Oregon Tribes Should Be United, Not Divided – January 22, 2010

Native Tribes are a living legacy of the most spiritual, cultural, and traditional people to have ever inhabited what is now known as the Pacific Northwest. Hundreds of thousands of indigenous people had built their livelihood on these very northwest lands, maintaining networks of commerce, wisdom, and spirituality since time immemorial. The Treaty Days of the 1800’s set out to remove the indigenous people from their usual and accustomed lands for the better migration of Europeans, devastating our nations and networks. The indigenous people were forced to cede tens of millions of acres to the United States and moved to 9 reservations throughout Oregon. In having to move to unfamiliar lands, the people encountered many frustrations and personal battles throughout the reservations, mostly with the U.S. Government, but the nations continued to survive and adapt.

Now, over 100 years later, the expansive and diverse backgrounds of indigenous individuals spread across the state of Oregon, creating new and modern communities of culture, friendship, and kinship. But what we can also observe in Oregon, is Tribal Governments utilizing their sovereignty in such a way that it separates indigenous nations over more modern issues such as commerce, development, and financial gains. The development initiatives of some Indigenous Nations have separated our once strong networks of friendship and sharing that should instead be united for a better overall presentation and view of Oregon Tribes.

This new event called the Gathering of Oregon’s First Nations in the Willamette Valley is a presentation of our separation. The event was held last year in an effort to help celebrate the birth of the state of Oregon, yet now appears to be an annual event for the tribes on the western side.

We are not quite certain as to why the separation, but we can be certain that it is unhealthy and unnecessary. It is in my opinion that a Gathering of Oregon’s First Nations should be a presentation of our togetherness, not our separation. It is in my opinion that when an entire state bares witness to the separation in our once strong Indigenous networks that we further become vulnerable to the future. We are constantly publicizing that our Indigenous people have survived and are culturally and traditionally wealthy in modern times. Yet, the modern day competition over financial gain puts an end to it all and we begin to imitate the acts of a race that once dominated and devastated our nations.

I hope that in the future, we can come back together as the Oregon Tribes we once were, standing culturally, traditionally, spiritually, and humbly together. I hope that in the future, our Gathering of Oregon’s First Nations is truly a Gathering of First Nations and not a gathering of western or eastern tribes. Togetherness is strength and tradition our future generations can follow, while separation is weakness and cowardliness our future generations will be.

By Jefferson Greene

Thanks for the post Jefferson. I agree with you on uniting & not dividing not just Oregon tribes but all tribes in general.

I agree with that too :) Thanks for your interest :)

Great post, J. It is unfortunate that some leaders in our tribes are working to divide rather than unite. I personally feel that what is good for one tribe is good for all, and encourage tribes to adopt a tradition of forward thinking rather than backward. Every attempt by one tribe to deny another only serves to divide us, and supports the philosophy of divide and conquer.

I'm glad there are some in our generation working to make positive change in our communities. Those of us who are embracing a more unified approach to the future. After all, if we don't step up to the plate, the generations after us will be lost for sure.

I got your back brother...