UPDATE: Here is Lakota Leather's reply:
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Re: Lakota Leathers
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From:
"Bbanjoboy@---.com" <Bbanjoboy@---.com>
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Hello again,
First, let me say once again that I truly appreciate your emails and regret that you did not receive my previous responses.
It warms my heart to know that there are people like you who care enough not only to question the legitimacy of my efforts, but also have the decency to contact me directly. Let me say thank you for that. I personally have also witnessed the exploitation that you refer to. Additionally, there are the items like the $3 dream catchers in your local conveinience store which are made in China.. It makes my blood boil....
In any case, to try to answer a few of your questions, here are some answers. I'm sure that you'll have more, so feel free to ask away...Additionally, if you know one of my present or former bandmates, I'm sure that they will attest to my true intentions.
Here goes...
First, my story on our 'about us' page is as straight to the point as I can get, so I'll not waist my efforts going over that again. Additionally, you can click up
www.knoxivi.com and click the link to the 'Shine Sisters" to see a live interview of myself discussing what we do.
As for the business, let me say that it is precisely that. A business. Being a business is something that we chose to do instead of being a charity. I thought very seriously about even putting the 'donation' addition to the website, and I believe after your concerns, I should just eliminate it. I will put a link to a good friend of mine Kathy Price of the Mission of Love instead. She builds homes for the Lakota and even though there are other needs that I know my website could help, I don't want to raise any suspicions about this company or it's intentions, and your email just reinforces this thought. Kathy is as close to a saint as I have met on this earth, and I encourage you to check out her site. I believe it's
www.missionoflove.org If not, I'm sure you can google it. I first encountered her back in June on my last trip to Pine Ridge. There is no government crap involved with her, just true concern and love for the Lakota and other people across the globe..
Anyhow, back to the business. When this thing started, I would take dreamcatchers, hair barrets, etc. from my friends on the reservation to sell for them at my CD table. Because of the $3 dreamcathers for sale at your local 7-11, it was hard to get more than $10 for these items. I felt very bad sending these guys just $10 for something that they worked hours on.. Then they couldn't always afford the beads, or leather etc, and it wasn't raising very much money.. The products were basically 'trinkets' and had no real use in todays world. I had a buffalo hide strap on my banjo for years.. It wasn't native made, but it was very strong, soft, and it looked like the day I bought it.. So that's when the wheels started turning.. One thing led to the other and I started contacting the same people who used to make the dreamcatchers and medicine wheels to see if they would be interested and capable of making some straps...
Well, most of them didn't even know what a banjo was, they certainly had no money to purchase leather, no computers, and no tools to manufacture these things..
I began discussing these issues with my family, and together we decided to fund the entire operation. This is where I begin to feel uncomfortable about discussing things because you wouldn't be asking these questions about any other type of business I might be involved in, but here goes..
We have invested over $25,000 into this venture, very little of which has been returned. I don't feel the need to discuss how much any certain individuals are being paid, or their names/faces, any more than Coca-Cola would feel the need to give out there secret formula. I'm not doing this so that I can "Fleece" the Lakota, quite to the contrary, it is actually my family that sometimes feels 'fleeced' but that is OK because our reward is not financial. I am withholding the names of these people for several other reasons:
1) They each have at least $1000 worth of leather etc. in their homes at any given time. I don't feel comfortable that this be common knowledge on the reservation. If you are familiar with conditions out there, you will understand why.
2) I have a lot of money invested in this company, and I feel a need to protect the people that are working for me as well as my own personal as well as my families monetary investments. Quite simply, we do need to recoup what we have invested. Like I tried to explicately state on my website, this is not a charity. Suffice it to say that each of my independent contractors can easily EARN $50 per hour. A wage which they deserve and be proud of. It's all up to them and the public. If they are willing to work, and the public is willing to purchase these products, then this can continue.
That being said, I don't feel comfortable in giving out the names of my independent contractors any more than you would if you had a business in China, Texas, Argentina, Brazil, or any other place.
I don't want to be mailicous to you, but you could be a competitor, you could go in and 'steal' my contractors' which I have taught how to make the specific requirements for our strap designs, and then there are the materials which I have already purchased which quite honestly could be sold without my knowledge. Thousands of dollars worth. I know and love each of my contractors, but they have no financial investment in any of these materials. While I do trust them, I do not feel any need to make these names public knowledge. Hopefully you can understand why.
Additionally, if there is some sort of 'certification' or other means of proving what we are doing is 'legit', I am not aware of it. If the tribe would offer a 'certificate' of authenticity, I would gladly pay whatever fees were required to obtain one.
As for me, I quite honestly feel like an essential part of this venture. I have been a professional musician for years. I can talk to music stores about our product, I know the needs of musicians, I can make this work, and have proven so. We now have over 40 dealers nationwide. While our focus is on mandolin straps, our other straps are starting to develop in sales as well. It is a good thing.
Finally, I don't believe that I should be expected to do this without recouping our family investment, and perhaps at some point in the future possibly making a small salary. It is after all a very time consuming venture and quite a chore at times. The development of the website alone has taken countless hours. Finding the correct places to advertise, the money to fund these things, going through 4 leather suppliers and all the incredible BS that has gone along with that.. getting the wrong color hides delivered, getting the wrong thicknesses delivered, ordering dozens of straps in colors that don't sell, having piles of leather laying around that are basically worthless that we paid hundreds, even thousands of dollars for, exchanging straps that are incorrect sizes and colors, answering inquiries such as yours, paying thousands of dollars to the post office, dealing with COD orders that never show up, and countless other day to day issues. Yet, I am not complaining one single bit.. just telling you how it is.. When I receive a letter from a family on the rez that expresses their gratitude for helping them out, it is all worth it.. We are actually contemplating building a home for one of my mandolin strap braiders in the spring .. CAN YOU IMAGINE>>
![Huh ???](http://newagefraud.org/smf/Smileys/default/huh.gif)
?
This crazy little business might actually be able to give a wonderful family on the rez a new home.. how wonderfull is that?
I guess when it's all said and done, you need to ask yourself what you need to do.. Just like the homeless guy at the stoplight.. you can give him a buck and hope it's for the right reasons, or you can pretend that you don't see him... even if he used the dollar for a drink of liquor, you still did the right thing....I hope this answers your questions, and you can appreciate my answers.
Sincerely,
Kenny Bohling
Lakota Leathers
www.lakotaleathers.comkenny@lakotaleathers.com
537 South Schrader Rd.
Sevierville TN 37876
(865)908-1360
(865) <deleted by clearwater> cell
In a message dated 1/7/2010 11:32:30 A.M. Eastern Standard Time, ---@---.com writes:
Hello Kenny--
Thanks for your prompt reply. As I indicated, I am not being malicious in this inquiry at all. It's just that I have seen, first hand, so much exploitation of American Indians that I would like to know, for sure, that you are a good guy doing what you say. As a courtesy to you, here is a link to that thread:
http://www.newagefraud.org/smf/index.php?topic=2541.0
As you can see, I am not being mean. I really want to know that you are for real. And if so, there are some edits you can make to your site that will clear up any questions.
Again, many thanks to you.
Again, for now, I will remain unnamed, but I will identify myself to you with your next reply. As it turns out, I personally know one of your band members anyway...
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