I am sharing a public domain letter from Anna Siedzik to the Hamilton Board of Select. Please share your thoughts. But I don’t think it is the responsibility of the Hamilton Select Board to redress hundreds of years of national genocide on American soil. The Select Board members are virtually volunteers with a tiny stipend and given the duty to address local issues such as collecting taxes, sending out bills, keeping residents safe and managing employees through the chain of command. This one individual and her followers should not be trying to mastermind the running of our town !!!! That is why I am tracking and sharing the initiatives thought up by this group of nonelected, nonprofit, 501 (c) (4) group that has an agenda that does not seem to first and foremost be in the best interest of the residents that the Board was elected to represent…..
Barbara Smith,
Blogger at Hamilton Wenham Liberals for Democracy
https://www.facebook.com/HWdemocrats/
Dear Hamilton Selectboard Members,
I write to encourage you to adopt the proposed Land Acknowledgement Policy presented on tonight’s BOS Agenda. Per prior emails and public comments, the process to adopt an Indigenous land acknowledgement for the Towns of Hamilton, Wenham, and the Regional School District first began over a year ago thanks to the efforts and vision of Elinor Everett (Class of 2021, copied) and the High School’s Social Justice Club. The Hamilton-Wenham Human Rights Coalition signed onto this effort as a full supporter, and together we successfully advocated for the Hamilton-Wenham Regional School District to formally adopt a land acknowledgement in their meeting on June 2, 2021 (Official Minutes). The Town of Wenham unanimously adopted similar language by way of an Indigenous Peoples Day Proclamation in their meeting on October 5, 2021 (Official Minutes).
The Town of Hamilton Human Rights Commission unanimously voted to support bringing the land acknowledgement to the BOS during their meeting on April 21, 2021 (Official Minutes). Since that time, the BOS has engaged in discussion of this proposal on at least two occasions: May 3, 2021 (Official Minutes), and again on October 4, 2021 (Official Minutes). Following the October 4 meeting, at the request of BOS Chair Mr. Olson, I re-sent emails originally sent in May with additional information for the Board’s consideration, as well as an explicit invitation to speak with Mr. Thomas Green (copied), Vice-President of the Massachusett Tribe. I attach those emails again for your review. Per the letter from Mr. Green dated April 30, 2021 (which I note is also included in tonight’s packet), the present-day Towns of Hamilton and Wenham lie in the traditional homeland of the Massachusett Tribe. Under the Sac’hemship of Nanepashemet, Great Sac’hem of the Massachusett Tribe at the time of colonial contact, this included the Pawtucket bands of the Massachusett living in this area under the leadership of Masconomet, who served as Sagamore — a lesser status than Sac’hem. The acknowledgement presented in the BOS Agenda reflects the preferred language of the Massachusett Tribe, and as Mr. Green stated in his letter, “Acknowledging the Massachusett Tribe is acknowledging and honoring all of it’s [sic] historic and current bands.”
It is now time for the Town of Hamilton to take action on this small but meaningful gesture to recognize and acknowledge the Massachusett Tribe. By doing so, it signals a broader understanding that we all live on Indigenous land, and the need to pay ongoing respect to the living descendents of the Massachusett Tribe who remain part of our regional community. While land acknowledgements do not offer absolution from the ongoing cultural and political genocide of Indigenous peoples throughout American society, they are a visible act of self-awareness, cultural inclusion, and recognition of the human populations who lived (and still live) on what we now call Hamilton and Wenham for over 10,000 years before European colonization. Land acknowledgements are the beginning of a process for healing and understanding, not the end, and it is important that the Town of Hamilton join our local colleagues in making this important first step.
At this point, further tabeling by the BOS would signal an unacceptable level of delay and obfuscation by our Town’s governing body, given the months that have passed to discuss, research, and deliberate this issue — including an open invitation to speak with Mr. Green himself should there be lingering questions about the proposed acknowledgement. To that end, I would contend that any remaining questions about the accuracy or appropriateness of the acknowledgement are a direct insult to the Massachusett Tribe, who has kindly provided a formal statement from their Tribal Council. As much discussed, it is impossible and inappropriate to apply Eurocentric concepts of solitary ownership to traditional Indigenous views about shared land stewardship, especially in consideration of overlapping kinship hierarchies and the practice of frequent migration within and among Indigenous groups. Given the complexity of these cultural and political relationships — especially over thousands of years — the most complete manner of acknowledgement is at the highest level of governance, hence the acknowledgement of the Massachusett Tribe. I urge the BOS to adopt the proposed Land Acknowledgement Policy without further delay, and I look forward to the incorporation of the acknowledgment into all manner of municipal practice as described.
With gratitude for your consideration, and respect for your service to our community,
AS
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Anna Siedzik (she/her)
Hamilton-Wenham Human Rights Coalition
Please view the Select Board meeting from 2/7/22. The discussion about Native American Genocide begins at about 2 hours 25 minutes.