I am glad to see increased interest of non-native people in the work of Indigenous peoples. When non-native people would like to know how to build such relationships, they usually don't know how. One of the best ways to do that is by showing up at Indigenous-led events, such as the Spring Equinox Celebration: Hub Blessing and Land Liberation March 21st at the Great Plains Action Society' s Urban Resilience HUB on March 21.
Category: Decolonizing
Practitioner-Bridge
I was intrigued when I began reading about the concept of the "Practitioner-Bridge." Numerous times in the past I found myself at the intersection of various groups I'm involved with. This likely applies to you, if you have been involved in justice work.
The Alliance Catalog
My intention is to demonstrate that building relationships among native and non-native people requires a long time, and multiple interactions to develop. And to show the wide variety of ways these connections can be made.
Decolonized Peace Testimony
This is all rooted in the European colonization of this land. Thus, our Peace Testimony must be rooted in decolonization. That is why, for example, I plan to return to the Great Plains Action Society's Urban Resilience Hub in Iowa City. This decolonial work is my peace testimony today.
The NewCO: What, Why, and How?
The NewCO (New Conscientious Objector) framework provides a comprehensive strategic blueprint for the immediate cessation of systemic sin within the Iowa Yearly Meeting (Conservative) tradition. The NewCO is about a faithful response composed of three integrated pillars: LANDBACK, Mutual Aid, and Abolition.
We are called to take away the occasion of all wars and empires
Responsibility is the ability to respond to fused violence with a fused resistance. It is the understanding that we cannot peacefully coexist with a system that requires the destruction of the earth and the erasure of its people. Our task is to build a new world in the shell of the old. We are called to live 'in the virtu of that life and power that takes away the occasion of all wars-and all empires.
Why Indigenous Leadership is Essential
One of the main lessons I've learned is the necessity of having Indigenous-leadership for this work.
Spiritual condition now
We Friends opposing war should refuse any kind of military service; Friends opposing conscription should refuse to cooperate with the Selective Service System....Holding CO status "blinded us to the evil of the draft itself." 1968 Richmond Declaration on the Draft.
Two Paths to Justice
This dynamic is at work today as I try to get people to adopt the NewCO (new conscientious objector) framework for justice work. Immediately, not gradually.
Processing what happened
Part of what I've been led to do is to spread the word about this Indigenous-led opportunity which allies can support. It is absolutely essential that decolonial efforts be Indigenous-led for several, interwoven reasons, primarily because these efforts are fundamentally about reclaiming sovereignty, restoring traditional knowledge, countering historical oppression, and building future systems that oppose colonial-capitalist structures, such as the Hub.