And here, the tribe that started it all is still waiting for our little bit of justice that is owed to us. And as long as our land is in limbo, the tribe can’t go out there and build a homeless shelter or anything else like that.Įveryone wants to talk about Native American Heritage Month and Thanksgiving. People can’t make ends meet and that’s why they have to leave our territory. It’s a struggle to live on your own ancestral homeland. We have a homelessness issue-it’s expensive to live out here on Cape Cod. ![]() We want a decision so we can start moving forward and taking care of our people. We haven’t seen progress from the administration. The next step is for the Department of Interior to listen to the judge’s order and go back to the drawing table and give us another decision. This is in regards to the Trump administration describing 321 acres of your land as not fitting the definition of Indian, a ruling which a federal judge later called “contrary to the law.” Read more: 400 Years After the ‘First Thanksgiving,’ the Tribe That Fed the Pilgrims Continues to Fight for Its Land Amid Another Epidemic But I think the biggest struggle right now for our tribe is our struggle with the federal government, which has been a battle for over 400 years. Had people listened to us, I don’t think we’d be in the situation that we are in with global warming and everything else. We were fine living off the land we were smart people to the point where we knew how to navigate this world. ![]() The biggest issues facing the Mashpee tribe right now are with our land, the health and general welfare of our tribal citizens, and climate change and environmental impacts. What’s the biggest issue the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe is currently facing? I went home and told my parents what was going on, and my father went into the school and reamed them out. They would have one class in potato burlap sacks and colorful feathers, and then the other class dressed as pilgrims. In third grade at elementary school in Hyannis, Massachusetts, made us dress up and dance to “Colors of the Wind” from Pocahontas. It shows the resilience of our ancestors, and that we will keep on being here for generations to come.ĭo you have any memories of learning about the ‘Americanized’ Thanksgiving that still stand out today? ![]() And the fact that I have the honor of representing the tribe-one that a lot of people think is extinct-is a blessing in itself. The fact that we’re still here is a blessing. ![]() How does it feel to be the chairman of the Mashpee Wampanoag on Thanksgiving? TIME talked to Weeden about Native American Thanksgivings, the biggest issues the tribe faces today-and why it is still struggling to hold onto its land 400 years later. On May 16, Weeden became the youngest person elected chairman of the Mashpee Wampanoag, which boasts about 2,600 enrolled citizens and is headquartered in Mashpee, Massachusetts. “For this nation to right a lot of their wrongs, they’re gonna have to own up to their racism, which they don’t want to do.” “I personally think that it’s just another reminder of all the horrible things that this nation has done to not only us, but all native people,” the Chairman of the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe, 29 year-old Brian Weeden, tells TIME of that “first” Thanksgiving, adding that he and his tribe still feel largely forgotten.
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