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Do you know in your bones that our political-economy is broken and beyond repair?
Do you know in your bones that our nation's problems are primarily moral, cultural, psychological, and spiritual? If so, consider Bison Medicine as a path through. Bison Medicine explores three key ideas: The first is that we have a beautiful national purpose that can be realized if we understand what it means and what science tells us about how to fulfill it. The second idea is that we have a majestic National Mammal, the bison, whose behavior is a better match for our nation’s purpose than the bald eagle. It provides us with ethical guidance to fulfill our nation’s purpose. The final point of the book is that each person can live their best life and fulfill our shared purpose, by activating their unique purpose in true community. The net proceeds of the book benefit American Prairie, an organization that works with First Nations to acquire land and protect the natural habitat of the bison, so they may once again be free and flourish. 
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Bison Medicine is available for purchase on Amazon in hard cover, paperback, e-book, or audible format.
SUMMARY
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Bison Medicine invites you to connect with our nation’s family history (Part 1) and acknowledge the way our institutions limit freedom and equality (Parts 2 & 3).
In Part 4, you will meet the medicine of the bison - the teachings of courage, care, inclusion, independence, play, generativity, protection and redemption. In Parts 5-8, you’ll discover the deeper meaning of, and the latest research and best practices to fulfill, our nation’s purpose: “All... are Created Equal”, “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness”, and “E Pluribus Unum”. In Part 9, you’ll be invited to fulfill your own purpose and follow the bison’s guidance to fulfill the purpose of our nation through your leadership. You'll finish the book with a clear understanding of our history, purpose, our path forward, and your role in leading it. 2-pager for students |
free pdfS of the bookIf you're an educator, or want to read the book in your native tongue, or want to explore the sources, or would like to bypass Amazon, you can download the book as a PDF. If you do this please consider making a donation to American Prairie.
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praise
"Calling on powerful soul medicine and his own wide and deep life-lived experiences, Brandon carves a path forward for U.S.ALL. With equal doses of hard truths and uplifting ideas, this passionate purposeful guide coaxes us onward and inward to places we just must go if we are to survive times like these. I am ALL IN."
- Susan Lucci, JD, Co-founder, Global Purpose Leaders
“...a powerful and well-researched illumination of the origin story and highest purpose of the United States, along with proposing a practical path forward from today's chaos toward finally actualizing our national purpose.”
- David Gruder, PhD, Center for Enlightened Self Sovereignty
“Brandon is a brilliant searcher and thought leader. Here you'll find his deep thoughts and perspectives about the transition we are all undergoing as a nation here in the U.S. and globally. There is hope! I have a feeling my fellow Naval Academy and Marine Corps brothers and sisters will particularly enjoy this book.”
- Gabrielle Blocher, CEO, Sunflower Fuels
“The book isn't about the left or the right. It's the bridge between, and the road forward. It's what we need more than ever.”
- Ezra Bookman, Founder, Ritualist
"Powerful, nourishing - a map for regenerating the very purpose of our nation, and the wisdom of our Founding Fathers - adding whole new layers of wisdom... Thank you, Brandon Peele, for your vision, your devotion, for the integrity of your research, and your storytelling. For bringing attention to the soul of our country, and these amazing creatures, the bison, who wander our plains. They have so much to teach us - and so do you. May we all support each other in these times to regenerate the true power of our nation."
- Robin Athey, PhD, Oxford Leadership
"... a critical call to action for our nation. Bison Medicine is a key to our healing. Thank you Brandon for providing us a roadmap to do our individual and collective part to co-create the world we seek - with liberty and justice for all."
- Bobby Bakshi, Co-leader, The ManKind Project
"...a wise approach to weaving both the triumphs and the dark history of our country and inviting us to reimagine what our future could look like... It's widened my imagination and approach to being an American citizen."
- Rachel Zargo, Creative Director, Late Love
"Brandon Peele presents an inspiring and insightful vision into the spirit and motivating energy of this country. By offering a unique and stirring perspective, he invites us to clarify our intentions, to hone our skills, and to connect as community to to raise ourselves up into the full potential of this grand Amercian experiment."
- Dave Klaus, JD, Zen Priest
"I found Bison Medicine mind expanding. If you care about the U.S., do yourself (and your country) the favor of reading it. The fresh perspectives, rooted in our collective historical vision, contained in this book are exceptional. You don’t have to agree with everything in it to be served by it. Some of my favorite parts are those that differed from my views."
- Bea Boccalandro, President, Veraworks
“On January 27, 1838, in Springfield, Illinois, Abraham Lincoln addressed the importance of upholding the nation's institutions and laws to preserve the Republic. In what is known as the 1838 Lyceum Address, Lincoln admonished, ‘If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide.’ As in 1838, Bison Medicine is a prophetic call for us to ponder and reconsider our path as a Nation. We either commit to the path of our common humanity — or division and strife. If we follow our better angels, we can follow the bison's individual and collective power. Thank you, Brandon, for reminding us to choose wisely.”
- Luis Marrero, PhD, CEO, Boston Institute for Meaningful Purpose
"Bison Medicine is an important book... a foundation to understand what is needed to heal our nation. I highly recommend this book, especially for our youth."
- Michele Lyons, Spanish Teacher
"Bison Medicine is raw and real. Peele skillfully names the tension we’re all living in. The pull between collapse and awakening. This book, this offer and invitation stands in that tension without flinching. It speaks directly to the work I do with leaders, with teams, with myself. Rooted in purpose, and not fully polished. Honest about the pain, and still holding the thread of what’s possible. The bison offers a metaphor for a way of being. Present, powerful, patient. That energy lives in this book. It reminds me of what it means to lead from the edge. To walk forward without the map being finished and to steward the precious spark of life that we have inherited from our ancestors on behalf of future generations."
- Kent Frazier, Co-founder, Fully Human
"The spark, the fire for this book and movement was divinely entrusted to Brandon. And, the process to nurture and develop it was the most collaborative process, inviting feedback, pushback, tending, and consideration from start to finish through multiple perspectives. Truly remarkable and soul-nourishing as I look back on it. Who knew we would benefit from medicine about collective purpose at this time?"
- Dena Wiggins, Senior Facilitator, Translator
“The gift of Bison Medicine can be summed up in one word—restorative... Brandon didn't just sit in a room like some mad scientist creating a solitary vision of what he thought this country should look like. He included other people who are here on this land mass trying to make it a home. This book is very literally an inclusive community in book form. The book was born of a process of studying, learning, doing inner work, reflecting, having conversations, and being in wonder--everything that you would want in a founding document... a treatise on considering what this place could be if we learned from our mistakes... a vision that any American can locate themselves in... The American idea that Brandon is inviting us to consider has the superordinate quality born of the awareness that if an American People will ever exist, it will have to be a 'People of Peoples' (My words, not his.) But, you can tell that Brandon is aware of this, because he acknowledges the myths, symbols, and identity forming narratives that have prevented us from getting there. And he is doing so from the social position where--in theory at least--he would have to give something up. No one does this unless, they have come in contact with something greater.”
- Pedro Silva, Director of Engagement, YOUnify
"Whether you’re on a spiritual path, searching for deeper meaning in your work, or simply yearning to reconnect with your own heart, Bison Medicine will meet you where you are—and then gently guide you where you need to go. I couldn’t be ... more grateful that he’s shared this medicine with the world."
- Sarah Eigel, HR Director, Daiohs USA
"There is so much potential in this country, and if we can look forward, keep our minds open and bring everyone along for the ride, anything is possible. You will see specific policy prescriptions,... big thinking that is going to be necessary to enable us to reach our potential and be worthy of our purpose. Let's all challenge the status quo thoughtfully and constructively. It's a powerful read..."
- Alan Iny, Partner, Boston Consulting Group
"Reading this book felt like a conversation with an old friend... one who gently yet persistently nudges you to see the world differently, to look deeper, and to imagine what healing could look like on a national scale. It’s a book that doesn't just ask you to reflect on your own life but invites you to reconsider the soul of an entire country.
Peele brings us back to the bison, a powerful and beautiful symbol of resilience, to remind us of what we’ve lost and what we can still restore. His 'Bison Circles'—spaces for shared purpose and healing—felt so simple, yet so radical, in their potential to bring us together. What strikes me most about this book is its quiet hope, the way it calls us to face our fractured history with open hearts, while also believing that we can change our trajectory.
It’s a message - that our collective healing is not just possible, but necessary, and that it’s something we all must take part in. This isn’t just a book you read; it’s one that stays with you and asks you to ask yourself some tough questions about who we are and who we want to be.
If you’re ready to be reminded that healing is possible—and that it starts with us all—then Bison Medicine will be a book you can’t put down. It’s a call to action, yes, but more importantly, it’s a call to remember our shared humanity."
- Frieda Nixdorf, Soul Guide, Life in the Confluence
"Brandon Peele has done an excellent job of presenting the history that has led us to the critical present, helping the reader to understand who we are and where we have come from. He presents a thoughtful, purpose driven approach to a brighter future in a way that educates, heals, and inspires."
- David Booth, Mountain Search and Rescue, Coconino County Sheriff
"Groundbreaking. What I loved most was the way this book provided a shift in how we can think about leveraging change and creating a fair society. I am used to thinking about political and grassroots activism, the nonprofit sector, and religious institutions as arenas for influencing society, but the corporate world hasn't been a possible party to those efforts, at least in my imagination. To me this book is groundbreaking and brilliant."
- Atieno Bird, Principal, Two Bird, LLC
"Brandon Peele’s Bison Medicine is a thought-provoking exploration of America’s moral, cultural, spiritual, and psychological challenges. The book uses the symbolism of the bison—America’s national mammal—to offer teachings aimed at helping individuals and communities fulfill the nation’s deeper purpose: equality, liberty, and unity. Peele’s work stands out for urging readers to activate their unique gifts and purpose, not just for personal growth but for collective transformation. The book can be experienced in a group setting, fostering deep discussion and community connection, which aligns with its themes of belonging and shared purpose. Overall, Bison Medicine is both a call to action and a guide for those seeking to address the root causes of societal division and to help remake society on stronger moral and spiritual foundations. You can LOVE America & still know it’s time to make CHANGES."
- Stephan Mackenzie, Co-leader, The ManKind Project
“In a crowded field that often leaves you wanting real solutions to healing the social and political fault lines in society, Peele offers a fresh and practical approach to the conversation. Drawing upon the symbol of the American bison, he provides a compelling new narrative that challenges our current values and ethics, and in doing so, masterfully calls us to something greater than what we could ask or imagine as a country. I came away from reading this book both encouraged and excited for a renewed sense of civic purpose.”
- Joel Domingo, EdD, Research Director, City University of Seattle
"... a fascinating examination of how we got here, replete with stories and concepts from America’s early history that have been largely forgotten, but that are the seeds of what we have become... Then, it offers a path forward to a brighter future, filled with love and community, where all can thrive and be inspired. This is a book we all need to read."
- Chris Pollak, Founder, Wayside Ventures
"... an unflinching and honest look at the problems and promise of our country. Nothing is swept under the rug. But at the same time there is hope and resilience... Highly recommended!
- Tim Ash, Author, Primal Brain
“Bison Medicine is a monumental work of art, a spiritual poetic journey of history and possibility. It is at the same time a tribute to an enlightened experiment, an indictment of a quest gone terribly wrong, and a detailed blueprint of how to reclaim what has been lost. The framers of our Constitution (the great American experiment) imperfect as they were, set a purpose for our nation based on the moral and spiritual wisdom traditions of the ages. They created a unique, inspired manifesto firmly anchored to ALL CREATED EQUAL, universal access to LIFE, LIBERTY AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS and E PLURIBUS UNUM, each person loving the other as much as himself. Bison Medicine will clarify your understanding of the origins and purpose of our grand experiment. And if you permit, it will provide The Cure for a Troubled Nation as it expertly escorts us to regain control of our dangerously drifting country and steer it back onto the enlightened path envisioned by The Founding Fathers.”
- Jon Robison, PhD, Author, The Spirit and Science of Holistic Health
"Bison Medicine offers a grounded, thoughtful reflection on health, resilience, and our relationship with place. As a coach and systems designer, I appreciated how it frames personal and collective well-being as inseparable from the land we move through."
- David Steuer, CTO, ClimbTogether
"Wonderful book that explores important issues not spoken about enough within our local communities. Appreciate the issues that were raised and the context within it was written was amazing."
- Todd Feldman, Professor of Finance, San Francisco State University
"A refreshing and optimistic redefinition of the problems that face an increasingly fractured and siloed America. Peele seeks to bring people together in community to share wisdom and purpose. Bison Medicine captures the socio-political moment and asks us to question the American experiment from a new perspective, one that confounds many of our expectations and is respectful to all those who call this land home."
- Eric Thomas, Psychological Facilitator
"Important, integral, and inspiring! As a therapist, one of the universals I see with clients is that healing cannot happen without honesty... an integral, fundamental part of the healing. To heal and to grow is to look honestly at our past, atone for our transgressions so that change can then occur and to do so without demonizing ourselves. To tell the truth. We are fundamentally good people who have erred. What is true of individuals is true of communities, nation-states, and global civilizations. And what Peele has done here is to invite us, as individuals of a nation-state born of both divinely-inspired ideals and horrendous actions, to tell ourselves the Truth of ourselves so that we may become the people our ideals envision and has provided a path forward for doing so with the Bison. The Bison here is more than metaphor; it and the medicine is embodies give us tangible, actionable ways, rooted in fundamental values, to achieve these goals. Just as the Bison help to create the unimaginably large swaths of open prairie by the virtue of it's hooves, so top does it offer to help us create an open, fertile future for our nation, and by extension, the world. Thank you Brandon, keep up the important work."
- Cameron Meyer, Mental Health Clinician, Hidalgo Medical
"Brandon Peele does a delightful job of presenting the situation the USA is in AND an honest, authentic, compassionate path forward. Despite the situation we are in, I felt empowered, excited and inspired to take action that is alignment with myself and our nation. I can only imagine what our world would look like if all leaders shared this perspective."
- Joshua Cowan, Full Stack Developer, Interworks
"This book was eye opening in many respects. I think my biggest 'ah ha' moment was the concept that the system is cooked, and for many, the movement forward is predetermined, the resistance is predetermined, and in order to really make a difference, I need to pull myself out of that construct to a new dimension... the world needs a book like this, not just the USA... we have work to do in this country. And nobody is going to do it for me or you - it is up to US."
- Bill Davies, JD, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
"In his latest book, Brandon Peele articulates his vision on how the values personified by our National Mammal - the bison - can motivate all of us to be in community and make it a better place. With many historical and cultural examples, Peele illustrates American shortcomings that are not limited to political and economic differences, rather something deeper. By the end of the book, I felt hopeful and inspired to want to put the book's ideas into action and share with others. Brandon Peele has shared again his calling in being a purposeful leader; I encourage all Americans to be open to exploring Bison Medicine and what it has the potential to achieve."
- Andrew Oswald, Board Member, Mt. Diablo Unitarian Universalist Church
"This is a bold, powerful book overflowing with radical, needed ideas! To call this book "unconventional" is both accurate, and a compliment! Bison Medicine's core message about activating individual purpose to serve community needs resonates deeply with me. Bison Medicine overflows with poetic language and challenging ideas. Peele digs deeply into how the American System, at it's core, perpetuates our nation's problems, and lays out a course of personal action to address this."
- Jeff Leyser, Co-leader, The ManKind Project
"Bison Medicine is a 'must read' for all who care deeply about preserving our precious and fragile American democracy. Brandon does a masterful job tracing the roots of the principles our Founding Fathers used as the foundation for our way of government to the Native American tribes they encountered and learned from. He also maps a bold plan designed to reframe both civic duty and governmental responsibility with a goal of properly educating our citizenry on its role in building a sustaining democracy that lives up to our country’s stated purpose. This book presents a hopeful and inspiring vision for reinvigorating all our country both promises and stands for and the active role we must play to achieve 'life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness'."
- Steven Hirsch, retired technology leader, Charles Schwab
"This book is a powerful call to action in uncertain times. It is “through-topian”: a sober description of where we are, a vision for what we can be, and a pathway to get there. Its catalog of our current predicament is thorough and unflinching, and grounded in a Howard Zinn-informed understanding of American history. Its framing of most Americans as ‘orphans’ who have never been escorted into an adult fullness of purpose, and our public institutions as ‘orphanages’ that preserve our society’s underdevelopment, is powerful. It is an analysis of political economy as well as moral economy, and in this respect, it is non-partisan, taking shots at academic and non-profit actors alongside business and political institutions.
At the same time, it offers a full-throated embrace of American identity and political virtues. It is unashamed to be patriotic, admiring, and aspirational. I found this really refreshing. Damning critiques of our current situation are usually delivered with cynicism about America: they seem to think that if you’re still patriotic then you must not be paying attention, or your lens on reality must be distorted. This book proves that you can be a clear-eyed patriot.
The book offers the bison as a symbol of the values we should aspire to, and it applies those values to key virtues of American political life. Its willingness to embrace shared symbolism is also a refreshing departure from many progressive voices. It is animated throughout with quotations from a wide range of observers of American life, from Thomas Paine to Tracy Chapman.
My only wish for the book is that it would have better engaged with the ways that its values and practices do in fact exist in our society today. They have been largely abandoned or betrayed, but this is uneven and incomplete. There are people with purpose, there are households with care, there are communities with neighborhoods and schools, there are governance bodies that steer their responsibilities through the rocky waters of plural societies. They are in the minority, they are under threat, they are disconnected and unsupported, and they shouldn’t be romanticized or exaggerated, but they are there. I don’t say this as a rebuttal of the book’s premise, because there is no doubt that these practices are deeply undermined across the board. But it misses a narrative for progress: if we know what to look for, we can see that these habits are still alive, so let’s build on those or be inspired by them. This author and this book are both cases in point."
- Brad Adams, JD, Oakland Director, International Rescue Committee
"Bison Medicine is an elixir for the soul. Full of wisdom and guidance, Peele directly addresses the wound that currently exists within the heart of the nation. The book is built around the wisdom of the bison, the natural world, Native America, and the feminine. Born out of an acute awareness of our crumbling democracy, Peele both identifies the source of the problem and provides solutions for how to heal.
There is a sickness—a mental virus of greed and selfishness— affecting the nation. This is wetiko—an Algonquin word popularized by Jack Forbes (author of Columbus and Other Cannibals) and others in recent years. Peele realizes that merely identifying the sickness is not enough. 'If we train our awareness on wetiko, and raise our activist fists and project it onto others, that is wetiko too.' The solution to healing our traumas is to activate our purpose, see ourselves clearly, and integrate our disparate parts.
Peele is a good name for an author who peels back the layers of the onion to reveal the true heart of this nation. His choice of the bison as a symbol is precious. Just as Native Americans used all parts of the animal, Peele understands the importance of radical inclusivity. He says 'We must open our hearts to the humanity, dignity, and potential of all people.' This includes our original peoples. Peele understand how much Native America contributed to the soul of the nation, inspiring our original core values of liberty, equality, and natural rights. This important book is not just informational, but inspirational and practical. Ultimately, it is an invitation 'from love, to love, in the spirit of love.'”
- Glenn Aparicio Parry, PhD, Senior Lecturer, California Institute for Integral Studies, author, Original Politics: Making America Sacred Again
- Susan Lucci, JD, Co-founder, Global Purpose Leaders
“...a powerful and well-researched illumination of the origin story and highest purpose of the United States, along with proposing a practical path forward from today's chaos toward finally actualizing our national purpose.”
- David Gruder, PhD, Center for Enlightened Self Sovereignty
“Brandon is a brilliant searcher and thought leader. Here you'll find his deep thoughts and perspectives about the transition we are all undergoing as a nation here in the U.S. and globally. There is hope! I have a feeling my fellow Naval Academy and Marine Corps brothers and sisters will particularly enjoy this book.”
- Gabrielle Blocher, CEO, Sunflower Fuels
“The book isn't about the left or the right. It's the bridge between, and the road forward. It's what we need more than ever.”
- Ezra Bookman, Founder, Ritualist
"Powerful, nourishing - a map for regenerating the very purpose of our nation, and the wisdom of our Founding Fathers - adding whole new layers of wisdom... Thank you, Brandon Peele, for your vision, your devotion, for the integrity of your research, and your storytelling. For bringing attention to the soul of our country, and these amazing creatures, the bison, who wander our plains. They have so much to teach us - and so do you. May we all support each other in these times to regenerate the true power of our nation."
- Robin Athey, PhD, Oxford Leadership
"... a critical call to action for our nation. Bison Medicine is a key to our healing. Thank you Brandon for providing us a roadmap to do our individual and collective part to co-create the world we seek - with liberty and justice for all."
- Bobby Bakshi, Co-leader, The ManKind Project
"...a wise approach to weaving both the triumphs and the dark history of our country and inviting us to reimagine what our future could look like... It's widened my imagination and approach to being an American citizen."
- Rachel Zargo, Creative Director, Late Love
"Brandon Peele presents an inspiring and insightful vision into the spirit and motivating energy of this country. By offering a unique and stirring perspective, he invites us to clarify our intentions, to hone our skills, and to connect as community to to raise ourselves up into the full potential of this grand Amercian experiment."
- Dave Klaus, JD, Zen Priest
"I found Bison Medicine mind expanding. If you care about the U.S., do yourself (and your country) the favor of reading it. The fresh perspectives, rooted in our collective historical vision, contained in this book are exceptional. You don’t have to agree with everything in it to be served by it. Some of my favorite parts are those that differed from my views."
- Bea Boccalandro, President, Veraworks
“On January 27, 1838, in Springfield, Illinois, Abraham Lincoln addressed the importance of upholding the nation's institutions and laws to preserve the Republic. In what is known as the 1838 Lyceum Address, Lincoln admonished, ‘If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide.’ As in 1838, Bison Medicine is a prophetic call for us to ponder and reconsider our path as a Nation. We either commit to the path of our common humanity — or division and strife. If we follow our better angels, we can follow the bison's individual and collective power. Thank you, Brandon, for reminding us to choose wisely.”
- Luis Marrero, PhD, CEO, Boston Institute for Meaningful Purpose
"Bison Medicine is an important book... a foundation to understand what is needed to heal our nation. I highly recommend this book, especially for our youth."
- Michele Lyons, Spanish Teacher
"Bison Medicine is raw and real. Peele skillfully names the tension we’re all living in. The pull between collapse and awakening. This book, this offer and invitation stands in that tension without flinching. It speaks directly to the work I do with leaders, with teams, with myself. Rooted in purpose, and not fully polished. Honest about the pain, and still holding the thread of what’s possible. The bison offers a metaphor for a way of being. Present, powerful, patient. That energy lives in this book. It reminds me of what it means to lead from the edge. To walk forward without the map being finished and to steward the precious spark of life that we have inherited from our ancestors on behalf of future generations."
- Kent Frazier, Co-founder, Fully Human
"The spark, the fire for this book and movement was divinely entrusted to Brandon. And, the process to nurture and develop it was the most collaborative process, inviting feedback, pushback, tending, and consideration from start to finish through multiple perspectives. Truly remarkable and soul-nourishing as I look back on it. Who knew we would benefit from medicine about collective purpose at this time?"
- Dena Wiggins, Senior Facilitator, Translator
“The gift of Bison Medicine can be summed up in one word—restorative... Brandon didn't just sit in a room like some mad scientist creating a solitary vision of what he thought this country should look like. He included other people who are here on this land mass trying to make it a home. This book is very literally an inclusive community in book form. The book was born of a process of studying, learning, doing inner work, reflecting, having conversations, and being in wonder--everything that you would want in a founding document... a treatise on considering what this place could be if we learned from our mistakes... a vision that any American can locate themselves in... The American idea that Brandon is inviting us to consider has the superordinate quality born of the awareness that if an American People will ever exist, it will have to be a 'People of Peoples' (My words, not his.) But, you can tell that Brandon is aware of this, because he acknowledges the myths, symbols, and identity forming narratives that have prevented us from getting there. And he is doing so from the social position where--in theory at least--he would have to give something up. No one does this unless, they have come in contact with something greater.”
- Pedro Silva, Director of Engagement, YOUnify
"Whether you’re on a spiritual path, searching for deeper meaning in your work, or simply yearning to reconnect with your own heart, Bison Medicine will meet you where you are—and then gently guide you where you need to go. I couldn’t be ... more grateful that he’s shared this medicine with the world."
- Sarah Eigel, HR Director, Daiohs USA
"There is so much potential in this country, and if we can look forward, keep our minds open and bring everyone along for the ride, anything is possible. You will see specific policy prescriptions,... big thinking that is going to be necessary to enable us to reach our potential and be worthy of our purpose. Let's all challenge the status quo thoughtfully and constructively. It's a powerful read..."
- Alan Iny, Partner, Boston Consulting Group
"Reading this book felt like a conversation with an old friend... one who gently yet persistently nudges you to see the world differently, to look deeper, and to imagine what healing could look like on a national scale. It’s a book that doesn't just ask you to reflect on your own life but invites you to reconsider the soul of an entire country.
Peele brings us back to the bison, a powerful and beautiful symbol of resilience, to remind us of what we’ve lost and what we can still restore. His 'Bison Circles'—spaces for shared purpose and healing—felt so simple, yet so radical, in their potential to bring us together. What strikes me most about this book is its quiet hope, the way it calls us to face our fractured history with open hearts, while also believing that we can change our trajectory.
It’s a message - that our collective healing is not just possible, but necessary, and that it’s something we all must take part in. This isn’t just a book you read; it’s one that stays with you and asks you to ask yourself some tough questions about who we are and who we want to be.
If you’re ready to be reminded that healing is possible—and that it starts with us all—then Bison Medicine will be a book you can’t put down. It’s a call to action, yes, but more importantly, it’s a call to remember our shared humanity."
- Frieda Nixdorf, Soul Guide, Life in the Confluence
"Brandon Peele has done an excellent job of presenting the history that has led us to the critical present, helping the reader to understand who we are and where we have come from. He presents a thoughtful, purpose driven approach to a brighter future in a way that educates, heals, and inspires."
- David Booth, Mountain Search and Rescue, Coconino County Sheriff
"Groundbreaking. What I loved most was the way this book provided a shift in how we can think about leveraging change and creating a fair society. I am used to thinking about political and grassroots activism, the nonprofit sector, and religious institutions as arenas for influencing society, but the corporate world hasn't been a possible party to those efforts, at least in my imagination. To me this book is groundbreaking and brilliant."
- Atieno Bird, Principal, Two Bird, LLC
"Brandon Peele’s Bison Medicine is a thought-provoking exploration of America’s moral, cultural, spiritual, and psychological challenges. The book uses the symbolism of the bison—America’s national mammal—to offer teachings aimed at helping individuals and communities fulfill the nation’s deeper purpose: equality, liberty, and unity. Peele’s work stands out for urging readers to activate their unique gifts and purpose, not just for personal growth but for collective transformation. The book can be experienced in a group setting, fostering deep discussion and community connection, which aligns with its themes of belonging and shared purpose. Overall, Bison Medicine is both a call to action and a guide for those seeking to address the root causes of societal division and to help remake society on stronger moral and spiritual foundations. You can LOVE America & still know it’s time to make CHANGES."
- Stephan Mackenzie, Co-leader, The ManKind Project
“In a crowded field that often leaves you wanting real solutions to healing the social and political fault lines in society, Peele offers a fresh and practical approach to the conversation. Drawing upon the symbol of the American bison, he provides a compelling new narrative that challenges our current values and ethics, and in doing so, masterfully calls us to something greater than what we could ask or imagine as a country. I came away from reading this book both encouraged and excited for a renewed sense of civic purpose.”
- Joel Domingo, EdD, Research Director, City University of Seattle
"... a fascinating examination of how we got here, replete with stories and concepts from America’s early history that have been largely forgotten, but that are the seeds of what we have become... Then, it offers a path forward to a brighter future, filled with love and community, where all can thrive and be inspired. This is a book we all need to read."
- Chris Pollak, Founder, Wayside Ventures
"... an unflinching and honest look at the problems and promise of our country. Nothing is swept under the rug. But at the same time there is hope and resilience... Highly recommended!
- Tim Ash, Author, Primal Brain
“Bison Medicine is a monumental work of art, a spiritual poetic journey of history and possibility. It is at the same time a tribute to an enlightened experiment, an indictment of a quest gone terribly wrong, and a detailed blueprint of how to reclaim what has been lost. The framers of our Constitution (the great American experiment) imperfect as they were, set a purpose for our nation based on the moral and spiritual wisdom traditions of the ages. They created a unique, inspired manifesto firmly anchored to ALL CREATED EQUAL, universal access to LIFE, LIBERTY AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS and E PLURIBUS UNUM, each person loving the other as much as himself. Bison Medicine will clarify your understanding of the origins and purpose of our grand experiment. And if you permit, it will provide The Cure for a Troubled Nation as it expertly escorts us to regain control of our dangerously drifting country and steer it back onto the enlightened path envisioned by The Founding Fathers.”
- Jon Robison, PhD, Author, The Spirit and Science of Holistic Health
"Bison Medicine offers a grounded, thoughtful reflection on health, resilience, and our relationship with place. As a coach and systems designer, I appreciated how it frames personal and collective well-being as inseparable from the land we move through."
- David Steuer, CTO, ClimbTogether
"Wonderful book that explores important issues not spoken about enough within our local communities. Appreciate the issues that were raised and the context within it was written was amazing."
- Todd Feldman, Professor of Finance, San Francisco State University
"A refreshing and optimistic redefinition of the problems that face an increasingly fractured and siloed America. Peele seeks to bring people together in community to share wisdom and purpose. Bison Medicine captures the socio-political moment and asks us to question the American experiment from a new perspective, one that confounds many of our expectations and is respectful to all those who call this land home."
- Eric Thomas, Psychological Facilitator
"Important, integral, and inspiring! As a therapist, one of the universals I see with clients is that healing cannot happen without honesty... an integral, fundamental part of the healing. To heal and to grow is to look honestly at our past, atone for our transgressions so that change can then occur and to do so without demonizing ourselves. To tell the truth. We are fundamentally good people who have erred. What is true of individuals is true of communities, nation-states, and global civilizations. And what Peele has done here is to invite us, as individuals of a nation-state born of both divinely-inspired ideals and horrendous actions, to tell ourselves the Truth of ourselves so that we may become the people our ideals envision and has provided a path forward for doing so with the Bison. The Bison here is more than metaphor; it and the medicine is embodies give us tangible, actionable ways, rooted in fundamental values, to achieve these goals. Just as the Bison help to create the unimaginably large swaths of open prairie by the virtue of it's hooves, so top does it offer to help us create an open, fertile future for our nation, and by extension, the world. Thank you Brandon, keep up the important work."
- Cameron Meyer, Mental Health Clinician, Hidalgo Medical
"Brandon Peele does a delightful job of presenting the situation the USA is in AND an honest, authentic, compassionate path forward. Despite the situation we are in, I felt empowered, excited and inspired to take action that is alignment with myself and our nation. I can only imagine what our world would look like if all leaders shared this perspective."
- Joshua Cowan, Full Stack Developer, Interworks
"This book was eye opening in many respects. I think my biggest 'ah ha' moment was the concept that the system is cooked, and for many, the movement forward is predetermined, the resistance is predetermined, and in order to really make a difference, I need to pull myself out of that construct to a new dimension... the world needs a book like this, not just the USA... we have work to do in this country. And nobody is going to do it for me or you - it is up to US."
- Bill Davies, JD, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
"In his latest book, Brandon Peele articulates his vision on how the values personified by our National Mammal - the bison - can motivate all of us to be in community and make it a better place. With many historical and cultural examples, Peele illustrates American shortcomings that are not limited to political and economic differences, rather something deeper. By the end of the book, I felt hopeful and inspired to want to put the book's ideas into action and share with others. Brandon Peele has shared again his calling in being a purposeful leader; I encourage all Americans to be open to exploring Bison Medicine and what it has the potential to achieve."
- Andrew Oswald, Board Member, Mt. Diablo Unitarian Universalist Church
"This is a bold, powerful book overflowing with radical, needed ideas! To call this book "unconventional" is both accurate, and a compliment! Bison Medicine's core message about activating individual purpose to serve community needs resonates deeply with me. Bison Medicine overflows with poetic language and challenging ideas. Peele digs deeply into how the American System, at it's core, perpetuates our nation's problems, and lays out a course of personal action to address this."
- Jeff Leyser, Co-leader, The ManKind Project
"Bison Medicine is a 'must read' for all who care deeply about preserving our precious and fragile American democracy. Brandon does a masterful job tracing the roots of the principles our Founding Fathers used as the foundation for our way of government to the Native American tribes they encountered and learned from. He also maps a bold plan designed to reframe both civic duty and governmental responsibility with a goal of properly educating our citizenry on its role in building a sustaining democracy that lives up to our country’s stated purpose. This book presents a hopeful and inspiring vision for reinvigorating all our country both promises and stands for and the active role we must play to achieve 'life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness'."
- Steven Hirsch, retired technology leader, Charles Schwab
"This book is a powerful call to action in uncertain times. It is “through-topian”: a sober description of where we are, a vision for what we can be, and a pathway to get there. Its catalog of our current predicament is thorough and unflinching, and grounded in a Howard Zinn-informed understanding of American history. Its framing of most Americans as ‘orphans’ who have never been escorted into an adult fullness of purpose, and our public institutions as ‘orphanages’ that preserve our society’s underdevelopment, is powerful. It is an analysis of political economy as well as moral economy, and in this respect, it is non-partisan, taking shots at academic and non-profit actors alongside business and political institutions.
At the same time, it offers a full-throated embrace of American identity and political virtues. It is unashamed to be patriotic, admiring, and aspirational. I found this really refreshing. Damning critiques of our current situation are usually delivered with cynicism about America: they seem to think that if you’re still patriotic then you must not be paying attention, or your lens on reality must be distorted. This book proves that you can be a clear-eyed patriot.
The book offers the bison as a symbol of the values we should aspire to, and it applies those values to key virtues of American political life. Its willingness to embrace shared symbolism is also a refreshing departure from many progressive voices. It is animated throughout with quotations from a wide range of observers of American life, from Thomas Paine to Tracy Chapman.
My only wish for the book is that it would have better engaged with the ways that its values and practices do in fact exist in our society today. They have been largely abandoned or betrayed, but this is uneven and incomplete. There are people with purpose, there are households with care, there are communities with neighborhoods and schools, there are governance bodies that steer their responsibilities through the rocky waters of plural societies. They are in the minority, they are under threat, they are disconnected and unsupported, and they shouldn’t be romanticized or exaggerated, but they are there. I don’t say this as a rebuttal of the book’s premise, because there is no doubt that these practices are deeply undermined across the board. But it misses a narrative for progress: if we know what to look for, we can see that these habits are still alive, so let’s build on those or be inspired by them. This author and this book are both cases in point."
- Brad Adams, JD, Oakland Director, International Rescue Committee
"Bison Medicine is an elixir for the soul. Full of wisdom and guidance, Peele directly addresses the wound that currently exists within the heart of the nation. The book is built around the wisdom of the bison, the natural world, Native America, and the feminine. Born out of an acute awareness of our crumbling democracy, Peele both identifies the source of the problem and provides solutions for how to heal.
There is a sickness—a mental virus of greed and selfishness— affecting the nation. This is wetiko—an Algonquin word popularized by Jack Forbes (author of Columbus and Other Cannibals) and others in recent years. Peele realizes that merely identifying the sickness is not enough. 'If we train our awareness on wetiko, and raise our activist fists and project it onto others, that is wetiko too.' The solution to healing our traumas is to activate our purpose, see ourselves clearly, and integrate our disparate parts.
Peele is a good name for an author who peels back the layers of the onion to reveal the true heart of this nation. His choice of the bison as a symbol is precious. Just as Native Americans used all parts of the animal, Peele understands the importance of radical inclusivity. He says 'We must open our hearts to the humanity, dignity, and potential of all people.' This includes our original peoples. Peele understand how much Native America contributed to the soul of the nation, inspiring our original core values of liberty, equality, and natural rights. This important book is not just informational, but inspirational and practical. Ultimately, it is an invitation 'from love, to love, in the spirit of love.'”
- Glenn Aparicio Parry, PhD, Senior Lecturer, California Institute for Integral Studies, author, Original Politics: Making America Sacred Again
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Brandon Peele (he/him/his) was born in Springfield, IL on Labor Day in 1976, to two loving parents, Nancy and Robert. He's connected to his Midwestern heritage, his family, his men's community - the ManKind Project, his community of practice - the Global Purpose Leaders, his fellow democracy geeks at Citizen University, and his faith community, the Mt. Diablo Unitarian Universalist Church.
He's a best-selling author, a keynote speaker, facilitator, and consultant. He's trusted by organizations such as Google, Harvard Business School, Johnson & Johnson, Stanford University, JDRF, Morgan Stanley, U.S. Marine Corps, YPO, University of California - Berkeley, Vistage, Forum for Workplace Inclusion, LinkedIn, the U.S. Navy, Slalom Consulting, the U.S. Coast Guard, and the University of Minnesota. In addition to Bison Medicine, he is the author of Purpose Work Nation (2022), The Purpose Field Guide (2019), and Planet on Purpose (2018), and co-author of Purpose Rising (2017) and The Purpose Blueprint (2015). His work has been featured by news organizations such as USA Today, U.S. News & World Report, the US Business Journal, and Forbes. Brandon holds an MBA in Leadership from Columbia Business School, a BS in Finance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, is an Certified Purpose Leader (TM), a Certified Purpose Guide (TM), and a Certified Circles Facilitator (TM). |
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The Symbol
The Bison Medicine symbol contains three red stripes and three white stars that represent the three levels of a democracy (idea, political economy, and spiritual practice) that are required for democracy to be realized. Idea: Above all else, we believe and ensure that all are created equal. Political economy: We secure life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all. Spiritual practice: We love each other as much as ourselves - E Pluribus Unum. The perimeter circle evokes the wholeness, flourishing, connection, and homecoming that we will all experience when we activate our purpose in true community and allow Bison Medicine to heal, guide, and enliven us. |
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