Indigenous People
October 31, 2024
Apache Stronghold leader visits campus
Last Wednesday, Dr. Wendsler Nosie Sr., former chairman of the San Carlos Apache Tribe and founder of the Apache Stronghold, took the stage at Goshen College’s convocation. His powerful message kicked off a series of speeches throughout the week, made possible by One Circle and the Atlee and Winifred Beechy Peace, Justice and Reconciliation Lectureship Series endowment. One Circle, an affinity group founded on advocating for Indigenous survival and equity, has created a space on campus that brings attention to the harms of colonization experienced by the Apache people and numerous other Indigenous communities globally. According to One Circle president...
March 30, 2023
One Circle: Students form an Indigenous advocacy group
When they came to Goshen College, Arleth Martinez and Manny Villanueva were not expecting to be involved with advocacy. They have since created One Circle, a group of GC students invested in spreading awareness and developing action plans around injustices within Indigenous communities. “The name ‘One Circle’ comes from an Apache prayer,” Villanueva said, “one drum, one prayer, one circle.” He said the name is “cohesive” and applies to everyone: “No matter our origin, we are all united and brought together.” Martinez and Villanueva’s inspiration to start the group came from their experience in Arizona last summer, where they visited...
March 25, 2022
Miami speaker shares the story of a living people
Many have heard of the Miami tribe, an indigenous group that originally lived in what is now Northern Indiana. But “Miami” is the name they were given by the Europeans. The name they use for themselves is “Myaamia.” “Every story has more than one side,” said Diana Hunter, a citizen of the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma who spoke at Goshen College on Tuesday evening. “You’ve heard the American story all of your lives, but hopefully you [hear] a little of our story today.” Hunter serves as a historic preservation officer for her tribe and was invited to speak at GC...
September 9, 2021
Southwest Indigenous perspectives SST lays foundation for future domestic units
Goshen College is known for its immersive, cross-cultural Study-Service Term (SST) experience. Traditionally, that experience has involved a semester abroad; however, the college is beginning to explore new programs within the United States, including a six-week SST on the Navajo and Hopi reservations in the American Southwest this summer. Consisting of 18 students and led by sociology professors Kendra Yoder and David Lind, the first Southwest Indigenous Perspectives SST unit departed for the Navajo Nation on June 15 and returned to Goshen on July 26. Students signed on for this SST option for several reasons. Some did not feel comfortable...
October 10, 2018
Indigenous People’s Day convocation honors heritage of native peoples
As faculty, staff, and students walked into the Church-Chapel sanctuary for the Indigenous People’s Day convocation, Deb Detwiler, director of the Women’s World Choir, stood at the center of a chanting group of women, guiding them in traditional music gathered from Alaskan Inuit peoples. The convocation was led by four members of the Goshen College community: Jonathon Schramm, associate professor of sustainability and environmental education; Emily Hayne and Terri Habig, both graduate students in environmental education at Merry Lea; and Erica Ewing, a junior interdisciplinary major. After the opening by the Women’s World Choir, Schramm took the audience on a...
October 12, 2017
The Ross Richer family’s two-way mission
One might expect to become a collector of stories if they live half of their life in another country each year. Goshen College Economics professor Jerrell Ross Richer is one such man. Jerrell, his wife Jane, and their four children, Sierra, Naomi, Teresa and Jordan have spent three years living half of each year in Ecuador. The family works with Mennonite Mission Network and lives in the eastern rainforest region with indigenous people and works the Ecuadorian Mennonite church. Richer and his family are in Goshen for now, but plan to head back to Ecuador by late December. The Ross...
March 16, 2017
Solidarity with Native Nations Rise
Tomorrow, a panel of “water protectors” will take to the Umble Center stage to hold an open discussion about the Dakota Access Pipeline and the indigenous people that live there, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. The panel consists of Noemi Salvador and Naomi Gross, seniors, and Hannah Yoder and Chelsea Risser, juniors, who all traveled to the site of the protests that went on throughout 2016. Along with them, two Dine Nation speakers, Craig Tsosie and Theron Begay, will also share their experiences and answer questions about their time at Standing Rock. The session will be a chance to have...
November 17, 2016
Benefit to raise funds for Standing Rock
Currently, near the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota there are thousands of people nonviolently protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL). The Dakota Access Pipeline would put the community’s water source at risk and destroy sacred Native American sites. As for students, being so far removed from the conflict doesn’t stop them from trying to help. On Saturday, Nov. 19, residents of Elkhart and Goshen are trying to raise funds to send to the water protectors at Standing Rock. Standing with Standing Rock: A Benefit Event will include many local and non-local musicians, artists, poets and speakers. Some of...
November 3, 2016
GC group protests at Standing Rock
For four days over fall break, a group of Goshen College students travelled to Standing Rock Sioux Reservation. Seniors Sarah Hofkamp, and Anya Slabaugh, juniors Chelsea Risser, Kenan Bitikofer, Benjamin Wiebe, Deeksha Pagar, and Hannah Yoder, and sophomore Christi Sessa were able to make the trip with the sponsorship of GC’s Social Reform Club and additional funding from Student Senate. Since early April, thousands of Native Americans and allies have set up camp along the Missouri River in Cannon Ball, North Dakota to protest the Dakota Access Pipeline, or DAPL. The pipeline route will cross underneath the Missouri River just...
September 29, 2016
Protesting in solidarity with Standing Rock
In an effort to stand in solidarity with Standing Rock Dakota Access Pipeline protestors, Goshen College students organized a rally downtown on Saturday Sept. 17. In July 2016, the U.S. Army Corps granted authorization of the Dakota Access Pipeline, a pipeline that will destroy cultural lands as well as endanger the tribal citizens’ access to clean water. The Standing Rock Sioux Reservation is currently home to members of the Dakota and Lakota nations. The reservation lies at the border of North Dakota and South Dakota, near landmarks such as Lake Oahe, a Missouri River reservoir. This area has been home...
November 5, 2015
‘Loss of Turtle Island’ recreates history
Students were asked to face history in an interactive simulation called “The Loss of Turtle Island” on Tuesday and Wednesday. The simulation was led by Karen Kauffman Wall and Erica Littlewolf, peace educators working with Mennonite Central Committee. Students who participated in the simulation were given a card when they entered the room. The cards each had one of five pictures that tied into the activity. The participants were asked to stand on blankets laid out on the floor in the center of the room. At first, only one blanket was removed. Then, participants holding a certain card all left,...
October 15, 2015
Holiday an opportunity for learning, mourning
As much of America celebrated Columbus Day this past Monday, Goshen College juniors Anya Kreider and Sarah Hofkamp led a convocation event in honor of an alternate holiday: Indigenous People’s Day. Renaming the day and thus shifting its focus is a growing national trend. At least nine cities across the US celebrated this holiday as a way of calling attention to the bloody history on which this nation was founded. Popular social media sites featured the hashtags “#indigenouspeoplesday” and “#abolishcolumbusday.” In keeping with this rising movement, Kreider and Hofkamp used this day as a time to educate the GC community...