Coyote: The Life & Times of Visionary Navajo Artist David Chethlahe Paladin

Finalist: New Mexico & Arizona Book Awards 2013 Born at Canyon de Chelly in 1926, Chethlahe had a remarkable life as he struggled with both his name identity and spiritual conflict in large part because he was a half-breed. A boarding school runaway, he became a merchant seaman at the age of 14. Unique experiences in the South Pacific led him to the United States Army and finally to subversive activity in Belgium as a sabotage agent at the age of 16. He was captured. Refusing to acknowledge his captors in anything except his Navajo language he was finally sentenced to death. While being transported for execution an unbelievable incident occurred that spared his life and sent him to Dachau Concentration Camp. At Dachau, never revealing his American identity, he survived because of Navajo and Kiva spiritual training until an unfortunate incident brought unspeakable horror and torture into his life. Upon liberation of Dachau he was found and presumed to be a dead Russian soldier. Clinging to life at 62 pounds and paraplegic, he was returned to the US for rehabilitation. Soon afterward the US Government refused rehabilitation for him and he returned to Canyon de Chelly. His medicine man uncle revived both his spirit and health before he returned to Germany for the Nuremburg trials. This is not a stereotyped story of down-and-out life on an Indian reservation; rather, it depicts the cultural heritage and beauty of the Navajo people. Chethalhe was a remarkable person that personified the coyote. In Navajo mythology Coyote was injured during critical activity, but never lost focus in bringing light to the world. Chethlahe's life ran the gamut of religion and spiritualism as he became a renown artist. Upon his death in 1984 Newsweek said that he was the most prominent Native American Indian artist of our time.