As the New Year begins it is common to feel at a loss as to what is the most effective and important way to take action for justice and equality. Sometimes it can seem overwhelming and too complex to find a way forward.
But we as Sufi practitioners know that our work on the outer plane is equally important as the work on the inner. And so, as part of our intrinsic hope and resilience, we are compelled and guided toward right action.
One area of action that our Kinship Ray concentration lifts up is through local legislation advocacy. For me, that guidance has most recently led toward work on policy that will support and enhance social and earth justice.
So, today I want to reflect on and introduce everyone to some of the work that is happening locally in Washington State, mostly stolen lands of the Salish and Coast Salish people among others.
As the year began, I reconnected with two local social justice organizations whose main area of concentration is legislation at the Statewide level as well as other local policy issues. The first was the Faith Action Network of Washington (FANWA). They send out a legislative agenda twice a week during the active sessions with links to opportunities to state our advocacy for or against legislation and give comments.
They are partnering with a group that formed a couple of years ago called Paths to Understanding – an Interfaith non-profit dedicated to “foster[ing] relationships of respect between wisdom communities. [They] support and train wisdom communities in multi-faith peacemaking in their neighborhoods for the common good of our children, our planet, and ourselves.
I signed up with the Paths to Understanding that offers excellent online classes on subjects such as policy advocacy, countering anti-muslim bigotry, authentic allyship, etc. that you can access here: Paths Classes (NOTE: Some of these are bundles that charge a fee but many are available for free). If anyone is interested in any of the fee-based courses, let’s talk about how we might share them in a discussion group!
The second, and related group I re-connected with was 350.org Washington. In their kickoff for the year, they introduced their 350 WA – Civic Action Team (CAT) group. By joining their mailing list and becoming a team member, I am assured of receiving information on current legislative issues so that our State legislators hear from many voices urging them to act for climate, justice and an equitable society.
Finally, as a related bonus, I was able to attend a wonderful webinar by Bill McKibben, the co-founder of 350.org and now the co-founder of a new social justice organization specifically for people over 60 years old, called “Third Act.” The webinar was titled “How to Be an Effective Crank,” and gave simple and effective strategies for writing letters to the editor, social media postings, and op-eds. You can find this and many other excellent resources on Third Act’s Resources Page.
If you are not living in Washington State, what are some similar organizations in your part of the world that you might engage with in similar ways? We’d love to hear from you in the comments, and/or by reaching out to me personally at drmatthewsusa@gmail.com. Or even better yet, please add those resources to our groups database on the Kinship Ray website.
The Soul Sanctuary – A place of Return by Bernadette Nurah Rose Lacey
A place of soul solace, where all life, all forms are nurtured, with loving hearts and willing hands. A place of fertile soil. A place for conscious and conscientious evolution of human beings. A place for unfoldment and kindling of the nobility of the human soul in four dimensions, physically, emotionally, psychologically and spiritually, where we remember who we truly are and learn to express that through our human incarnation on the earth. A place where we can be infused with love, harmony and beauty, and through this infusion remember our unity with all of creation and with the One Soul, and return to love and caring for our earthly home.
It is envisaged that the Soul Sanctuary be created for the sake of humanity and our continuing presence on this planet, and be a not for profit endeavour. This is a place of sanctuary, healing and succour for all who visit, and also a centre of learning and development where we learn to live in harmony with all other life forms in the kinship model of existence, and to limit our impact on the earth to the lowest level, and returning to the earth, in equal measure, all that we take through our way of living mindfully and respectfully in all our daily activities and pursuits.
It is envisaged that the way of life here incorporates and remembers all the other non-human inhabitants, as well as being an environment of harmony and symbiosis with our living planet. Activities carried out here, as well as patronage and fundraising, to generate the income required to resource the endeavour, the emphasis being on sustainability, self-sufficiency, education, and low-impact existence. It is envisaged that supportive partnerships with other like-minded organisations/communities also be developed and embraced in the interests of sharing knowledge, skills and resources and supporting each other in our work.
There will be no commercial gain, however, the gain for the community of those who visit, including international visitors, as well as those in the surrounding environs will I believe, be of magnitude in terms of creating a model of existence which can then be translated and reproduced in other places and settings, as those who visit bring their increased awareness and skills back to their own communities.
My whole heart is in this project, I hope it may touch yours too…
Bernadette Nurah Rose Lacey Contact: lacey.bernadette@gmail.com
From where I stand Perched atop this pinnacle of privilege
From where I stand Mouth agape Witnessing agape love
From where I stand These children of the One Beautiful, painful, resilient
From where I stand I so undeserving They deserve so much more
From where I stand What can I give? Can it ever be enough?
From where I stand Humbled, sad, despairing It can never be enough
From where I stand Held as they are held Surrendering as they surrender
From where I stand There is no hope There is only hope.
******
Today we served beautiful, sad families at the Mexican border, witnessing their sweet, resilient hope in the face of insane policies and horrific conditions. Their shy smiles, genuine laughter, harmonic song, and deep gratitude for each tiny gift moved me to tears.
The mural above (*information about the artist below) fills one wall of the dining hall of the Kino Border Initiative shelter and I stood in front of it for a long time. I recommend zooming in and spending some time with it. It is a much more compelling version of the last supper in my humble opinion.
We were able to serve a Christmas meal and distribute lots of toys. This little poem is my attempt to capture my heart’s feelings, from where I stand.
*Beginning Art Mural by Wenceslao Quiroz https://m.facebook.com/WenzGallery/
By Kathleen Basheera Ritchie (Written BY a member of the dominant culture, FOR other members of the dominant culture.)
Our founders arrived in this land four hundred years ago with a mission which many in the Eastern Hemisphere hailed as historically and culturally groundbreaking. Imagine! All men created EQUAL (though their imagination did not stretch far enough to include women or other male members who were not of their culture).
They left their homelands because they did not feel welcome there. Their ideas had advanced beyond the rigid confines of the era, causing ripples in the church and state and threats of punitive action. As a result, they were willing to take incredible risks to leave their home country and go to an unknown world on the other side of the globe. They knew, from tales of Christopher Columbus and others before and after him, that the land they dreamed about was inhabited. But these men, who we celebrate as exceptional because of the inventiveness of their minds, were unable to conceive of a culture which could be more deserving than the one in their imagination. So they had no qualms about conquering the regionally indeginous culture wherever it got in their way, which as it turned out, was everywhere.
The culture they destroyed or scattered had been in place for millennia. It included not only the humans but all forms of life. The land they lived upon was abundant and the people were tall and healthy. This balance with human and other forms of life had been kept since time immemorial. Two-leggeds made sure not to take more than they needed and to leave enough behind so that regeneration could occur. They did not consider themselves to have dominion over the land. Instead, in living cooperatively with the land, they brought about a world that worked for all living things. The natural world spoke to them and they learned the languages. For instance, when someone became ill, they knew the plant language and were able to heal them. Because the Europeans were not able to see past the Christian standards into which they had been indoctrinated, they saw no value in this way of life. They cut down the forests to build houses, towns and cities, extracting anything and everything from the land and water which could be sold, without regard for regeneration. Making as much money as possible was for them, as it still is for us today, paramount, though they implausibly claimed their actions were based on the life of their prophet.
So gradually, over the centuries, an imbalance with the natural world began to grow and worsen until we have reached the point at which we sit today. The forests are dying and burning. The planet is so warm that wildlife habitats are no longer capable of sustaining life. It is becoming increasingly difficult for people to survive the extreme weather events which challenge the planet on a regular basis. The air is polluted with chemicals created by the manufacture of consumer products. Many of these products are not essential to health and happiness but the people have been brain-washed into believing them necessary for demonstrating their success, assuaging something missing inside, or for no better reason than their convenience. The people are growing sick but in their race to riches, the Healthcare industry demands money in quantities that many people cannot pay and so they are allowed to sicken and die. Over time the poor have become poorer still. The rich have become even richer and like to think of the poverty around them as something created by the poor themselves by their “bad decisions.” It never occurs to them to take any responsibility for conditions which have largely been designed by those with the same privileges they possess. As circumstances grow worse, trust and social contracts are breaking down and a huge divide is opening between those who would make compassionate changes in order for all lives to fare better and those who are afraid of what they would lose if that should happen.
People are beginning to dream again of a “better” world, just like they did 400 years ago, not realizing that they already arrived in that better land and, in their hubris, participated in its ruination. Many of them still do not understand. Their idea of a better land is a place with gadgets they can afford, cars that are more fun, clothes with designer’s names, and vacations in faraway places. Killing the forests and polluting the air and water are small prices to pay for these luxuries. Only the wise know that the real treasure is the people’s relationship to the land. Giving up our luxuries, our creature comforts, and our conveniences for healthy forests and clean, pure air and water would be a small price to pay and is the only way to sustain our existence on this planet. We owe our predecessors on this land a contrite apology for the way we have treated it. And we should follow their leadership in saving what we can. What they successfully stewarded for millennia we arrogantly destroyed in 400 years.
This year’s Parliament took place virtually in November.
They published their Visual Statement which unflinchingly illustrates the current state of the world and the intention of this year’s participants.
Whether you were able to attend yourself or not, this statement is a powerful, poignant, and timely reminder of where we stand and what we stand for, and what we are willing to do about it.
Our dear kinfolx in the Inayattiya have created this wonderful ritual that supports and lifts up the work being done at COP26.
From: The Conductors of Inayatiyya Healing UK
This is the Ritual:
Spend a little time watching the breath flow in and out Invite any Being of healing to be present with you during the ritual
Say The Invocation (short form) Towards the One The Perfection of Love, Harmony and Beauty The Spirit of Peace and Healing, United with All.
Becoming a channel for peace. Say the Peace Mantra: Peace in my Heart – Peace in this Place – Peace in our Land – And throughout the World – Peace
Becoming a channel for healing Let these words by Hazrat Inayat Khan rest in the breath. [3 times] Inhale My body, heart and soul Exhale radiate the healing spirit of God
Offering four focuses for peace and healing After naming each focus, repeat silently Shafee (or O Divine Healer) on the in-breath, and Kafee (or O Divine Remedy) on the out-breath 5 times After the five breaths, repeat out loud: Ya Rahman, Ya Rahim (or O Compassionate and Merciful One) [3 times]
We embrace and pray for all aspects of our being which are harming the planet through exploitation, pollution, and insufficient care
We embrace and pray for all in the world who are harming the planet through exploitation, pollution, and insufficient care
We embrace and pray for all in the world who are suffering from climate change and deforestation
We embrace and pray for all of the world’s political and business leaders and decision makers, that they will make and implement the ecological policies necessary for the safeguarding and healing of the planet
Repeat Aman (or Protection) 11 times: invoking divine Sanctuary for the world.
Repeat Ya Shakur [Gratitude] 3 times in recognition of the abundance and blessings the earth offers us.
Raise the hands above the head, and gently brush the subtle energy down in front of the body. Then take a few slow breaths.
Saint (Mother) Teresa of Kolkata said: ‘Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.’ Take a moment in silence to reflect upon a small thing we can do with great love, now in our lives, to better safeguard the planet.
To close, say the Gaelic Blessing, as if to each other and the whole world: Deep peace of the running wave to you Deep peace of the flowing air to you Deep peace of the quiet earth to you Deep peace of the shining stars to you Deep peace of the Spirit of Peace to you
Suggestions and guidelines for Inclusivity and Diversity in the SRI
We are working here on the cutting edge to open our Path of the Heart to be more conscious and more inclusive. Some research done on the internet shows that few (if any) Sufi Communities are busying themselves with this openness which is surely a significant part of our work…”Toward the One”, “La illaha ilAllah HU”, … including everyone and everything and not excluding anyone or anything. If anyone it would seem that our Buddhist Sisters and Brothers are leading the way in Inclusivity.
1. Looking at our overarching aims and vision “Toward the One” it seems essential that we review the wording of our ethical goal. Currently it states: “To cherish all, regardless of race, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or marital status. “
Suggestion: “We cherish all beings, it is our intention is to create a safe and inclusive space (haven?) at our meetings, retreats and camps, where all people of every age, ethnicity, cultural heritage and religious background, socio-economic group, ability, sexual orientation and gender identity are welcome and cherished. It is our aim to embody respect for all beings and the inherent dignity of all beings, including our precious planet.”
2. Our aim and inspiration is and remains “Toward the One”, this implies continually learning and re-orienting to open our awareness to see and/or find out who are we not yet caring for? We may start off at a disadvantage here, as we can’t see or understand what we don’t know … and an open and enquiring mind, that evaluates our circles and meetings will (Insh’Allah) begin to notice who is not in our circle? And to enquire as to how we can be more open and available.
3. Through this work we will cultivate our Adab and Khatir. “A respectful attitude is the first and principal thing in the development of personality.” Hazrat Inayat Khan “The highest expression of love is respect.” Hazrat Inayat Khan
“Khatir means consideration for someone which is shown in the form of respect, help or service… for a Sufi, this quality becomes their moral.”
General aim – Training and raising awareness Deepening our understanding as individuals, and across the Ruhaniat as an organization, about issues surrounding being inclusive, becoming more aware of unconscious bias, assumptions, stereotypes… we all have them. Finding and working with the very simple barriers to inclusion that we have the power to change.
Raising consciousness and awareness of the necessity of Inclusion. This is our core business as people heading (Insh’Allah) ‘Toward the One’. As we do this raising of our awareness, we will surely become more comfortable with our own quirks and areas of discomfort. This is a basic message of inclusion which is about ALL OF US, and all of our inner and outer family. In Soulwork terms our inner family will also become more integrated and at home with each other. This is a basic message of inclusion which is about ALL OF US and all of our inner and outer family.
Looking into our own hearts to see how wide (or limited) our own understanding of inclusion is. It’s easy on our Path of the Heart, to sit back and feel very sure that ‘We are already doing this.’ Whereas when we are ‘on the receiving end’ of our inclusion, we may find we (as Ruhaniat) are not as accessible as we think we are.
We need to look at our overarching vision and aims and work out a strategy to be truly more inclusive. This is an on-going process. We may think or feel we are doing this work of inclusion for ‘others’… who is ‘the other’? It could be me, it could be you any day, any moment. Part of the raising of awareness is the understanding and embodiment of: ‘there is no other’, and the real-eyes-ation… it could be me at any moment. No one has a guarantee of good health, many of us are entering or in the last stages of life… We need to make these quantum leaps for the good of the whole and we are part of that whole.For Recommendations please see the full document!
We began in Sept 2020 with a group of eight. About half of us were experienced with the Spiral of Joanna’s work and the others were interested in exploring how this wisdom might be woven together with our Sufi practice and sustain us in caring for the Earth. We all stretched to create experiences that drew us deeper and closer by volunteering to guide our monthly zoom meetings. By and by more friends joined and we continue to journey through the spiral of gratitude, grief, and outrage to come to a clearer vision of the world we want to see and how to transition there. Through our shared leadership, we witness and applaud each other’s passions and see through each other’s eyes.
Here is some of the wisdom that has emerged for our times.
These point the way and inspire us with hope: Circles of inclusiveness Attitudinal change Reduction of isolation through earth connection Restoration of humanity to the whole of creation Concern and love of people everywhere Recognizing our diversity and difference is foundational Caring about restoration is foundational Open circles that include music and dance. Relationship to the land is a psychological root to bridge to the shadow. Reciprocity – the Importance of thinking about what we do to, and what we still need to learn from the non-human world.
Going forward from here we plan to take up a free multimedia online course by Chris Johnstone, who co-authored Active Hope with Joanna Macy. We will have a combined focus on Joanna Macy’s work that reconnects (WTR) and how it intersects with our Sufi practices and our passion for Earth care. We will work through the modules which might be two hours of reading and viewing monthly and choose parts to focus on together. This will be a framework for our meetings starting in 2022 even as we continue to rotate leadership. Here is the link for those interested: Active Hope
And leaving you with Joanna’s Five Vows. We are truly blessed!! Happy to hear from you, kalama@embarqmail.com.
I vow to myself and to each of you to commit myself daily to the healing of our world and the welfare of all beings.
I vow to myself and to each of you to live on Earth more lightly and less violently in the food, products, and energy I consume.
I vow to myself and to each of you to draw strength and guidance from the living Earth, the ancestors, the future beings, and our siblings of all species.
I vow to myself and to each of you to support you in your work for the world, and to ask for help when I need it.
I vow to myself and to each of you to pursue a daily spiritual practice that clarifies my mind, strengthens my heart, and supports me in observing these vows.
Several of us from the Sufi community and Kinship attended the Bioneers conference that took place all online this year from 11-13 November. It was an absolutely inspiring and hopeful compilation of messages, music, panel discussions, and projects designed to rebirth our world and our culture. They sent out a daily list of resources and summaries of the event that I want to share with all of you here. Please use this as a resource for inspiration and continuation of the great work you are all doing.
DAY ONE – LOOKING BENEATH THE SURFACE
“When people understand that real solutions do exist it leverages the potential for change.” -Kenny Ausubel & Nina Simons; Co-Founders | Bioneers
“There are some basic things that we need to create for healing. We have to create environments that are deeply embedded and connected to nature — that can moderate our fight, flight, and freeze responses. Spaces for refuge, that we can cool off in and leave. Spaces where we can break bread, embedding objects of comfort, light, sound, texture, and materials that are good for our senses. Integrating art into our space so that people can see themselves. These are the kinds of spaces for justice that we can begin to make.” -Deanna Van Buren; Executive Director | Designing Justice + Designing Spaces
“A message to the western world: I would like to tell them not to continue consuming gasoline and plastics that are not good for our health and the environment. I would like modern people to know where their oil comes from. It comes from the Amazon so they can have a good life in the city. It pollutes our water, our animals, and our land.” -Nemonte Nenquimo; Co-Founder | Ceibo Alliance and Amazon Frontlines
“I firmly believe that farming practices can deliver health. We need to lay down the weapons, back off of the toxins, and support biological bazaars. And that’s how we’re going to get to this. That is how we’re going to turn this trend around. When soil health gets better, crops and animals get better. Those become the animals and plant foods in the human diet, and it’s immensely helpful to us.” -Anne Biklé; Biologist, Avid Gardener, and Author
“When we look at climate justice, we have to look at the intersections of our relationships not just with each other but with the land. We have to look at the root causes of the systems that have brought us to this place. The beauty we are witnessing in this crisis is the power of community and the power of Indigenous Peoples.” -Eriel Deranger; Co-Founder and Executive Director | Indigenous Climate Action
Campaigns to Follow and Support
Join Designing Justice + Designing Spaces in unbuilding racism by investing more thoughtfully, igniting radical imagination, and closing jails. (Mentioned in Deanna Van Buren’s keynote address: Achieving Equity in the Built Environment.)
Sign this letter from Indigenous Peoples to Ecuador’s Constitutional Court to support their right to make decisions about what happens to their home in the Amazon. (Mentioned by Nemonte Nenquimo in her keynote address: Indigenous Guardianship is Key to Halt the Climate Crisis.)
Read more about how to bring our planet’s soils back to life in Growing a Revolution by David Montgomery. (Mentioned in his keynote presentation with Anne Biklé: You Are What Your Food Ate.)
Tell UBS and JPMorgan Chase to exit Amazon oil and gas with Amazon Watch. (Mentioned by Leila Salazar-Lopez in the panel Averting a Hot, Toxic Endgame: Strategizing & Mobilizing for Crime Justice.)
Attend an Embodied Leadership for Funders & Donors course in January, an 8-week introductory embodied leadership program for leaders in the funding world who are committed to redistributing wealth. (Mentioned by Staci Haines in the panel Embodied Healing Approaches to Personal, Generational, and Socio-Political Trauma.)
Connect with women interested in climate action worldwide by joining the WECAN Network. (Mentioned by Osprey Orielle Lake in the panel Averting a Hot, Toxic Endgame: Strategizing & Mobilizing for Crime Justice.)
DAY TWO – FINDING BALANCE
NINA SIMONS: From Discipline to Discipleship: Cultivating Love, Collaboration & Imagination
The full text of Bioneers Co-Founder Nina Simons’ keynote address from this morning is now available to read online. You can find it here.
“Colonial capitalist cosmology is driving damage around the globe in ways that are making a healthy life for humans impossible, and that damage will continue until the cosmology and the systems it imagines into reality are abolished and replaced with ones that recognize our interconnectedness and ones that center care.” -Rupa Marya; Faculty Director | Do No Harm Coalition + Founder | The Deep Medicine Circle
“Those of us who want to help make positive change in the world have got to grapple with the vast imbalance of the power differentials we face. Our class and racial inequities are so systemic and so ingrained that no matter how hard I try, I continue to discover my own blind spots and embedded patterns of white supremacy and privilege. It’s excavation work we’ve got to be willing to undertake, no matter how uncomfortable it is, as the need is so urgent and great.” -Nina Simons; Co-Founder | Bioneers
“There might be ways that our humanity and our collective future can be brightened if you have it in your heart to believe that the civilizing mission was wrong, that the St. Joseph’s missions of the worlds had it all backwards, that in fact, in the long run, it’s all of you who have something to learn from all of us; that maybe America, Canada and the so-called ‘civilized’ world should become just a little bit more indigenous rather than the other way around.” -Julian Brave NoiseCat; Director of Green New Deal Strategy | Data for Progress
“It’s going to take young people recognizing our power, getting the resources and the skills that we need to harness that power, and then ultimately creating the change that we deem necessary in our local communities. There has never been a large successful movement for change without young people.” -Alexandria Gordon; Student Organizer | Florida PIRG Students
“It is not okay to assign saving the world to 17-year-olds as if it’s some kind of homework problem. They cannot do it themselves. They need the rest of us backing them up, and in particular, I think, they need those of us in the baby boomer and silent generations, those of us above the age of 60.” -Bill McKibben | 350.org + Third Act
“I think we have to uplift the complexities of our people and realize that they’re not just one thing. That person selling drugs has a story. We have to uplift that story and not just condemn people.” -Jason Seals; Professor of African American Studies and Chair of Ethnic Studies | Merritt College
“People who have been oppressed have had to struggle to survive, and that struggle has also informed us as women as to what the imbalances are. Where the challenge is. It is time to hear and learn from all the unseen and unspoken and unheard. That includes the voice of Mother Earth and nature. It is the time of women rising.” -Osprey Orielle Lake; Founder and Executive Director | Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN) International
Campaigns to Follow and Support
Support The Deep Medicine Circle, a WOC-led, worker-directed nonprofit organization dedicated to repairing critical relationships that have been fractured through colonialism. (Mentioned by Rupa Marya in her keynote address.)
Ban fossil fuel advertising and sponsorships by signing this Greenpeace petition, which has almost reached its goal. (Mentioned by Michelle Jonker-Argueta in the panel Tell it to the Judge, Big Oil.)
Download the Student PIRGs activist toolkit, which provides the basic tools to run strong campaigns and win victories for students and the public interest. (Mentioned by Alexandria Gordon in her keynote address.)
Get involved with Third Act, a new campaign that invites people over 60 to harness their collective power to impact major movements. (Mentioned by Bill McKibben in his keynote address.)
Read this 2021 report that details the gendered and racial impacts of the fossil fuel industry in North America and complicit financial institutions. (Mentioned by Osprey Orielle Lak in the panel Nature + Justice + Women’s Leadership: A Strategic Trio for Effective Change.)
Support Data for Progress, a multidisciplinary group of experts using state-of-the-art techniques in data science to support progressive activists and causes. (Mentioned by Julian Brave NoiseCat in his keynote address.)
KENNY AUSUBEL – The Sting: The Role of Fraud in Nature
Bioneers Co-Founder Kenny Ausubel’s address is a highlight of every Bioneers Conference. The full text of his talk from today is now available to read online. You can find it here.
“First, we need to center the struggle for racial equity and against racism. Second, we need to craft a new economic story that can become common sense, a new economic story that recognizes our mutuality, a new economic story that motivates us for social change. And third, we’re only really going to get there if we commit to social movements for change.” -Manuel Pastor; Director | Equity Research Institute, USC + Solidarity Economics
“Nature is sending us extravagant distress signals these days. Earth is a hot mess. From COVID to climate catastrophe to fascism, the perils of disinformation are a matter of life and death. … We’d better get really good, really fast at reading Nature’s mind. The stakes are too high to keep drinking the collective Kool-Aid.” -Kenny Ausubel; Co-Founder | Bioneers
“Forests are so important globally because even though they only cover one-third of our land area, they store between 70 and 80% of the carbon in the terrestrial systems. They’re home to 80% of the species. They provide 80% of our clean water. They provide the oxygen we breathe. They are absolutely fundamental to our life support systems. And so saving these old-growth forests now is the number one thing that we need to do.” -Suzanne Simard; Professor of Forest Ecology | University of British Columbia
“Social justice is climate justice because the root cause is the same. If we don’t center social justice in the fight for climate justice, we won’t get anywhere.” -Alexia Leclercq; Co-Founder | Start: Empowerment
“Being wealthy within some of our nations meant that the more you gave the wealthier you were. I think that confuses people sometimes. It’s foreign to settler mentality. We need to build an Indigenous-led regenerative economy built on compassion.” -Sikowis Nobiss; Founder | Great Plains Action Society
“We need to prioritize nature-based solutions instead of grey infrastructure. It’s integrating community at every level and it also starts with looking at solutions that center restoration and regeneration first before we build a bunch of stuff on top of it.” -Ariel Whitson; Director of Education and Community | TreePeople
“The first time I spoke before my City Council about climate change, I told them I was scared. Then others started coming up to me and saying they were scared, too. I realized we’re not alone facing systemic injustice, and that’s what gives me hope.” -Artemisio Romero y Carver; Co-Founder | Youth United for Climate Crisis Action (YUCCA)
Campaigns to Follow and Support
Support Start:Empowerment, a BIPOC-led social and environmental justice education non-profit working with schools, teachers, community organizations and leaders to implement justice-focused curriculum and programming. (Mentioned by Alexia Leclercq in her keynote address.)
Learn more about the importance of mother trees for forest and environmental preservation with The Mother Tree Project. (Mentioned by Suzanne Simard in her keynote address.)
Take an interactive tour through LA’s urban oil drilling sites and their impact on the children, families, and Angelenos who live near them. (Mentioned by Nalleli Cobo in her keynote address.)
Become a community forester with TreePeople and create your own tree-planting events. (Mentioned by Ariel Lew Ai Le Whitson in the panel Biophilic Infrastructure: Letting Nature Lead the Way)
Find action tools to help make sure your campus is herbicide-free. (Mentioned by Mackenzie Feldmanin the panel Our Power: Exemplary Young Activists—the 2021 Brower Youth Awards Winners.)
Support Climate Resolve, which is tackling climate change, creating a thriving California and inspiring others to act. (Mentioned by Natalie Hernandez in the panel Solidarity Economics: Our Economy, Our Planet, Our Movements.)
Artwork by Kandi White, Indigenous Environmental Network, CultureStrike and Micah Bazant
This is an important conversation to have even after the Thanksgiving holiday season has passed. Bottom line – gratitude is something that comes with every breath.
INTRODUCTION
For many Indigenous People, giving thanks is a way of life. Among the Haudenushonne (Iroquois) Nations an opening address, or Great Thanksgiving, are the words spoken at start of day and before any important gathering of people commences its activity… Other Indigenous People also begin their days and activities with a prayer of Thanksgiving for all creation. We put our tobacco down as a gift of thanks. Thanksgiving, respect and reciprocity are core to our life ways. – Barb Munson (Oneida Nation), Wisconsin Indian Education Association, Indian Mascot And Logo Taskforce
There are many different experiences we will have over Thanksgiving – some of us will have lots of food, some of us will struggle to have enough. Some will be surrounded by people and some will be alone or with just one other person. For many, it’s an important time of coming together with family. This day also gives us a chance to look at and change stories we have about our families and ourselves. Thanksgiving is based on myths that hide and erase the genocide that the United States is founded upon. What would it mean to tell a different story; an honest story?
This past year has been filled with an emboldening of white supremacy. At the same time, more and more people are working to create something different. We cannot expect that justice will ever come if we are not willing to face the injustices of our past and present. Holidays can be a time to connect and talk about these realities and touch people’s hearts in profound ways. This can be fertile ground for lasting change.
The Indigenous Solidarity Network has developed this toolkit geared for white folks to discuss settler privilege and Thanksgiving with family, friends, and broader community. Deep gratitude to Dina Gilio-Whitaker and Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz for sharing the chapter “Thanksgiving Proves the Indians Welcomed the Pilgrims” from their book All the Real Indians Died Off: and 20 Other Myths About Native Americans. We need to talk about the history and ongoing reality of settler colonialism. (Meaning how European people violently took over lands and peoples for their own gains, and came to stay. In the US, this process of settling included enslaving people of African descent to build a country on Indigenous land.)
If you’re having these conversations with People of Color and/or Indigenous peoples, listen to what they’re bringing. It’s important to look at the complex ways that the colonization of Indigenous Nations went hand in hand with enslaving African people to work that land and how the violence is ongoing, as is Indigenous and People of Color led resistance. It can be hard for any of us to confront the ways we benefit from oppression and hard to talk about with people who do not agree with us. But this is how change starts and gives us the chance for real healing.
We invite you to take a moment to pause and breathe. What is happening in your body right now? How are you? Holidays are intense for many of us – whether they are filled with joy or sorrow and struggle, or a combination. Taking time to pause and notice how we are doing and what is happening can support us to continue to be in hard conversations.
As with any work in which we are acting in solidarity against oppression, we recognize that we do this work not ‘for’ Indigenous Peoples, but in partnership. We act out of mutual interest, recognizing that we are all facing the crisis of climate catastrophe and environmental destruction. It is Indigenous peoples who are fighting back most intensely and defending their lands. Supporting Indigenous protection of lands and waters ensures they will be protected for future generations.
DECONSTRUCTION TOOLS
ADDRESS FOUNDATIONAL MYTHS BEHIND THANKSGIVING
The roots of Thanksgiving are complicated and painful. Native and non-native scholars tend to agree that although there was a feast in 1621, this did not begin a tradition of Thanksgiving. The first recorded “Thanksgiving” was a celebration of murder. Dutch and English mercenaries massacred over 700 Indigenous people during their Green Corn Dance in 1637. The next day, the Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony declared Thanksgiving Day to commemorate “subduing the Pequots.”
Colonialism happens in a place. As white settlers, we are taught the importance of private property, the names of towns, counties, and states. Indigenous people have their own names for these places. Your school, the mall, your home, and places of worship all sit upon occupied Indigenous land. We need to realize that all of this is still Indigenous territory. It is important to know whose territory you are in. Find out if those nations, tribes, or Indigenous peoples are still in your area. If not, find out why. Have they been forcefully relocated or pushed out in another way? Are they currently fighting for federal recognition? There will be different paths to building relationships with Indigenous peoples and organizers where you live. We can support local Indigenous struggles from wherever we are and learn cultural protocols (behaviors used to show respect) for being in their territories.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
This interactive map and app can help you learn whose territory you are in
Here is a worksheet on Indigenous Resistance and Colonization to unlearn/relearn the history and current struggles of Indigenous people on the land you are on and to begin thinking about your place and role in these struggles of colonization and resistance
Here is a guide to help you open meetings, gatherings, and comings together with an Indigenous land acknowledgement
KNOW WHERE YOUR WATER, HEAT, ELECTRICITY & OTHER RESOURCES COME FROM
Indigenous people have been forced off or forced on to smaller pieces of their original homelands, which are known as reservations. Enormous amounts of resources are extracted from reservations, in the forms of coal mining and burning, fracking, uranium mining, nuclear waste dumping, and copper mining, all of which leave toxic pollution for generations. Extractive projects often lead to increased violence against Indigenous women and children, especially because of “man camps.” Huge profits come from extraction on Native lands and little of that money is returned to the communities. Indigenous people are left with the destruction of lands and lifeways, as well as the devastating impacts to physical, emotional, and spiritual health.
Indigenous populations across Turtle Island (the term many Indigenous people use to refer to North America) and around the world are among the hardest hit by the negative impacts of climate change. The reports from the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change states that the world is facing catastrophic damage from climate change as early as 2040, including cities and islands covered by oceans and intensifying droughts and poverty. Indigenous Peoples are deeply impacted by these changes and they are often on the frontlines resisting climate destruction and defending Mother Earth.
Colonialism is the root of climate chaos – which is now threatening the future of all people.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Learn more about the connection between colonialism, heteropatriarchy (the gender binary upholding and being upheld by male supremacy) and the destruction of Mother Earth.
Read this article about the influence Haudenosaunee women had on early European-American feminists
KNOW YOUR FAMILY’S HISTORY
White settlers on this continent are here at the expense of Indigenous peoples. If we’re white, our family’s history includes joining the U.S. settler state and benefiting from the displacement and genocide of Indigenous people. Many times, our families came to this land seeking opportunity and fleeing oppression. Pushed by the violence and poverty imposed by capitalism and other oppressions, people of European descent became agents and/or beneficiaries of genocide. We need to grapple with difficult questions in order to change this ongoing reality: Whose lands did our people settle? Whose lands do we currently occupy? Were our families involved in militias or armies invading Indigenous territories? Did they get land through the Homestead Act or other methods of privatizing/stealing Indigenous land? Did they/do we benefit from water rights, real estate development, and cheap energy at the expense of Indigenous nations? What laws have led to white people owning 98% of private land in the U.S.? Researching these histories can give us a better understanding of how (and why) to work toward Indigenous land return.
European settlers were/are required to give up our cultural identities in exchange for whiteness and its privileges. It can be helpful for white people to reconnect with our ethnic lineages and ancestry where so much healing can be found. But this must be done in the context of accountability and reparations to Indigenous people. Without that accountability, we simply erase and perpetuate ongoing genocide.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Explore your family history through talking to your family and/or doing research and considering these questions: How did your people come to be ‘white?’ What was lost in that process? How can this learning help challenge cultural appropriation, and deepen our accountability to Indigenous peoples and struggles? If your family owns a home or land, how did they come to acquire it?
Cultural appropriation is a continuation of genocide and land theft because settlers steal what does not belong to them, as if it is rightfully theirs. Settlers ‘play Indian’ as part of imagining that they will replace Indigenous peoples, take up their clothing, culture, and lifeways. This happens in many ways such as sports mascots, Thanksgiving pageants, homework assignments that ask students to ‘create something Native,’ Halloween costumes, etc. Most often, these parodies depict settlers as either victims of Native violence, or saviors converting Natives from “savages” to “civilized people.” The Red Nation writes in their 10 point program: “These appropriations contribute to the ongoing erasure of Native peoples and seek to minimize the harsh realities and histories of colonization. These appropriations are crimes against history.”
UNDERSTAND WHAT CHRISTIANITY HAS TO DO WITH JUSTIFYING LAND THEFT
European colonial powers used the Catholic Church’s Doctrine of Discovery to establish domination and ownership over non-Christian peoples and their lands. The first document establishing the Doctrine, written by the pope in 1095 AD, declared any land in which Christians do not live was “empty” and open to conquest. A 1452 document gave Christian explorers “full and free power,… to invade, conquer, fight, subjugate the Saracens and pagans, and other infidels and other enemies of Christ,… and to lead their persons in perpetual servitude, and… appropriate realms…” The U.S. system of land ownership and private property is rooted in these documents. The U.S. Supreme Court has cited them to deny land rights to the Oneida Nation as recently as 2005.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Research the so-called ‘doctrine of Christian discovery,’ which forms the basis for the theft of Native lands, denial of Indigenous rights, and all property law in the US, Canada, and other settler-states of the ‘Americas’ as well as New Zealand and Australia. The US, Canada, New Zealand and Australia were the four countries to vote against the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), adopted by the UN in 2007.
Check out this website with extensive resources about the so-called ‘doctrine of Christian discovery’
Read this United Nations study to learn more, “Preliminary study of the impact on indigenous peoples of the international legal construct known as the Doctrine of Discovery”
ENGAGE IN LOCAL STRUGGLES AND BUILD RELATIONSHIPS
Indigenous peoples continue leading struggles for land, water, and self-determination across Turtle Island. Not all Indigenous communities and organizations are looking for outside support, but many are. Learn about current struggles. Reach out and build respectful relationships with Indigenous peoples. Be ready to hear from people when you have made a mistake, learn from it, and keep doing the work. Collaboration with Indigenous communities will often be request-based and include forms of asking for consent and seeking guidance and input. The goal is not to get Indigenous peoples to join our struggles (whether environmental, women’s rights, or social justice), but to engage with their efforts for self-determination. All this can be a nuanced dance of taking initiative while being guided. Your participation in decision making and giving input should be determined by the Indigenous peoples you work with.
It’s important to address settler colonialism, anti-Black racism, and other forms of oppression simultaneously. Get involved in work that helps to build bridges and support the leadership of Indigenous peoples and People of Color. Show up fully, listen deeply, and base this work in long term relationships.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
There are multitudes of Indigenous-led struggles that need various kinds of support. This includes ongoing efforts to support Indigenous political prisoners imprisoned as a result of defending their lands at Standing Rock, Indigenous organizing against border town violence and all forms of violence, and People of Color led organizing for justice and liberation.
Check out and support these Indigenous-led struggles, movements, and organizations:
WORK FOR REPATRIATIONS OF LAND AND INDIGENOUS SOVEREIGNTY
This work means building long term relationships with Indigenous communities and frontline struggles in your region and globally. It means continuing to bring an awareness of whose land you’re on and how to be in relationship with Indigenous peoples into everything you’re involved in. This means building power to force the state to respect treaties between Native Nations and the U.S. government, supporting Indigenous Nations’ self-determination, working to reject the Doctrine of Discovery, and for land return that is also connected to Black reparations.
Check out this creative campaign where members of Resource Generation went door-to-door, in order to talk with people in solidarity with Poor Magazine’s “Stolen Land and Hoarded Resources Tour”
Many groups are also working towards reparations to Black communities, for example check out and support the Black Land and Liberation Initiative. It is necessary to recognize that compensation is owed to Black people for forced labor during slavery, hundreds of years of institutional anti-Blackness and much more.
QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER & DISCUSS
Where did you learn the history of Thanksgiving?
How does it feel to realize that many of the things you learned about Thanksgiving are myths?
Whose ancestral lands are you living on that are now occupied by the US?
What do you know about where your people came from and how they came to the land where you/they live currently?
What are the dangers of continuing to perpetuate the myths of Thanksgiving with the excuse that children are “too young” to learn the truths? How do these lies damage trust within families and communities?
What responsibility do we have to Indigenous Peoples whose land bases are being degraded so we might have cheap electricity, oil and water?
How does the reality of the “Doctrine of Discovery” compare to the myth of a U.S. society based upon “liberty and justice for all?”
What opportunities do you have to engage in conversations about changing mascots and other harmful representations of Indigenous peoples?
The Indigenous Solidarity Network initially grew out of the work of individuals from SURJ, Catalyst Project and other folks at Standing Rock following ongoing solidarity efforts with Standing Rock fighting the DAPL pipeline and to protect the water. It has since become a network to share resources, and actions primarily for non-native people to be in solidarity with Indigenous struggles. We host video calls, create resources like this one, send e-mail updates, and action alerts. Join the email list to keep updated by emailing anticolonialsolidarity@gmail.com.
Indigenous Solidarity Network members who worked on the first draft of this toolkit: Berkley Carnine, Dylan Cooke, Scott Davis, Rog Drew, Z! Haukeness, Griffen Jeffries
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like to thank the individuals to whom we are accountable and provided constructive feedback in the crafting of this toolkit: Betty Lyons – Onondaga Nation, Barb Munson – Oneida, Chasity Salvador – Acoma Pueblo, Corrine Sanchez – San Ildefonso Pueblo, Tara Trudell – Santee Sioux/Rarámuri.
