Bay Area Native Solidarity in Ohlone Territory

Bay Area native Solidarity
Ohlone territory
For native and Non-Native
Allies and Accomplices
by: Kanyon CoyoteWoman
Indian Canyon nation
acorn.wiki
2018.v1
Wednesday, May 30, 18

miSmin Tuuhis,
kan-rakat
Kanyon
CoyoteWoman
Sayers-Roods
Respectful Introductions
California Native,
Mutsun-Ohlone
Mukurma of Indian
Canyon Nation

Indigenous protocol -
Cultural Etiquette
Acknowledgement of Space and Place
It’s a tradition that has dated back
centuries for indigenous people
but for many non-Indigenous people,
Officially recognizing the territory or
lands we stand on is a fairly new concept
However, it's one that many Indigenous
people say marks a small but essential step
toward reconciliation.

Who Where the
original occupants of
this land?
Indigenous People
were and are the first
stewards of the land
-Ohlone
-Costanoan
or ask
- Original People who
reconnect with language
just want to be called
“People” in their Language

What is Ohlone Territory?
Surviving through two centuries of persecution and
genocidal policies during the Spanish, Mexican and
American eras, Ohlone people continue to inhabit
their ancestral homeland, the San Francisco Bay and
Monterey Bay areas.
Ohlone (aka Costanoan) is a grouping term created by
anthropologists to signify broad-based linguistic and
cultural similarities among some 58 independent
tribal groups
The language family of the tribes whose homelands
extended from present day “San Francisco Bay south
to Monterey Bay - Big Sur coast and San Benito River
drainage”
First named “Costanoan” in 1891 and “ohlone” in 1978

Ohlone | Costanoan
The word Ohlone (pronounced “Oh-lone-e”) comes from the name of a
single tribe of Ohlone, the Oljon (pronounced “Ol-hone”)
This group is sometimes called Costanoan (pronounced Coh-stah-
no-an). This word comes from the spanish term “Costano” meaning
“Indians from the Coast”.
While there was overlap in the overall cultures of the Ohlone
peoples from tribe to tribe, there were also many things that made
each tribe distinct
From leadership, to sacred narratives, specifics of plant use,
languages spoken and more
Ohlone cultures changed in the thousands of years that they and
their ancestors have lived in the place known as San Francisco
Bay Area.
Change increased as non-Indians began to settle in the area after
1769
While Ohlone peoples experienced tremendous disruption,
dislocation, and suffering in subsequent decades, and astonishing
amount of ancestral knowledge has been preserved
due to courage, sacrifice, bigheartedness, foresight, and
determination of many elders to share that knowledge

Did you Know ...?
California was once home to
over 300 Native American
dialects and as many as 90
languages, making it the
most linguistically diverse
state in the US.
Today, only about half of
those languages are still
with us, according to the
Advocates for Indigenous
California Language
Survival, or AICLS.
Languages are not dead, they
are Dormant, and many are
waking up (with community
focusing on Language
revitalization)

Diverse Cultural Heritage
The Cultural Heritage of California
begins no less than 15,000 years ago when
the many of several waves of people
arrived and settled here.
California's prehistoric population one of
the largest and most diverse in the
Western Hemisphere is exhibited by
the no fewer than the sixty-four
distinct languages they spoke
more than any other comparable area in
the world outside of new Guinea.
"Before white contact, California had more
linguistic variety than all of Europe.
Today California Indian languages are
indeed in the ultimate crisis in a life-and-
death struggle," writes linguist Leanne
Hinton
"We may see ninety percent of these
languages, or perhaps all of them,
disappear in our lifetimes" (Hinton, 1994).
This online presentation of California
Indian Root Languages and Tribal Groups is
to provide information to all who want to
learn about California Indian Languages.

Dominant Colonial Narrative
The Traditional Colonial narrative tells the tale of
Indians, a homogeneous and ultimately ill-fated
indigenous population
Doomed by lack of resistance to disease
Doomed by inherently violent culture
doomed by their inability to adapt to change
It is frequently the story of savage Natives attacking
defenseless White|Spaniard settlers with no warning
being defeated by a brave and outnumbered Army|
Mission, then disappearing into the untamed, faceless
West
The Full story, inclusive of Native perspectives, is
necessarily more complex

Sensitivity to projected
narrative
A common belief among those who are not of California Indian
ancestry that California was a pristine wilderness before the
arrival of European and American settlers
peopled by small groups of indigenous Indians who subsisted by
hunting
gathering
had minimal impact on the environment
This Image of the California Indians As Primitives
Living Hand-to-Mouth at the mercy of Nature
or as Conservation-Minded Environmentalists
whose Minimalist Interventions on the Environment served
to guard Nature’s Treasures
without despoiling them or changing them
As Restoration and Ethnoecologist Kat Anderson Phrases it
Has been perpetuated by early american scholars and
environmentalists, including John Muir

In Fact, as Kat Anderson
shows in her book -
tending the Wild
California Indians
Were sophisticated stewards &
managers of the landscape
For centuries they practiced
sustainable resource management
through
pruning
harrowing
sowing
thinning
Transplanting
weeding
irrigating
digging
selective harvesting
most importantly
intentional burning.
Their management practices
increased diversity of species &
habitat
maintained plant communities that
otherwise would have disappeared.

WHAT IS A LAND
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT?
First and foremost we must recognize that non-
indigenous people are occupying stolen land
in an ongoing genocide that has lasted for centuries.
We must affirm our responsibility to stand with
indigenous communities who want support and give
everything we can to protect their land and culture
from further devastation;
they have been on the front-lines of biocide and
genocide for centuries, and as allies, we need to step
up and join them.
A Land Acknowledgement is a formal statement that
recognizes and respects Indigenous Peoples as
traditional stewards of this land
the enduring relationship that exists between
Indigenous Peoples and their traditional
territories.

Why Acknowledge Land?
Territory acknowledgement is a way that people insert an
awareness of Indigenous presence and land rights in everyday
life.
This is often done at the beginning of ceremonies, lectures, or
any public event. It can be a subtle way to recognize the history
of colonialism and a need for change in settler colonial
societies.
However, these acknowledgements can easily be a token gesture
rather than a meaningful practice.
All settlers, including recent arrivants, have a responsibility to
consider what it means to acknowledge the history and legacy of
colonialism.
What are some of the privileges settlers enjoy today because of
colonialism?
How can individuals develop relationships with peoples whose
territory they are living on in the contemporary Canadian
geopolitical landscape?
What are you, or your organization, doing beyond
acknowledging the territory where you live, work, or hold your
events?
What might you be doing that perpetuates settler colonial
futurity rather than considering alternative ways forward for
Canada?
Do you have an understanding of the on-going violence and the
trauma that is part of the structure of colonialism?

“If we think of territorial acknowledgments as sites of
potential disruption, they can be transformative acts
that to some extent undo Indigenous erasure. I believe
this is true as long as these acknowledgments discomfit
both those speaking and hearing the words. The fact of
Indigenous presence should force non-Indigenous
peoples to confront their own place on these lands.” –
Chelsea Vowel, Métis, Beyond Territorial
Acknowledgements
As Chelsea Vowel, a Métis woman from the Plains Cree
speaking community of Lac Ste. Anne, Alberta, writes:

Why Do We
Recognize the Land?
To recognize the land is an expression of gratitude
and appreciation to those whose territory you reside
on, and a way of honoring the Indigenous people who
have been living and working on the land from time
immemorial.
It is important to understand the long standing
history that has brought you to reside on the land,
and to seek to understand your place within that
history.
Land acknowledgements do not exist in a past tense,
or historical context:
colonialism is a current ongoing process
we need to build our mindfulness of our present
participation
It is also worth noting that acknowledging the
land is Indigenous protocol.

Indigenous Protocol
Protocol is the set of societal rules that members and
visitors of a community respectfully follow
in order to maintain peace and harmony within a
nation or territory.
Just as we have etiquette when we enter another
person's house, we also have protocol when
entering or living on traditional Native Californian
lands.
Some examples of Native Californian protocol include:
acknowledgement of original lands and peoples at
events and institutions
as a guest, to bring gifts to Indigenous leaders at
events, gatherings, etc.
consult with tribal leaders when organizing events
for or writing about tribal groups, history, etc.

Respectful Protocol
RESPECT:
Listen and observe twice as much as you speak. Humbly
ask if you do not understand something. Give elders top
priority— food, seating, space to speak, etc.
ACTIVE EDUCATION:
Familiarize yourself with the native communities of the
place you reside. Learn their history, stay informed on
current issues, and educate your community
ACTIVE COMMUNITY BUILDING:
show up at Indigenous-organized events/gatherings And
spread the word.
$upport Indigenous- led organizations, artists,
educators, and activists
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF NATIVE LANDS:
a promise to amplify Indigenous voices, to stand in
solidarity with the local Indigenous community, and to
respect the local protocol
for more info, visit usdac.us/nativeland

InfoGraphic from
Acorn.wiki Minizine

Ohlone | Coast miwok Map
You are looking at a map of original Ohlone and Coast Miwok
village names
While the numbers can be fuzzy, there are a little over 100
Native Californian tribes that are federally recognized.
There are even more tribes that are NOT federally
recognized
Federally Recognized Tribes have rights to
land
free or accessible health care
casinos
scholarships
other institutions that aid in protecting cultural aspects
and practices
such as language, religion, and arts
Federally Unrecognized Tribes, including all Ohlone tribes
and language groups (and many Miwok), have none of the
previously mentioned rights. That means that across all Ohlone
land, the sacred sites, Native peoples, and their cultures do not
have federal protections, leaving the communities to advocate
for themselves

“we are still here”
Marc Nicely

Timeline of Colonization

References | Websites
Cultural Teachings | Oral Traditions
Links
Acorn.Wiki
Native-Land.ca
sogoreate-landtrust.com
unsettlingamerica.wordpress.com
ebparks.org [Ohlone Curriculum]
indiancanyonlife.org

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