Name Brooke Eagle | Role Author | |
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Books Buffalo woman comes singing, The Last Ghost Dance Albums Visions Speaking, Gathering: The Sacred Breath, Live from the Shaman's Cave, For My People, A Gift of Song | ||
Brooke Medicine Eagle Downunder
Brooke "Medicine Eagle" Edwards (born 1943) is an American author, singer/songwriter and teacher, specializing in her interpretations of Native American religions. She frequently teaches workshops at New Age and other events.
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Edwards was born and raised near a Crow reservation in Montana. She studied at the University of Denver obtaining a BA degree in psychology and mathematics. She earned an MA in counseling psychology from the University of Denver. She describes herself as "of Sioux and Nez Perce ancestry" and says she has ancestors in six Native American tribes.
Edwards' life and spiritual experiences were documented in a 1982 study of American Indian women. Marie Annette Jaimes described Edwards as "a charismatic medicine woman". Jaimes has taught Native American Studies at San Francisco State University, and discussed a vision of Edwards' that represented a "significant contribution" to understanding the place of women within modern Native American culture. According to Jaimes, Edwards is the "great, great grand-niece of Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce" and studied with Stands Near The Fire, a Northern Cheyenne elder.
Edwards has been criticized by some Native American groups. In 1984, the American Indian Movement included Edwards among those it said were responsible for "a great attack or theft" of Native American ceremonies, and in a 2001 article in the Journal of Religious & Theological Information, Cynthia Snavely connected Edwards to the "misappropriation of Native American spirituality [that] takes place within the New Age spirituality movement". The Center for the SPIRIT (Support and Protection of Indian Religions and Indigenous Traditions) accused her of misrepresenting her heritage and falsely claiming to be a medicine woman.
