Indigenous Peoples Day 2023

I saw an email in my inbox today about Indigenous Peoples Day. I didn’t pay attention to who it came from, I just started reading. I realized at the end that it was written by my Dad Terry Supahan who is the Executive Director of True North https://www.truenorthorganizing.org/ on Instagram: @truenorthon .

Part of what he wrote said:

"Physical and generational displacement has led to a spiritual displacement as well. The healing path home can be fraught with problems and tensions, but it is necessary for all of us to walk in order to find the sanctity in our interconnectedness and our responsibility to one another in all of this."

I am thankful to my parents for making the decisions they did to connect their children to our land, language and culture. This image is my twin sister and I in our ceremonial dresses we made ourselves using the materials and teachings our parents worked to learn with and for us. We were in high school in this picture and now we have and continue to work with our own daughters on their personal prayer items to use in our ceremony. We have that responsibility. We want every generation to grow more than the last, so we can all find our way home.

Part of that growth for both my sister and I is our families owning our own businesses. To participate in our yearly summer ceremony I grew up knowing I had to be a teacher, work for a tribal organization (depending) or own my own business. Toby and I are very fortunate to be able to work together and own this tattoo shop Tattoo 34 @tattoo34pdx on instagram. My sister and her husband own The Salmon River Outpost @salmon_river_outpost and all of us now have a path for the future and a direction to walk for our children, physically and spiritually.

Nisha and Elaina, twin sisters- 2000

Karuk ceremonial dresses made by Nisha & Elaina.

#indigenouspeoplesday #indigenouspeople #karuk #okanagan #wampanoag #ojibway #yurok #nativeowned #nativeownedbusiness