This article was originally published at Truthout under the title "The Future is Indigenous: Decolonizing Thanksgiving" and is reprinted here with permission. In 2015, a video meme circulated prior to Thanksgiving, featuring YouTube personality Franchesca Ramsey humorously breaking down the actual history of the holiday. A wet blanket to her family's Thanksgiving dinner, … [Read more...]
What I Learned at Standing Rock: Being Latinx And a Settler
Growing up in Peru, I was taught to be very proud of my heritage. I grew up hearing stories of my people from my teachers, my mother, and my grandmother. They would often tell me to be proud of where I came from, but they would also then compare our ancestors to the current state of our country. “How could we have been so wise, only to now be struggling like this?” I would … [Read more...]
Being Indigenous and Fighting Against the Dakota Access Oil Pipeline #NoDAPL
In my culture, there are many stories. There are stories of shape shifting, of magic, of war. Of harmony, and of victory. One of these stories is that of the condor and the eagle. The story is actually a prophecy, that tells us when the eagle, the bird of the north, flies with the condor, the bird of the south; we will see harmony. As an indigenous person from the south, … [Read more...]
