Children have long been taught the rhyme that went along with colonialist celebrations of “Columbus Day”, “…in 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue”, or some such version…conjuring images of peaceful explorations of the unknown world of the 15th century…which upon closer examination is a white washing of atrocity and genocide perpetrated in the name of European governments and in the name of the Christian church(es). Throwing the cloak of Christianity over the endeavors was an attempt to veil the torture and murder of countless human beings in the successful attempt to steal land, gold and property..and commit genocide. It’s an old tactic that is still used by people today in an attempt to legitimize not only racism and atrocity…but all the adjacent patriarchal control mechanisms that derive from misogyny/homophobia/transphobia ect. It’s the old story.
Those of us who are awakening to the complex realities of our interconnections as people of the Earth and who are committed to exposing the lies and violence of oppressors must protect and defend the rights of all people and especially the rights and traditions and property of Indigenous people, not only here in the United States but globally. If we expect to navigate the next stages of our emerging world that we are creating together, we must honor the wisdom of Indigenous people and learn to listen…and to embrace each other. We must learn that we cannot change what happened but we can allow the horrific truth and reality of our history to set us free..we can learn that by healing ourselves and each other…we can heal the Earth.
In some ways, people find this very difficult to do…even though when we open ourselves to the indigenous traditions and teachings of the world we find that there is often a commonality with our own practices as Witches and magic(k)al people. We often find Animism and Pantheism, in various forms…often we find social models for egalitarianism and co-existence with each other that no longer occur organically in our institutions and constructs. We often find a living reverence and passionate love for the Earth and Her creatures…all of these are gifts that are needed desperately in the world today. We have so much to learn…and so much work to do to protect marginalized people today from further oppression and exploitation. We must get involved and active in promoting justice for the indigenous people of the United Sates and the Western hemisphere..and the world.
However our world evolves, we must make sure it is deeply rooted in a global and collective commitment to human rights and to preservation of the Earth…and to the environments that are consecrated, not to profit and commodity…but to Life and the thriving of biodiversity in all Her glory. We must learn to respect and honor all life on Turtle Island,
On this Indigenous people’s day, Here are 3 creative suggestions for what we can do to promote empowerment and liberation for the people and sentient lives of the Earth.
1) Many of us have ancestor shrines in our practices, especially at this time of year. Incorporate an item of reverence for the indigenous people of this land and spend some time with your shrine meditating and reflecting on the experiences (and atrocities) that have been committed…Allow the voices of those who have gone before us to emerge in your mind and spirit…and reflect on ways to work for justice for the descendants of the murdered who are living today, often under oppressive and exploitative policies, laws and practices. Commit to learning about the reality of this…and commit to taking action (magic(k)al and mundane) to bring about change.
2) Spend some time learning about Indigenous People and their lives and gifts..and support Indigenous communities and crafts people…do some research online and commit to educating yourself about the various indigenous cultures that still exist…reflect on how we can support a rebirth and thriving of these cultures, communities and their amazing people.
3) Share with loved ones what you learn…and be brave…often people resist uncomfortable truths and realities that are challenging to the systemic constructs that surround and seem to uphold them and sometimes dig deeper into the biases and hatreds of the past…so be prepared. Evolution can be a slow process…but we can do much to accelerate the process when we embrace truth.
-“the Earth is our Mother. We must take care of Her”- (taken from a chant by Libana)