Dignity on Indigenous People's Day

I noticed as I checked my Facebook this morning that it is Indigenous Peoples' Day, formerly known as Columbus Day in North America. It struck me that I have much to say about this.

At my last job, while working 3rd shift at a hotel, there were complaints on occasion about grooming practices. I was experimenting with different looks as part of my ongoing Abraxas Initiative, the means by which I am rebuilding my corpus and psyche to rid myself of the internalized sickness of the culture that I was raised in. Having found a motif to build myself around, I was working on displaying this motif with my appearance. It has made a tremendous impact on me, and continues to inspire me on a daily basis.

When I would check my messages on the hotel's intranet, I knew people were speaking of me, but I refused to "take the hint", so to speak. I would not change my appearance unless directly asked to. I bear the primary responsibility of prioritizing my own health, after all. And when it was more directly brought up, I simply responded that my hair and beard were part of an effort to reclaim the indigenous culture of Europe prior to Roman colonization. You should have seen the look on my boss's face. She asked if I was part of that culture, and I said that I have right to it. Because I do.

Much of paganism and witchery is, in fact, exactly that. Reclaiming your own cultural birthright is not a privilege granted based on the colour of your skin. This quest belongs to all of humanity, whether white, black, red; or bright green, for that matter. The thing that so many fail to recognize, is that while the European people were most certainly the vehicle by which colonialism reached the America's, we were ourselves, colonized first, our cultures appropriated and internalized into Christendom as surely as any other. Most of the customs presented during Christmas and Easter are simply re-branded pagan observations of divinity, for instance.

And so my appearance and spirituality was, and still remains, fully my own birthright; regardless of the feelings of any other person. Though many seem to consider "the white man" as politically endorsed targets in the world, I decry this. Nobody may hold me responsible for the accident of my ancestry, and I will not be shamed for my corpus, no matter what polite society may think. My german and pictish blood does not entitle prejudice on the part of anyone. I am who I choose to be.

And so Indigenous People's day is my day, just as it is every mans. Every person bears the agency to stand beside our human brothers, regardless of where they, or we, hail from. Every person can wield their voice, their hands, their sweat, their very being to raise up those around us. Every person can fight back against the ongoing xenocide (for that is what it truly is; the murder and exploitation of an Other.. of "those people".) The actions of any vile oppressor, be they Hitler, Stalin, Columbus, Cortez or the cursed President Andrew Jackson; are crimes against all of us. Xenocide never ends, it simply switches nationalities as it sees fit. It is carried out now, at this very moment, in locales the world over. There are no "those people"...

I consider this place, wondrous Tenasi, to be my homeland. The verdant hills are mine as much as any other, for almost every moment of my life has been spent here, the voices of the wild call to my spirit as surely as they do all beasts, human or no. The dignity of one man is the dignity of all men.

So every man should raise their horns, placing themselves shoulder to shoulder with all oppressed peoples. Take a stand. Get in the game. We are all indigenous of the Earth. We are all oppressed. The task to recognize and strengthen the people to whom Tenasi belonged before "progress" reared it's ugly head is my own task, my own sacred duty.

Blessed Indigenous People's Day, folks. Whistle a tune, light a candle, make your art in thanks of those have walked before and to those yet to come.