Paddle past ignorance: acknowledging stolen land
The first people of the Salish Sea have lived along the lakes, rivers and saltwater for more than 10,000 years. Before pioneers arrived, the Coast Salish people lived in winter houses called longhouses. Longhouses were made out of cedar logs, and each house had a name and a headman. They were usually between 60 to 80 feet long and could house hundreds of people. If there was a powerful house, then the other houses in the area also used the name of this strong house, said Michael Evans (Waq́usqidəb) (he/him), the Chair of the Snohomish Tribe of Indians.
“The people on Lake Washington were called the Lake people. The people over by Juanita were called the Willow people, and they were associated with the larger, stronger group called the Inside People. The word for Inside People is Duwa, meaning Duwamish,” Evans said.
Evans said that the lands near what is Kenmore today were managed by either Duwamish or Snohomish families. However, in 1855, Washington territorial governor Issac Stevens, Chief Seattle and representatives of Duwamish and Snohomish descent signed the Treaty of Point Elliott. The treaty ceded millions of acres of land to the federal government in exchange for protected reservations. Stevens proposed putting the first peoples of Washington on seven reservations.
“Most of the people that used to live in these longhouses were decimated because of diseases,” Evans said. “And then with all the wars and other things going on, a lot of the people left the area. There was not a lot left; they were put in concentration camps called reservations, or they were put in boarding schools, and only about 10% of people came out of that. Most of the people that went died eventually.”
Only 0.2% of Kenmore’s population of 23,478 listed their race as American Indian or Alaskan Native in the 2022 census. Suzanne Greathouse (she/her), the President of the Kenmore Heritage Society, said the history of indigenous people and their relationship with the land often involves violence, displacement and exploitation.
“My ancestor chose to marry a pioneer instead, and was protected by the white man,” Evans said. “The white male marrying the native female and because of that a lot of those people survived, because they had that protection. But those that lived on the reservation didn’t, and whatever it was they did allow, it was almost all taken away, including their lives.”
Land acknowledgments are formal statements that recognize the theft of land from indigenous peoples and the colonization, genocide, forced relocation and ethnic cleansing they faced. Evans said land acknowledgments are an important first step, but a small one.
NSD’s Racial and Educational Justice Board created a land and peoples acknowledgment that is presented at school events like graduation and non-spirit focused assemblies.
“I think it’s important to recognize colonialism, because not only does it help us give a little perspective and context to the places we’re in and the history behind it, but also the horrible actions that happened because of colonialism,” Principal Adam Desautels (he/him) said.
Greathouse said KHS goes beyond land acknowledgment by educating Kenmore residents about indigenous history and partnering with various local tribes to teach children about native languages and plants. Although KHS doesn’t engage at the tribal government level, they have worked with people from federally and non-federally recognized tribes in community-based projects.
Federally recognized tribes can apply for government funding for services and programs. Criteria required to become federally recognized include parameters on Indian entity identification, political influence or authority, governing documents, proof of descent, unique membership and congressional termination. The Snohomish Tribe of Indians’ petition for federal recognition was denied in 1983. Currently, the Duwamish tribe is also not federally recognized.
“Those that had reservations were recognized, and they had all the treaty rights. And so the Snohomish Tribe of Indians had to go back to the federal government and prove that they needed to be recognized by the federal government. And it has never happened,” Evans said.
Federally recognized tribes operate as domestic, independent nations and are treated at the same level as the state government. Tribes can also be recognized by the state, which means they do not receive the same benefits as federally recognized tribes but are acknowledged for their historical and cultural contributions.
Tribes can ask the government for environmental statements: documents that outline the environmental impacts of proposed projects, and anything else that affects their treaty rights.
“Every drop of water affects the grass, it affects the critters and animals that are on the land. It affects the ability to hunt and fish in traditional ways so yes, [first people] should have some say in those things,” Evans said.
The Muckleshoot tribe controls the waterways around Kenmore. Greathouse said anytime the city of Kenmore wants to do something with the water, they have to contact the Muckleshoot tribe and a variety of other governmental agencies.
“We were trying to get the city of Kenmore to meet with the governing body of the Tulalip,” Greathouse said. “But they couldn’t wrap their heads around that; they didn’t see them as a government agency, which I think is part of the challenge. I think people have a lot of misconceptions about how they’re organized.”
The federal government recognizes 574 tribes, 29 of which are in Washington. More than 200 tribes do not have federal recognition.
“Those who are not federally recognized, they have no money, they have no reservations, they have no resources, and they are being called names,” Evans said. “And what we would like to do is be recognized, and the first step is land acknowledgment.”
