Alma Greene - Forbidden Voice - Gah-wonh-nos-doh (Forbidden Voice)

How To Order A Copy Of "Forbidden Voice" by Alma Greene

Have you heard about the Mohawk "curse" that was placed on a shopping mall in Brantford, Ontario many years ago? The Mohawks claim they own the land on which the mall is built. Although Alma Greene did not originate this curse, she frequently & publicly reminded the Brantford City Council about it. Many people in that community believe it is no coincidence that Alma's book, Forbidden Voice: Reflections of a Mohawk Indian, has recently reappeared (after years as being out of print) just as the shopping mall faces closure because of the likely shut down of the Eaton's store in the mall.

Alma Greene was called Gah-wonh-nos-doh (Forbidden Voice) by her people, the Mohawks of the Grand River Lands near Brantford in South - Western Ontario. Daughter of the Turtle Clan Mother, Alma was descended from a long line of chieftains. She was a medicine woman, community activist, story teller &, in later years, an author.

From childhood, Alma had a sense of her future as a healer & community leader. As a future Clan Mother, she was allowed to attend political meetings, sitting quietly beside her father who was a Council representative of the Confederacy. Early in her life, she became aware of how hard her people would have to fight to keep their identity; white society had already eroded most of their rights &, in her own lifetime, she saw more of those rights slipping away.

All her life, she worked for justice for her people, but at the same time, she tried to encourage a deeper understanding of the Native community by the non-native community. She wanted to bridge the gap between the communities - to show to those outside her community the cultural richness of the Mohawk people.
She told the legends of the Mohawks, first in the oral tradition, & later, in her late 70s, in her best-selling book, Forbidden Voice: Reflections of a Mohawk Indian.

A woman of tremendous energy, Alma worked as wife & mother, in a variety of jobs, & as community Clan Mother, healer and activist. She was particularly noted for speaking her mind when Council members lacked the will to take action. A woman of great imagination and strong opinions, Alma also liked to have fun. She enjoyed dressing up in different costumes.

At the celebration of her book's re-issue, chiefs & members of both Native & white communities recalled Alma's influence. Clearly, she was a woman of great courage with the ability to inspire others to take action.
Her granddaughter, Lori Greene, has inherited the title of Clan Mother, & is following in Alma's footsteps, nurturing her people's culture and traditions. There are many other young Native women across Canada like her who are active in their communities in many different roles. To name a few:

- Melanie Goodchild, Ojibway, Pic River First Nation, Ontario, film producer and entrepreneur;
- Mary "Jill" Johnson, Micmac, Chapel Island First Nation, Nova Scotia, student;
- Janet Smylie, Metis, Ontario, family physician and community health consultant;
- Miriam McNab, Cree, Gordon First Nation, Saskatchewan, university lecturer and researcher.

The photographs of Alma Greene appear with the permission of her family (Us) Please ask permission to copy or reprint. All pictures watermarked and copyrighted.

COMMENTS:

Tales Of The Mohawks as shown above is the second book written by my Grandmother Alma Greene

Alma Greene sure packed a lot into her life. She had the same kind of energy as some of our other CoolWomen - Sylvia Stark, Kay Macpherson and Amelia Burritt, to name a few.
They just kept on going & going & going. I wonder what they do when they get tired?

Much happened in Alma's lifetime, including the destruction of the traditional form of Mohawk self-government in which the Clan Mother participated with the hereditary chiefs.
In 1924, the federal Indian Act set up a system of elected chiefs, a system of which Alma said: "I can tell you many of us do not recognize that elected council as our government." She tells this story of the event and its significance:

"Forbidden Voice remembered the dream of the old chief, about the pony with two heads, how the native head welcomed the blond head and his tribe to find refuge and shelter with the red men and how the blond stretched his neck around the red man's head and killed him. Now the blond heads had made a law which was called the Indian Act to destroy the wonderful heritage of the natives who once rode the whole of the western hemisphere."

Do you think different forms of government can exist together, and do you think women should always have a place in any form of government?

I know there are different kinds of leaders...from autocrats who have power over you to those who only care about relationships & not about moving ahead on the issues.
I like Alma's kind... speaking out with a strong voice, in a healing & reconciling way. It's kind of like 'power with you'.
I think my leadership is a combo of acting on what I believe, my ability to lead & the opportunity to lead.
Florence Howe said "a leader is someone who knows how to control her life, & who has a vision of possibilities for others...who works to make that vision visible to others, to share it without trampling on other persons, but engaging them, enabling them to work for that vision as well."

Alma worked with non-natives to help them understand her people -- I wish I didn't have to do that too.
Alma was called Forbidden Voice & I think it's a great name. I feel 'forbidden' when I am in a room full of white people. I am there, but I feel 'forbidden' to speak by the dominant group, the 'power over' group. How dare I want to speak out, how dare I have VOICE. I think they don't care what I think or feel, maybe they don't even see me.
Have you ever been in a group like this?
I wish we'd all listen to & value each other & stop with this racial hate stuff.