Learning from Gail Small of the Northern Cheyenne
Gail Small ILA acceptance speech from Ecotrust on Vimeo.
Nation building, Cheyenne style. In the introduction to Gail Small, Northern Cheyenne, we are reminded of the sovereign nature of Native Lands in North America. In her short, lyrical, speech, the Cheyenne lawyer says; “those people on the East Coast, with no electricity, are waking up to what we have been sayin’ and seein’ for a long time. I am up for that challenge”.
Increasingly, we all are.
The native people of the North American Continent are part of the Majority World, challenging the ideology of exploitation that leads to the destruction of land and people. In Cheyenne culture the land and the people are one. This reality is fast defining mainstream culture. We are all part of an immense and long story and the oldest elements of the story are being heard broadly as Native voices find an audience and validate our deepest feelings. Science and wisdom are replacing faith and folly as the global economy realigns around the Majority World. Gail is one of millions of people around the world who are joining in the fight.