Tag Archives: Indigenous

Voices

Joy Is an Act of Reciprocity

Native American Heritage Day calls forth a full array of emotions in its celebration.

by Tracy Rector and Taylor Hensel (Cherokee Nation)

For many, this time of year brings up an array of emotions and personal experiences. Oftentimes there are complicated feelings related to loss, genocide, cultural appropriation, broken treaties, and theft of land in addition to a sense of cheer related to time spent with family and loved ones, tasty foods, football games, and rest. There is no one narrative at this time of year that is standard for all who live in the lands now known as the United States. Either way, it is a time of preparation and reflection; a time to give thanks and to be humble and hopefully experience joyful moments.

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Community

The Emerald Roundup of Native American Heritage Month Events in the Seattle Area

by Jas Keimig

November is Native American Heritage Month and a time to celebrate and uplift the diverse Indigenous communities both here, and across the continent. In Washington State, there are over 30 tribes, including Colville Confederated Tribes, The Confederated Tribes Of The Chehalis Reservation, Confederated Tribes Of The Yakama Nation, Duwamish, Jamestown S’Klallam, Hoh, Cowlitz, Lower Elwha Klallam, Kalispel, Lummi, Nisqually, Makah Nation, Muckleshoot, Puyallup, Nooksack, Port Gamble S’Klallam, Quileute, Quinault Nation, Samish Nation, Sauk-Suiattle, Skokomish, Shoalwater Bay, Spokane, Squaxin Island, Snoqualmie, Stillaguamish, Swinomish, Suquamish, Tulalip, and Upper Skagit.

As we work to tear down the colonial narratives and structures around Thanksgiving, November is also an opportunity to give back, learn from, and listen to Native peoples in the Seattle area. With Native American Heritage Day falling on Nov. 24, there are lots of opportunities throughout the entire month to eat Indigenous foods, buy gifts from Indigenous craft markets, and watch Indigenous films. We assembled a list of events in the Seattle area to mark down on your (rapidly filling!) November calendar.

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Community

Seattle Nonprofit Launches First Indigenous Guaranteed Income Program in the U.S.

Hummingbird’s “The Nest” program aims to prevent maternal mortality.

by Sarah Goh

(This article was originally published on The Stranger and has been reprinted under an agreement.)

Earlier this year, a State Department of Health panel submitted a report showing that American Indian and Alaska Natives who give birth continue to have a higher maternal mortality ratio than any other ethnic group — eight times greater than white people and twice as large as Black people. As alarmingly, the report found that 80% of these pregnancy-related deaths were preventable.

To address this wide disparity, a nonprofit organization called Hummingbird Indigenous Family Services plans to pilot the first guaranteed income program in the United States to exclusively serve Indigenous communities.

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News

Indigenous Boarding Schools: Unveiling a Painful History and Resilient Spirit

by Alex Garland

The number 523 carries a haunting significance in the history of Indigenous peoples in the United States: It represents the sheer magnitude of boarding schools that operated in the country, spanning from the early 1800s to the mid-1970s. These institutions, often hidden in the shadows of history, left undeniable scars on Indigenous communities across North America.

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News

NEWS GLEAMS | 60th Anniversary of the March on Washington, Hōkūleʻa Lands in Seattle

A roundup of news and announcements we don’t want to get lost in the fast-churning news cycle!

by Vee Hua 華婷婷

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News

Beyond Land Acknowledgement: Indigenous Advisory Council Hopes to Create Tangible Change in Seattle

by Luna Reyna

Seattle’s Indigenous Advisory Council presented its first strategic plan in the City Council’s Governance, Native Communities, and Tribal Governments Committee in July. The Indigenous Advisory Council was created by an ordinance sponsored by Council President Debora Juarez in 2021. Juarez commented that other than the liaison in the mayor’s office on the executive side, there were limited channels for Indigenous engagement on the legislative side.

“I merely wanted to create the body on the legislative side so my colleagues have a place to go from an Indigenous group that understands Indian country, and understands the political relationship between tribes and governments, the government-to-government (relationship), ” Juarez said at the Governance, Native Communities, and Tribal Governments Committee meeting. “It is not racial. It is political because we have treaties and a land base.”

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Community

Paddle to Muckleshoot: A Celebratory and Ceremonial Healing Experience

by Luna Reyna

On Sunday, July 30, as many as 120 Indigenous, First Nation, and Alaska Native canoe families made the journey from their homelands across the ancestral highways of the sea, just as their ancestors had since time immemorial, to gather at Alki Beach. Many elders were scattered across the beach in their lounge chairs with their toes in the sand, smiling out at the water, welcoming each canoe family as the canoes rowed in. Large families sat together under the sun, with the kids playing in the sand or banging on their drums. Each canoe family cheered as they got closer to the beach, celebrating their long journey. They lined up next to one another, waiting to ask permission to come ashore to share the medicine of songs and dances of healing with this year’s host tribe, the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe.

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Arts & Culture

Resistance, Resilience, & Reclamation: New Guma’ Gela’ Exhibit Tells the Story of CHamoru People

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by Sarah Goh

A new exhibit is on display at the Wing Luke Museum — Guma’ Gela’: Part Land, Part Sea, All Ancestry. Guma’ Gela’, or “House of Gays” as it translates to in the native CHamoru language, is a queer art collective for people from the Mariana Islands and its diaspora.

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