Ey’ Skweyel Si’am. Kwaslmut sen ne sna. Che Xwlemi sen. Kusemaat sen ne tan. Suhunep Husmeen sen ne man. Karen i Virgil Williams sen ne so’l sile. Sally Jack i Herman Olsen sen ne so’l sile.
Good afternoon my respected people. My name is Kwaslmut, Sadie Olsen. I am a member and resident of the federally recognized tribe of Lummi Nation located in the Pacific Northwest of Washington State. Kusemaat, Shirley Williams is my mother, and Suhunep Husmeen Troy Olsen is my father. Karen and Virgil Williams are my grandparents on my mom’s side, and Sally Jack and Herman Olsen are my grandparents on my dad’s side. I am grateful to be a part of the panel of activists for the Indigenous Speakers Series.
Thank you for taking the time to recognize and acknowledge the important topic of Longhouse Restoration in the Salish Sea. I am a student at Northwest Indian College, majoring in Native Environmental Science. I am also a co-Founder of Whiteswan Environmental, a Native-led non-profit. Our mission is to support community healing through the natural, cultural, and historical restoration to the Salish Sea for seventh generation sustainability.
WE are the vision keepers for a Coast Salish Tribal Heritage Field Institute: an Indigenous-led, 13-Moon, Mountain to Sea, Reef to Reef, K-PhD program with seven longhouses in the San Juan Islands and seven longhouses in the Gulf Islands.
WE believe this will forever allow Coast Salish peoples to practice our treaty rights and inherent birth rights. This will offer a measure of cultural, historical, and ecological health protection, and sustainability that can be modeled across the United States and Canada.
So’ itsen o’hilekw kw-en ne-s ena’ tachel. I am so happy to see all of you here today. Visit our website, WhiteswanEnvironmental.org to learn more. Hy’sh’qe. Thank you
About: The Indigenous Speaker Series provides a platform for dialogues about Indigenous Peoples’ cultural and traditional lived experience, hosted in partnership with the University of Washington – Tacoma, Clean Up the River Environment (CURE), the Rising Voices Center, and the Salish Sea Research Center.
Speaker Series Hosts: Jasmine Neosh and Hoku Rivera
Contact us at indigspeak@gmail.com
Wishing you and your families many blessings