How Reconciliation Can Liberate Everyone

"If you have come to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us walk together.”

You may have seen this quote, from Aboriginal activist Lillia Watson, that has run along the bottom of my emails since 2018. I have not been able to bring myself to remove it because the spirit conveyed in these two simple sentences so potently captures what lies at the core of our work. It is a guidepost for reconciliation and a reminder that we all have something to gain from engaging in this cultural exchange between Native and non-Native human beings.

Volunteers and Santa's sleigh pilots, Nancy and Sue, embodied the spirit of this last week when the two friends took a few days out of their holiday season on a journey to Arizona to deliver the gifts our supporters gathered on the Hopi and Diné reservations. Nancy shared the following upon their return:

“What an experience!  The beauty of the reservation, the fact that we appeared to be the only white folks within miles, the strange feeling of doling out the gifts with the Diné on one side, the Hopi on the other.  Trying not to feel like ridiculous white women attempting to heal decades of abuse with a few gifts.  Profound.  I wouldn't have traded it for any other day in my life.”

She went on to reflect on the state of humanity across the world:

“Boundaries, years of resentment against another culture, wars, etc.  It just seems that mankind keeps repeating the cycles, here at home and worldwide.  Tutsis, Hutus, Palestinians, Jews, Catholics, Ukrainians, - sheesh.”

I take comfort knowing that there are activists, nonprofits, and philanthropists around the world leaning into reconciliation with the understanding that no one is truly free until we are all free… free from racism, free from poverty, free from climate impact and free from social injustice. 

As we move into 2024, I’m honored to be “walking together” and liberating one another in our little corner of the world, with our beautiful Native friends teaching us and with our incredible community of volunteers and supporters.

In gratitude,

Lori

Pictured left to right: A jampacked sleigh headed to AZ. Sue, sleigh pilot. Nancy and Sue, with their friend Lisa from Tucson, who met them and brought more gifts. Nancy with Executive Director, Dave, at our Hub in Colorado before heading south.