#Mohawk Native Reserve

[ravensvalley]

#NorthernRaven

Early morning visit from a friend… maybe too early. Mountainous Parts of the Northern Hemisphere.

@BenAdrienProulx December 12, 2024.

[hug-kiss-marry-kill]

[rockislandadultreads]

Nonfiction Picks: Native American Heritage Month

Celebrate Native American Heritage Month by checking out these nonfiction recommendations!

Whiskey Tender by Deborah Jackson Taffa

Deborah Jackson Taffa was raised to believe that some sacrifices were necessary to achieve a better life. Her grandparents - citizens of the Quechan Nation and Laguna Pueblo tribe - were sent to Indian boarding schools run by white missionaries, while her parents were encouraged to take part in governmental job training off the reservation. But as Taffa grew up, she began to question the promise handed down by American society: that if she gave up her culture, her land, and her traditions, she would be able to achieve the “American Dream.” This memoir traces how a mixed tribe native girl interprets her own identity. 

By the Fire We Carry by Rebecca Nagle

In this volume, Rebecca Nagle recounts the generations-long fight for tribal land and sovereignty in eastern Oklahoma. This book not only stands as a landmark work of American history, but is also a powerful work of reportage that braids the story of the forced removal of Native Americans onto treaty lands in the nation’s earliest days, and a small-town murder in the 1990s that led to a Supreme Court ruling reaffirming Native rights to that land more than a century later.

Notable Native People by Adrienne Keene

Celebrate the lives, stories, and contributions of Indigenous artists, activists, scientists, athletes, and other changemakers in this illustrated collection. From luminaries of the past to contemporary figures, this volume highlights the vital impact Indigenous dreamers and leaders have made on the world. This collection also offers primers on important Indigenous issues, from the legacy of colonialism and cultural appropriation to land and water rights, and more.

A Mind Spread Out on the Ground by Alicia Elliott

The Mohawk phrase for depression can be roughly translated to "a mind spread out on the ground." In this urgent and visceral work, Alicia Elliott explores how apt a description that is for the ongoing effects of personal, intergenerational, and colonial traumas she and so many Native people have experienced. Elliott's deeply personal writing details a life spent between Indigenous and white communities, a divide reflected in her own family, and engages with such wide-ranging topics as race, parenthood, love, art, mental illness, poverty, sexual assault, gentrification, and representation.

[flagwars]

Native American and First Nations Flag Wars: Round 1

This tournament focuses on the flags of indigenous groups of the United States and Canada in honor of National American Indian Heritage Month. Thank you to everyone for your submissions! I think this is going to be a fun tournament with some great flags!

Round 1:

1. Huu-ay-aht First Nations vs. Miccosukee vs. Mashantucket Pequot Tribe vs. Teslin Tlingit Council

2. Nez Perce vs. Pimicikamak Cree Nation vs. United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians vs. Cahto

3. Anishinaabe vs. Clatsop vs. Métis vs. Upper Skagit Indian Tribe of Washington

4. Cherokee Peace Flag vs. Peguis First Nation vs. Haisla vs. Chief of the Secwépemc

5. Jatibonicu Taino Tribal Nation vs. Missisquoi Abenaki Tribe vs. Colorado River Indian Tribes vs. Nisga'a

6. Chinook Nation vs. Hopi Nation vs. Mi'kmaq (horizontal) vs. Pawnee Nation

7. Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation vs. Ahtahkakoop Cree Nation vs. Cowasuck Band of the Pennacook-Abenaki People vs. Tłı̨chǫ

8. Inuvialuit vs. Seminole Tribe of Florida vs. Mohawk Warrior Society vs. Eel Ground First Nation

9. American Indian Movement vs. Navajo vs. Natchitoches Tribe of Louisiana

10. Secwépemc vs. Pine Ridge Indian Reservation vs. Arctic Athabaskan Council

11. Tahltan Nation vs. Blackfeet Nation vs. Musqueam

12. Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Mission Indians vs. Haudenosaunee/Iroquois vs. Poarch Band of Creek Indians

13. Haida vs. Piapot First Nation vs. Ninilchik

14. Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami vs. Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug First Nation vs. Arapaho

15. Mi'kmaq Nation vs. Lax Kw'alaams Band vs. Pascua Yaqui Tribe

16. Cherokee vs. Ute Indian Tribe vs. Robinson Rancheria of Pomo Indians of California

[argentangelhelps]

Hi Nico! May I request female faceclaims that fit into the general "alternative" subculture? Preferably with dark hair but I'm okay with anything! TYIA!

it would be my HONOR! auli'i cravalho 2000, chinese, native hawaiian, puerto rican, portuguese & irish (in mean girls the musical) ayumi roux 2001, japanese & french ariela barrer 1998, mexican & jewish (in runaways) barbie ferriera 1996, white (brazilian) (in euphoria and plan b) chase sui wonders 1996, chinese & white (in genera+ion) devery jacobs 1993, mohawk (in reservation dogs giovana grigio 1998, brazilian (in rebelde) jordana lajoie 1998, white (in the boys) joy sunday 1995, nigerian (in wednesday) juliette motamed unknown 90s, iranian kiana madiera 1992, portuguese, irish, first nations & black leah lewis 1996, chinese-american levi tran 1983, vietnamese lisa yamada 2002, japanese-american (in wednesday) lyrica okano 1994, japanese-american (in runaways) megan suri 1999, indian-american (in poker face) natasha liu bordizzo 1994, chinese & white (italian) ruby cruz 1998, white (mexican) reina hardesty 1996, japanese & white (in it's what's inside) sasha bhasin 1998, indian (in xo, kitty) sophie thatcher 2000, white taylor hickson 1997, white (in deadly class) taylor deardan 1993, white (in sweet/vicious)

[jammiedoggo]

Robot at window

Description: A sleep dream or coping imagination to overcome harshness or reality of friend with empathy on harsh revservation that met before with civil affection.

Journal: Those know about Howl out, yes this is the influence behind the referance and inspiration.

Originally generic sketch of robot on window been transformed into digital art adaptation like many others but added elements to the design.

What reference to Howl out as inspiration?

Both robot and person is same wolf species, Hound's tooth pjama referance from Howl's tooth pattern, the location of native reservation and ethnic family of amerindian.

There is additional easter egg of two of my artwork display as wall posters.

What ethnic group native american?

It up to your imagination of what type, depend on your preferance. Cherokee or Mohawk or Nʉmʉnʉ? As remind NOT all native american are the same culture as single standard, so don't relay on sterotypes. They are very diverse with distinct culture.

The patterns on fabric are NOT native american but just bought from stores or charity donation gift as essential. Triangle patterns on bedding, Hound's tooth on pjama and night sky stars on curtain.

There is sad truth about native reservation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjiufIcJ7NI

[⚠️Disclaimer⚠️]:

Please refrain from leaving creepy perverted NSFW, use my past mistakes against me and hateful (prejiduce) comments.

There be no tolerance of condemed and harresment, They make me uncomfortable and will be removed.

[!CAUTION]! Otherwise, beast unleashed (aka go nuts).

If any problem?, please calm down and touch grass to think before you act. Try to be polite and calm, adress the problem, the reason about the problem, express the feeling and solution advice that will help me improve. I want to stay pacifist and don't want drama, shame, witchhunted and get cancelled culture.

[natlacentral]

Kiawentiio grew up loving ‘Avatar: The Last Airbender,’ and now she’s bringing the cartoon to life: ‘I did my best’

Kiawentiio is starring in a Netflix show. It's a sentence she's still processing.

"Growing up as a little native girl on my reservation, I never thought that this was something I’d even be able to do," she tells TODAY.com. "It was completely out of reach in my mind. So when I got the role, when we were filming and even now, it’s hard to wrap my head around the fact that it’s all real."

Kiawentiio, a 17-year-old actor and singer from the Mohawk people, plays Katara, a beloved character from “Avatar: The Last Airbender,” in Netflix's live-action remake. The show hit the streaming platform Feb. 22 and quickly soared to No. 1 on Netflix's list of top TV shows in the U.S.

Before this, Kiawentiio appeared in "Beans" and guest-starred in Season Three of "Anne with an E." Now, she's adapting a cult classic cartoon and faces a fandom that's hesitant to trust a remake, still sensitive about the previous attempt, a film released in 2010.

"Avatar: The Last Airbender" ran for three seasons on Nickelodeon, from 2005 to 2008. The show achieved worldwide success and a cult following that only grew once the show was added to Netflix in May 2020. Like the live-action show, it became the most popular show in the U.S. on the streaming platform within days.

In a world full of "benders," people who can manipulate one of four elements — water, earth, fire and air — a group of friends embark on an adventure to save the world from impending war and destruction.

The story begins as Katara and her brother Sokka (played in the new live action by Ian Ousley) find a boy named Aang (Gordon Cormier) frozen in an iceberg. Aang turns out to be the long-hidden "Avatar," a bender with power over all four elements who's been promised to bring stability to the world.

Kiawentiio is a longtime fan of the original series and never thought she'd get to play one of the characters she grew up watching.

"The fact that I do get to play her, I cherish these moments, even the rough ones," she says. "When we were filming, there was a lot that I was trying to deal with at the same time. But even in all those moments, I do my best to stay grateful because of how lucky and blessed I actually am to to be in this situation."

Friendship is a core component to the series, and Kiawentiio says the focus on community in the show translated to set. She says she first met the rest of the cast at a boot camp, and was initially intimidated by some of the others — including Dallas Liu, who plays one of the main antagonists, Zuko. But the cast quickly found a close bond that she says will last long after production wrapped.

"With playing Katara, meeting the other cast members and becoming family with them, that is something that we are locked in for life," she says. "We’ve talked about this before, we’re gonna be at each other’s weddings type thing. I’m so grateful to have that, a second family formed for ever."

The whole cast had the difficult task of portraying existing, beloved characters, in addition to trying to translate a two-dimensional character to the screen.

“To have other people who are going through the exact same thing that you’re going through, it really strengthens our bond as a crew." she says.

There will always be differences watching something live action compared to a cartoon, Kiawentiio notes — but they can actually be for the better.

“So much more emotion comes, I mean, just seeing an actual face compared to a drawing of a face is so different on its own. So I’d like to think that the emotion of Katara and her backstory is more amplified or zoomed in on,” she says.

Another difference stemmed from turning a cartoon world into a physical set — which as a fan of the original show, Kiawentiio calls surreal.

In the original cartoon, the core trio travel across terrains, cities and oceans on the back of Aang’s flying pet bison, Appa. 

“All these new things that kept coming up, it was just crazy to see it unfold in front of me,” she says. “And for that to be my job, that’s just incredible. Especially as a fan of the show, I was really almost in tears once a week, or more than once a week if we’re being honest.”

Critics of live-action remakes often point to both the lack of new aspects to the story they bring, as well as some seemingly unnecessary differences from the original story. 

The series is the second attempt at a live-action remake of "Avatar: The Last Airbender." The first was M. Night Shyamalan's 2010 movie, "The Last Airbender," that released to overwhelmingly negative reviews. The film has a 5% score on Rotten Tomatoes, and Roger Ebert, who gave the film a half star out of four, wrote that the film "is an agonizing experience in every category I can think of and others still waiting to be invented."

The live-action precedent set up Netflix's new series in a unique spot, where returning fans are simultaneously hoping for a more accurate remake while tentatively extending their trust.

Kiawentiio says balancing the appeal to both old and new fans was a through line during production.

“That was in all of our minds — how to appeal to existing fans from the original show and also bring in new fans that have never seen the show before,” she says. 

It's a weighty task for a young actor.

“For me, in the back of my mind was always ‘I’m just doing my best.’ As a person, you can do only as much as you can," she shares. "But I am open to opinions, and I know there’s going to be a whole variety of different opinions. And I did my best that I could at the time.”

Buzz around the eight-episode first season of "Avatar: The Last Airbender" continues to grow. Kiawentiio is looking to relish in any quiet she can find.

"As of right now, I’m trying to enjoy whatever quiet that I can," she says. "It’s hard for me to plan stuff because I don’t know where I’m going to be then. But I’m just trying to soak up the nice quiet, and I’ll be there when I’ll be there.”

[angryrdpanda]

Banned Native-Authored Children's Books (because of MAGA zealots)

Firekeeper's Daughter written by Angeline Boulley (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians)

Unstoppable: How Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team Defeated Army written by Art Coulson (Cherokee); illustrated by Nick Hardcastle (not Native)

Look, Grandma! Ni, Elisi! written by Art Coulson (Cherokee), illustrated by Madelyn Goodnight (Chickasaw)

Fishing on Thin Ice written by Art Coulson (Cherokee)

Lure of the Lake written by Art Coulson (Cherokee)

Sharice's Big Voice: A Native Kid Becomes a Congresswoman by Sharice Davids (Ho-Chunk); illustrated by Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley (Wasauksing)

We Still Belong by Christine Day (Upper Skagit); cover art by Madelyn Goodnight (Chickasaw)

The Marrow Thieves by Cherie Dimaline (Metis Nation of Ontario)

Forever Cousins by Laurel Goodluck (Mandan, Hidatsa and Tsimshian member); illustrated by Jonathan Nelson (Diné)

The Storyteller by Brandon Hobson (Cherokee)

We Are Water Protectors by Michaela Goade (Turtle Mountain Ojibwe); illustrated by Michaela Goade (Tlingit)

A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger (Lipan Apache)

Indian No More by Charlene Willing McManis (Confederated Tribes of Grande Ronde); cover art by Marlena Myles (Spirit Lake Dakota/Mohegan/Muscogee)

Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story by Kevin Maillard (Seminole); illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal (not Native)

The People Shall Continue written by Simon Ortiz (Acoma Pueblo), illustrated by Sharol Graves (Absentee Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma).

An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States, for Young People by Debbie Reese (Nambé Owingeh) and Jean Mendoza (not Native), adapted from the original edition written by Roxanne Dunbar Ortiz (not Native)

Fatty Legs written by Margaret-Olemaun Pokiak-Fenton (Inuvialiut)

Hiawatha and the Peacemaker written by Robbie Robertson (Mohawk), illustrated by David Shannon (not Native)

Mary and the Trail of Tears by Andrea Rogers (Cherokee)

You Hold Me Up by Monique Gray Smith (Cree), illustrated by Danielle Daniel

Jingle Dancer by Cynthia Leitich Smith (Mvskoke), illustrated by Cornelius Van Wright (not Native) and Ying-Hwa Hu (not Native).

Sisters of the Neversea by Cynthia Leitich Smith (Mvskoke), cover illustration by Floyd Cooper (Mvskoke)

Thunderous written by M. L. Smoker (Assiniboine and Sioux tribes of Montana's Fort Peck Reservation) and Natalie Peeterse (not Native); illustrated by Dale Ray DeForest (Diné)

We Are Grateful written by by Traci Sorell (Cherokee Nation), illustrated by Frane Lessac (not Native)

At the Mountains Base written by Traci Sorell (Cherokee Nation), illustrated by Weshoyot Alvitre (Tongva, Cahuilla, Chumash, Spanish & Scottish)

"The Way of the Anigiduwagi" written by Traci Sorell (Cherokee Nation), illustrated by MaryBeth Timothy (Cherokee) in The Talk: Conversations about Race, Love and Truth edited by Cheryl and Wade Hudson

Classified: The Secret Career of Mary Golda Ross, Cherokee Aerospace Engineer written by Traci Sorell (Cherokee); illustrated by Natasha Donovan (Metis)

Powwow Day written by Traci Sorell (Cherokee); illustrated by Madelyn Goodnight (Chickasaw)

Kapaemahu written by Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu (Kanaka Maoli), Dean Hamer (not Native), and Joe Wilson (not Native); illustrated by Daniel Sousa

[Full List by Debbie Reese]

[dailyanarchistposts]

Glossary

Terms are mostly in standard Kanien’kehá:ka

People

Aiewáhtha / Ayenwatha / Ayonwentah / Ayawatha / Ayonwatha / Hiawatha / Hayanwatah : Kanien’kehá:ka roiá:ner, possibly Ononta’kehá:ka adopted as Kanien’kehá:ka. Title is requickened.

Atsenhaienton Kenneth Deer : “The fire still burns”. Kanien’kehá:ka of the Bear kahwá:tsire, residing in Kahnawà:ke, publisher and editor of “The Eastern Door”, Chairman/Rapporteur of the UN Workshop on Indigenous Media in New York in December of 2000, member of the Board of Directors for the Quebec Community Newspapers Association from 1999–2001, and co-chairman of the National Indian Education Council in Canada.

Barbara Alice Mann, Ph.D : Shotinontowane’á:ka author, professor of Native American Studies at the University of Toledo

Dayodekane / Seth Newhouse : Kanien’kehá:ka and Ononta’kehá:ka author of Ohswé:ken. He transcribed the Kaianere’kó:wa in 1885, but was not credited when Gawasco Waneh published it.

Ganioda’yo / Ganeodiyo / Gunyundiyo : “Handsome Lake”, Shotinontowane’á:ka roiá:ner who brought the Karihwí:io. Title is requickened.

Gawasco Waneh / Gawaso Wanneh / Arthur Caswell Parker : “Talking Leaves”, Shotinontowane’á:ka archeologist, historian, published Kaianere’kó:wa in English.

Hunter Gray (Hunterbear) John R Salter, Jr. : Ahkwesáhsne Kanien’kehá:ka, Mi’kmaq, St. Francis Abenaki, labor organizer and civil rights activist, former departmental chair of Indian Studies at University of North Dakota, member of Solidarity, Socialist Party USA, Democratic Socialists of America, Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism and the United Auto Workers Local 1981 (National Writers Union).

Kahentinetha Horn : Kanien’kehá:ka journalist and activist from Kahnawà:ke, editor of Mohawk Nation News (MNN). She is also a professor of Indigenous Women’s History at Concordia University.

Kanatiiosh Barbara Gray, JD: Kanien’kehá:ka/Ononta’kehá:ka and Deer kahwá:tsire from Ahkwesáhsne, author and Ph.D. candidate for Native American Justice Studies, Arizona State University Law School, Editor of the Haudenosaunee Environmental Task Force (HETF) Newsletter

Karonhienhá:wi / Karonienhawi / Matilda Joslyn Gage : “Sky Carrier”, a suffragist of European ancestery adopted into the Wolf kahwá:tsire of the Kanien’kehá:ka.

Natoway Brian Rice, Ph.D : Kanien’kehá:ka author, assistant professor of aboriginal Education at the University of Winnipeg

Ranatakárias / Ranatakiias / Hanadagywu / Caunotaucarius /Conotocarious / Hanadahguyus : “Town Destroyer”, title given to George Washington when President of the United States because of his ordering the Sullivan-Clark military expedition against the Rotinonshón:ni. The title has been passed on to subsquent U.S. presidents since.

Sakoiatentha Darren Bonaparte : Kanien’kehá:ka author from Ahkwesáhsne, wampumchronicles.com, member of Wasáse Movement

Segoyewatha / Sagoyawatha : Shotinontowane’á:ka and Ohnkaneto:ten, famous orator, “He Keeps Them Awake”, “Red Jacket”, Otetiani, “always ready”

Taiaiake Gerald Alfred, Ph.D : Kanien’kehá:ka author from Kahnawà:ke, adjunct professor of Political Science, Director of Indigenous Governance Programs and the Indigenous Peoples Research Chair at the University of Victoria, member of Wasáse Movement

Teiowí:sonte Thomas Deer : Kanien’kehá:ka journalist and illustrator from Kahnawà:ke, member of Wasáse Movement

Tekanawí:ta / Dekanahwideh / Deginawada / Deganawida : “Two Currents Coming Down”, possibly Kanien’kehá:ka, possibly Wendat adopted by Kanien’kehá:ka. The title is not requickened. “The Peacemaker” is an English sobriquet.

Thaientané:ken / Tyientané:ken / Thayendanegea / Tyendinaga / Joseph Brant : Kanien’kehá:ka and Ohnkaneto:ten, lead many Rotinonshón:ni against the United States. His efforts would help establish the community at Ohswé:ken, the Six Nation’s reserve along the Grand River, and the town of Brantford is named for him, as is the Tyendinaga Mohawk Community at the Bay of Quinte.

Thatotáhrho / Tatotaho / Atotárho / Atotarho / Tododaho / Tadadaho / Adodarho / Adoda:r’ho : Ononta’kehá:ka roiá:ner, keeper of the council fire. Title is requickened. The current Thatotáhrho is Sid Hill.

Tsikónhsase / Tsokansase / Jigonsaseh / Jikohnsaseh / Djikonsa’se : “the mother of nations”, “the peace queen”, “round face” possibly of the Kakwa:ko on east side of the Niagara, provisioned warriors and also administered disputes. Title is requickened.

[artcgirl]

This was a hard movie to watch. But so necessary. I hope it will be used to further the conversation and to teach the children Canadas true history. And at the end of the day bring justice to the survivors and there families.

I'm Mohawk, Irish and Dutch. My fathers mother came off the reserve in Ohsweken Ontario. Six Nations of The Grand River. She married and Irish man. His family disowned him. She was banned from the reserve. They had 8 children will little support. The children's aid was called because my grandpa had turned to drinking, and my grandma became abusive. The children where taken. and my grandmas sisters and brothers thought they would get custody of the children. But the government placed them in white household all over Canada. They eventual found each other later in life. But the damage had been done. I often wonder if my grandma married someone not native to protect her children from residential school. But they became part of the sixties scoop (60s Scoop). Their culture and community were still taken away from them.

[ravensvalley]

#JackRabbit

It is said that Jackrabbits can run up to 45 mph (72km/h), just fast enought to avoid coyotes, wildcats and other predators; and that's amazing. So long life to our morning runner friend of the Mountainous Parts of the Northern Hemisphere.

Oh, and seasonnal colors almost acquired btw.

@BenAdriernProulx April 22, 2025.

[power-chords]

“I don’t mind a little turmoil, I have to tell you. I didn’t then, and I don’t now.”

That, in two short sentences, tells you pretty much everything you need to know about Richard Buxbaum, lawyer and activist.

At 88 93, Buxbaum is among the oldest professors still teaching at UC Berkeley, a place where turmoil has made some inroads over the years.

Do you remember the Free Speech Movement? Buxbaum does. He defended 773 activists arrested during the FSM between 1964 and 1965. Do you remember the Vietnam War? Buxbaum does. He schooled dozens of young Berkeleyans anxious to avoid conscription in how to claim conscientious objector status. Do you remember the Third World Liberation Front strike in 1969? Buxbaum does. He spent weeks helping to bail many arrestees out of jail and was lead co-counsel for 150 of them.

And, frankly, that doesn’t begin to encompass the turmoil Buxbaum, the Jackson H. Ralston Professor of International Law at Berkeley Law, has seen. He was born in Germany, and remembers the horrors of November 9 and 10, 1938, that accompanied Kristallnacht, when Nazis there went on a rampage, torching synagogues and vandalizing homes, business and schools of persons suspected of being Jews. At least 91 died.

Not long after that, the Buxbaum family packed up and headed for the United States. They would wind up in upstate New York, where his father, a doctor, worked on the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation. Buxbaum would go on to nearby Cornell University to get a law degree and then to Berkeley, where he earned an advanced law degree.

From there, at the very end of the Korean War, he was drafted into the U.S. Army where, once again, turmoil found him. As a native speaker of German, he was detached as a junior counsel to Heidelberg, where not much was happening — just the finalization of the treaty that ended the 10-year occupation of Germany by the allied nations of World War II. Buxbaum was on hand as his native country earned equal status among western nations.

“All I had to do,” he says, “was to make sure both sides understood what their treaty obligations were.”

Piece of cake.

Buxbaum came to Berkeley in 1961 to teach law. Over the next half-century, he would do that and more. He would live through history.

“Berkeley invited me back, and I got involved,” Buxbaum says. “I was teaching, but with the Free Speech Movement, Vietnam and the Third World Liberation Front, I wasn’t doing the kind of research I thought I’d be doing. But as an old lefty, I had a fair amount of sympathy for what the students were trying to do.”

[crowonalamppost]

Shé:kon!

Gonna do like an introductory sum up type of thing of who I am/my claims to Native Ancestry- I want to be respectful and not claim something that doesn't belong to me. But also I know that blood quantum and intentional erasure of Native Ancestry are tools of genocide and I'd like to do what I can to fight that.

Anyways, you can call me Crow. I was raised white but with the knowledge that not that far back in my ancestry people were Native, my parents never expanded on that and wouldn't talk about it if/when I asked as a child. Now that I'm an adult, I've been able to contact other family members and learn things. After intensive searching and talking to family members I barely knew and research I've found that I'm Akwesasne Mohawk. There's no written records and it's only word of mouth, but it seems it was covered up because it was an out of wedlock sort of thing. The Akwesasne kid never got to know her biological father and was raised white, but with the knowledge that her biological father was Akwesasne which has been passed down orally since. She eventually moved away from the St. Regis/Quebec area, and ended up living on a reservation in the US.

Apparently my dad also spent a large chunk of his childhood living on a reservation which he never mentioned while I was growing up and I only found out when one of my uncles mentioned it. Many members of my family have married Native Americans local to the PNW area so I have a shit ton of Native relatives I barely knew about growing up.

Sadly, nothing about the Akwesasne man I'm descended from was ever passed down, and that knowledge has been lost to time. It seems like it was really intentional erasure which is upsetting, but I have no way of getting that back and no way of proving anything, because I don't feel like pointing to old sepia/b&w photos and saying "okay but she definitely doesn't look white" counts for much of anything.

I also know that even just one generation back my family was connected and involved with Native culture and living on a reservation in the PNW, but when my dad grew up he just left all of that behind and never mentioned it.

As much as possible I'd like to respectfully reconnect with the Native history and culture that was denied me growing up and learn as much as I can. I know that I'm white passing and can't officially prove anything so I don't want to step on anyone's toes or come across like some obnoxious white person who just wants to claim Native Ancestry for clout or to absolve white guilt or whatever. So if I fuck up or do or say anything that makes you uncomfortable please let me know.

[strawberryaerach]

Omg this just sat in my drafts for months, I realized 😭 so ignore how late this is, but

Bringing this back as today is Indigenous People's Day!

Adding to last year, here are some amazing Indigenous films and TV series to consume:

Reservation Dogs

Prey (don't watch on Disney though!!)

Smoke Signals

Blood Quantum

Dark Winds

Wild Indian

Rutherford Falls

Montford: The Chickasaw Rancher

Mohawk Girls

Love and Fury

Rez Ball

Atanarjuat

Before Tomorrow

Reel Injun

And here is a way to see whose land you are on:

Native Land

Here is a way to search for your local powwows:

Powwow Calendar

Here are some of my favorite Indigenous music artists:

Bobby Sanchez

Frank Waln

Corporate Avenger

Drezus

JB the First Lady

Xiuhtezcatl

Sten Joddi

Snotty Nose Rez Kids

Cody Coyote

Indigenous People's Day

"Fuck Columbus"

Great, so true, but how else are you going to show up for Indigenous people today? Columbus has been dead for hundreds of years. While it's perfectly acceptable, and encouraged, to shit talk Columbus, that shouldn't be the only course of action that you take today if you consider yourself to be an Indigenous ally.

Do the work. Learn about some of the current issues affecting Native communities, and then identify Indigenous leadership who are leading actions against those issues. But don't stop there because the work doesn't end at learning. Being an ally is an active process. I'm tired of "allies" simply reblogging some posts and calling it a day.

How are you unlearning colonial thinking? When is the last time you consumed Indigenous media? There are so many amazing films, tv series, and songs produced by and starring Indigenous people. Find them and consume them. Indigenous media matters. How are you demanding justice for Indigenous people? When is the last time you attended a protest relating to Indigenous issues? If you have the ability and means to, get out on the streets. We need numbers to keep the movement going. If you can't physically attend a protest, there are plenty of other ways to help! Designing flyers, infographics, etc. Sending educational emails to keep those in the movement updated. Recruiting. Scheduling events. Securing venue locations. Getting permits. When is the last time you purchased from an Indigenous-owned business? How many Indigenous people do you follow/interact with on social media? Social media provides an incredibly easy way to engage with Indigenous culture and people. How are you raising awareness for the Indigenous people in your everyday life? How are you learning to center Indigenous people? How are you supporting Indigenous sovereignty?

If you're based on the American continents, have you learned the name of the Indigenous peoples whose land you're on? Have you considered paying taxes to that group/tribe (yes, that's something that some states/counties will allow!)? When is the last time that you've been to a powwow? I can't even say how many times I've had non-Indigenous people (primarily White people) tell me that they thought they had to be specifically invited to a powwow by a Native person, or that powwows are closed practices. Please attend your local powwows! Most are open to the public and it's a great place to (respectfully) learn about and directly engage with and support Indigenous culture and people.

I don't want to see anyone (aside from Indigenous people) saying "Happy Indigenous People's Day" or "Fuck Columbus" without doing the necessary work to truly support those statements.

[thiswaycomessomethingwicked]

Watching Mary Two-Axe Earley: I Am Indian Again at work in honour of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on Monday.

Highly recommend - it's a doc about Mary Two-Axe Earley who was a Mohawk and Oneida women's rights activist from Kahnawake.

After losing her legal Indian status due to marrying a non-status man, Two-Axe Earley advocated for changes to the Indian Act, which had promoted gender discrimination and stripped First Nations women of the right to participate in the political and cultural life of their home reserves.

In 1967, Two-Axe Earley helped establish the Equal Rights for Indian Women organization and led the submission of a brief to the Royal Commission on the Status of Women. In 1974, she co-founded the Québec Native Women's Association, and the following year she received national and international attention at the International Women's Year conference in Mexico when she publicly fought back against her band council's attempts to formally evict her from Kahnawake.

On June 28, 1985, the Canadian Parliament passed Bill C-31 to amend the Indian Act, eliminating the Act's original gender discrimination and creating a new process of reinstatement for affected First Nations women to have their Indian status restored.

(video is through the NFB so it's free)