Reznet

‘I Said Some Prayers for Lori’

By Loren Tapahe, Arizona Native Scene, www.nativescene.com, Copyright 2008

PHOENIX—Patty Talahongva was hiking Piestewa Peak on Thursday when she heard the news: A federal panel had just officially renamed the mountain for U.S. Army Spc. Lori Ann Piestewa, the first Native American woman killed in action while serving in the U.S. military.

When she reached the summit, "I said some prayers for Lori, her family and what she represents," said Talahongva, who, like Piestewa, is Hopi.

Talahongva is one of many Native Americans who were elated, relieved and overcome with emotion when the U.S. Board on Geographic Names approved replacing the name Squaw Peak with Piestewa Peak. At 2,608 feet (795 meters) Piestewa Peak is the second highest point in the Phoenix Mountains and the third highest in Phoenix.

"I knew the vote was going to take place today and that's why I wanted to hike the peak today" with her friend, Allison Owings from San Francisco, Talahongva said. "I took my cell phone with me and sure enough, someone called and told me the great news.

"I never hiked it when it had the old name," said Talahongva. "I first hiked it after the [Arizona] governor made the name change and during the time when there was a call for 'a day of prayer' back in 2003 after Lori's body was returned home."

The name Piestewa Peak has been used locally for the past five years after Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano recommended the name change to the Arizona State Board on Geographic Names soon after Piestewa's death on March 23, 2003. Piestewa was the first U.S. servicewoman killed in the war in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The national board received 1,376 e-mails and faxes, with 918 in favor of the name change and 458 against. The Associated Press reported that the volume of correspondence received at the national board office was unprecedented.

The name change at the state level had met criticism, as some local residents called it a strong-arm tactic by Napolitano, because the Arizona Board of Geographic and Historic Names voted to accept the name without waiting the normal five-year waiting period for renaming a geographic site after a deceased person.

At the national board meeting, it wasn't until the final vote that representatives from the Hopi tribe, National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) and the Piestewa Memorial Planning Committee could breathe a sign of relief, according to Ernest Martinez, coordinator for the Piestewa Memorial Planning Committee who attended the meeting.

"One member of the [national] board wanted to defer the vote to a later meeting and another expressed disfavor of the process the Arizona governor took to have the name changed at the state level," Martinez said by telephone. "Motions to defer the vote never received a second, so then the board decided to vote on the name Piestewa Peak."

The national board has criteria to change a geographic name in its Principles, Policies and Procedures for Domestic Geographic Names manual, and the name Piestewa was within its guidelines.

It met the "derogatory" definition, since squaw is a term demeaning to Native Americans. It met the "commemorative names" definition, as Piestewa's name is held in respect and honor for her sacrifice as a soldier and is known throughout the state and the country as well, even known to some populations in Canada and Mexico. It met the "local usage" definition, since Piestewa Peak has been used for the past five years.

Visitors to the meeting were not able to give any testimony prior to the vote but were able to say a few words after the vote. Martinez, Hopi Chairman Ben Nuvamsa and NCAI legislative associate Cinda Hughes expressed their gratitude to the board and stated the Piestewa name stands for courage of all veterans, fallen soldiers and the current military in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Hopi Chairman Nuvamsa was elated and overcome with emotion as the final vote was taken favoring Piestewa Peak. "The moment it happened I thought of Lori and her two kids," said Nuvamsa. "It was fitting to stay with the name because it not only represents Lori's sacrifice, but it represents all veterans of the U.S. It represents Native American women and all of Native America."

Piestewa has two children, Carla, 8, and Brandon, 9, who are cared for by grandparents Percy and Terry Piestewa.

Priscilla "Percy" Piestewa, Lori's mother, heard the news at her Flagstaff, Ariz., home. "It's very humbling, because the name stands for not just for Lori, but for all veterans and to pay homage and honor to those that gave their lives for freedom, just like Lori did," she said in a telephone interview. "She became a servant of all of us, the great and the small, so that we might be able to enjoy the freedoms we so often take for granted."

Martinez said in an e-mail: "It's a victory for women in general and the American Indian, but just as importantly it was a historic and lasting contribution to the progress of this nation in being sensitive and valuing diversity.

"Piestewa Peak will stand for them as well as Lori. It will represent the incredible courage, devotion to protection of comrades and intense love of country that distinguishes our warriors in the field of battle, far above any other soldiers from any other country," Martinez wrote.

Talahongva, a free-lance journalist, remembers when Piestewa was reported missing in action and when news came to the Piestewa family of her death. "It was the hardest story I had to cover," she said. "I know the family, and Lori and I are related by clan. ‘Qootsa hon mana' is Lori's Hopi name," which translates into White Bear Girl.

"I am happy for the family and it's a 100,000 percent improvement over the old name, and 'eskwali' to those that supported the name change," Talahongva said. "Eskwali," means thank you in the Hopi language.

In a recent speech during one of the events held annually in Lori Piestewa's honor, Percy Piestewa said of her daughter, "When Lori was alive she belonged to us, but in her death she now belongs to the nation."

A version of this story originally was published by Arizona Native Scene. It is used with permission.

Loren Tapahe is owner and publisher of Arizona Native Scene.