Indigenous Peoples' Day
A letter from our Integrated Advocacy Director
Don't just celebrate. Act.
 

The ACLU-WA is a proud sponsor of KEXP's Indigenous Peoples’ Day programming, all day on October 14. On the air at 90.3 FM Seattle, worldwide at KEXP.org.   

The ACLU is calling on Congress to commit to advancing the Native American Voting Rights Act (NAVRA) – along with a set of bills to make voting more accessible for everyone. Send a message to your representatives now

Watch an interview with illustrator Emma Noyes (Sinixt band of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation).  Her images are used on this page. Follow her on Instagram: @expertink

  • Brackeen v. Haaland: Brackeen v. Haaland:  In 2023, the Supreme Court issued a landmark victory for tribal sovereignty by rejecting all constitutional challenges to the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), legislation that seeks to ensure that Native families stay together, and that Native children are raised by tribal members. This decision recognizes the centuries-long history of Native child removal pursuant to state and federal policies, but the work is far from over. Today, states, including Washington, still remove Native children from their families and tribes at alarmingly high rates. Fourteen states have already incorporated ICWA protections into their own codes, and several more states are poised to do the same. Read more.

  • Juvenile Points: During the 2023 state Legislative session, ACLU-WA worked with partners to successfully end the practice of lengthening state prison sentences based on prior juvenile records, a practice that disproportionately impacts Indigenous people. Unfortunately, that legislation only applies to sentences going forward. Earlier this year, working with 21 Tribes and Indigenous organizations as well as a coalition of formerly incarcerated people and other impacted community members, we fought to make that change retroactive. Although the juvenile retroactive points bill did not pass in 2024, we will be back in the Legislature next year, standing beside the strong community we helped build, to ensure that no one is left behind. Read more.

Find out whose land you're on: Native-Land.ca 

See the severity and scale of Native American Land Losses.

Learn from your local Tribe: Follow on social media, check out their websites, see if they have publications or other media outlets.

Revisit ACLU-WA Executive Director Michele Storms’s conversation with Edgar Villanueva, member of the Lumbee nation, and author of “Decolonizing Wealth: Indigenous Wisdom to Heal Divides and Restore Balance.” Find a recap of their discussion at the ACLU’s 2023 Annual Celebration here.  

Attend an event

 

Resources

Educate:


Support the Land Back Movement:
NDN Collective
Landback.org
Indigenous Environmental Network
Honor The Earth 

Advocate for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women:
Sovereign Bodies Institute
MMIWHOISMISSING
National Indigenous Women's Resource Center (NIWRC)

Follow the hashtags: #MMIW, #MMIWG, #MMIWG2ST, #MMIP  

Listen – Read – Watch – Shop

 
Listen:

All My Relations
At Liberty: The Fight For Indigenous Education
At Liberty: It's Time to Tell Accurate Indigenous Stories
American Genocide Podcast by Illuminative
In Our Power by NDN Collective
Finding Our Way: Seeds, Grief, and Memory with Rowen White
Finding Our Way: Aloha ‘Āina with Dr. Jamaica Heolimeleikalani Osorio
Parks Podcast: A podcast on the creation of U.S. National Parks, retold by Indigenous voices.
Seedcast 

Read:
Decolonizing Wealth by Edgar Villanueva
Children’s books by Native authors, including Baby Speaks Salish by Emma Noyes

Watch:
Daughter of a Lost Bird by Brooke Swaney
Check out the past Indigenous Showcase series by Northwest Film Forum for ideas of what to watch
Reciprocity Project Films

Shop:
Support Native artists through Eighth Generation
Use this directory to find other Native-owned businesses in your area