in that context.

This long line of kinship is unique because we remember how we are related."

Get the Story:
Lynne Harlan: Native bonds are a real source of strength (The Asheville Citizen-Times 10/24)

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