A Coalition of 50+ Indigenous Groups Host #Proud2BIndigenous Week during UNPFII
New York, NY
From May 20-31st, Maasai from Africa, Yawanawa from South America, Māori from South East Asia, Lakota from North America, and Indigenous Peoples from around the world will come together in New York City for the Twelfth Session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII). They will discuss several issues critical to indigenous peoples including health, education, culture, human rights and the implementation of The UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).
First Peoples Worldwide, an indigenous-led organization dedicated to the mission of promoting Indigenous economic determination and strengthening Indigenous communities, is organizing PROUD TO BE INDIGENOUS WEEK during the Permanent Forum. They will be hosting several events in New York City (click here for the schedule), but since most indigenous people will not make it to New York, First Peoples is running an online campaign to allow indigenous peoples everywhere to engage with UNPFII and each other.
Throughout the week, First Peoples will be celebrating indigenous people through stories, photos and videos on Facebook,Twitter and Youtube and sharing news from UNPFII. More importantly, First Peoples will be asking indigenous peoples to share photos and videos of themselves expressing why they are proud to be indigenous while holding a sign with the hashtag #Proud2BIndigenous and posting it to Facebook and Twitter.
"Cultural Survival is excited to be part of Proud2BIndigenous Week. P2BI sheds light on and brings the important work of the UNPFII to Indigenous communities around the globe who cannot be there in person. As part of the program, we are awarding Indigenous activitst Dayamanu Barla with the ELL Indigenous Rights Award, and on Friday May 24 at Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza in NYC, we are hosting the Cultural Survival Bazaar, a cultural festivals that provide Indigenous artists, cooperatives, and their representatives the chance to sell their work directly to the American public." Suzanne Benally, Executive Director (Navajo/ Santa Clara Tewa)
To be part of #Proud2BIndigenous, sign up at http://eepurl.com/w5rcX.
The Proud To Be Indigenous Coalition includes First Peoples Worldwide, Cultural Survival; Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian; Indian Country Today Media Network; Amazon Watch; United Nations Global Compact; A World Institute for a Sustainable Humanity (AWISH); Action Communautaire pour la Promotion des Défavorisés Batwa (ACPROD-BATWA); Africa Grantmakers' Affinity Group; Bajoh Indigenous Development Association; Bible Hill Youth Club; Borena Amara Wetatoch Mehaber (BAYA); Borneo Project; Buffalo Nickel Communications; Conscious Living; Council of the Maya Ancestral Authorities of the Ixil Region; ELEMENTAL;Enterprise Development & Enterprise Facility, Fundación Paso a Paso; Global Hand; Gulu Deaf Association; Gwich'in Steering Committee; Higa-onon Ha Migsabuwa Ta Lanao, Inc.; Il’laramatak Community Concerns, Indigenous Peoples Issues and Resources; Indigenous Waves; International Indian Treaty Council (IITC); Literacy Action And Development Agency (LADA); Longhouse Media; Maya Leaders Alliance, Mindanao Fish, Wildlife Degenders and Parks Association; Mengbwa: Actions Jeunes (MAJE); Native Arts Collective, Numi Organic Tea; Organisation d'Accompagnement et d'Appui aux Pygmées (OSAPY); Organization of Indigenous Communities of Masisea (OCOIM); Peopleriver; Pikhumpongan Dlibon Subanen, Inc. (PDSI); Pueblos Indígenas Chorotega (CPICh); Pwani Leadership Council (Kenya); Pygmy People Association for a Sustainable Development; Red Alliance Media; Runa; SATIIM - Sarstoon-Temash Institute for Indigenous Management; Sundarbon Adibasi Munda Sangastha (SAMS), sweetriot; Tanka; Tebtebba; Toledo Alcaldes Association; Uganda Gender Rights Foundation; Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO), Urunji Child-Care Trust; and Vision Maker Media.
