The Yinka Dini Resurgence Alliance: A Community Proposal

Date

2017-06-05

Authors

Lewis, Carla

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Abstract

This community governance project is intended to be an intermediary between knowledge and action. Indigenous governance and leadership require that our ideas move into the realm of action to better our lives as Indigenous peoples: to become healthy families and strong Indigenous nations. In short, decolonization and healing requires mobilization. Over the years, I have been daydreaming about creating an organization in Wet’suwet’en territory where we can conduct grassroots projects that contribute to the resurgence of our culture, our values, and our presence on the land. I have witnessed the degradation of our lands even in my short lifetime, and it must be stopped. I have spent many years learning about colonization, globalization, and the impact these things have had on our peoples’ minds and homelands. I hold so much pain in my heart when I see the impacts of insatiable consumption on Indigenous peoples, on starving children, and our lands that are stripped clear of life and covered in a humanmade wig of concrete and tree farms. I seek to build a better understanding of the world and how we can create a Wet’suwet’en resurgence where the modalities of our traditional society, laws, and values show us a way of life that does not compromise our humanity and our place in nature.

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Keywords

alliance, indigenous, governance, leadership, nations, decolonization, healing, mobilization, territory, culture, values, grassroots, colonization, globalization, homelands, resurgence, traditions, spirits, teachings

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