MCNAA NEWS BRIEF
APRIL THRU JUNE 2025
Dear MCNAA Members and Friends:
As mentioned in previous writings, I’m posting a simpler, revised version of our newsletter consisting of some of the work and activities we’ve done between April through June 2025. You will note that there are only a few photos and no formal format… making it easier for us to compose and distribute.
You will recall that our final, formal newsletter (Oct.-Dec 2024) was published and posted on our website in early January 2025.
WHAT WE’RE DOING/WHAT WE'VE DONE AT MCNAA!
* Through our Social Assistance Program, we continued to help Native families and Elders in an important and critical way……helping with heating bills and other utilities during the winter months. While the heating assistance program ended April 30, 2025, requests for Market Basket and Stop & Shop gift cards continued to come in from families who still need help purchasing food and household supplies. And more recently, requests for assistance with rent and mortgage payments have started to come in from some of our people who were recently laid off from their federal job. This is a very sad situation and has become our primary focus at this time.
* Through our Scholarship & Educational Resources Program, we continued to help Native college students by sharing lots of information on scholarships and internship opportunities; inviting and registering them for and overseeing their attendance at book groups at Brandeis University for community building experiences; inviting them to MCNAA book discussions facilitated by Board member Claudia Fox Tree; and providing culturally sensitive mentoring and career development advice. While the Spring semester has ended, we were still providing guidance and career development advice to students as well as writing letters of reference for those who are applying to regional organizations for future scholarships.
* In addition to operating our two major programs, we all worked on various administrative tasks that included the following:
-processed new memberships as well as renewals,
-attended informational webinars as well as grant info sessions,
-accepted an invite to be interviewed by a local University,
-researched new grant opportunities,
-responded to general e-mail inquiries,
-responded to requests for guidance and information as well as requests for speakers, and
-updated our website and face book pages. #
New Book for 2026 MCNAA Book Discussion!
On April 3, 2025, the Harvard University Native American Program and the Harvard Art Museums hosted their annual lecture featuring an Indigenous author. This year, Claudia Fox Tree, Xóchi Kountz, Erin McCormack had the pleasure of attending Angeline Boulley's talk at Menschel Hall.
Angeline (Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians), in her interview-style talk, discussed her next book about Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) “Sisters in the Wind” which comes out in September 2025. She mentioned that she is open to stopping by virtual book groups for 20-30 minutes when available! So, after the talk, before Angeline scurried off to the reception for Harvard University students, Claudia had a moment with her. Knowing that her new book will be one of MCNAA’s 2025–2026 book group selections, Claudia introduced herself and Erin as part of the Mass. Center for Native American Awareness (MCNAA) and told Angeline they’d be in touch with her. Claudia plans to follow up with Angeline and invite her to be the guest speaker for that book talk. MCNAA has already held book discussions on Angeline’s other two books: Firekeeper's Daughter and Warrior Girl Unearthed but we haven't had her as a guest speaker yet. If this can be arranged, it will be great to have this well-known Native author join us. #
MCNAA’s April Book Discussion
On Tuesday, April 22, 2025, Claudia facilitated MCNAA’s virtual book discussion on “We Are the Middle of Forever: Indigenous Voices from Turtle Island on the Changing Earth.” Julia Marden (Aquinnah Wampanoag) was our guest speaker.
Below are the notes and book discussion quotes by MCNAA Advisory Council member, Erin McCormack.
"Part of our discussions about Native-themed books, fiction and nonfiction, is how a story or information is relayed. In other words, looking at the writers’ structure as well as their themes or topics. In We Are the Middle of Forever, the two co-editors call themselves “composers” who are bringing to the page the Zoom interviews they conducted with their subjects during Covid. Sometimes they use direct quotes; other times they interpret physical expressions for readers. They insert themselves into the chapters by referring to their own backgrounds as environmental activists and men with direct experience of war. They reveal their views and feelings without trying to appear objective.
By necessity, the book is focused on a rather narrow sampling of speakers from mostly western and California Native nations. The assaults on their environments start many years later than in the East. Though the writers make it clear that Native tribes are not monolithic, there are vast perspectives yet to be mined.
For me, the book had a particular resonance, because of my own experiences living in Santa Cruz area in the 1980s, where many of the interviewees are from: the Santa Cruz mountains, the Mission church, Cabrillo Community College are all familiar to me – and yet not a word did I learn of the Native peoples who lived there. The one exception is the story of Ishi, “the last California Indian.”
As in Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer, the book attempts to connect the western methods of academic research with Native ways of sharing knowledge. It brings to light the universal trauma experienced when cultures collided. And it offers the idea that a change of mind set, based on Indigenous practices and understanding, not a technological breakthrough can create a better environment for all.
Stan Rushworth and Dahr Jamail present a collaboration that is designed to highlight the voices of the interviewees about the stresses and responses on their homelands and their communities. One writer is Native; the other is not. They use their joint powers, skills, and reach to find these sometimes isolated Native activists who are committed to and sometimes overwhelmed by their mission. And so, they show another way to be an ally to those who are doing the work on the ground - who might not be heard beyond their own spheres without this amplification."
Quotes from the book
This book features essays and interviews reflecting Indigenous perspectives on climate change, resilience, and our interconnectedness with the natural world. Below are some powerful quotes that stood out:
On interconnectedness (relationships, reciprocity):
“We are inseparable from the land, the water, the air, and all living beings. To harm the earth is to harm ourselves.”
On including women more - “[It’s] an inclusive direction in the face of imbalance. It doesn’t mean we don't work with men…”
“We need to have our own means to produce and distribute. We need our own stores because those are the ways we bring the foods that we cultivate to everybody in the community.”
“Reciprocity, kinship and connection, responsibilities, and obligations. They encourage us to challenge our own colonial assumptions in the hopes that we can find the tools we need to fix what we’ve broken while we still can.”
On the sacredness of the Earth:
“The Earth is not just a resource. She is a relative, a living being who deserves care and respect.”
“We don’t have to ask permission on our own territory to go onto land that we have been connected to for thousands of years.”
“Rebuilding a relationship with the land means helping you get back to its original Indigenousness.”
“Relationship to the land and to the animals and to the plants. You cannot do that because what you have done for centuries has destroyed our balance. And we have to maintain that balance.”
On colonization:
“Colonization happened, it didn’t just happen to the Earth. This happened to me, to women, and it happened to men as well. The sacred responsibilities were taken away from men. There was the idea of heteropatriarchy and misogyny.”
“Colonization has ultimately impacted how we look at the land and how we look at people only as a means to produce.”
“Colonization, both physically and mentally, destroys an inherent balance crucial to the health of all. I can even feel that within myself some time, where I feel like I’m becoming disembodied.”
On climate change:
“Climate change is not something that is coming. It’s already here. Indigenous peoples have been adapting for centuries, and we will continue to do so.”
On storytelling and survival:
“Our stories carry the wisdom of survival. They are guides for how to live in harmony, even during times of upheaval.”
On hope and responsibility:
“We are not separate from the problem, but we are also not separate from the solution. Our choices matter.”
On traditional ecological knowledge:
“Indigenous wisdom is the antidote to Wendigo” - dangers of unchecked consumption and greed (symbolized by the Wendigo in many Indigenous traditions) and highlights the importance of returning to sustainability practices, humility, and reverence for the natural world.
On language:
“Language is one pathway to return us to the land the way Creator gave us language to identify ourselves as both land and water, as being each.”
Language brings back the songs for the water and basket-making.
On activism/ fighting:
“A soldier follows orders; a warrior does what's right.”
At the end the evening, we were delighted to hear from guest speaker Julia Marden, an internationally recognized Eastern Woodland artist whose work draws deeply from her Aquinnah Wampanoag heritage. She masterfully intertwines the ancient stories and traditions of her people with the finest materials of nature, creating extraordinary 17th century basketry that keeps cultural craftmanship alive.
Through a slide presentation, photos of her wampum belts were shared showing the intricacy of her work as she described each remarkable piece. Here’s photos of a few of the many pieces she has created.
During and after the discussion, there were a number of comments made by the participants. One in the evaluation form Claudia shared with the participants and others that the participants posted in the chat:
• Thank you so much, I am so grateful I learned so much ❤️
• Thank you so much for this very interesting and engaging discussion.
• My favorite part of the presentation was hearing Julia describe her work.
• Honored to be with you Julia, Claudia, and all. Thank you so much for sharing this space and time and wisdom
• Thank you so much, everyone. I'm so glad Paul told me about this book and this book club. And Julia, your story belts are so deeply moving.
• Thank you to Dr. Claudia Fox Tree, Erin McCormack, Xochi Kountz, members of MCNAA, the other participants, and, of course, Julia Marden. I am so happy I could share my experience of reading this book with you all.
• Incredible, important, and necessary to hear your stories and see Julia's work.
• Thank you for the insightful discussion and amazing belts telling the history. Appreciate you all!
• I appreciate that MCNAA makes these learning opportunities available. #
MCNAA’s SPRING FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN - PLEASE DONATE!
As a result of federal job lay-offs, there’s a growing need in some of the Native families in our communities for rent and mortgage assistance. In efforts to help some of the families with these escalating needs, we expanded our Social Assistance Program to now include rent and mortgage payment assistance. Through our Spring Fundraising campaign, we are looking to increase our monthly donor base that will put us in a better position to help these additional families.
If you haven’t renewed your membership or haven’t made a donation to MCNAA in a while, can we count on you to be one of several new monthly donors who step up in July, August and September and help keep our Social Assistance-Needy Fund going so that we can continue to help Native families?
If you prefer to make a one-time donation, any amount over $100 will be extremely helpful and will add to this important campaign. You can take immediate action, via PayPal, by clicking HERE.
Thank you so much for considering a much-needed contribution to help the Mass Center for Native American Awareness’s Needy Fund so that we can continue to help our constituents across the state. #
SEMINAR - Leadership for Our Times Series, #2: On Public Health - Assessing the Impacts on Communities of Color and Strategizing Responses
Board Member, Dawn Duncan, attended a seminar on “Leadership for Our Times: Shock and Awe out of Washington, Assessing the Impacts on Communities of Color and Strategizing Responses.” It took place on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, at UMass Boston, Campus Center in Boston,
This convening on public health brought together leaders from both on and off campus who examined impacts of and helped to strategize responses to federal policies that are causing personal, institutional, and community harms to communities of color.
Dawn reported that many organizations and professionals in public health fields are seeing the impacts of major funding cuts to work that they do, often work that has been going on for many years and addresses major issues on communities of color. The event focused on two major areas: organizations and programs providing direct services, and broader issues around data, research and funding. Those in attendance particularly stressed the importance of holding events such as this because many affected by these funding cuts have had their daily lives turned upside down and they also feel isolated. Those in attendance talked a lot about working together and solutions for finding funding for their often life-saving programs and projects from private and state funding sources.
The event was also celebratory for summer starting as the lunch consisted of a "cook-out" and ended with an ice cream social! It was a great event and was well represented by several Native American organizations and individuals. #
We hope this News Brief keeps you informed about some of the activities we're involved in and some of the work we continue to do.
Thank you for being part of the MCNAA community!
The MCNAA Leadership Team
