It is very few moments in time, where one person stands up for what is right and traditional among Indigenous tribal people, here on Turtle Island! More than that is the rare occasions they succeed in that quest. One man has done just that for our people of Yamassee and his name is Casey Leydon a cousin of the Yamassee tribe via his Timucua bloodline.
Well over a decade ago Casey found out about a construction site that had planned on building a community on top of Yamassee sacred land & burial grounds. We however as Yamassee was not made aware of this and knew nothing of the matter!
This is not surprising given the countless atrocities carried out throughout this country by rogue individuals with a plan who dare not give the common courtesy to Native peoples, to let them know, we have found some of your ancestors, how do you want to proceed! However Casey, with his warrior spirit and We are sure the spirits of our and his ancestors supporting him, succeeded in not only keeping a building from being built on top of our graves, he also beat the court case that was brought against him after his effort to protect our family graves.
Casey Leydon, those thousands of Yamassee warriors are here, and we say (Shonabish Chi) Thank you, for what you have done for our heritage & culture. None more than what you have done for our ancestors ability to rest.
Read the partial article below and go by our Facebook page and post a Thank you to this brave warrior, who stood by himself against the giant. Now imagine what we can do as a ” FAMILY” of thousands. Strong heart warriors, it is your time…
Bih Mico Hadjo
Article:
In the end, Casey Leydon was able to give a voice to about 100 American Indians buried more than 280 years ago in downtown St. Augustine.
“Oppression Can Only Survive in Silence” is one of two slogans Leydon wrote on a wall Feb. 23 at the Tremerton Street site, which is being developed into an eight-home subdivision.
Leydon also took black paint and wrote “What Greater Grief Than the Loss of One’s Homeland” on the concrete and coquina wall. The phrases were in letters one-inch high, about four inches above the ground.
The lettering came to the attention of Mark Knight, the city’s director of Planning and Building, who called the police, said Leydon’s lawyer, Jill Barger. The charge was vandalism.
“I believe they were concerned about demonstrations there or that what Casey was doing might lead to something more,” she added.
Leydon also brought an assortment of items, including religious figures, to the development. He built a shrine to the Yamasee Indians buried there between the 1720s and the 1750s. And he prayed.
“It was a prayer from me to the Yamasee, saying, ‘I can’t stop this,’ ” Leydon said afterward. “I prayed that God would send 1,000 Yamasee warriors to defend the land.”
What he got instead was a police officer, who took him to jail.
On Nov. 16, Barger filed a motion to dismiss, which was rejected by County Judge Charles Tinlin. She then asked for a jury trial.
