(Name-mce) ListServ Crushing Stereotypes

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Leesville Daily Leader 
Leesville,  Louisiana 
www.leesvilledailyleader.com/articles/2006/11/08/news/news1.txt 
Crushing  Stereotypes 
Published: Wednesday, November 8, 2006 
By WILL TUBBS/Staff  Writer 
PITKIN - Last Friday morning, the  students at Pitkin High received a big 
(roughly 6-7, 300-pound) surprise when  motivational speaker Jim Warne visited 
their campus to speak about a wide range  of topics. 
Warne visited Pitkin as a  representative of Central Louisiana Intertribal 
Vocation Rehabilitation  Program. 
Warne's message covers everything  from healthy living to racial, religious 
and cultural tolerance to the  importance of education. 
“Do you want to soar with the  eagles or hoot with the owls?” was the 
question that summed up Warne's  message. 
Warne is a man of many talents  and draws from each of these to deliver his 
message. 
He was a college and professional  football player, who played for  Arizona  
State and the Cincinnati Bengals  (among others). 
While at  Arizona  State he was named to the  second-team, All-Pac 10 squad 
and was a part of the 1987  Arizona  State team that defeated  Michigan 22-15 
in the Rose Bowl to  finish at No. 4 in the nation. 
Warne is also quite the scholar,  currently possessing a Master's Degree in 
Rehabilitation  Counseling/Administration from San  Diego State as well  as a 
postgraduate certification in post-employment training-rehabilitation  
administration from San Diego  State and a Bachelor's degree in  physical education 
and exercise physiology from  Arizona  State. 
He also runs several successful  businesses and is currently pursuing his 
Doctorate at  San Diego  State. 
Warne is also an accomplished  actor, having appeared in such films as “The 
Substitute” with Tom Beringer as  well as television shows like “Renegade” 
with Lorenzo Lamas and “Silk  Stalkings.” 
He's even done a Budweiser  commercial. 
Warne is also a man of great  culture. He is a member of the Oglala Lakota 
(Sioux) Tribe of Pine Ridge,  S.D. 
Warne intermixes the many  elements of his life to present a unique message 
of diversity, unity, tolerance  and all of the elements that lead one down the 
path of an eagle. 
One of Warne's main points in any  of his speeches is the importance of 
avoiding stereotypes and valuing the  uniqueness of others. 
Warne recounted his own  experience in driving home this point and, in the 
process, had the students at  Pitkin in stitches with laughter. 
“I was able to drive my dream  home on the beach in San Diego,”  Warne said. 
“Did the NFL pay for that? Did Hollywood pay  for that? No, it was businesses 
that I run that paid for that. 
“Football gave me a great  opportunity in that it paid for my education and 
acting has proven to be a good  source of extra income, but it was my education 
that has carried me,” he  continued. 
“It wasn't  Hollywood. If I left it up to  Hollywood or the NFL to decide 
what  I was going to be, I would either be a bodyguard or a bouncer. What a waste 
that  would have been. What a waste of intellect,” Warne said. 
Warne often jokes about the roles  he receives in Hollywood, even  though he 
admits that it is somewhat sad that he and other Native American  actors are 
cast in the same, mostly-negative, but almost-always stereotypical  roles. 
“My last audition was for a  character called ‘Big Indian,'” Warne said. “
They didn't even give me a  name.” 
Warne said he is often asked why  he takes roles such as these. 
“I always tell people, I take  these roles because I know that many of the 
other actors that take these roles  don't share my message,” Warne said before 
arousing more laughter by adding,  “That message is that a guy like me can play 
characters with more of an  intellectual base than simply ‘Big Indian Killer.'
” 
Warne said he would continue to  work to combat stereotypes. 
“Hopefully before long you'll see  a movie featuring, ‘Big Indian Killer' as 
portrayed by Dr. Jim Warne,” he  quipped. “I think that would be an ironic 
and appropriate representation of the  hypocrisy that still exists in  
Hollywood.” 
Warne was quick to point out that  stereotypes were not simply those 
associated with race. 
His father, an accomplished  accountant, saw his business and employment 
prospects sharply decline when he  was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. “That 
basically pissed me off,” Warne  said. “I decided to do something about it. I 
wanted to let people know that just  because someone is in a wheelchair or 
different in some way, doesn't mean they  can't contribute positively to our 
society. 
“Today, My father can only move  his head, but he still does my taxes every 
year. Which is a good thing, because  I would probably mess them up,” he said. 
Warne somehow managed to touch on  everything from proper diet, to avoiding 
drugs to the importance of education to  the importance of maintaining a 
healthy mind an spirit into a 30-minute  speech. 
After the talk, Warne spent an  extra 15 minutes signing autographs for the 
students at Pitkin. After that it  was off to Leesville where Warne spent the 
afternoon speaking to students at the  Leesville  Developmental  Center.