Mitákuye Oyás’iŋ today was a beautiful day to be with all of my relatives marching, praying, dancing, singing, resisting. When many indigenous communities come together to march for the Water Mother hears our cries & it starts to rain then snow then hail all at once. Then once she has bathed us in her scared Water Grandfather Sun comes out & the wind spirits come in full force to pray & gather with us. A tipi was put at the door of Trump Towers so there is no excuse that you don’t see us. Veterans occupied a Sun Trust Bank in solidarity & with peaceful power. Aztec dancers all the way from LA where present with the spirit of dance. There were many women warriors spreading their incredible energy as well as the next generation. Many artist performed their healing medicine of music as well as many speakers from many nations spoke from their heart about the struggles they face at home on the front lines & what Standing Rock faces. The Revolution is Now and we must fight with prayer & resistance from our hearts. Excited to stand & fight with this beautiful group of 2,500 + people helping to make our future & the next 7 generations future brighter for all. ✊🏽🐢🌎 #waterislife #standwirhstandingrock #Indigenousresistance #nativenationsrise
Friday May 10th was truly one of the most beautiful days to come out of this Standing Rock movement. Having been following this movement since August I feel very connected to it always waiting to see the next thing that will happen & how I can help. I was fortunate enough to be able to go to Standing Rock when the camp was still up and I got to meet a lot of people who were there at the march today shining their beautiful lights.
My journey started on Thursday March 9th when my mom & I went down to the tipi village that folks had set up on Tuesday. There we’re tipis & two tents there one tent being used for panels. The best thing about going down to be with our relatives was that we didn’t have an agenda we were just there. We met up with my friends Merope and Emmalee and also Merope’s friend Ashley. We meet some folks, checked out the lay of the land and then got deep into the drums and did some round dancing which is always a lot of fun.
Later we hung around the fire just checking it out and some of the Indigenous women from Texas sang these beautiful songs about warrior women & rez life. Afterwards we went home to rest before the big march the next day.
The march started on Friday March 10th at the Army Corps of Engineers and we passed Trump Towers then Sun Trust Bank before arriving at the White House. My mom & I got off the metro and it started to rain. Before we could even get to the march it started to snow. Then before we know it was hailing. Now I have been to many gatherings where many intentional beings come together in a good way and it will start to rain because we gather to take care of our mother & each other.
My mom, Ashley & I were standing near the Aztec dancers who had come here from LA. They were dressed in their traditional clothes which because it was raining/snowing it seemed they were cold as they were wearing their sandals and such. Once the march got started we passed by many different places in DC including Trump Towers and Sun Trust Bank. A tipi was set up along the way at Trump Towers as well as some Veterans who occupied a Sun Trust Bank in solidarity.
Some indigenous women took the flag that was captured from General Crusted from the Battle of Little Big Horn and were holding it during the march which was very powerful.
Once we got to the White House at Layafette Square there was a rally going on with many different performers. 16 year old Xiuhtezcatl Martinez of the Earth Guardians was the MC for the day and was awesome. Gabriel Ayala, Prolific the Rapper, Mohawk Women Singers, Ulali, Xiuhtezcatl and Taboo of the Black Eye Peas performed as well as many different speakers from different Native communities across Turtle Island. The rally lasted for about 2-3 hours. After words Ashley went home and Merope, Emmalee and myself went to get a late lunch to finish our day.
This was amazing turn out of indigenous folks all over Turtle Island with over 3,000 people in attendance. Glad to see our voice could be heard as indigenous people of this land.
Till Next Time…Mitákuye Oyás’iŋ
