Indigenous People's Day

Monday, October 12 was Indigenous People's Day, a celebration of Indigenous peoples, their histories, and their cultures. We in the United States are on stolen land - as such, Indigenous People's Day is really every day. Here are some educational resources and action items surrounding Indigenous rights and lives:

• Create a petition for your school to rename Columbus Day to Indigenous People's Day. Christopher Columbus was a murderer, rapist, and racist and doesn't deserve to be celebrated. An example of a petition from Harvard students is here (and if your school already has a petition circulating, be sure to sign it).
• Take Indigenous Studies and Indigenous history courses at your school.
• Petition for Ethnic Studies at your school (or take Ethnic Studies courses if they are already offered). See this podcast for information about how Ethnic Studies was established as a requirement in the Cal State system.
• This Halloween (and every future Halloween), do not dress as an Indigenous person if you are not Indigenous. Their culture is not your costume, and this is racist cultural appropriation.
• Learn about the tribe(s) whose land you live on. For example, LingHacks has held events in Los Altos and Fremont, California, which are Ohlone, Ramaytush, and Tamyen land. Text your city and state to (907)-312-5085 to find out whose land you are standing on.
• Invest Indigenous: support Indigenous-owned businesses and donate to mutual aid funds.
• Read Indigenous news media, such as the Navajo Times and High Country News (thanks to Anti-Racism Daily for the pointer).
• This story highlight contains further infographics, including accounts to follow to diversify your social media feed.
• If able, vote (for progressive/Democratic candidates, obviously). Register/check your registration ASAP at vote.org, and vote all the way down the ballot, from the presidential ticket (Biden/Harris) to legislative races to state propositions to city councils to school boards to county/city-wide measures. For Californian voters, here's a handy guide to the state props on the ballot this year. If voting by mail, send your ballot in by 10/20. In any case, make sure to write the MM/DD/YYYY date, write the address at which you are registered to vote, and sign your envelope with the signature on your driver's license. Also, check both sides of each of your ballot cards, don't take pictures of your ballot, read your ballot card instructions carefully, beware of fake ballot drop boxes, and remember that there is no one-size-fits-all way to vote - check your state and county guidelines. We also reiterate that voting is not the end-all-be-all and is not nearly enough - it's just essential to keep people from being literally murdered by this completely preventable pandemic.
• Speaking of the pandemic, wear a mask, wash your hands, and keep your distance from other humans. COVID-19 disproportionally affects Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, so do your part to keep everyone else safe.

That's all for this week! As always, we are reachable at info@linghacks.tech for questions, corrections, and other concerns.