Posoh John,
Martin Luther King Jr. will be celebrated world-wide on Monday, Jan. 20, for his crusade to secure civil rights for African Americans. I encourage Indigenous people across the country to join in celebrating his work as a vocal and proud supporter of Native American Indian civil rights.
Dr. King mastered organizing successes through peaceful marches, speeches, and more that parallel the Native American community organizing efforts via pow wows, rallies, and community gatherings.
In fact, tribal advocacy groups, such as the Native American Rights Fund, arose shortly after the era of Dr. King and in the wake of the Civil Rights Movement. Dr. King and our Native peoples' fight for water rights and sovereignty continue today.
Dr. King penned a letter from his jail cell in Birmingham in 1963. Here is an excerpt:
“Our nation was born in genocide when it embraced the doctrine that the original American, the Indian, was an inferior race. Even before there were large numbers of Negroes on our shores, the scar of racial hatred had already disfigured colonial society… We are the only nation which tried as a matter of national policy to wipe out its Indigenous population. Moreover, we elevated that tragic experience into a noble crusade.”
On Monday, let’s celebrate the legacy of a peaceful man who fought hard for the rights of all people. I encourage you to follow in his footsteps by taking action: volunteer in your community, visit elders who live alone, talk to students, and share Dr. King’s victories while fighting for the rights for all races.
Wisconsin Native Vote will continue Dr. King’s fight to ensure our voices are heard because our language, our wild rice, and our sovereignty depend on it. We will continue our work to register voters, educate our communities, and get our people to the polls in upcoming elections that impact the course of our history and the seventh generation.
