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Sleeve Notes
Floyd Westerman, full-blooded Sioux Indian, was born on the Sisseton-Wahpeton Sioux reservation in Veblen, South Dakota, on August 17, 1940.
At the age of two, Floyd was taken from his parents and placed in a Catholic Mission a few miles from the reservation. "If he was good", he was permitted to visit his parents on the weekends.
At the age of sevent, the government Indian boarding school in Wahpeton, North Dakota removed him completely from his home and reservation. Floyd's recollection of life at the Wahpeton Indian School includes beatings for speaking his Indian language, enduring cattle-like showers behind concrete walls, DDT and kerosene hair-washings, and spoonful of casteroil to end the day. Along with Dennis Banks, George Mitchell, and Charles Deegan, all present-day Indian leaders, Floyd survived the school's constant attempt to whitewash his Indian heritage.
After graduation from eight grade at Wahpeton Indian School, Floyd was placed in the Flandreau Indian School in Flandreau, South Dakota. His move here constitute the final enforced break with family ties, as he was separated from his brother.
Floyd's college education consisted of six unhappy years at Northern State Teacher's College in Aberdeen, South Dakota. His average gardes were F's and D's and his record for inattendance was noteworthy. One of Floyd's fondest memories of college is that he even flunked archery. During a leave of absence from college, Floyd joined the Marine Corps in a one-year reserve program. Then, he finally graduated with a degree in secondary education. He then spend a few penniless years as an entertainer in bars around the Denver area. Disillusioned by the worth of that career, Floyd entered law school with the purpose of using such skills to help his people. His law education was curtailed, however, by the opportunity to record an Indian-based album for Perception Records in New York, through the recommendation of Vine Deloria, Jr., the author of "Custer Died For Your Sins." Floyd presently is earnestly pursuing his role as a spokesman for his people. His charm as an entertainer has led to his performing at the Office of Economic Opportunity's celebrity-filled reception at the Plaza Hotel, and Andrew Stein's recent, and much-publicized Southampton party. Floyd has also travelled the country extensively to entertain at Indian youth conferenes and colleges, and recently was featuren at the Crow Festival in Montana, a gathering of all American Indian tribes.