Honoring Indigenous Peoples’ Day
Indigenous Peoples Day is celebrated on the second Monday in October. This day has been reclaimed by Indigenous Peoples, who have denounced Columbus Day as a celebration of genocide and colonialism. If you are in the Seattle area, join Rewild Salish Sea to honor Indigenous Peoples’ Day.
Heron’s Nest
Monday, October 9th
10:00 am - 2:00 pm
4818 Puget Way SW Seattle, WA 98106
Please RSVP here to sign the waiver and tell us your accessibility needs.
The first 15 people to RSVP will be invited to slow down, listen, and tend this land in the service of Land Back to The Duwamish Tribe. We will have opportunities for reflection, information on land stewardship, Indigenous solidarity, and Real Rent Duwamish as well as snacks to share.
Work will include general landscaping, blackberry root removal, ivy and invasive species removal, weeding, small building projects, and more. Please bring a lunch, water bottle, and any other items you will need for the day. You are invited to bring your favorite tools and gloves, and Heron's Nest will have tools and gloves on site. This is an all-ages activity, and on-leash dogs are welcome.
If you are not able to make it in person to land tend on Indigenous People’s Day, consider making a donation:
Donate to Heron’s Nest
All proceeds are allocated directly to The Heron’s Nest goal of raising $1.4 million towards land repatriation, stewardship, shared resources, community facilities, and educational programming. Much of their project funding has been out of pocket and volunteered time by multiple members of the Duwamish River Valley community. They hope to continue the building of community facilities and provide free workshops benefiting low-income, women and youth.
Donate to Real Rent Duwamish
The Duwamish do not have just access to the resources of their homelands. After decades of resistance to erasure, the Duwamish remain unacknowledged by the federal, state, and local governments. 100% of Real Rent goes to the non-profit, Duwamish Tribal Services, run by the Duwamish Tribe. The mission of Duwamish Tribal Services, Inc. is to promote the social, cultural, political, and economic survival of the Duwamish Tribe, to revive Duwamish culture, and to share our history and culture with all peoples.
What is #LANDBACK?
Land Back aims to reestablish Indigenous political authority over territories that Indigenous tribes claim by treaty. Scholars from the Indigenous-run Yellowhead Institute at Toronto Metropolitan University describe it as a process of reclaiming Indigenous jurisdiction. The NDN collective describes it as synonymous with decolonization and dismantling white supremacy. Land Back advocates for Indigenous rights, preserves languages and traditions, and works toward food sovereignty, decent housing, and a clean environment.
Watch this short film to learn more about the land-back movement and why it’s necessary: Why It’s Time To Give Native Americans Their Land Back
Watch this video about the launch of the #LANDBACK movement in South Dakota and read their manifesto about the reclamation of everything stolen from the original peoples, including land, language, ceremony, food, education, housing, health care, governance, medicines, and kinship
Engage with this set of land-back depth-education diagnostic exercises created by Gesturing Towards Decolonial Futures as a thought experiment for settlers to engage with some of the tensions and complexities that often emerge in discussions about returning land to Indigenous peoples in what is currently known as Canada.
