Author Topic: Arne Lynn Johanson AKA Tis Mal Crow  (Read 32543 times)

Offline educatedindian

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Arne Lynn Johanson AKA Tis Mal Crow
« on: December 30, 2004, 11:35:19 pm »
Someone asked about him over at American Indian Alliance. This is what I know so far.

-----
 "educated_indio" <educated_indio@y...>
Date:  Thu Dec 30, 2004  9:54 am
Subject:  Re: FW: Tis Mal Crow
We haven't had any complaints about him over at NAFPS. Mostly he seems to sell his how-to herb books. I took a look at the table of contents online at Amazon and it's mostly herb use for minor
ailments. The way it's marketed is offensive and
stereotypical, "secret Indian lore" and so on.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/1570671052/ref=sib_dp_pt/103-2522938-2445410#reader-link

He does seem to have done some good work with plant conservation and has worked with both Native elders and the feds both EPA and Fish
and Wildlife. Here's that working group he mentions.
http://www.nps.gov/plants/medicinal/pubs/elder4501.htm
These elders include at least one I'm not sure about. "Cherokee of the Appalachians"?

One thing even more suspicious I found was that his claim of who his people are keeps changing. Sometimes he claims to be Cherokee and
Hitchiti, other times "Tennessee Cherokee" or "Western Band Cherokee," other times Lumbee, "United Lumbee" which are not the
legitimate Lumbee in North Carolina. And on his books on tape once he's claiming to teach Muscogee medicine ways.
http://www.treefarmtapes.com/catalog/product.asp?productid=7286
Plus in at least one article he admitted he was not Native.
http://www.kelownacapnews.com/03401a/let1.htm
I'll keep asking around.

--- In American_Indian_Alliance@yahoogroups.com, Cloud Family
<yakama@a...> wrote:
> Does anyone know about this person?
> Margaret Cloud

> ZANN Corp. Teams With Native American Herbal Expert
> FENTON, Mich.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 29, 2004--ZANN Corp.(OTCBB:ZANN)
> announced today that Tis Mal Crow, an internationally known herbalist and Native American Root Doctor (Medicine Man) has joined Zann Corp. Tis Mal is enhancing the Blue Kiwi product line and has over 200 "Leaves of
Light Plants as Teachers" products in the development pipeline to be introduced
> over the next 2-3 years.
>
> Director of Product Development-Natural Remedies, ZANN Corp.
>
> Tis Mal Crow is a Native American of Cherokee and Hitchiti descent. Since childhood Tis Mal has worked with tribal elders studying the
identification and medicinal uses of plants and native root doctoring techniques.
The information was passed down through generations of elders for thousands of years. Tis Mal has been called to become an elder on the on the Medicinal Plant Working Group of the Council of Elders, a group of concerned elders working for the protection of endangered plants. This group is an
off-shoot (ad hoc committee) of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife and U. S. Forestry Services. He has also been asked to speak at the United Nations
permanent forum on indigenous affairs. In 2003, Tis Mal was a presenter in the Industrial Leadership for the Preservation of Medicinal and
Aromatic Plants Symposium in Philadelphia.
> Tis Mal authored the first book about native remedies by a native person, ³Native Plants, Native Healing ­ Traditional Muskogee Way² to be
printed and widely distributed. The book describes many of the ancient medicines and techniques mentioned above. He is also the first native person to record plant information in lecture form on CD¹s that have beendistributed in 13 countries outside the United States.
> Tis Mal has been teaching classes and workshops on herbs for morethan 20 years. He works with other indigenous healers and herb groups internationally to promote the medicinal uses of these herbs. For most of his adult life he has also been working for the conservation of
the wild habitat needed to sustain the growth of these important plants.

Locklear

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Re: Tis Mal Crow
« Reply #1 on: August 30, 2005, 07:53:23 pm »
Tis Mal Crow appeared on Native American Calling radio show over a year ago. He claimed he was United Lumbee/Cherokee on the show.  When the announcer asked him a question about herbs and traditional medicine, he made an idiotic reply about the Lumbee trying to reclaim those traditions.  My tribe has traditional healers and herbalists.  WE have never lost that tradition, but here is a guy claiming he has connections to my people but he knows nothing about us or our history.  

He and all the other "UNITED LUMBEE NATION" fakes are using our name and piggy backing on our history for their own gratification.  These people are frauds, using our name for scholarships and grant money, and they should be stopped at all costs. My people struggled through hundreds of years of racism, hatred and death, and I will not stand to allow these fakes to steal my history as their own.  I hope all you United Lumbee Nation fakes read this and pass it on!

Lumbee Pride!

Offline educatedindian

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Re: Tis Mal Crow
« Reply #2 on: August 31, 2005, 02:11:06 pm »
Good to have you here Locklear. We have a  thread about the United Lumbee over in Archives. Anything you can add to that, we'd like to hear.

Tis Mal Crow also's made some appearances in Europe. I have an article from when he appeared in Sweden, translated for me by Annika. The guy claimed "Cherokees are one of 34 Muscogee tribes" and some other obvious mistakes.

Locklear

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Re: Tis Mal Crow
« Reply #3 on: September 03, 2005, 04:41:49 pm »
I looked for the United Lumbee Nation thread in the archives but could not find it.  What is the subject line?  


TrishaRoseJacobs

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Re: Tis Mal Crow
« Reply #5 on: September 08, 2005, 09:57:38 am »
Al,

would you post the sweedish article or send it to me along with the date and place of publication? I'd like to add this guy to my index.

Part of the Muscogee indeed!

Offline vikinglady

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Re: Tis Mal Crow
« Reply #6 on: September 08, 2005, 10:30:04 am »
I just did a very quick translation so could you guys turn it from Swenglish to English before you put it up? LOL

Annika

TrishaRoseJacobs

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Re: Tis Mal Crow
« Reply #7 on: September 08, 2005, 12:35:47 pm »
I'll try. Might be hard. Bork. :D

Offline seedfinder

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Re: Tis Mal Crow
« Reply #8 on: January 30, 2015, 03:28:46 am »
I studied with Tis Mal for 2 years and produced his recordings, many of which have yet to become public, and he lived with my partner and I for a year, and we became very close in that time. I accompanied him to Sweden. I knew him well enough to know he was a bit of a loose cannon, and a bit of a tortured soul (he passed away several years ago). I have no doubt he didn't always tell the truth about things, and he was not always an easy person to be around. He was also a very very gifted healer, had encyclopedic photographic knowledge of many many plants, and was an absolutely phenomenal bead artist. He was also of mixed Native and European ancestry that made his life a hard one, with these spirits warring within him, as many here would know from your own experience. I understand why the work of this sight is important, but there are also aspects of the things I see posted about my friend that look a bit like a witch hunt to me, and only tell a distant part of the story.

In all honesty and in defense of a passed on troubled and gifted friend,
Peter T Hutter.

Epiphany

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Re: Tis Mal Crow
« Reply #9 on: January 30, 2015, 05:06:07 am »
2006

Quote
Tis Mal Crow, age 48 of Speedwell passed away April 28 at the Summit Medical
Center in Hermitage. He was a member of the Native American Church. He was an
herbalist, author and artist. He is survived by his close companion, Trish
Gray of Speedwell; close cousin, Frank Herron of Shepherd, MI; a host of family
and friends around the world. Graveside services will be held at 11 a.m. on May
4 in the Braden's Chapel Cemetery. Martin Wilson Funeral Home was in charge
of the arrangements.

http://searches2.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/TNMORGAN/2006-05/1146962858

Epiphany

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Re: Tis Mal Crow
« Reply #10 on: January 30, 2015, 05:14:06 am »
His birth name was Arne Lynn Johanson.

Father Robin Johanson, mother Lela Edith Cook. His father Robin in obit is described as "proud member of Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma"

http://www.mt-pleasant.org/depts/cemetery/data/obits/Obit%20for%20Robin%20Johanson%20ID%208961.pdf

Offline educatedindian

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Re: Arne Lynn Johanson AKA Tis Mal Crow
« Reply #11 on: January 31, 2015, 02:32:41 am »
I was going to ask if we should move him to Archives. But I see his books are all over the place. I'm not sure how accurate the plant lore or healing claims are. His own story is pretty phony. I do see some still list him as genuine, such as a museum in Britain. He's also cited by an astrologer, but otherwise doesn't seem to have trained other exploiters.

Epiphany

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Re: Arne Lynn Johanson AKA Tis Mal Crow
« Reply #12 on: February 01, 2015, 09:44:45 pm »
His sister's obit:

Robin Renee Grace
Jan 21, 1963 - March 4, 2012

Quote
Robin Renee Grace, age 49, of Shepherd, passed away on Sunday March 4, 2012, at Woodland Hospice House.
Robin was born on January 21, 1963, in Carson City, the daughter of Robin Lynn and Lela Edith Cook Johanson.
Robin was a member of the Cherokee Nation. She was an avid motorcycle rider, a multi talented person that was willing to help others in any way she could and especially with her family. Robin was a great cook and was a proudly supported her native heritage.

She was preceded in death by her parents; and a brother, Tismal Crow.

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/themorningsun/obituary.aspx?n=robin-renee-grace&pid=156310778

This sounds like a New Age belief:

Quote
Kay mentioned she is very allergic to mosquitoes. She said Tismal said just change your mindset and they won't bother you... but that doesn't necessarily work for her.

http://www.diamon-naturals.us/minutes.htm

This bit seems weird:

Quote
Signature for St. John's Wort is the tiny piercings in leaves, told her it was good for her mosquito problem. For fine nerves, specific for people who sunburn easily, and good for deep depression.

A common side effect of St. John's Wort is photosensitivity. So hopefully people who burn easily aren't taking this thinking it will protect them from the sun. Maybe he based this idea on the "like cures like" theory. Now I see in his book he follows the "doctrine of signatures" belief.

Also not everyone who is depressed does well on this herb, some people develop serotonin syndrome. Maybe his book includes appropriate cautions.

Using the search function on the Amazon Look Inside feature I see that he claimed he has diverted severe storms with St. John's Wort. Personally, I would not trust this book, I'd do lots of other research.




Epiphany

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Re: Arne Lynn Johanson AKA Tis Mal Crow
« Reply #13 on: February 01, 2015, 09:46:13 pm »
I formatted the above incorrectly, this part is supposed to be in quotes:

Quote
She was preceded in death by her parents; and a brother, Tismal Crow.

Offline Mommasays

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Re: Arne Lynn Johanson AKA Tis Mal Crow
« Reply #14 on: January 24, 2016, 05:27:57 am »
Tis Mal Crow was a registered member of the Cherokee Tribe of Oklahoma. He was well known and well respected in native communities and throughout the world. He was resilient and driven. Spent many years on the pow-wow circuit, and his list of friends is long (many are also famous/public figures from Naive American community, whom are also well known and respected). His list of accomplishments is also  are too long. He was trained in traditional medicinal and healing practices by respected elders. He kept and respected these traditions. In keeping with these traditions, he had restrictions on whom he could Doctor, and never took payment for doctoring someone. He made money from contemporary means like classes, lectures, consulting with small and major manufacturers and companies about responsible and renewable sourcing and formulation of herbal supplements. He was also a gifted artist and created and sold many works of art, including his beadwork. He was the first enrolled member of a Native American nation to have published a book on the practical and responsible use of herbal remedies. So, yes an author as well. Anyone who knew him knows this. I am saddened and troubled by the accusatory manner of the acquisition into his genuine identity. I agree with Peter in his post when he references a "witch hunt". If Tis Mal was still alive, he would have surely been all over this anonymous person like a poodle on a pant leg, just to say the least. He would have asked me to do the clerical work of typing a response just like I am, because his use of a computer went about as far as u can spit a mouthful of fish-hooks!
My uncle was many things, but a fraud he was not. Tis Mal legally changed his name in order to honor his teachers, and to distance himself from his childhood abusers. This was a very personal matter. I'm not sure as to the testimony of the person who had question about something that Tis Mal had allegedly "said" at some point or place, but some things can get lost in translation. Please fix this erroneous accusation. Thank you for your attention to this!
ARGL