| In
the old traditional ways...
Eagles to all tribes are
sacred messengers. It's
the animal that can fly the
highest to the Creator.
Tsalagi people would normally
carry only one eagle feather
according to the position in
the tribe. A spiritiual
leader such as a
Medicine/Holy Man, a Clan
Mother, or a Chief would
carry a white bald eagle tail
feather to represent their
spiritual purity and
power. The rest of the
tribe carried wing feathers
or plumes. Most Tsalagi
people wore turkey, water
fowl, and more common bird
feathers because they were
also sacred, but
common. Turkeys were
sacred to the Tsalagi because
it was one of their main
sources of food. Modern
Times...
Now,
it's the 21st century, and
there are certain ideas that
is more personal opinion than
tradition. In today's
time you have to be warned of
the politics of possessing
eagle feathers as well.
The
Indian civil rights act
states that a Native American
cannot be denied the right to
possess sacred items for
religious and ceremonial
purposes... Be warned
with this statement...
Technically all Native
Americans have the right to
possess eagle and hawk
feathers, but these birds of
prey are protected on the
Migratory Bird Act and some
are on the Endangered Species
Protection Act. By law
you cannot have any
eagle feathers unless you
request eagle feathers from
the Federal Repository in
Colorado. The
Department of Interior and
The B.I.A controls
who can
legally have eagle
feathers. Even if you
are from a Federally
Recognized Tribe doesn't mean
that you have the right to
just go and pick up an eagle
feather from the
ground. You still can
get fined and arrested even
if you are federally
recognized. Unless you
have a certificate for every
feather or bird of prey body
part law officials have no
proof the animal wasn't
poached. So, that's
politics with sacred items...
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