Native woman in Canada charged for purchasing eagle feathers

Tuesday, February 18, 2014  

A Native woman from Alberta, Canada, is set to go to trial for allegedly purchasing eagle feathers for $250.

Rachel CrowSpreadingWings, a member of the Kainai Nation, acquired the feathers to make traditional regalia. She said she did nothing wrong by offering money for the item.

"Eagles have always been sacred in our ceremonies and our prayers," CrowSpreadingWings told CBC News. "How is it wrong to give somebody money, when they give you a sacred object, when it's in mutual respect of that object and they know you're going to use it correctly?"

CrowSpreadingWings faces a $100,000 in fines and/or two years in prison if she is convicted of one count of trafficking wildlife and one count of possession for the purposes of trafficking.

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Rachel CrowSpreadingWings fights charges of trafficking eagle feathers (CBC 2/18)