Chief Roy Crazy Horse, activist

[marilyn...@aol.com]

By JOHN F. MORRISON (Phila. Daily News)
mor...@phillynews.com

CHIEF Roy Crazy Horse made it his lifelong crusade to educate the
country about the need to honor and preserve the gifts of the earth.

"Our arrogant generation thinks of itself as being the only part of the
creation with souls and spirits," he once wrote. "We do not consider
the birds and animals, the plants and forests when we seek 'progress'
and 'development.' We do not honor our Mother Nature and her gifts.

"We are the spirit people who have lost our way in a material world."

Crazy Horse died Nov. 11 at the age of 79. He lived in Medford, N.J.

He left a lasting legacy in the 350-acre Rankokus Reservation he
founded in 1974 in Westhampton, N.J., where Indian festivals are held
annually to educate the world about Indian lore and their contributions
to the country.

Crazy Horse, executive administrative director of the Powhatan Indians
of Delaware Valley and executive director of the Coalition of Eastern
Native Americans, had testified before Congress and lectured and wrote
on Indian issues.

He was chairman of the New Jersey American Indian Commission and
executive director of the Coalition of Eastern Native Americans, in
Washington, D.C.

The Rankokus Reservation, which includes a museum, is on former
parklands and is leased to the Powhatans by the state.

Among visitors to the site have been the singer Willie Nelson, and the
famous Navajo "code talkers," who baffled the enemy in World War II by
sending messages in their native tongue.

"That was his life, making sure that reservation ran and to spread the
word of Indian people," his son, Guy Johnson, told the Courier-Post.

Despite his commitment to Indian causes and his busy schedule, he
always had time for his family, his son said.

"He was there for every sporting event that my sister and my brother
had, any musical event I was involved in," Johnson said. "No matter
what his schedule was, his family was always first."

Crazy Horse was born Roy Johnson, the youngest of eight children of
Charles H. Johnson and Anna Schmidt Johnson, in Camden.

He lied about his age to join the Army when World War II broke out.
After the war, he completed his high school education and attended
Temple University and La Salle.

An outstanding athlete, he played semi-pro football and baseball and
was a member of the South Jersey Fast Pitch Softball Hall of Fame.

In the Army, he boxed as a middleweight and won a championship. He
later was a friend of heavyweight champ Jersey Joe Walcott, and served
as chief boxing inspector for the state.

He received an honorary doctorate from Thomas Edison College, in
Trenton, in 2001.

Crazy Horse was the author of a handbook on Native American studies,
and he wrote numerous articles on such topics as the Powhatan religion,
Christopher Columbus, and others.

He also wrote "Morrisville: A Hidden Native Community," "North American
Genocide" and "Holocaust of the American Indians."

In 1995, he took the Disney Corp. to task for its film, "Pocahontas,"
which he said distorted the Indian woman's life, especially the tale
that she saved the life of John Smith in 1607. He claimed that was a
story invented by Smith many years later to titillate London society.

He said his tribe had offered to consult on the film, but was turned
down.

Crazy Horse's major theme was what he saw as the wanton destruction of
the earth in the name of progress.

"We destroy in the name of progress," he wrote. "We cheer destruction,
and reward its perpetrators. Our attempts to correct imbalance causes
greater imbalance."

But he believed that by "restoring our own spiritual life, we can find
the way back to a sustainable future."

"By living according to our highest principles, we can replace
arrogance with humility. Our generation has this power within our
each."

He also is survived by his wife of 57 years, Idell Mathias; another
son, Gig; a daughter, Gia, and a sister, Anne Rhodelle.
Services: Were held yesterday at the Rankokus Indian Reservation.