Called to the Spirit of the Original Peoples Page 1
Called to the Spirit of the Original Peoples ( Sandra Boone of the PYM First Contact Reconciliation Collaborative will give us an overview of its purpose and goals. What follows are answers to an email interview between Sandra and the editor (Rich A.). Sandra uses the pronoun We to refer to herself in the unity of the Spirit)
Rich: Can you tell us a bit of biography info/ where Spirit dwells?
Sandra: Home is where the water flows – fresh, to brackish, to salt; Pine Barrens – where the land breathes. We arrived breech, under the Libra constellation into a community pairing word and deed, a village serving without being asked. Helping is a way of being since childhood, where early years were in education among Friends, then Montessori school. Along came centering mystic energy, oneness, harmony of water and spirited ones. Most often wordless, abundant wonderings flourish within; we hone gifts of observation and listening, reciprocating gifts of loving trust, where community welfare is as important as each individual; and we are flawed.
Home is Scheyichbi – the great peninsula of Lenapehoking; the land of Kechemeche and Absegami Lenape. Spirit led, we carry a minute of religious service with the Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape Tribal Nation, under the care and clearness of Friends’ Worship & Ministry of Salem Quarter. We are blessed in partnership with Jim Murphy, with open acres, a pond and forest; our farm, Back of the Bay, is named a wildlife sanctuary; we are lairds tending a small herd of horses and offer equine therapeutic groundwork, where guests sense “radical hospitality.” Our roots are with Atlantic City Area Friends.
Rich: What do you find the most frustrating with how US citizens view Native Americans? Who are the groups trying to change these attitudes?
Sandra: From decades of experience, east coast, west coast, island nations…Indigenous peoples have provided abundant hospitality, wisdom, knowledge, faithfully serving Creator’s original instructions, serving community. Predominant cultures of colonizing have created preferential judicial systems, leaving legacies of biases, histories perpetuating dismissiveness - denying and diminishing rights, human rights - where this Friend is moved to speak.
Indigenous voices are rising – Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape, United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, National Congress of American Indians, Alliance of Colonial Era Tribes, Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition, Indian Country Today, High Country News, Indigenous Environmental Network, Indigenous Law Institute. Indigenous lawyers, indigenous teachers, indigenous artists, indigenous authors… are serving their ancient ones, tribal elders, tribal youth, and the whole family of creation.
Rich: Can you tell us something about PYM's First-Contact Reconciliation Collaborative? There used to be an Indian Committee in PYM stretching back a long time. How did that evolve into the present-day collaborative?
Sandra: PYM continues to have a committee with historic ties to 1795, gifted with monies to aid Native Nations Peoples. Formerly known as the PYM Indian Committee, is now known as the Quaker Fund for Indigenous Communities serving as a granting group.
While a member of this Indian Committee, this Friend answered the still small voice within and petitioned others. The love of Salem Quarter Indian Affairs Committee birthed your First Contact Reconciliation Collaborative, a wider reaching space of relationship building with authentic Indigenous Peoples, specifically the Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape Tribal Nation (Cohansey Lenape) and their relations. This Friend’s light sensed the Yearly Meeting’s void and made request to the Quaker Life Council which was granted in 2017. First Contact Reconciliation is young, just five years with the Yearly Meeting, and our role may be vital toward potential, coming reparations. We can name a few mutually beneficial reparations – apologies, removal of harmful identities, land back initiatives, responsibly caring for earth, inclusion and equity with and for diverse cultures.
Rich: Where can educators find authentic information on Native American history and culture?
Sandra: We as a “master” teacher support the wisdom and knowledge generously shared by the National Museum of American Indians. Native American history is not only American history, it is cross-disciplinary. We recommend authentic works of NMAI, such as We have a Story to Tell, (a teacher’s guide to the Native Peoples of the Chesapeake region); Land Acknowledgment Helpful Handout; Terminology Helpful handout; and Framework for Essential Understandings about American Indians. The Native Knowledge 360° (NK360°) is a gift that correlates with the NMAI exhibits.
Hearing divisive ways of colonialism, being sourced with Decolonizing the Mindset, a brochure complementing a legal paper; the NJ Commission on American Indian Affairs and the Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape Tribal Nation’s website are good places for information. Navigating the space of identity and self-proclamation is enhanced with the work (Incomplete Loom) by Harry Jackson III (Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape) and associations with the Alliance of Colonial Era Tribes and National Congress of American Indians. For transparency, this Friend is a member of NCAI.
Rich: Are there policy initiatives which you think should happen at the federal or state levels?
Sandra: There is much to say about initiatives within Indigenous communities, worldwide being impacted by colonialism. One current initiative that we suggest is deserving consideration and discernment is the establishment of a Federal Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies in the United States, (S.2907/H.R.5444). Friends, even if well intended, have a legacy, a history of relationship that beckons humble attention. The Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition (NABS) posts courageous stories and details supporting the intentions of this commission. In cooperation with Friends Committee on National Legislation we’re advocating for this commission. This Friend is a member of NABS and continues to research Friends’ roles in the IBS era.
Rich: In your presentation at our upcoming Quarterly Meeting, what would you like participants to remember?
Sandra: Vital to Friends is our collective witness. Your First Contact Reconciliation Collaborative is a living network of Spirit, our webpage is a living document and we encourage you to review and contribute to that space by emailing SacredWovenWord@yahoo.com, or calling 609 732-0576. We are here, navigating authentic relations, listening and acting as led, righting harms, lovingly with Indigenous Peoples, specifically Lenape, those whose ancestral homeland is the land of our meetinghouses, land where we live, land where we work, where we are seeking pursuits of happiness. Let us be open to wondering, how might we embrace a legacy we have not created; how might our lives speak in relationship with Lenape People, people who are “extended family”? Creating joyful noise, we are Treaty People, dutifully espousing our ‘story.