October 9, 2019 Newsletter
There are a few different opportunities over this coming weekend to engage in solidarity with our local Native nations and also expand our understanding of the role of intersectionality in the work of social justice. We hope you are able to join us, or perhaps explore some of the links for related news and issues.
There is a call to action from Lummi to pray for Sk'aliCh'elh-tenaut tomorrow, Thursday October 10th. Please continue reading to find out more:
Friday, October 11th 6:00 - 8:30pm
As Long As the Rivers Run
with Willie and Peggen Frank
Olympia Unitarian Universalist Congregation
2315 Division St NW, Olympia WA 98502
Click here for full-page flyer.
Click here for quarter-page flyer. Please distribute as you are able!
6:00pm - pizza & potluck (with gluten-free alternative)
6:40pm - Introduction to the Movie by Willie and Peggen Frank
7:20pm - Screening of As Long As Rivers Run
The OUUC Hosts of the Justice Summit, and Learning Right Relations, welcomes Willie Frank III, son of Billy Frank Jr, and Peggen Frank, Executive Director of Salmon Defense. The Frank's will introduce the movie and speak about the Billy Frank Jr. legacy as expressed by the non-profit partner of the Northwest Indian Fish Commission - Salmon Defense.
The movie chronicles the lead-up to the Boldt Decision and especially highlights the long-time efforts of Billy Frank Jr. to assert that the Medicine Creek Treaty Fishing Rights were wrongfully interpreted by the people of Washington State.
The movie also contains footage of Willie Frank (Sr.), Billy Frank's father. The film's camerawoman, writer and producer, Carol Burns, grew up in the earliest years of the OUUC as her parents were among the founders in the mid-1950s.
The movie was, and is yet, seminal in lifting up the issues of American Indian Sovereignty to a non-tribal audience that is largely unaware of intergenerational trauma that continues to this day.
Salmon Defense is led by Executive Director Peggen Frank. She will speak about the organization's projects, including the use of the film in their educational program, and some of their fundraising efforts, like the Salmon Warrior Blanket Project.
Click here to learn more about the Salmon Warrior Blanket Project, including beautiful images of the blankets resulting from the collaboration of Eighth Generation and Salmon Defense.
Thursday October 10th
Request from Lummi Nation to pray for Sk'aliCh'elh-tenaut
As some of you may know, Lummi Nation is seeking the return of Sk'aliCh'elh-tenaut (Tokitae/Lolita). Sk'aliCh'elh-tenaut is the last remaining Orca that was brutally taken in the 1970s raids on the J, L, K pods from Penn Cove. Over 40 Orca youth were taken from Lummi waters and dispersed to various aquariums around the world. Sk'aliCh'elh-tenaut is growing older now and is near retirement from the aquarium. She has spent all but 4 years of her life (about 43 years) in a small concrete tank. She still remembers her pod's songs. Lummi Nation has been trying to get Miami Seaquarium to release her and let her come home to spend her remaining years in the waters of her home and with her family (her mother is still alive). She will be kept in a special sanctuary and a detailed plan has been worked out to bring her home and secure her for the remainder of her life.
Miami Seaquarium has refused to let her come home.
Lummi Nation is calling for a prayer sending on October 10th:
"We will be together in prayer for Sk'aliCh'elh-tenaut next Thursday, October 10th, at 9:30am. We are asking you all to join us from wherever you are. Please say her name, please pray in your own way, please carry her in your heart. We want Sk'aliCh'elh-tenaut to feel our love, we want to send her hope and strength. Please pray for Miami Seaquarium to do the right thing and work in a good way with us to bring her home in 2020. Hy'shqe."
Statement from Raynell Squil-le-he-le Morris and Elli Tah-Mahs Kinley, the two Lummi tribal women intending to sue Miami Seaquarium, Palace Entertainment, and EQT, for the return of Sk'aliCh'elh-tenaut. Miami Seaquarium has until October 25th 2019 to respond.
You can find more information by clicking here: https://sacredsea.org/skalichelhtenaut/.
Northwest JUUstice Summit
"Navigating Intersectionality"
Saturday, October 12th 7:30am - 5:15pm
Olympia Unitarian Universalist Congregation
2315 Division St NW, Olympia
Click here to visit event website & to register. Suggested contribution is $35.
"Intersectionality" refers to the interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender as they apply to a given individual or group, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage. In focusing on Intersectionality, we will explore moving beyond traditional frameworks that separate social problems into singular issues and/or distinct challenges faced by specific groups.
Breakout sessions during the afternoon will include a session devoted to issues related to American Indians.
Indigenous Peoples' Day 2019
Monday October 14th 4:30 - 7:00pm
Percival Landing Park, Olympia
Come gather at 4:30pm at the Harbor House (216 Olympia Ave NE, Olympia WA 98501)
Agenda:
Welcome / Prayer / Blessings - Squaxin Island Nation
Native Youth Speaker
Native Voting
History of Fish Wars
Water Ceremony
Basket Stories
Native Medicines
MMIW Representation
Talking Circle I
Open Mic
Following the event will be a culture sharing session!! Drumming, singing, dancing, and other expressions welcome!! 7:00 to 9:00pm in Pavilion on the Boardwalk.
Meaningful Movies presents:
Ancestral Waters
Thursday, October 17th 6:30pm
Olympia Unitarian Universalist Congregation
2315 Division St NW, Olympia
Come join us in watching Ancestral Waters, a documentary chronicling the Puyallup Tribe's fight for treaty rights, the water and their way of life. Evening will include panel discussion with filmmakers Benita and Darren Moore of Native Daily Network.
Click here for event flier. Please distribute as you are able!
DOCTRINE OF DISCOVERY:
Indigenous rights activist Steve Newcomb discusses how the Doctrine of Discovery has enabled the subjugation of Native peoples for hundreds of years, and is still very much alive today, being cited by the Supreme Court as recently as 2005.
Click here to watch video: It's Time to Revoke the Doctrine of Discovery.
IN THE NEWS:
16-year-old Tokata Iron Eyes, daughter of Chase Iron Eyes, spoke with fellow 16-year-old activist Greta Thunberg on a Youth Climate Activism Panel at Red Cloud Indian School in Pine Ridge, South Dakota on Sunday, October 6th. The next day, the pair led a climate march and rally in Rapid City, South Dakota.
Click here to read article published on Common Dreams by Andrea Germanos, October 7th: En Route to Standing Rock, Greta Thunberg Holds Up 'Struggles of All Indigenous Peoples in Protecting Their Land, Water and Traditions'
The protest blocking the construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope on Mauna Kea is now in its 11th week. Click here to read article on Indian Country Today by Anne Keala Kelly: That truth: At Mauna Kea it's mana versus money
In Canada, Coastal GasLink has bulldozed the Kwesse war trail, which passes through Unist'ot'en territory. The Office of the Wet'suwet'en described the destruction as "an act of cultural genocide." Click here to watch video: Coastal GasLink Bulldozes Kweese Trail.