NAFPS Forum

Pat and Trish, please post this on our sites when you get the chance. If anyone has any more information on him, I'd like to hear it. Pass this around to any list with Europeans interested in NDNs. Thanks again to the Swedes I met who came forward for their help.

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New Age Fraud Warning: Kenneth Diner or Dineh
and Swedish Indian Association, formerly called Sun Dance

For over a decade, no single person has dominated the scene in Sweden of those with an interest in American Indians as Kenneth Diner. At the same time, no one, absolutely no one, has done more harm to Native causes in Sweden as Kenneth Diner. No one else has abused or lied to more people or made it more difficult for honest or sincere people in Sweden to learn about or help Native people than this abusive cult leader and his organization, the Swedish Indian Association. Diner has left behind him a trail of disillusionment, sexual abuse, and deception that, even among New Age imposters posing as Native medicine people, stands out as appalling.

Diner's record of deception goes back as far as the 1980s. At the time married to a Chilean woman and with a daughter, Diner claimed to have been taught by a Chilean medicine man "in a few weeks.??? This was the first of a long series of ridiculous claims by Diner that would have gotten him laughed out of town if he tried to say them to actual Native people. But in Sweden where there are extremely few Native people and even fewer good sources on Natives, there is little to contradict his lies.

Any actual Native person would tell you that it takes DECADES, not weeks, to become a medicine man. Diner has also claimed to be an adopted Navajo, an adopted Lakota, and an adopted member of an unnamed tribe in New Mexico. But today actual adoptions by Native tribes are extremely rare, and they do NOT make one qualified to do ceremonies. Diner also claims to be part of an "elders circle??? that would meet every year to impress each other with tricks. Most Americans would laugh at that. Diner's silly claim is stolen straight out of the famous novel Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko!

But back in 1995, Diner first claimed to be Inuit. He said his parents were from Denmark, sometimes also saying one grandparent was from Greenland. Whether Diner actually has any Native blood is unknown, but it does not change the most important fact. Diner is NOT an elder or medicine man from ANY Native tribe. His own history shows a complete lack of knowledge about Native beliefs and cultures and a lack of character that would disqualify him from ever being accepted by any Native people as a healer or elder.

Diner's worst practice is preying upon vulnerable women, telling them they need healing and then trying to seduce them within moments of meeting them. He uses "crystal healing???, "stone healing???, and "healing with Indian energies???. NONE of these are Native healing practices. Worse still, he insists on "healing??? gullible women who are told they must topless or nude. He molests them in these false versions of ceremonies, trying to sexually excite or seduce them, all the while telling them they must be open minded. NONE of this is part of ANY Native traditions anywhere, or is acceptable behavior for healers of any background. What Diner is doing is sexual assault, and he belongs in prison for this abuse of women.

Almost as bad is Diner's habit of "borrowing??? money, from a few hundred up to ten thousand crowns, and never paying it back. Sometimes he claims the money supposedly is going to Big Mountain, but it keeps repeatedly disappearing. In 1998 he urged members of Swedish Indian Association to collect clothes for Navajos. Many of the members raised money to send these clothes, but again the money vanished. Many also held lotteries to raise money, or gave money directly to Diner. But the Swedish Indian Association cashier never saw most of this money and often did not even know about it.

Pt 2

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Stories of Diner's deceiving people for money are almost as common as those of him abusing women. He went to jumble sales (what in the US are called garage sales) and bought items which he then turned around and sold as Native crafts; ponchos, jewelry, blankets, guitar straps, and flutes that were actually made in Asia. Most of the members' fees for Swedish Indian Association were taken directly by Diner. In one case, thousands of crowns for Big Mountain were "lost??? and the woman finally had to threaten him with invoicing to retrieve it. At one time Swedish Indian Association had ten chapters all over Sweden raising money for Big Mountain. All of the chapters except the central one reported problems with lost or missing money, and finally resorted to sending money directly instead of through the central chapter. Once the Swedish Indian Association had perhaps 80-100 members, though they claimed 350. But Diner's behaviour took its toll, disgusting and disillusioning most of the members. Today the Swedish Indian Association has perhaps thirty members, though still claiming many more.

Every one of the former members I spoke with believes the cause of the Swedish Indian Association's decline was caused by Kenneth Diner's terrible drug addictions. Meetings led by Diner were notorious for drunkenness and drug use. Most told me they believed his worst problems were with cocaine or methamphetamine use. Another believed him to be a heavy hashish user. Diner's manic nervous behaviour and frequent lies and theft all fit with the picture of an addict.

To any people in Sweden wishing to get involved with Native causes or learn about Native cultures, BE WARNED: Getting involved with the Swedish Indian Association is the worst possible choice. Ask yourself why most of its members no longer have anything to do with Diner. Ask yourself why the best people, those who wanted to do some good or just learn, have left, and only those who don't ask questions remain. Do NOT send them any money or work with them. There are far better groups to become involved with.

To the many women Diner has abused over the years: Please understand that what happened was not your fault. Just as important it was NOT part of any Native ceremony. What he did was assault. Please seek help to deal with your trauma if you have not done so already. And please consider coming forward to the police so that he will never do this to anyone else again.

To Kenneth Diner: I strongly urge you to seek counselling for your drug problems. There are no old drug addicts. I strongly urge you to quit deceiving others about who you are and dedicate your life to better things, and especially to quit abusing women before one of them finally has the courage to come forward and send you to prison for what you have done.

Dr. Al Carroll (Mescalero Apache)
Social & Behavioral Sciences Dept.
St. Phillip's College

Done, just gotta upload it. Should be up this evening.

Wow! I live in the same town as Diner does and saw him on an annual festival in the alternative-counter culture circuit in the seventies when I was a kid . But I never knew that guy was so bad, thank you for the information!

He is active on Facebook, and some people have actually let him join their groups. He tries to collect NDNs, and some folks who tend to accept all friend requests have actually joined his collection.

I had not seen this thread, but was freaked out by the pictures he posted, and I couldn't understand why some people who really know better are treating him like he's someone who can be educated and changed. I'm glad this thread is active again, because we have some board members who really need to read this.

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=654663726&ref=ts&fref=ts

Attached is what I think is a fairly recent photo of Diner. I don't know what the guy's real name is.

Some of my friends call him "The Baby Stealer." He has these creepy photos of himself with NDN babies. I don't know if he just grabs people's babies for photo ops, or what. I don't know whose babies they are. But it creeps me out.

From what I know Kenneth Dinér is his real name.
He and his mates did arrange a "Pow-wow" just a mile down the road from the village where I live. I heard about it the first summer after I moved here, and naivly thought it was Native Americans and supporters that had some meeting in a serious way. Instead it was a bunch of norwegians,danes and swedes that dressed up and played indians for a weekend.
I don´t know if they still hold this "live-roleplay version of a Pow-wow". If I hear something I let you know.