How Portland's mutual aid supports local Indigenous communities

Jessica Douglas

September 22, 2020 |

High Country News |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: Warm Springs Indian Reservation, United States, Oregon

Indigenous communities in need of clean drinking water have turned to aid from a Black-led nonprofit in Portland. Don't Shoot Portland raised $16,000 dollars for water and other basic supplies for the Warm Springs Tribe, which is dealing with a high infection rate of coronavirus in addition to old and faulty infrastructure which has left much of the tribe without water. Mutual aid groups have temporarily come to the rescue of indigenous communities who have been unable to receive adequate government funding to repair old water pipes.

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The art of fire: reviving the Indigenous craft of cultural burning

Kelly Boutsalis

September 20, 2020 |

The Narwhal |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: Tsilhqot'in Nation, Canada

A 3-year pilot is developing a traditional fire management program for First Nation communities using cultural burns, a practice banned for over a century. Cultural burns are used to reinvigorate the landscape so that seeds and berries grow and animals return. The low intensity, slow burns also reduce wildfire risks and other issues linked to climate change, such as infestations. Stories about cultural burns are being recorded from tribal elders to preserve the rich cultural knowledge about traditional fire management techniques. First Nations hope to be able to use cultural burns on their tribal lands.

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‘It's like paradise for us': the Cree Nation's fight to save the Broadback Forest

Sarah Cox

August 22, 2020 |

The Narwhal |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: Canada, Quebec

Canopy works to preserve the untouched Broadback Forest, which stores twice as much carbon as the Amazon and is central to the Cree Nation. The nonprofit works with 750 corporations, including fashion brands, commercial printers, and publishers to reduce the amount of packaging they use and eliminate sourcing from biodiverse, ancient, and endangered forests. They help source waste from grain and other food harvests for packaging, paper, and fabric production and enlist companies’ support of conservation initiatives. They also partner with other groups to lobby the government to protect the Broadback forest.

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The Temporary Battle Against COVID-19 Taught This N.C. Native Community How to Combat a Longstanding Epidemic

Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle

July 22, 2020 |

100 Days in Appalachia |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Cherokee, North Carolina

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians reacted to COVID-19 with aggressive measures that yielded fewer illnesses than in neighboring counties, and no deaths, all without outside help. But one of their preventive measures – roadblocks severely limiting access to the Qualla Boundary, the band's territory – led to a surge in overdose deaths from fentanyl-laced heroin, because drug dealers responded with fewer shipments of more potent drugs. Overdoses eventually subsided with the roadblock lifted. The unintended consequence taught lessons about self-governance and unseen risks from within, not just from outside.

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Citrus for Sourdough, Eggs for Yeast

Annelise Jolley

July 21, 2020 |

Life & Thyme |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Michigan

Food bartering helps families during times of food insecurity, which is often exacerbated by crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic. Families with lower incomes have bartered for food for a long time but the pandemic has brought diversity to the families exchanging food with friends and neighbors. Food bartering is part of the cultural fabric of different groups, such as the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community, which hosts workshops on cultivating gardens. Food bartering is an inclusive and community-building practice but when bartering is the only way to get food, the communal reliance can be an emotional drain.

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How sports institutions have overhauled their images in the past

Dana Jacobson

July 18, 2020 |

CBS News |

Broadcast TV News |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Washington, District of Columbia

Renaming the Washington Redskins to remove a racist name and logo will require a difficult and delicate process juggling a host of issues that other professional and college sports franchises have successfully navigated in the past. Often a years-long process, rebranding involves choosing a name and color scheme that replace the harmful imagery with a positive name that passes trademark tests, wins fan support, maintains brand equity and continuity built over decades, and can be reduced to a simple logo that looks good on helmets and in all media, from TV screens to smartphones.

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How Bears Ears Activists Advanced Navajo Voting Rights in Utah

Ross Coyle

July 10, 2020 |

Bitterroot |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Navajo Nation, United States, Utah

In 2016, court ordered redistricting gave Navajo nation residents in San Juan County fairer representation and required in-person polling locations and translation assistance. Shortly after, the Bear Ears National Monument was reduced by 85% by the Trump administration, which motivated a huge get-out-the-vote campaign among Navajo people. With the help of nonprofits, 1,600 Navajo nation members updated their voter information or registered for the first time. This helped elect the first Navajo-majority commission in the county in 2018, which gave Native Americans a political voice they haven't had before.

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American Indian patrol in Minneapolis credited with saving buildings during protests

Jean Hopfensperger

June 11, 2020 |

Minneapolis Star Tribune |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Volunteer street patrols organized by the American Indian Movement, the national civil rights group, saved the heart of the Twin Cities’ native American community from damage during the looting and arson that broke out during protests over police brutality in Minneapolis. AIM street patrols that had been created in 1968 were revived for the June 2020 unrest. Local businesses praised the effort for protecting their buildings, often by standing guard overnight armed with walkie-talkies and sometimes with guns.

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Navajo community health reps play key role in contact tracing

Elise Kaplan

June 06, 2020 |

Albuquerque Journal |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Navajo Nation, Arizona

The Community Health Representative Program has been helping connect the Navajo Nation with health-care resources for decades, but when the Covid-19 pandemic began to impact community members, the role of the representatives shifted. By "using their knowledge of the community in a different way," the representatives have largely become contact tracers, a role they are uniquely suited for given their understanding of the importance of cultural competency and their longevity in the community.

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Around the world, Indigenous seed banks are helping to preserve culture, boost nutrition and protect the environment

Andrew Wight

June 02, 2020 |

Ensia |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: Guatemala

Indigenous seed banks preserve and reintroduce native agricultural varieties, which in some cases are more nutritious than other varieties. Qachuu Aloom runs a one-room seed bank that provides raw materials for its 500 active members, 80% of whom are women, to practice agroecological farming. The Cherokee Nation Seed Bank preserves more than 100 different kinds of seeds, distributing over 10,000 packets to growers in 2019. Several international organizations are working with seed banks to drive more resilient and diversified food production with native varieties as a way to address food insecurity.

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