Author Topic: Denise Alvarado/"Cherokee Pipe Carrier"  (Read 20336 times)

Offline non-NDN

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Denise Alvarado/"Cherokee Pipe Carrier"
« on: August 13, 2012, 11:00:21 pm »
Do the Cherokee actually have pipe carriers? (Ive heard a bunch of places that it is not a Cherokee Nation tradition, but this person keeps posting everywhere that she is a pipe carrier in the Cherokee tradition)

I dont see what relevance can be gained in someone's sales pages by referencing what ceremonies they've attended, but the claim of being a pipe carrier made me think I should ask this here or at least bring it to your attention.



http://www.crossroadsuniversity.com/faculty.htm
"Denise Alvarado
Denise Alvarado (1960) is a New Orleans born, native Creole raised in the Voodoo and hoodoo rich culture of New Orleans, Louisiana. She has studied indigenous healing traditions from a personal, professional and academic perspective for over four decades. Her activities include cultural and spiritual consulting, assessment, & training for individuals and organizations. She has consulted with Scotland Yard on the issue of African Ju Ju and human trafficking, the History Channel on New Orleans Voodoo and with the production company for the Sci-Fi channel Raw TV on paranormal phenomenon. She is the creator and Editor in Chief of the first magazine devoted to the preservation of Southern folk magic traditions and New Orleans Voodoo and Hoodoo called Hoodoo and Conjure Quarterly.

Denise has a Bachelor of Science extended degree in cultural anthropology from Northern Arizona University, a Doctor of Divinity from ULC and a Masters of Science in general psychology from Walden University. She was the recipient of Walden University's Fellowship in Research and Applications for Social Change, 2008-2009 with her research on Native American wellness and quality of life.

In addition to her academic achievements, Denise is a rootworker in the Southern hoodoo tradition, having learned about the plants and roots from her mother and grandmother. She is also medicine woman and pipe carrier in the Cherokee tradition, having participated in many Lakota, Cherokee, Meskwaki and Navajo ceremonies over the past 30 years. She was introduced to the Spirits and Spiritualism by her aunt on the bayous of Mississippi at the young age of five, and received knowledge of the healing plants and roots from her mother and grandmother. Denise's indigenous ancestry includes Cherokee of the Bird Clan on her mother's side and Aztec on her father's side, descending from King Xicotencatl el Viejo of the tribe Tlaxcalteca, one of the seven original Aztec tribes."


http://www.planetvoodoo.com/black-hawk-products.htm
"The Spiritualist churches of New Orleans honor the Native American spirit of Black Hawk. Black Hawk is also considered a Voodoo Saint and is often included in ritual work wherein worshipers become possessed and gain the power to heal and prophesy. The Indian Spirit Guide has a big influence on Hoodoo and Voodoo today and can be seen on many hoodoo products such as Indian Spirit Incense and room spray by the E. Davis Company, and now on Planet Voodoo's own Voodoo Mama's brand.
I am happy to offer you Voodoo Mama's signature line of Black Hawk Spiritual products. The ingredients are gathered according to proper Native American protocol as I was taught by many teachers over the years. Like Mam'zelle Laveaux, I am Creole of Native American ancestry; Cherokee on my mother's side of the Bird Clan and Aztec on my father's side, descending from one of the seven original Aztec tribes of Tlaxcala, and direct descendent of King Xicontencotl el Viejo. Pedro de Alvarado, the Spanish conquistador who is also my ancestor, married the daughter of King Xicotencatl el Viejo and had the first mixed blood children in the Americas. This is my lineage, traced back to the 1400s.

Unlike others who profess to know the Indian Spirits of hoodoo, I have met the spirits first hand in authentic Native American ritual context. I have gone through many ceremonies and rites of passage that gave me the privilege of being keeper of the medicine. Many years ago, I was put on the hill for my hunblecha by Lakota Holy Man Ben Brown Horse of Eagle Butte South Dakota. I have been to Sundance and I was given the role of "water pourer" for the inipi ceremony, which in English is the sweat lodge purification ceremony. I have participated in the Native American Church  and have partaken of the blessed sacrament. I am a pipe carrier, and I have been in the longhouses of the Sac and Fox and participated in a burial ceremony among many others.

These are only some of the spiritual rites of passage and activities I have experienced and continue to experience in my lifetime. My knowledge of the Indian Spirit medicines comes directly from the Holy men and women in my life as well as from the Spirits themselves. You can be assured that what you purchase from me is the real thing, and is not based on reading a book or an educated guess. I am not someone who has jumped on the bandwagon, professing to know what I do not.  If you want the real thing, you have come to the right place. Everything available at Planet Voodoo is empowered with the medicine of the Great Spirit and it will help you. You only need to be open and willing to receive the abundance that awaits you.

I am a proud member of the Association of Indigenous Anthropologists, a section of the American Anthropological Association, member #00041431 ."

Offline Diana

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Re: Denise Alvarado/"Cherokee Pipe Carrier"
« Reply #1 on: August 14, 2012, 04:04:25 am »
I am a proud member of the Association of Indigenous Anthropologists, a section of the American Anthropological Association, member #00041431 ."


I looked up AAA and anyone can join. Also you don't have to be Indian to be a member of AIA either.


Lim lemtsh,

Diana

Offline piya

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To Old To Die Young

Offline educatedindian

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Re: Denise Alvarado/"Cherokee Pipe Carrier"
« Reply #3 on: August 14, 2012, 12:20:22 pm »
No idea why her claim of taking parts in Lakota or Navajo ceremony would somehow make her a "Cherokee pipe carrier."

Her claims would make a first year grad student shake their head, really obvious errors. The Tlaxcalans were not Aztecs. They were the Aztecs' main opponents. It's common for Mexican-Americans to think or claim they have Aztec ancestry by default since they are the best known Mexican NDNs.

"Crossroads University" is basically a learn-voodoo-online...well I would barely call it courses. At 25 bucks a pop, it's equivalent to the kind of courses they used to advertise in the classifieds next to spells to get rich. The faculty is just Alvarado and a Santeria woman, plus a Gullah consultant and a guy with an MA in performance art. That's it.

There certainly are quite a few complaints about Alvarado. It's mostly complaints of being overcharged, items sold not coming or coming late. Alvarado runs Plantet Voodoo online. She may have a degree (in psychology) but I see no sign of her working as actual faculty.

Offline earthw7

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Re: Denise Alvarado/"Cherokee Pipe Carrier"
« Reply #4 on: August 14, 2012, 01:45:08 pm »
Cherokee have no pipe carriers
In Spirit

Epiphany

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Re: Denise Alvarado/"Cherokee Pipe Carrier"
« Reply #5 on: August 14, 2012, 03:07:59 pm »
Here is what she has written as professional bio http://denisealvarado.wordpress.com/

Native American Wellness Scale (NAWS) survey is still up https://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=jd9V7MW2eb_2bynMIV_2f2rK1Q_3d_3d

Quote
Walden University’s approval number for this study is 04-27-09-0080232 and it expires on April 26, 2010.

Don't know why the survey is still online or if she has her PhD now.

Her Mystic Voodoo bio http://www.mysticvoodoo.com/welcome_to_my_world.htm

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My father, Don Alvarado, was a formally trained and renowned medical illustrator  (Gray's Anatomy) and my mother, Mae Moore, was largely a self taught painter of folk art, nature, and mystical imagery.

She wrote The Voodoo Hoodoo Spellbook and a reviewer states:

Quote
Despite it's title it isn't about practicing New Orleans-style Voodoo or Hoodoo; it's Neo-Pagan magic with some Voodoo and Hoodoo thrown in much like other books published in this genre over the last several years.


http://www.amazon.com/review/R3PQI39Y7M3PDQ/ref=cm_cr_pr_viewpnt#R3PQI39Y7M3PDQ

Also:

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She says you can put powders in someone's drink or food. I've never heard of this, and ingesting talc is not a good idea. It contains carcinogens and has been related to the development of various cancers. New mothers are also being warned against using it on newborns because the dust particals are small enough to enter the lungs and can cause breathing problems. I was taught that you can place many, many things into a person's food or a drink, but never a powder.





Epiphany

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Re: Denise Alvarado/"Cherokee Pipe Carrier"
« Reply #6 on: August 14, 2012, 04:21:38 pm »
Found this about her

http://www.ripoffreport.com/psychic-fortune-tellers/denise-alvarado/denise-alvarado-www-planetvood-ea1eb.htm

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For a so-called "psychologist" & Ph. D. candidate she doesn`t do the right thing when obviously troubled people come to her. I have many examples of cases where the customer should have been directed to medical attention, e.g. a psychologist/psychiatrist &/or an internal medicine specialist. But not her, oh no, not when a buck is involved. The more disturbed her clients are, the better. They are even less likely to complain than healthier folks, even more superstitious & paranoid. 

If this charge is true - Alvarado is unethical and dangerous. This type of scam has been pulled for ages - convince gullible and ill people that they have to keep coming back to you for candles, powders, rituals etc. - or they won't find success. Even tell them that if they don't continue with you that they'll be harmed.

Ethical hoodoo practitioners refer disturbed and ill people to the health professionals they need. For instance they would never encourage a client with untreated OCD to keep coming back for more over and over again.

But no matter what - the elaborate bogus autobiography needs to wave huge red flags in front of potential clients and followers.

Offline freddier

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Re: Denise Alvarado/"Cherokee Pipe Carrier"
« Reply #7 on: August 31, 2012, 01:29:39 pm »
<<She was the recipient of Walden University's Research and Applications for Social Change, 2008-2009 with her research on Native American wellness and quality of life.>>>

She must know how bad off we are healthwise as a people then. Maybe she'll find a cure for diabetes!  Not!

Offline non-NDN

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Re: Denise Alvarado/"Cherokee Pipe Carrier"
« Reply #8 on: October 12, 2012, 04:54:00 pm »
Should this get moved over to frauds then? :(


Offline non-NDN

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Re: Denise Alvarado/"Cherokee Pipe Carrier"
« Reply #10 on: December 07, 2012, 11:10:32 pm »
This seems to be making her go crazy... perhaps even crazier than usual. Seems the story has to twist now that she's seen she's been caught on it.

"The issue of being a pipe carrier is simply a matter of the person distorting my words to suit their agenda. I am indeed a pipe carrier, but I am also Cherokee. Most tribes have sacred pipes, you imbecil. The title of Pipe Carrier comes from the Lakota religion, the Way of the Sacred Pipe. One of my teachers was Lakota, and I have been to Sundance. I am not Lakota, so I do not call myself a Lakota Pipe Carrier...THAT would be fraudulent. I do admit that folks who are unfamiliar with Native American traditions could easily be confused and so I have clarified the language on my site. However you slice this loaf of bread, there is nothing that this person can say or do to change the fact that I am who I say I am and I have LIVED the life of a native person. Not something someone who dresses up like an Indian on Halloween can ever do or change. It must really irk him to know that I am what he wants to be so his way of dealing with that is to trash my name."

http://conjureart.blogspot.com/2012/12/cute-puppies-and-sons-of-bitches.html


Offline educatedindian

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Re: Denise Alvarado/"Cherokee Pipe Carrier"
« Reply #11 on: December 08, 2012, 03:15:27 am »
Alvarado has never contacted us. I did leave her this response, let's see if she was mature enough to allow it to be posted.

----------
Wrong on numerous counts. The Cherokee don't have pipe carriers. "Pipe carriers" is itself a New Age and not a Native term. Genuine medicine people don't train outsiders. "Aztec" is a term invented by Wm Prescott, a racist white historian in the 1840s. The actual people call themselves Nahua, and they don't go to alleged Lakota to learn their traditions, just as Cherokee don't either.

You never sent any letter to NAFPS, though you are welcome to. Unlike you, we don't dismiss people with childish name calling and falsehoods. None of the reports on you at NAFPS were from anyone who was ever associated with you. Unlike you we also allow people to give their side, and you are welcome to at NAFPS.

If you hadn't been so lazy and actually done research, you'd see who we are, and that we are respected and used by hundreds of organizations as a source, including activists, universities, museums, and tribal govts. I am in academia myself, and it is disturbing that there are no consequences for essentially academic fraud, an online scam posing as a university.

Let's see if you can be mature enough to allow criticism, and ethical enough to answer for your falsehoods and/or lack of knowledge.
Al Carroll, moderator, NAFPS

Epiphany

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Re: Denise Alvarado/"Cherokee Pipe Carrier"
« Reply #12 on: December 08, 2012, 03:56:32 am »
That recent blog post sure is venomous.

She has tweaked her bio a bit http://www.crossroadsuniversity.com/faculty.htm , looks like the text that is in different font size might be where she edited. Along with the other obvious problems, I'm curious about this:

Quote
She is a medicine woman and rootworker in the Southern Hoodoo tradition.

Wonder if she claiming to be two things: a medicine woman (presumed NDN) of a nation, and also a rootworker in the Southern Hoodoo tradition. If she is claiming to be a medicine woman/rootworker in the Southern Hoodoo tradition, that seems extra weird. Rootworker is an accurate term for Hoodoo, medicine woman not so much.

Back in 2009 she claims she dealt with a possible skinwalker (she later decides it was a spirit) in Iowa. Yes, in Iowa. http://conjureart.blogspot.com/2009/12/encounter-with-skinwalker-in-heartland.html In that story she details more about her supposed bio:

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I was not convinced that it was a skinwalker because the people involved were not Navajo, although Mary was adopted and taught the way of the sacred pipe which is one of the sacred rites of the Lakota, and Lilly is of Cherokee ancestry. My son is half Navajo, I am Creole (Spanish, French and Indian) and was married to a full blooded Navajo, lived and worked in Gallup New Mexico and learned a lot about their religion and spirituality.

Edit: now I see this bit http://conjureart.blogspot.com/p/indian-spirit-hoodoo.html , explains more about what she says is her context:

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.....reflection of my personal experience and walk as a medicine woman and rootworker who has had many Indian teachers. Thus, the southern conjure tradition that I teach is the southern conjure tradition that I know. My family has spiritualist and Catholic roots and those influences also show. That said, my conjure tradition is not the conjure tradition because there is no one conjure tradition, just as there is no one Native American tradition.
« Last Edit: December 08, 2012, 04:04:51 am by Epiphany »

Offline non-NDN

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Re: Denise Alvarado/"Cherokee Pipe Carrier"
« Reply #13 on: January 02, 2013, 06:07:54 pm »
"ANNOUNCEMENT: Due to the ongoing harassment of Denise Alvarado by Sharon Marino, Denise has decided to leave facebook. Although she previously posted a final message to the group, it was removed when she deactivated her account. For those who missed it, her message is as follows:

"As of this point in time, I will be leaving FB. I no longer feel safe here. Anyone who wishes may contact me through planetvoodoo@planetvoodoo.com. Since there are other admins in this group, the group will remain. It will be up to you as to whether or not you wish to keep the group going. Feel free to join me at www.conjure corner.com. I appreciate everyone's support and love all of you who have supported me through these trying times. Be blessed and have a Happy New year. Love and light, Denise"

As one of the remaining Administrators along with Rootmama Conjure, Winsom Winsom and Khi Armand, I would just like to say that as far as I am concerned this group is not going anywhere. I will do my best to keep this group active, answer questions as best as I can, post content, and generally attempt to fill the void left by Denise.

I ask that everyone please be patient with us during this transition and continue to keep Denise and her family in your thoughts and prayers.
Thank You
Carolina Dean"


Seems, as usual, that once you expose someone for completely lying about any shred of background they pretend to have, they run off and retreat. (this time, people are enjoined to speak to her... on her pay site, for the low price of a 5$ a month membership fee.) Set up a funnel of yes people to point the way, and... well. Here we are.