Vermont Humanities Fall Conference 20/20: Democracy, Social Change, and Representation in Nd’akinna

This video is part of Vermont Humanities’ “Democracy 20/20” digital Fall Conference.

The panel was led by Vera Longtoe Sheehan, the director of the Vermont Abenaki Artists Association, and features Abenaki leaders, mentors, and community members. From upper left, clockwise: Sherry Gould (Nulhegan), Brian Chenevert (Nulhegan), Vera Longtoe Sheehan (Elnu), Jim Taylor (Elnu).

Beginning with a greeting and historic overview of democracy in Nd’akinna (Western Abenaki for Our Land), this panel of Abenaki voices considers the threads of place, home, belonging, and representation in a time of great social change.

Abenaki Trails Project Proposes a Start in Hopkinton NH

The country is searching for roads that lead to racial equality and social justice. Contoocook native Daryl Peasley hopes the Abenaki Trails can be one of them. The trails would offer a deeper understanding of the influence the Abenaki people had on the area through a series of new monuments and artistic installments in towns along the banks of the Contoocook and Merrimack Rivers.

Peasley, 59, is part of the Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk Abenaki and one of the original members of the state’s Commission on Native American Affairs. He’s heard all the stories about massacres and violence, like the one remembered at the Hannah Duston Memorial in Boscawen. He’s heard people describe New Hampshire as just a pass-through state for Native Americans, a place where tribes spent little time. Now, he wants to tell the other half of the story

Read the full story in the Concord Monitor here.

Nebi, Abenaki Ways of Knowing Water

A just-released short film by Vince Franke of Peregrine Productions, LLC, created to support the watershed education programs of Lake Champlain Sea Grant, UVM Extension, the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources, and to help preserve these stories for the Abenaki and others. Funding was provided by NOAA, Sea Grant, and an anonymous donor.

Centering on Bitawbagw/Lake Champlain and then water in general, the film is a series of interviews with people in the Native community expressing their understanding of  being in relationship with life-giving water. Each story teller provides their own unique interpretation; I was honored to participate in this group effort with Chief Don Stevens, Chief Roger Longtoe Sheehan, Chief Eugene Rich, Melody Brook, Lucy Cannon Neel, Cody Hemenway, Morgan Lamphere, Bea Nelson, Fred Wiseman, and Kerry Wood.

#WaterIsLife

Direct link to Vimeo here.

Abenaki-Inspired Poster to Emphasize Respect for Land

Advocates for racial justice in Vermont hope that a recently created poster will soon be seen in schools, libraries, town offices and small businesses all over the state. The poster reads: “Please respect and protect N’Dakinna (our land) while you are here. This is the homeland of the Western Abenaki People.”

The wording and imagery on the poster was chosen with great care by Don Stevens, chief of the Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk Abenaki Nation, who worked with Quebec based Nulhegan Abenaki artist Jon Guilbault to make sure that the most important Abenaki cultural symbols would occupy a prominent place in the artwork.

“It is important to remember that we are but stewards of this land we occupy and are only one part of the web of life,” Chief Stevens said. “What we do to the earth, we do to ourselves. This poster is a reminder that the creator gave the Western Abenaki the responsibility to care for our land and in turn would provide for our needs. Once the land was taken from us, we could no longer fulfill this responsibility. We ask that you respect and protect the land so it will continue to provide for us all.“

See the full article in the Addison Independent.

 

Burlington Free Press: Abenaki Heritage Weekend Coming Up

Join the Abenaki community on June 23 and June 24 at Lake Champlain Maritime Museum near Vergennes for a weekend of family fun and cultural sharing that is deeply rooted in local Native American heritage.

Organized by the Vermont Abenaki Artists Association with members of the Elnu Abenaki Tribe, the Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk, Koasek Traditional Band of the Koas Abenaki Nation, Missisquoi Abenaki Tribe and guest artists, the event is designed to give visitors an Indigenous perspective on life in the Champlain Valley both past and present.

Activities will include drumming, storytelling, craft and cooking demonstrations, an Arts Marketplace, and presentations by guest artists including Black Hawk Singers Drum Group, and Jesse Bruchac telling stories in Abenaki and English, accompanied by flute and drum.

See the full story in the Burlington Free Press.

Nulhegan Abenaki Chief Don Stevens Appointed to State Racial-Justice Panel

Chief Don Stevens of the Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk-Abenaki Nation has been appointed by Vermont Attorney General T.J. Donovan to serve on the Racial Disparities in Criminal and Juvenile Justice Panel.

According to the attorney general’s website, the panel’s goal is to “develop a strategy to address racial disparities within the State systems of education, labor and employment, access to housing and health care, and economic development.”

Stevens, a Shelburne resident, said he has been working racial disparity issues for “many years. Mostly in the capacity as Chief and how it affects the Abenaki Community.”

He is working on cultural projects with Burlington’s mayor’s office, regularly attends Vermont State Police Fairness and Diversity meetings at Vermont Law School, and recently testified at hearings before the Vermont Legislature regarding bill S. 281 which researches systematic racism within the state government.

Though his area of expertise is focused on Native people and the Abenaki Nation, he said, “My goal is to take a look at policies and procedures within the criminal and juvenile justice system and offer insights on areas of improvement. There are specific areas within the Department of Corrections and Child Welfare Areas that need to be addressed in regards to Native peoples. As a minority myself, I hope to offer perspectives in whatever areas the panel decides to concentrate on.”

Link to original article in the Shelburne News.

City of Burlington and Abenaki Alliance to Promote Abenaki Awareness

A press release, just issued:

Mayor Miro Weinberger and Chief Don Stevens from the Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk – Abenaki Nation today announced that the City of Burlington and Vermont Abenaki Alliance (made up of the four Abenaki Tribes recognized by the State of Vermont) have agreed to explore several projects to promote awareness of Abenaki history and culture. This announcement is the result of conversations between the City and Chief Stevens that arose during the discussion of the Church Street “Everyone Loves a Parade” mural. In lieu of participating in the Mural Task Force to determine the future of the mural, Chief Stevens and the Abenaki Alliance have chosen to pursue other projects, which will include an annual summer event on Church Street and may include a display of cultural artifacts at the Burlington International Airport, among other potential projects. These projects will build on Burlington’s previous work with Abenaki communities to create the Chief Grey Lock statue in Battery Park and the City Council’s acknowledgment and support of recognition of the Abenaki Nation in September of 1995.

“Abenaki Tribes have a long history within the State of Vermont and with the City of Burlington,” said Chief Don Stevens. “As leaders within our Abenaki communities, the Chiefs have decided not to participate in the ‘Everyone Loves a Parade’ Mural Task Force, but to find other positive avenues to promote our culture within the City. We look forward to collaborating with the City on projects that will increase local and international awareness of Abenaki history and culture. Finally, if the mural is to be changed or altered, we do feel that the Native person depicted on the mural should accurately and historically represent Abenaki people from this region.”

“I appreciated Chief Don Stevens’ input as we have been working through the community challenges related to the ‘Everyone Loves a Parade’ mural,” said Mayor Miro Weinberger. “The City welcomes the opportunity to continue to work with the Abenaki Alliance to find ways of properly recognizing the role of the Abenaki in the history and future of this region.”

Please note that this communication and any response to it will be maintained as a public record and may be subject to disclosure under the Vermont Public Records Act.

Link here to posting at VT Business Magazine.

VT Nuclear Decommissioning Citizens Advisory Panel: VT NDCAP Mtg 3/22/18

Brattleboro Community TV (BCTV) has archived the proceedings at the regular Vermont Nuclear Decommissioning Citizens Advisory Panel (VT NDCAP) meeting held at Brattleboro Union High School (BUHS) on March 22, 2018. The focus of the evening was to learn about the Settlement Agreement reached between all the parties involved, with the exception of CLF. The author, representing Elnu Abenaki with the support of Nulhegan and Koasek, adds his comments regarding the process at 51:37, and answers questions at 1:10:56 and 1:18:27.

Abenakis Gather for Traditional Snow Snake Game in West Barnet

Last Saturday, about two dozen people gathered in West Barnet to play the traditional Native American winter game of snow snake. The games also coincided with the official opening of the Nulhegan Abenaki Cultural Center.

“This is an ancient Native game,” explained Donald Stevens, chief of the Nulhegan band of the Abenaki nation. “You slide a stick down the track. Whoever goes the farthest wins.”

The competition is generally friendly. But sometimes, the winner takes all the sticks, said Stevens. “If you’re playing against another nation, be prepared to lose your sticks.”

The games were held in Derby Line for the last three years.

Read the full account by Kymelya Sari in Seven Days.

Warren Zevon Book Sales Benefit Barnet’s Brookview Community Center and Nulhegan Abenaki

Warren Zevon’s ex-wife began selling the late rocker’s copious book collection on eBay last year to raise money for a planned community center in her hometown of West Barnet. Crystal Zevon hoped to bring in $1,000 a month to pay for upkeep on the site she dubbed Brookview.

She raised that, and then some. “I don’t have an exact number, but I believe we’ve raised about $13,000. Probably a bit more,” Crystal Zevon wrote late last month in an email to the Burlington Free Press.

Brookview, according to Zevon, is transitioning to an Abenaki cultural center. “The spiritual leader of the Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk Abenaki Nation and his wife are now living in the house,” wrote Zevon, who has long been involved in Native American issues. “Aside from paying the monthly expenses, the money raised is being used to make workshop space handicapped accessible for cultural classes and workshops, meetings, ceremonies related to the preservation of the Abenaki culture.”

Community events are also welcome at the space, according to Zevon, but Abenaki events will take priority. “Lots of hopes and plans afoot,” she wrote.

See the article by Brent Hallenbeck in the Burlington Free Press.