Program Theme

The start of program year 2003-2004 marks the Yomechas Federation's official transition to the YMCA Adventure Guides program and its related Adventure theme.

For over seventy-five years the National YMCA programs of the Y-Indian Guides, Y-Indian Maidens, and Y-Indian Princesses have drawn heavily on the culture and customs of American Indian tribes throughout the United States. Due to declining enrollment over the past thirty years and changes in the American political landscape, in 2002 the National YMCA decided that the Indian Theme should be retired. That decision was not reached lightly. The program has a deep roots in Native American culture (see Program History), but the use of that culture as a theme has also been a source of controversy for many years (see Guide For Better Understanding of the American Indian.)

FAQs

Will our Tribe names change?
Yomechas Federation tribes will be called circles but they will retain their current names during the 2003-2004 program year. Indian-specific circle names will be replaced in the 2004-2005 program year.

What will happen to our vests?
Existing members will not be required to change the decoration on their vests. New members will decorate their vests with new emblems in 2003-2004 and with revised circle names beginning in 2004-2005.

What will happen to our patches?
During program year 2003-2004, a new emblem will replace the existing Indian Head used by the Yomechas Federation. But existing stocks of patches will be used for activities even if they reflect the Indian Theme. As new patches are ordered in the future, the designs selected will avoid Native American symbols.

Will we still have Indian Names?
Members will still choose special names - but they will be called "Adventure Names".

What will happen to Tribe and Nation headdresses?
The use of Indian headdresses will be discontinued beginning with the 2003-2004 program year. Alternative symbols of authority and leadership will be recommended.

What will happen to Tribe and Nation rituals?
Prior to the beginning of the 2003-2004 program year, Federation campfire ceremonies and meeting rituals will be rewritten to eliminate Native American references. In particular, the Yomechas Federation Induction Ceremony will be revised.

Nations will be required to do the same for their 2003-2004 campfire ceremonies and worship services. Tribes will be encouraged to revise their meeting scripts.

To preserve tradition, members will be encouraged to make "cosmetic" rather than substantive changes where possible - by simply substituting words that do not carry a Native American connotation (eg. "money" instead of "wampum").

National Parent/Child Program Task Force
December 2001 Meeting Recommendations

WHAT TO KEEP WHAT MUST GO WHAT WE CAN MODIFY
  • Legacy
  • History
  • Aims, goals, pledge, purpose
  • Small groups
  • "Magic" pieces
  • Spirit, mind, body: educational opportunities, spiritual component, social time, physical activity, e.g., nature hiking, rock climbing, prayer to open and close, values, program emphasis...parent and child
  • Storytelling
  • Campfire
  • Community service
  • Imaginative and inspiring "place" for parents and children to come together
  • Commitment to parent and child attending together
  • Group Work principles
  • Core competencies of staff
  • Gender-specific brand names (although Y's may still design programs for father-son and father-daughter)
  • Program name (Y Indian Guides)
  • Speaking for, imitating, or copying another culture (Adopting Indian names; use of Indian tribal names; wearing Indian costumes, e.g., feathers, headdresses, face paint; using Indian paraphenalia, e.g., totem poles; officer names such as chief and wampum bearer; and Indian style ceremonies.)
  • Traditional Y-Guides program practices which claimed ownership of what isn't ours
  • "Great Spirit..."Our Creator"
  • Teaching and celebrating the history and legacy
  • Defining our own ceremonies and traditions
  • Joe Friday, Harold Keltner Awards
  • Nicknames
  • Group names
  • Vests/Patches
  • Rituals and traditions
Yomechas Federation is sponsored by the Indian Boundary YMCA, Downers Grove IL
Visit our web site at www.yomechas.org.