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Science is only now catching up with what indigenous peoples have understood for millennia, according to indigenous rights activist, teacher, and author Sherri Mitchell. In this clip from her talk at the 2018 Drawdown Learn Conference, Mitchell explores the parallels between indigenous teachings and quantum entanglement—the concept that two particles remain tied together when they are no longer physically connected, or what Einstein called "spooky action at a distance." "How many of you have...

Writer-Director Juan Antin’s latest film “Pachamama”, god willing, might just save the planet. The Argentinian director’s latest project illustrates a story of a young boy from the Andes growing up during the time the Incas were colonized by Spain. Even more importantly, as a piece of content that targets younger generations, it strikes up a conversation on how the actions of early colonizers mirror the ways in which we mistreat our planet today. “Pachamama” follows a 10-year-old boy from a...

For nearly a century, a massive mural by painter Victor Arnautoff titled “The Life of Washington” has lined the hallways of San Francisco’s George Washington High School . The mural “glorifies slavery, genocide, colonization, manifest destiny, white supremacy [and] oppression.” So said Washington High School’s Reflection and Action Group , an ad-hoc committee formed late last year and made up of Native Americans from the community, students, school employees, local artists and historians.

SACRAMENTO – (June 13, 2019) The Board of State and Community Corrections approved two grants worth millions of dollars for programs designed to prevent young people from entering the justice system or from furthering their involvement in it. Just over $1 million was awarded to Native American tribes, and $29.1 million was awarded to cities and counties. Preference points for the larger grant were given to local governments who also plan to serve Native American youth. The Youth Reinvestment...

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Sitting under redwood trees and listening to great music with a community of people was how I experienced RockSoberFest 2019. The three day event, in the small town of Boonville in Northern California was organized to provide a safe space for people in recovery to have fun with friends and family. “Our goal is to provide a great weekend of fun, fellowship, friends, family while enjoying music. A grass-roots organization trying to create a place where performers who are clean and sober can...

Finally, plant species have rights , too. Manoomin (“wild rice”) now has legal rights. At the close of 2018, the White Earth band of Ojibwe passed a law formally recognizing the Rights of Manoomin. According to a resolution, these rights were recognized because “it has become necessary to provide a legal basis to protect wild rice and fresh water resources as part of our primary treaty foods for future generations.” This reflects traditional laws of Anishinaabe people, now codified by the...

Canada's $92 million National Inquiry Into Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls was released on June 3rd. In announcing the report, Chief Commissioner Marion Buller declared that the damage being done to Native women represents a "deliberate race, identity, and gender-based genocide." When asked about the report by APTN reporter Tina House , Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said, "We accept the findings of the commissioners that it was genocide, but our focus is going to be, as it...

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The House Subcommittee for Indigenous Peoples of the United States will be taking testimony this week on tribal homelands and tribal treaty legislation. Four bills are on the agenda for the legislative hearing on Wednesday. They are: • H.R.733 , the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Reservation Restoration Act • Sponsor: Rep. Betty McCollum (D-Minnesota) The bill returns nearly 12,000 acres to the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe . The tribe lost the land when the Bureau of Indian...

Laurel Morales, NPR, May 29, 2019. Neda Billie has been waiting to turn on lights in her home for 15 years. "We've been living off those propane lanterns," she says. "Now we don't have to have flashlights everywhere. All the kids have a flashlight so when they get up in the middle of the night like to use the restroom they have a flashlight to go to [the outhouse]." Billie, her husband and their five kids live in a tiny, one-room hogan, a traditional Navajo home. Their three sheep graze on...

A red hand over her mouth. The letters MMIW painted down her leg. What message was this high school track star sending? When photographer Alex Flett attended the WIAA 1B State Track and Field Championships at Eastern Washington University , he didn't expect that to capture an iconic image of a high schooler with a powerful message. Rosalie Fish, from Muckleshoot Tribal School in Auburn, WA, showed up on the track with a statement painted on her body—a red hand covering her mouth and the...

Once, there was no easy recourse for tribes when governments or corporations engaged in one-sided, or unilateral, actions that negatively affected them. But on May 10, a major milestone in the fight for Native sovereignty was reached when Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced a new state policy regarding Washington’s federally-recognized tribes. “Effective immediately,” Ferguson said, “my office is adopting a consultation and consent policy regarding Washington’s 29...