Tohono Ooodham Homelands cover dark tan region
To the United States National Guard arriving in O'odham Lands,
We are not compliant people, we are people with great dignity and
confidence. We are a people of endurance and have a long survival
history. We are people that have lived here for thousands of years.
We have our own language, we have our own culture and traditions.
You are coming to my land, you may find me walking on my land,
sitting on my land and just going about my daily life. I might be
sitting on the mountain top, do not disturb me, I am praying the way
my ancestors did for thousands of years. I might be out collecting
what may be strange to you but it might be food to me or medicine
for me.
Sometimes I am going to the city to get a burger or watch a movie or
just to resupply my kitchen and refrigerator. Some of us live very
much like you do and some of us live very simple lives. Some of may
not have computers or scanners or televisions or a vehicle but some
of us do.
The other thing is that some of us are light-skinned O'odham and
some of us are darker-skinned O'odham. Some of us spend a lot of
time indoors or outdoors. Sometimes my mother might be of a
different Nation (refers to different tribal Nation) or sometimes
our father is Spanish or we may have some European grandmother or
grandfather.
If you want to question who we are, we all have learned to carry our
Tohono O'odham Nation Tribal I.D. Card. It is a federally-issued
card which is recognized by the federal
government which is your
boss. This card identifies us and by law this is the only
requirement needed to prove who we are. We do not have United States
passports because most of us were born at home and do not have
documents, but that does not make us "undocumented people." Your
boss, the Department of Homeland Security, and the government of the
Tohono O'odham Nation have negotiated an agreement which is, our
tribal I.D. card is our identification card and no other document is
required.
The O'odham, (the People) as we call ourselves, have been here to
witness the eruption of volcanoes that formed the lands we live on.
We have special places that hold our great-great-great-great-great
great grandparents remains, our lands are a special and holy place
to us. Some of us still make journeys to these places to pray. Some
of these places hold holy objects that maintain specific parts of
our beliefs. When you see us out on the land do not assume we are in
the drug business or human smuggling business. Sometimes we are out
on the land hunting for rabbits or deer or javalina to feed our
families. We may be carrying a hunting weapon please do not harm me,
my family loves me and depends on me.
When you are out on our land, be mindful that you are visitor on our
lands, be respectful, be courteous and do not harm anything.
Sometimes you may see us gather all night long, dancing and
sometimes we are crying loudly, do not approach us or disturb us in
anyway, we are honoring a dead relative and preparing them for
burial. Sometimes we are conducting a healing ceremony out on the
land, do not approach us or
disturb us. Sometimes we may be singing
and dancing all night long, these are our ceremonies that we have
conducted for thousands of years. We are not behaving in a
suspicious nature, this is our way of life.
As original people of the lands we honor everything on our lands and
we regard all as a part of our sacred lives, do not kill any plants
and animals or people on our lands. Do not litter our lands with
your trash. When we visit other peoples lands and cities and homes
we do not litter or leave behind trash.
We might be driving our cars, sometimes old, sometimes very new, do
not try to run us off the roads or tailgate me. I value my life and
my family, I might have a newborn in my car or my grandmother or my
mother and father, my brothers and sister or my aunts and uncles or
my friends. These are all important people to me and I do not want
to see them hurt or dead.
If I seem like I do not understand what you are saying, please call
the Tohono O'odham Police and ask for an O'odham speaking officer to
come and assist you. I might be laughing at you if you talk to me in
English, I don't know what you are saying and I am laughing out of
nervousness and fear because you are armed.
If you are afraid of us and draw your weapons on me, I am more
afraid of you because I am unarmed and my
family is in the vehicle
with me or they are in my house when you come into my house.
Sometimes my house might be in poor condition but it is my home, it
is my sanctuary, be respectful. Sometime there are elders in my
house that are already afraid of armed people in our communities
such as the border patrol and other federal agents.
There are some people that do drug business or human smuggling
business but we are not all doing that, we are not all criminals. Do
not treat us like criminals.
We might call you killers and murderers as you just came from
killing people. To the O'odham you are a dangerous person, to walk
onto our lands bringing fresh death on your person is very
destructive to us as a people. You may have diseases we do not know,
illnesses of your mind that you might inflict on us. Please do not
approach us if you are afflicted with fresh death.
Remember we do not want you on our lands, we did not invite you to
our lands.
Do remember that we have invited allies that will be witnessing your
conduct on our lands and how you treat our people.
From the the O'odham Lands
Ofelia Rivas
