Brattleboro’s Representative Town Meeting members will be considering Article 22 on the 2017 Annual Warning this Saturday, March 25th, 2017. From Chris Mays’ article in the Brattleboro Reformer’s article following last Wednesday’s (3/15) informational meeting:
“The last article asks whether the town should advise the Select Board to proclaim the second Monday of October as Indigenous Peoples’ Day in place of Columbus Day.
“Why Indigenous Peoples’ Day?” asked Rich Holschuh, who petitioned for inclusion of the article. “It’s because its time has come. It’s a good year, with Standing Rock in the headlines and the move nationwide to embracing those who have not been embraced in the past. It’s a nationwide movement. It’s going across the country.”
He said two to three dozen communities have already made the change. Last week, the town of Marlboro did.
“They were the first in the state,” Holschuh said. “I was hoping to be first. We can be second. Why Brattleboro? I think Brattleboro can offer a great deal of leadership on this because this is where colonization began in the state. Fort Dummer, 1724. This is where the process of displacing the Indigenous People of this area, which are the Abenaki, began and it continues. It’s highly symbolic and I think it’s an important thing to do.”
Sokoki Sojourn 
Wow, that’s excellent! Imagining the best outcomes for the vote tomorrow. Any news of a similar movement in Keene? Or possibilities to get one started?
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The best outcome, indeed. It passed unanimously in Brattleboro yesterday. I do not know of a similar initiative in Keene – perhaps the college could get behind it?
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Congrats!! What an important symbolic event.
As for Keene: it would be nice to see the college at least have a similar acknowledgement on campus. After all, there is a highly recognized department in Holocaust and Genocide Studies. Seems to me that that they should be able to provide leadership at home to complement their work abroad. I have been meaning to ask around on this already; this is the perfect motivation to start a conversation.
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I have often wondered how it is that we are relatively well-informed, and invested, in so many distant injustices. They need our support and care, as fellow humans, but we seem blind to our own implicity and complicity close to home, whether historical or contemporaneous. That’s how well the story has been edited. And it’s uncomfortable to look at the past with eyes open.
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