‘Red Road to D.C.’ calls for tribal consultation on projects that impact Native resources
Native American activists from across the nation began a cross-country tour to Washington D.C. to advocate for the protection of sacred sites where Indigenous communities are leading efforts to halt resource extraction and industrial development.
“The Red Road to D.C.” tour launched Wednesday, July 14, from Northwest Indian College in Bellingham and will make eight stops, ending with a press event and rally at the National Mall. U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, an enrolled member of the Laguna Pueblo, will be accepting the pole when it arrives in Washington D.C. July 29, organizers announced.
The totem pole is a gift to President Biden and a message to his administration to work with tribes and honor treaties.
“This is a reminder of his ancestral responsibilities to protect our right to freedom of religion,” said Judith LeBlanc, a member of the Caddo Nation and director of the Native Organizers Alliance.
The group’s petition that calls on the president to take immediate action to ensure all federal departments include tribal consultation when considering projects that affect Native lands, waters and resources has been signed by 6,000 people so far.
Lummi Nation master carver Jewell James from The House of Tears Carvers, along with other organizers and tribal leaders, is working on a set of proclamations to offer the administration.
“The honor of the nation is at risk and we want to make sure there is justice delivered,” James said.
The two-week tour will include stops at Snake River at the Washington-Idaho border, Bears Ears in Utah, Chaco Canyon in New Mexico, the Black Hills in South Dakota, the Missouri River in South Dakota, Standing Rock in North Dakota, Line 3 oil pipeline in Minnesota and Line 5 pipeline in Michigan.
The pole previously toured the country as organizers met with tribal and non-tribal communities to develop the proclamations, receive blessings and empower earth protectors.
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Natasha Brennan covers Washington state tribes’ impact on our local communities, environment and politics, as well as traditions, culture and equity issues, for McClatchy media companies in Bellingham, Olympia, Tacoma and Tri-Cities.
She joins us in partnership with Report for America, which pays a portion of reporters’ salaries. You can help support this reporting at bellinghamherald.com/donate. Donations are tax-deductible through Journalism Funding Partners.
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“As monuments to colonialism are dismantled across the nation, the totem pole creates a new kind of monument, one that serves to build alliances around our collective obligation to care for our lands and waters for the generations to come,” said Rosalyn LaPier, a member of the Blackfeet and Métis tribes and board member at The Natural History Museum, in a press release. “It also challenges us to address environmental racism and the growing climate crisis.”
The totem pole will be exhibited outside of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian as part of the “Kwel’ Hoy: We Draw the Line” exhibition about the 20-year history of Lummi Nation totem pole journeys, developed by the Natural History Museum and the House of Tears Carvers.
For more information, visit redroadtodc.org.
This story was originally published July 14, 2021 at 12:37 PM with the headline "‘Red Road to D.C.’ calls for tribal consultation on projects that impact Native resources."
