The YellowBird Family, Marla and Loren with their boys, left to right: Loren Jr. 11, triplets Gabriel, Tyler and Samuel, 2 and Patrick 7 in their home in Willeston N. Dakota. |
In many ways, Loren Yellow Bird, who is Arikara, seems like a model for post-colonial, post-invasion Indian America. He grew up at Fort Berthold speaking his language, learning his grandfather’s songs and stories. He married an Indian woman, a Leech Lake Ojibwe woman. He doesn’t drink or smoke anymore. He’s raising his five boys in much of the way he was raised. And his job is all about educating non-Natives about Indian history and culture.
As a National Park Service Interpreter, Loren works at the restored Fort Union Trading Post on the border between North Dakota and Montana. He gives tours and talks about life among the Indians and fur trading community. At night and on the weekends, he is all family man helping to raise the five boys. Two are in grade school and three are barely out of diapers. Raising five boys may seem like a handful, but when you consider that the three younger ones were born at the same time, well, let’s just say it takes two hands to keep pace.
Loren YellowBird with his triplets, Gabriel, Tyler and Samuel. |
Loren is a Persian Gulf War veteran and he’s struggled with questions of allegiance to this country and his own people. Fighting for a country that robbed tribal people of land, language and culture is a hard reconciliation for him to make. "In 1913, our chief petitioned the BIA, practically begged them to let us continue on with our songs so we could pass them on to future generations," Loren says.
Coming from a long line of war veterans, Loren reasons that "We’re part of this country, too."
Loren is bent on preserving his tribe’s culture and traditions by passing them on to his boys. "It’s a good time to be Indian now," he says. "My sons are learning what they wouldn’t let them learn for a lot of years."
It will be a busier than ever season next summer as the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial commemorations kick into high gear. Tourism is expected to be the highest ever along the trail throughout the West. That will give Loren the chance to educate more Americans about Native people – maybe more people in one summer than he could ever reach in his lifetime.
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