Indigenous Voices

“It feels like we are sharing what we’ve got because that’s the only thing we have. We got our traditions, our dances, and our moves.” Reese A Bird Dancer Kumeyaay Nation| Life As A Young and Native American | Indigenous Voices

What colonizers coined “Blackfeet” that is not their true Tribal name. For many this was an eye opening expose’ by Chelsea Handler in 2017 in which she visited the nation to speak with several tribal members on their culture, history, and lives. As the Elder Woman spoke on we are all quite different, all Indigenous nations have a different culture. Personally I think we all look different but some may differ in their own perceptions. The Elders also spoke on the water crisis which many in society also do not realize.

Courtesy of- Chelsea

Netflix

To correlate the Women’s History Month concept in below Vice conducted a marvelous piece interviewing powerful young people and Girls especially.

Courtesy of- VICE

Spoken of by the young Woman by the name of ,Delmar, we are miracles, our lives are. Everything has been enacted towards us in attempts to erase us from the earth but we are here in spite of it. We have had anything inflicted upon us Indigenous peoples beginning in 1492 and it has never really ceased. From Colonization, Sex Trafficking, Mass Sexual Violence, Genocide, Inter-generational Trauma, Violence, Discrimination to death then of course the residual affects of the systemic violations of our human rights however we have pushed on in spite of. That is the story of any Indigenous people. Respect to the young Women and Girls for speaking out and being as unflinching about the reality of our all too prevalent experiences. It is not effortless whatsoever to speak on these things. We have been trivialized, stigmatized, sexualized, sterilized, actually terrorized, and every other ized that exists in grammar but as the saying goes our existence is our resistance alone. History and present struggles shows we ought to have been annihilated generations ago. It is a testament to our spirit as people.

“I was crying about how our people are still lost. They still don’t have their identity, that connection to be able to be human.” Melisa Kumeyaay Nation

Powerful young people. Bless them.

“Sometimes you have to run through the rocky path.” Delmar Kumeyaay Nation| Life As A Young and Native American | Indigenous Voices