Strengthening the Rising Generation of Indigenous Girls and 2SLGBTQ+ People: Indigenous Justice Circle and the Population Council Come Together to Share their Work Supporting Indigenous Youth
New York City (15 April 2024) — The Indigenous Justice Circle (IJC) — a nonprofit led by enrolled Cherokee Nation citizen, Dr. Kelly Hallman (she/her) — co-hosted an event titled “Indigenous Girls’ Movements: Strengthening Indigenous Systems & Self-Determination” on the sidelines of the 2024 United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII). The event was a collaboration between IJC and the Population Council’s GIRL Center, highlighting the work of the organizations’ projects Indigenous Adolescent Girls’ Empowerment Network (IMAGEN) and Abriendo Oportunidades (respectively).
The event took place at the Population Council’s office in the ancestral and unceded lands of the Munsee Lenape, Delaware, and Wappinger peoples. As an Indigenous-led event, the agenda opened with a prayer by IJC Founder and Executive Director Dr. Hallman, followed by a Land & People statement by Indigenous Young Leader Callie Pettigrew (Cherokee Nation, she/her). By starting with recognizing that modern day Lenape/Delaware Nations have rich cultures, IJC centered the event around Indigenous cultural renewal and revitalization. Over 40 in-person guests and more than 130 people on Zoom were able to witness how an event can center and uplift Indigenous voices.
Kelly Hallman (left), Hannah McGlade (center), and Ángel del Valle (right), address the audience.
Photos courtesy of Howard Jay Heyman.
Following initial remarks by Dr. Hallman about her ancestor’s loss of adolescent girl family members on the Cherokee Nation’s Trail of Tears and what these girls likely endured, and Angel del Valle (he/him) — country representative of the Population Council Guatemala office and monitoring and evaluation specialist for Abriendo Oportunidades —, moderator Marianne McCune (she/her) introduced Hannah McGlade (Nyungar, she/her) an Indigenous elected member of the UNPFII from Australia. McGlade spoke to her trajectory as an expert in International Human Rights Law and drew attention to the lack of girl-centered approaches for First Nations, as most programs and policies target male youth. “Indigenous women and girls face grave, systematic, and continuous acts of violence that permeate every aspect of their lives while perpetrators are enjoying alarming rates of impunity,” she stated. “This violence is based on historic and unequal patriarchal structures: racism, exclusion, and marginalization enabled by a legacy of colonialism.”
The event featured a short video recorded in Guatemala by Elizabeth Vásquez (Mayan K’iche, she/her). Vásquez is a Senior Mentor and National Coordinator of Abriendo Oportunidades. She co-founded REDMI Aq'ab'al and Na’leb’ak, two NGOs ran by the Indigenous women who have been mentors in Abriendo Oportunidades groups and who continue promoting and implementing the program among Indigenous girls and adolescents.
River Webb (Nez Perce/Sac and Fox, they/she) took the stage next, talking about their experience as this year's International Two Spirit Ambassador and their experience as a member of IJC’s inaugural cohort of Indigenous Young Leaders. Webb shared some of the traditional roles and responsibilities that Two-Spirit people hold in her community, such as caring for others and making traditional crafts as they demonstrated following the event by showing participants how to make corn husk dolls.
River Webb teaches guests how to make corn husk dolls (left). Kashmir Bowser shares the legacy of intergenerational matrilineal practices (right). Photos courtesy of Howard Jay Heyman.
Next, the audience heard from Kashmir Bowser (Upper Cayuga Turtle Clan, she/her), the Niagara County Clubhouse Manager at Native American Community Services (NACS). NACS is one of IJC’s partners, working together to establish and run Native Girl Societies across Indian Country. Bowser started by talking about Haudenosaunee cosmology and the matrilineal and matrifocal structure they had before colonization. Her presentation touched on the impact of residential schools and the intentional targeting of Native girls to weaken their traditional roles in their culture. “Our communities are still dealing with and healing from the trauma of residential schools,” Bowser said. Through the NACS Girl Society, they offer girls “a safe space to explore what it means to be Haudenosaunee and to build community with each other. In this space, we are helping these girls to be proud.”
The event wrapped up with a panel and Q&A moderated by McCune. Dr. Hallman and Del Valle answered questions about their collaboration. Del Valle emphasized the importance of empowering Indigenous women and girls in Guatemala where Indigenous people make up half of the population yet face systemic injustice and discrimination. Similarly, Dr. Hallman touched on the mental health crisis faced by Native young people across the United States, which disproportionally puts girls and 2SLGBTQ+ Native youth at risk of suicide and self-harm. Since its inception, IJC, through on the ground engagement with leaders across Native America, has seen validation of the theory that foundational to democracy, inclusion, and renewal of the Native American community, especially for those in living rural tribal areas, are investments in the rising generation of girls, young women and 2SLGBTQ+.
Marianne McCune facilitated a panel and Q&A session. Photos courtesy of Howard Jay Heyman.
After an engaging session of questions from the audience in the room and online, the event transitioned into an informal gathering where guests had the opportunity to connect with one another and debrief while joining Webb in the traditional craft of corn husk dolls.
Watch the full event recording on YouTube.
For media questions, contact Communications & Media Consultant, Kassel Garibay at info@indigenousjc.org
