Author: Kim Kalliber

By Kalvin Valdillez; photos by Sarah Jean Hart and Monie Ordonia

Red dresses and shirts hauntingly waved in the wind on MMIWP Awareness Day throughout the reservation of Tulalip. Hanging up on road signs, fences, and even on the Tulalip reader board, the red garments were placed in highly visible areas for local traffic and pedestrians to see, bringing attention to the nationwide epidemic.

“I felt like it was work that had to be done,” said organizer and Tulalip tribal member, Sarah Jean Hart. “I started last year and knew it was something I wanted to do every year. I feel like today, May 5^th, is more than just the education piece and the prevention piece, but more so an opportunity to uplift our families and let them know that we’re here for them and that we love them, and to honor the ones who have not come home.”

Inspired by a 2010 art exhibit, called the REDress project, red dresses have become a nationally known symbol for the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women movement. The empty articles of clothing provide a powerful image. The dresses are often displayed in an upright position, giving off the illusion that they are in current use, but the people wearing them appear to be missing. 

Since their first art exhibit, the REDress project helped raise awareness about the devastating epidemic over the past decade, while also providing a new and creative way for the Indigenous population to bring attention to the MMIWP movement in their respective tribal communities throughout Canada and the U.S. 

Sarah first brought the project to Tulalip in 2021, and after multiple people approached her and inquired about the dresses, she decided to make this an annual tradition in commemoration of MMIWP Awareness Day. With the help of fellow tribal member, Monie Ordonia, Sarah spent over six hours the day beforehand hanging the dresses and shirts along Marine Drive and in Tulalip neighborhoods. 

The red dresses and shirts were accompanied with hand-painted signs that read messages such as: No More Stolen Sisters & Brothers, Rise Up and Protect Our Brothers and Sisters, Remember Them and Say Their Names. A few pieces of clothing also displayed messages – in white paint were the names of those individuals who fell victim to this MMIWP epidemic and called Tulalip home – including Kyle Van Jones, Jr. Lacy, Bridgette Simpson, Jessica Jones and May Ellen Davis. 

Sarah shared, “A few years ago, it started to really hit home – how many of our own women, not only our women but our brothers too, started going missing. There was no justice for my cousin and so I just knew that we needed to do something. For me to light a candle wherever I put a dress, that’s me letting them know that this is your way home and we’re here waiting for you and we love you.”

In a Facebook post following MMIWP Awareness Day, Sarah also shared, “Our hearts are always in prayer for our MMIW & MMIP. Our loved ones taken too soon. We remember, honor and love you always.”

By Kalvin Valdillez, Tulalip News

Another week closer to this year’s Salmon Ceremony, the Tulalip community met once again on Thursday May 5, to practice their traditional songs and dances before the first yubəč, or king salmon, arrives at local waters. The festivities for the honored guest will be held on June 11 this year, beginning at 10:30 a.m., at the Tulalip Longhouse. 

The Tulalip Gathering Hall’s acoustics highlighted the fact that the drumbeats were louder and the vocals were stronger this week, as the number of participates continues to grow with each practice. In addition to more drummers and singers, there are notably more shawls and vests on the floor while dancers utilize the entire space of the hall, dancing along to the Tribe’s ancestral songs. Nearly everybody at the third practice session wore red this week, and a couple of people showcased a painted red handprint across their face. 

During the weekly gatherings, the people practice an entire walkthrough of the Salmon Ceremony, taking time to explain each song, dance, chant, and blessing. After the revival in 1976, the tribe makes sure to teach the upcoming generation about how Harriette Shelton Dover and a number of Tulalip elders brought the ceremony back following the boarding school era. Almost completely wiped away from existence due to forced assimilation, the Salmon Ceremony is now celebrated at the start of every fishing season.

The ceremony honors the salmon for providing nourishment to the tribal community, while also blessing the local fisherman before they begin harvesting salmon for their families and community this year. 

“We honor the gift of our visitor, yubəč, Big Chief King Salmon,” said Tulalip tribal member, Glen Gobin. “We’re harvesting from nature again, it’s how we honor and respect that, to ensure that he’s always going to be there. Him and his people will always be there, returning to take care of our people as they always have.”

As a reminder, Salmon Ceremony practices are held every Thursday at the Tulalip Gathering Hall, beginning at 5:00 p.m. The last practice, on June 9^th, will be held at the Tulalip Longhouse. Several tribal leaders, including Chairwoman Teri Gobin, wish to extend a warm welcome to the entire community of Tulalip to the practice sessions to learn about the Salmon Ceremony and all that the traditional event entails, so it can be passed on to the generations of tomorrow.

Said Teri, “We’ve come a long way and we’ve been practicing for a lot of years. What is most important now is that we are making sure the young ones are learning the songs, the dances and about those elders who brought it back again.”

Before the last song was performed, Glen explained that this week’s practice was scheduled to end a little bit sooner than usual, while also inviting those in attendance to stay behind for a special candlelight vigil, in remembrance of all the missing Indigenous women and people. The majority of Salmon Ceremony participants did not leave after this week’s practice, but instead spread out from the drum circle in the middle of the floor to seats, also arranged in a circle, placed along the outer edges of the Gathering Hall. 

What followed next was a moving tribute held in honor of national MMIWP Awareness Day. Powerful words and heartbreaking stories were shared during the special candlelight vigil and the ceremony provided a safe space for the families of survivors, those individuals missing and those who have passed on, to open up about the national epidemic. 

Multiple survivors of domestic violence took the opportunity to warn the young people about the dangers of an abusive relationship, noting that toxic relationships can escalate quickly to unsafe situations. Many of these survivors expressed the difficulty of leaving a dangerous relationship. They also stated that they felt that if they didn’t leave when they did, they might not be here today.

Tribal member, Shawnee Sheldon shared, “Everybody who was in domestic violence, brought awareness tonight. Even though I didn’t speak, I’m a victim of domestic violence. At the age of 17, I was abused by my boyfriend. He isolated me and I was beaten pretty bad. I feared for my life. And at the time, I called my best friend and told her to come and get me and bring me home because I was all the way down in Muckleshoot. She came and got me and I’m forever grateful for her. If she didn’t come for me, I don’t think I would be alive. It sometimes still triggers me. I don’t speak publicly about it, but I can talk individually with people about it, because I know there are people who are put it in the darkness. So just bringing that awareness is huge.”

A number of speakers also urged the youth to be aware of their surroundings at all times, and to reach out for help when it’s needed. Several speakers reiterated to the future generation to be safe and communicative with their families about where they are going, who they are with, and how they are doing because the rate at which Indigenous people go missing continues to climb throughout the nation. 

Tribal member and QCT teacher, Margie Santibanez shared, “I came out for the MMIW vigil because I have friends who started out in domestic violence relationships and two of them almost lost their lives to it. Some of my students were murdered, as I worked at the school which is now known as Heritage. My heart has always been heavy. This is my way of being a voice for them, helping the families heal if I can by doing the prayers and teaching the kids what it is to be respectable to each other. That’s my goal, that’s why I came.” 

As the candles were lit, the people held an extended moment of silence for the survivors and those we lost due to the epidemic. Tears were shed, hugs were shared, and prayers and songs were offered as the community gathered with heavy hearts on National MMIWP Awareness Day and took an important step towards healing. 

By Micheal Rios, Tulalip News

“First of all, thank you all for being here and taking part in this movement to raise awareness. Together we will make our voices heard. Today, as we honor missing and murdered Indigenous people, I want to mention the importance of building up our young people and being sure they have a voice. Some of us adults are still looking for ours.

“We have been historically underrepresented. Our people have been oppressed for far too long. We have to work to address the white, colonized, patriarchal systems that this country is founded on. We have to make sure that we count at the local, state and federal levels. We cannot tolerate being underrepresented any longer. We have to show up to spaces and represent for those who do not have a voice. Times are changing and evolving. We are strong, resilient and have a foundation that we have to hold onto and carry with us. The foundation of being Native; Indigenous to this land.

“Rematriation is a fairly new word. So new it’s not even in the dictionary, yet, but it is the opposite of patriarchy. Rematriation means to return the sacred to the mother; it’s a means to restore balance to the world. We will continue to reclaim and restore our natural and traditional ways of knowing and being in order to help strengthen our roots for future generations. We need to be sure that our children can walk firmly in their identity, be proud of their culture, and know where they come from. We need to be sure they know the importance of protecting one another. That’s what it means to be a tribe.

“We need to be sure that women, children and all Indigenous people have a safe space to own who they are. I believe we can do it, but its going to take every single one of us working together. Only together can we protect our communities and ensure we have no more stolen sisters and brothers.”

Those eloquent, heartfelt words were shared by Tulalip’s own Jessica Bustad as she welcomed some two-hundred community members as they assembled in the bleachers and courtside seating of the Youth Center’s main gymnasium on Tuesday, May 3. Friends and relatives from both near and far respectfully dawned an assortment of red clothing, red regalia, and red handmade signs in a united effort to recognize the national crisis of Missing and Murdered Indigenous People (MMIP).

 Our women, girls, and young men are being taken from us in an alarming way.  As of 2016, the National Crime Information Center has reported 5,712 cases of missing American Indian and Alaska Native women and girls. Strikingly, the U.S Department of Justice missing persons database has only reported 116 cases.  The majority of these murders are committed by non-Native people on Native-owned land. The lack of communication combined with jurisdictional issues between state, local, federal, and tribal law enforcement, make it nearly impossible to begin the investigative process.

Sobering Statistics

• Indigenous women are murdered and go missing at a rate higher than any other ethnic group.
• Indigenous women are murdered at a rate 10x higher than all other ethnicities.
• Murder is the 3^rd leading cause of death for Indigenous women.
• More than 4 out of 5 Indigenous women (84.3%) will experience violence in their lifetime.
• More than half of Indigenous women experience sexual violence (56.1%).
• More than half of Indigenous women have been physically abused by their intimate partners (55.5%).
• Nearly half of all Indigenous women have been stalked in their lifetime (48.8%).
• Indigenous women are 1.7 times more likely than white American women to experience violence. 
• Indigenous women are 2x more likely to be raped than white American women. 
• Murder rate of Indigenous women is 3x higher than white American women. 

*source: National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center

To understand the complex and ongoing MMIP crisis one must first admit the current systemic response to violence against Native people is immensely inadequate. Then one must realize the rate at which Tribes are losing their life-giving women is devastating to not just the tribal communities, but to the entire nation as a whole. Insufficient resources on the state level and lack of clarity on jurisdictional responsibilities on the federal level combine to severely hinder efforts to locate those who are missing. 

Furthermore, the current legal framework for persecuting crimes committed on Native citizens by non-Natives is exceedingly complicated and creates many barriers for victims and Tribes working to protect their membership. 

Despite a federal trust obligation to protect Native American communities, violence against Indigenous women in the United States continues at epidemic proportions. It greatly exceeds that of any other demographic of women across the country. While many issues need to be addressed to confront this human rights issue, it is clear that limitations placed on tribal government jurisdiction by the federal government are a contributing factor. Often resulting in non-Native perpetrators falling through the cracks in the system time and time again.

“A huge thank you to each and every one of you joining us in the circle here today. We know that we come with our prayers and that’s the strongest medicine we have. The thoughts we have in our mind create reality,” previously shared Deborah Parker, board of director for the National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center. She is nationally renowned for her critical role in the passage of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). “When I was a young girl I witnessed violence in our community, and I said a prayer then that when I get older I’d like to be a person to help change the laws to protect our people. 

“If we speak forward with our voice and with our truth and with all of our strength, then we can move mountains. And truly there are others who believe in our words and will stand beside us,” she continued. “These are our lands. We’ve been taught we are caretakers of these lands. That’s a big responsibility for us as Indigenous people. Each and every person in this circle, from youth to elder, can fulfill this responsibility and bring about change that benefits us all. We need our women to be safe. We need our young people to be safe. We need our future generations to be safe. By standing together and working together we will make this prayer a reality.”

By learning from the experiences of surviving family members, the MMIP movement can work to achieve the changes needed to safeguard the lives of Indigenous people and strengthen the authority of Native nations to protect their citizens. Exemplifying this notion are Tulalip tribal members Udora Andrade, Veronica Jimicum and Lynette Jimicum who sat unified at Tuesday night’s MMIP awareness event. They serve as constant reminder of the ongoing search for Mary E. Johnson, a Tulalip woman who went missing on December 1, 2020.

Police Chief Sutter expressed to Mary’s family and those gathered in community, “We are very actively working on Mary’s case. We want to bring her home and give her justice. Its grassroots activism and events like this happening all across the country that put immense pressure on the legislators in Washington, DC. Here in Tulalip we’ve developed a tribal response plan with four components to help curb this crisis locally. It includes a victim’s liaison that strengthens family support and opens better lines of communication, tribal-led community resources spearheaded by concerned Tulalip citizens, use of local and regional media to increase awareness, and developing better protocols to serve our community as best as possible.”   

Following a series of speakers from all levels of Tulalip leadership and enrichment programs, Josh Fryberg and Antone George led a large contingent of singers and drummers in coming together for a spirit enriching coastal jam, which well into the twilight hours.

“Our hands go up to each and every one of you who attended and helped make this moment possible,” said event coordinator Josh Fryberg. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to all in need. It will take each and every one of us to continue to be the difference, not just for us but for our future generations. By living in a good way that honors our ancestors we will continue to bring unity, to raise awareness, and strengthen our culture, together.”

By Kalvin Valdillez, Tulalip News

The salmon are about gone. The forest is all but gone, and other resources are gone because of greed and mistreatment. We don’t know if we’ll ever be able to restore any of these things. So, this is an important story – the Salmon People story.

“The reason to tell this story is because it concerns the environment. And to show that the Snohomish people practiced this for hundreds of years – It tells us something, that’s been told a long time: to conserve and keep things and honor all things because they’re alive. The trees are alive. Everything we eat was alive at some time. And we should give thanks and respect these things as living spirits and show them respect appropriately. And if we don’t, we’re going to lose everything as we know it today.”

The statement above, and subsequent story below, were spoken by the late Bernie ‘Kai Kai’ Gobin nearly thirty years ago, back in 1993. An influential leader of his time, Kai Kai provided this re-telling of the traditional Tulalip story, Salmon Man, for the Marysville School District. The story has been passed on throughout the years since time immemorial, and Kai Kai credited Harriette Shelton Dover for passing it on to the generations following the boarding school era. 

The Salmon Man story is important to the tribe’s way of life and is the reason why Tulalip and nearby tribes gather once a year to participate in the Salmon Ceremony at the start of the fishing season. During the Salmon Ceremony, the people pay tribute to the salmon for providing sustenance for the tribal community, while also taking time to traditionally bless the tribal fisherman before they journey out to the Salish waters to harvest salmon for their families. 

Due to the cruel assimilation period, the traditional ceremony was outlawed for several decades. That is until 1976 when a handful of Tulalip elders, led by Harriette Shelton Dover, revived the ceremony by recalling what traditionally took place at the special honoring, thereby teaching the upcoming generations the songs, dances and the story of the Salmon Man, also known as the Salmon People story. 

Dancers, drummers and singers are currently preparing for Salmon Ceremony which will take place this year on Saturday June 11^th, beginning at 10:30 a.m. Leading up to the ceremony, the participants are meeting every week to collectively walk through the Salmon Ceremony start to finish, so the people can build a strong connection to the dances and songs as well as a cultural understanding of the stories about the Salmon People and of the Salmon Ceremony’s revitalization. 

Tulalip Chairwoman, Teri Gobin, has participated in the ceremony since it’s revival and extends a warm invite to the entire community, stating that everybody is welcome to come and participate in the weekly Salmon Ceremony practices, which begins at 5:00 p.m. every Thursday at the Tulalip Gathering Hall. The last practice on June 9^th, however, will be held at the Tulalip longhouse.

In commemoration of the upcoming Salmon Ceremony, Tulalip News is featuring a weekly mini-series focused on the important cultural and spiritual work that goes into the ceremony year after year. Last week, we explored the significance of passing the tradition onto the next generations and asked a number of participants two questions, when were they introduced to the ceremony and why it was important to them individually. Although we received a variety of great answers, numerous people listed two aspects as reasons to the latter question – practicing the traditions and passing those traditions to the youth. 

The revival has already been carried across five decades, and one look into a practice session would show that the Tulalips are doing an incredible job of keeping their traditions alive by passing their teachings to the next generation. In fact, Kamiakin Craig, the grandson of Kai Kai, who shares his Indian name, attends every practice and participates at each Salmon Ceremony every year. 

An integral part of the Salmon Ceremony is learning about the Salmon Man story, which is the basis of the ceremony itself and explains a great deal about Tulalip traditions and the importance of preserving their way of life. We’ll let Kai Kai take it from here, as his re-telling of the story is truly fantastic, and if you are like us, hearing and revisiting teachings from elders and elders who’ve passed on, is quite an amazing, eye-opening and enjoyable experience. 

Kai Kai:

This is one version of the Salmon Man. You might have heard about the Tulalip Salmon Festival. The Salmon Festival was something that was practiced for hundreds of years by the Snohomish people, the sduhubš people. They are also called ‘the salmon people’.  And the story’s extremely important because it links to the present day.

And the story goes that there is a tribe of Salmon People that live under the sea. And each year, they send out scouts to visit their homeland. And the way that the Snohomish people recognize that it’s time for the salmon scouts to be returning to their area is when, in the spring, a butterfly comes out. And the first person to see that butterfly will run, as fast as they can, to tell our chiefs or headmen, or now they are called the chairman. One of the other ways they recognize that the salmon scouts are returning is when the wild spirea tree blooms. The people call it the ironwood tree, and that’s what they use for fish sticks and a lot of other important things, like halibut hooks. It’s a very hard wood. So, when they see either one of these, a tribal member will tell the chairman, and he immediately sends out word to the people and calls them together in the longhouse for a huge feast and celebration to give honor to the visitors that are coming.

The salmon scout will arrive out in the middle of Tulalip Bay there. And the people send out a canoe to meet him. And they put the salmon scout inside the canoe, where a cradle is filled with fern leaves and other soft leaves for a bed for him to come in on and keep him fresh. And he’ll come in by canoe to the cliff right below our longhouse, and there, the whole tribe will be there on the water to greet him. And they’ll walk him in with songs of honor and just greet him in a special way. Then, he’ll be carried on that cradle up into the longhouse, where he’ll be taken around the fires three times and special songs will be sung in his honor. And they will show him the proper respect he needs as the high chief visitor from the Salmon people. And they will go through some different ceremonies there. Then, they will go up into what is now the tribal center and prepare the feast. Before the feast, everyone will share in a tiny piece of the salmon and drink a glass of water with it, a little water.

That’s what is done. And then, everyone sits down and feasts and enjoys the salmon and visits with friends and neighbors.

At the end of feast, they get up. Maybe a speech will be made, and, hopefully, it won’t be too long. Then, a song is sung, and they bring the remains that are left of the salmon back into the longhouse and thank him for coming and again honor him for the chief that he is and take him back down to the canoe, follow him back down there. And they take him back out and lay his remains back where they picked him up, out in the middle of Tulalip Bay. And, if they have treated that chief properly and showed him the proper respect, and treated him like the king he is, he’ll go back to the Salmon People that live under the sea and he’ll tell them that, “Hey, they greatly honored me. They treated me like I should have been treated. They gave me all the recognition I needed.” And he’ll recommend that the Salmon People return back in abundance.

And the reason to tell this story is because it concerns the environment. And to show that the Snohomish people practiced this for hundreds of years. They gave thanks for many things. One of the things was to honor this great chief from the Salmon People and try to protect his environment and have a place for him to come home to. It’s hard to imagine nowadays this visitor going back and telling them, “Hey, things are all right.” Because he has to tell them, “I’ve been up there, and I entered around Admiralty Head, and I started getting a headache.” And he says, “As I traveled further in I become confused and had a hard time finding Tulalip Bay this time.” And he says, “Worse than that. When I went up the Stillaguamish River my home was gone. Where I was born and raised, it’s not there.” 

The salmon are about gone. The forest is all but gone, and other resources are gone because of greed and mistreatment. We don’t know if we’ll ever be able to restore any of these things. So, this is an important story – the Salmon People story.