The Original Occupation: Native Blood & the Myth of Thanksgiving | Unsettling America

The Original Occupation: Native Blood & the Myth of Thanksgiving | Unsettling America

The Original Occupation: Native Blood & the Myth of Thanksgiving

Posted on November 23, 2011 | 3 Comments

This piece is available as podcast. It is part of our larger Kasama offerings on peoples’ history.

The Puritan colonists of Massachusetts embraced a line from Psalms 2:8:

“Ask of me, and I shall give thee, the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.”

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by Mike Ely

Intro to that first occupation

It is a deep thing that people still celebrate the survival of the early colonists at Plymouth — by giving thanks to the Christian God who supposedly protected and championed the European invasion.

Let's see the reality of Thanksgiving -- and the founding of the United States in slavery and genocide

The real meaning of all that, then and now, needs to be continually excavated. The myths and lies that surround the past are constantly draped over the horrors and tortures of our present.

We are talking widely among ourselves about “occupying” Wall Street — taking the center of an empire back for the people of the world. We are talking about “Occupy Everything” — sharing our dreams of taking all society away from banks, police, and the heartless authority of money. We hope this moment marks a beginning of the end for them. Read More Here | Unsettling America

People Of Color Organize! | Decolonizing Indigenous Traditionalism

Decolonizing Indigenous Traditionalism

Posted on 31 October 2011 by Enaemaehkiw Túpac Keshena

"Spirituality is the center of our Indigenous Being and in our history our Spiritual Institutions were subject to changes where another world view was introduced which affected these things and also where our Spiritual Institutions made illegal by our oppressors which forced us to keep these things hidden underground, where these things were almost lost. Now we are seeing a resurgence of our Spiritual Societies and Ceremonies thriving. With this we should not be so ignorant to believe that our Spiritual Societies are not exempt of the colonial stains which have infiltrated our other Indigenous Institutions. We need to be conscience of this and correct oppressive behaviors within our various societies as we are seeing a majority of our people return to our ways where they are doing it through our Spiritual Institutions.

Although our spiritual societies play a significant role in our decolonization process traces of colonialism is still entrenched in them instilling passive values which are making us submissive to our oppressor. We must also not make the mistake that “Traditionalism” or our Spiritual Institutions is the only thing there is to our Identity. We also have our own political, judicial, warrior, hunting, medicine, economic societies to reestablish." Read More Here |Decolonizing indigenous TRaditionalism

Confront Racism: Zeitgeist Movement and #Occupy | People Of Color Organize!

Confront Racism: Zeitgeist Movement and #Occupy | People Of Color Organize!