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TRHAPPY INDIGENOUS PEOPLES’ DAY!!!!! (full version in comments)
i’ve been wanting to talk about IPD and what it means to me for so long. sometimes, it’s exhausting to be indigenous because so much of our identity is trauma-centric due to colonization and daily microaggressions. like, sometimes, it’s just too much for me to think about all the harm that my ancestors endured, and I just wanna laugh at auntie memes.
today, though, i want to talk about how much of indigeneity/the colonizer’s concept of blood quantum is a constant internal battle of feeling like i’m too much or not enough.
i struggle with feeling like i’m not enough. i don’t know what my tlingit name is. i don’t know enough of my language (i am still learning my introduction). i’m not traditional enough. i wish i would have embraced my culture when i was growing up. all of these thoughts stay in the back of my mind every day.
that’s why IPD means so much to me. i’m still learning that it’s never too late to connect with your culture. i’m so grateful for friends like @marina_alaska and @quannah.rose who do the work every. day. representing our people and making us proud to be indigenous. i wish i could tell little tristan that one day he would be so proud of his tlingit heritage. ❤️
@tristandouville
