ÎÞÂëÊÓƵ

In nearly a year of a Trump presidency, the visibility of White supremacists has risen. Corporate and government partnership has brought back the Dakota Access and Keystone oil pipelines even amid the visceral impacts of climate change in this year’s devastating hurricanes and wildfires. Yet, the destructive course we’re on isn’t surprising given North America’s colonial history, where wealth was built on cultural oppression, land dispossession, and the exploitation of both people and land. What disruptive forces are destructive enough and creative enough to transcend this legacy?

Decolonization is needed. We heard it loudly at Standing Rock. We hear it every day from oppressed people. But what does that look like? Is it all or nothing? Does the idea of it differ by generation? How much is really possible? And who benefits—how might breaking free from systems of White supremacy be liberating for everyone?

To answer these questions, YES! will turn to Indian Country. We’re looking for powerful ideas and evidence of solutions and profound change headed our way—and we’re looking for Native writers to tell these stories.

Subject areas might include:

• The future of the White male-centered dominant culture. The aging of the general population, the unique disruptive force that millennials present. The increasingly multi-ethnic population.
• The human relationship to the ecosystem.
• The changing nature of dissent as Indigenous movements become global and social media allows people to find their community despite where they live.
• Land reform and reconnection to land and water. Rights versus responsibilities to the natural world.
• Language and cultural revitalization. How are Indigenous cultures experiencing renewal in the modern world? How do we combat cultural and political amnesia? How do we differentiate among appropriation, appreciation, and sharing?
• What of truth, reconciliation, and governmental apologies? What might be an Indigenous approach to healing centered on responsibilities, resurgence, and relationships?
• What kind of economic development can connect Indigenous homelands, cultures, and communities?
• Solidarity and allies. What have we learned in the year after Standing Rock, when Native communities here joined the global Indigenous movement in challenging corporate-government systems that destroy sacred land and water for profit? How was Standing Rock a movement for decolonization?
• What might a just nation-to-nation relationship among Indigenous nations and settlers look like?

Are you an Indigenous writer or photographer who has an idea for a reported feature, deeply researched think piece, or personal essay that belongs in this issue of YES! Magazine? Send pitches and leads to [email protected].