Editing Sweat lodge (section)

=== Sedona deaths and Lakota Nation lawsuit ===
In October 2009, during a [[New Age]] retreat organized by [[James Arthur Ray]], three people died and 21 more became ill while attending an overcrowded and improperly set up sweat lodge containing some 60 people and located near [[Sedona, Arizona]].<ref>{{ cite news | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/12/us/12lodge.html | first = John |last = Dougherty | newspaper = [[The New York Times]] | title= Deaths at Sweat Lodge Bring Soul-Searching | date=11 October 2009}}</ref> Ray was arrested by the [[Yavapai County Sheriff's Office]] in connection with the deaths on February 3, 2010, and bond was set at $5 million.<ref>{{cite news | url =http://enlightenmenthow.com/motivational-speaker-charged-sweat-lodge-deaths/  | first = Felicia | last = Fonseca | title = Motivational speaker charged in sweat lodge deaths }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | title = Motivational speaker charged in sweat lodge deaths | agency = Associated Press | publisher = ABC30, KFSN Fresno | date = 3 February 2010}}</ref> In response to these deaths, [[Lakota people|Lakota]] spiritual leader [[Arvol Looking Horse]] issued a statement reading in part:

{{quote|Our First Nations People have to earn the right to pour the ''mini wic'oni'' (water of life) upon the ''inyan oyate'' (the stone people) in creating ''Inikag'a'' – by going on the vision quest for four years and four years Sundance. Then you are put through a ceremony to be painted – to recognize that you have now earned that right to take care of someone's life through purification. They should also be able to understand our sacred language, to be able to understand the messages from the Grandfathers, because they are ancient, they are our spirit ancestors. They walk and teach the values of our culture; in being humble, wise, caring and compassionate. What has happened in the news with the make shift sauna called the sweat lodge is not our ceremonial way of life!<ref name=lookinghorse1 />}}

On November 2, 2009, the [[Lakota people|Lakota]] Nation filed a lawsuit against the United States, Arizona State, [[James Arthur Ray]], and Angel Valley Retreat Center site owners, to have Ray and the site owners arrested and punished under the [[Sioux Treaty of 1868]] between the United States and the Lakota Nation.<ref name="lakotalaw">Rehfeld, Nina.[http://ndnnews.com/2009/11/lakota-tribe-files-lawsuit-against-parties-in-sweat-lodge-incident/ "Lakota Nation files lawsuit against parties in sweat lodge incident"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130317115751/http://ndnnews.com/2009/11/lakota-tribe-files-lawsuit-against-parties-in-sweat-lodge-incident/ |date=2013-03-17 }}, sedona.biz, 12 November 2009.</ref> That treaty states that “if bad men among the whites or other people subject to the authority of the United States shall commit any wrong upon the person or the property of the Indians, the United States will (...) proceed at once to cause the offender to be arrested and punished according to the laws of the United States, and also reimburse the injured person for the loss sustained.”<ref name="lakotalaw" />

The Lakota Nation holds that James Arthur Ray and the Angel Valley Retreat Center have “violated the peace between the United States and the Lakota Nation” and have caused the “desecration of our Sacred ''Oinikiga'' (purification ceremony) by causing the death of Liz Neuman, Kirby Brown and James Shore”. As well, the Lakota claim that James Arthur Ray and the Angel Valley Retreat Center fraudulently impersonated Indians and must be held responsible for causing the deaths and injuries, and for evidence destruction through dismantling of the sweat lodge. The lawsuit seeks to have the treaty enforced and does not seek monetary compensation.<ref name="lakotalaw" />

Preceding the lawsuit, Native American experts on sweat lodges criticized the reported construction and conduct of the lodge as not meeting traditional ways ("bastardized", "mocked" and "desecrated").  Indian leaders expressed concerns and prayers for the dead and injured. The leaders said the ceremony is their way of life<ref name=lookinghorse1 /> and not a [[religion]]. It is Native American [[cultural property|property]] protected by U.S. law and [[Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples|United Nations]] declaration. The ceremony should only be in sanctioned lodge carriers' hands from legitimate nations. Traditionally, a typical leader has 4 to 8 years of apprenticeship before being allowed to care for people in a lodge, and have been officially named as ceremonial leaders before the community. Participants are instructed to call out whenever they feel uncomfortable, and the ceremony is usually stopped to help them. The lodge was said to be unusually built from non-breathable materials. Charging for the ceremony was said to be inappropriate. The number of participants was criticized as too high and the ceremony length was said to be too long.  Respect to elders' oversight was said to be important for avoiding unfortunate events. The tragedy was characterized as "plain carelessness", with a disregard for the participants' safety and outright negligence.<ref name=Goulais /> The Native American community actively seeks to prevent abuses of their traditions. Organizers have been discussing ways to formalize guidance and oversight to authentic or independent lodge leaders.<ref name=lookinghorse1 /><ref name="lakotalaw" /><ref>{{cite video|title=Chief Chemito, Comments reported on Phoenix Fox 10 |first=Miriam |last=Garcia |date=10 October 2009 |publisher=Phoenix Fox 10 News |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLILFSrfmBs |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140709173345/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLILFSrfmBs |archivedate=July 9, 2014 }}</ref><ref>{{citation | first = Valerie |last = Taliman | title = Selling the sacred | publisher = Indian Country Today | url = http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/ict_sbc/selling-the-sacred | date=13 October 2009}}</ref><ref>{{Citation | first = Lindsay | last = Hocker | title = Sweat lodge incident 'not our Indian way' | publisher =  Quad-Cities Online | date = 14 October 2009 |url = http://qconline.com/archives/qco/display.php?id=462433}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|author=All Nations Indigenous Native American Indian Cultural Center |title=Native Elder Addresses Deaths In Sweat Lodge |publisher=BlackHillsToday |date=17 October 2009 |url=http://www.blackhillsportal.com/npps/story.cfm?ID=3492 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150518085724/http://www.blackhillsportal.com/npps/story.cfm?ID=3492 |archivedate=May 18, 2015 }}</ref><ref name=lookinghorse2>{{citation | url = http://firewitchrising.blogspot.com/2009/10/native-american-chief-addresses-deaths.html | date = 18 October 2009 | title = Native American Chief Addresses Deaths In Sweat Lodge: Chief Arvol Looking Horse Speaks Out | author = All Nations Indigenous Native American Indian Cultural Center}}</ref>