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The story of the Maskoke Peoples is, as that of all Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island, a story of dispossession, cultural assimilation, and treaty violations. Forced out of their homelands by government-imposed removal policies, Maskoke People were displaced from their territories in 1836. Only in 2018, did a small community of Maskoke People finally rematriate some of these ancestral lands and return to live once again in what is today called Alabama.

By Tokunbo Dada (Yoruba)

In Nigeria, many farmers didn't trust vaccines for COVID-19, making it hard to fight the virus. With financial support from Cultural Survival’s Indigenous Community Media Fund, Paramount 94.5 FM Abeokuta in Nigeria, undertook Project New Hope, which used radio broadcasts to teach about vaccines in a way that was culturally relevant in the Yoruba language. The station built a bridge between doctors and farmers, showing them how vaccines could save lives.

In October 2023, Cultural Survival and Qhana Pukara Kurmi, an association of Indigenous communities of the department of Oruro, Bolivia, submitted an alternative report to the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. The report spotlights the rights violations suffered by the Quechua communities of the Ayllu Acre Antequera for the Committee’s consideration during its 111th session, which took place from November 20 to December 8, 2023.

Byron Tenesaca Guaman (Kañari Kichwa), Fellowships Coordinator, is from Guapondelig situated in Kañari territory (also known today as Cuenca) in the southern Andes of Ecuador. Byron comes to Cultural Survival after serving as a Bilingual Cultural Arts Educator, Hiset Instructor, Interpreter, and Programs Manager in North Carolina. A certified K-12 Art Instructor, Byron holds a Master’s degree in Comprehensive Education with a focus in Studio Art from Western Carolina University. As an educator, Byron weaves his identities of visual artist, basket maker, immigrant, storyteller, and father to create spaces for creativity, curiosity, reflection, healing, and empowerment in our youth. He’s passionate about using art and creativity as tools for amplifying our Indigenous voices and finding solutions to current issues facing our communities. Byron recently moved back to his community in the Andes to work on documentation and youth empowerment projects in the arts and crafts. Contact Byron at byron.tenesaca@culturalsurvival.org.

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