♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >> REMATRIATION IS AN ORGANIZATION DEDICATED TO ELEVATING INDIGENOUS WOMEN'S VOICES.

DEFINED AS RETURNING THE SACRED TO THE MOTHER, REMATRIATION IS A PROCESS OF RESTORING RIGHT RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE LAND AND WITH EACH OTHER.

IN THE SPRING OF 2025, REMATRIATION COLLABORATED WITH SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY FOR A 3 DAY SYMPOSIUM ABOUT THE POWER OF INDIGENOUS MATRILINEALITY.

INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE AND STORIES WERE SHARED, CULTIVATED, AND UPLIFTED.

THE SYMPOSIUM CULMINATED IN THIS KEYNOTE PANEL, IDENTIFYING TODAY'S SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL CHALLENGES FROM AN INDIGENOUS PERSPECTIVE.

>> HOW EXCITING TO BE HERE WITH EACH OF YOU TONIGHT.

AND TO BE HERE WITH ALL OF OUR RELATIVES AND FRIENDS.

WE ARE HERE ON A JOURNEY, A THREE DAY JOURNEY FOR THE HAUDENOSAUNEE AND INDIGENOUS MATRILINEAL SYMPOSIUM.

WE'RE SO FORTUNATE AS HAUDENOSAUNEE PEOPLE THAT WE STILL HAVE OUR TRADITIONAL LEADERSHIP.

WE STILL HAVE OUR GOVERNANCE, WE STILL HAVE OUR LANGUAGES, WE STILL HAVE OUR CULTURE.

AND SO, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GOING TO JUST TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT TODAY.

AND SO, HOW FORTUNATE ARE WE?

WE HAVE ONE OF OUR CLAN MOTHERS AND ONE OF OUR CHIEFS HERE.

AND YOU'RE STEPPING INTO THE SHOES OF A LONG LINEAGE OF OUR LEADERS WHO'VE LOOKED AFTER THE WELFARE OF THIS GREAT PEACE THAT CAME TO OUR PEOPLE.

AND SO, FOCUSING IN ON MATRILINEAL CULTURE, WHAT ARE SOME OF THE VALUES OF BEING IN A MATRILINEAL CULTURE THAT YOU THINK ARE IMPORTANT FOR PEOPLE TO KNOW?

>> GO AHEAD, SPENCE.

[LAUGHTER] >> I KNEW SHE WAS GOING TO DO THAT.

I LOVE MAMA BEAR.

I THINK SOME OF THE CORE VALUES ARE EVERYTHING THAT WE'RE NOT SEEING TODAY - IS EQUITY.

INCLUSION.

AND THOSE ARE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES WITHIN THE GREAT LAW OF PEACE IN ITSELF.

IF WE LOOK AT THE TEACHINGS OF THE FOUR WHITE ROOTS OF PEACE, AND THAT MEANS THAT, THAT'S TALKING ABOUT INCLUSIVENESS, INCLUSION, AND THAT ANYBODY OF ANY NATIONS CAN COME AND FIND THAT THERE.

AND WE UNDERSTAND THAT THERE'S THIS BALANCE BETWEEN THE MALE AND THE FEMALE, AND EVERYBODY HAS THAT ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITY.

BUT THE MOST IMPORTANT AND THE FUNDAMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY IS THAT WE'RE ALL WORKING TOGETHER FOR SKA-NONH, FOR PEACE.

I THINK THOSE ARE JUST LIKE THE VERY FUNDAMENTAL BRICKS OF WHO WE ARE AS HAUDENOSAUNEE PEOPLE.

AND I HEARD IT, SOMEONE SAY IT OUT THERE, AND IT'S TRUE, AND COMING FROM A MALE PERSPECTIVE, WE CAN'T BE AFRAID TO USE TERMS LIKE LOVE.

AND THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE NEED TO BE COMFORTABLE WITH COMING FROM A MALE PERSPECTIVE OR, JUST BEING - TO BE ABLE TO USE WITHIN OURSELVES.

AND I KNOW, LIKE WE LOOK AT THE STRENGTH, AND FOR MYSELF, I UNDERSTAND SOME OF THE HISTORY, AND JUST TO THINK ABOUT EVERYTHING THAT THE HAUDENOSAUNEE HAVE BEEN THROUGH, THROUGH THE PEACEMAKER'S STORY, WE UNDERSTAND THE FOUNDING OF THESE TEACHINGS, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, TO SEE OUR PEOPLE AND THE POWER AND RESILIENCE WITHIN OUR PEOPLE, WE - I KNOW THAT THOSE TEACHINGS ARE TRUE, AND I KNOW THAT THERE'S STILL POWER IN ALL OF THOSE TEACHINGS, AND THE WORDS THAT WE SAY.

WHEN WE SAY IT IN OUR LANGUAGE IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL, THE PICTURE OF THIS PEACE AND THE EMPOWERMENT, IT'S NOT JUST POWER, BUT EMPOWERING EACH OTHER TO STAND IN OUR OWN SPACE AND CLAIM THAT SPACE AND GIVE THOSE GIFTS OF LOVE AND PEACE BACK TO OUR COMMUNITIES.

>> MAMA BEAR, WHAT DO YOU FEEL ARE SOME VERY IMPORTANT CORE VALUES OF BEING IN THIS MATRILINEAL CULTURE AND GOVERNANCE THAT WE HAVE?

>> I THINK IT'S THE LIVING PRACTICE OF INCLUDING EVERYBODY.

LIKE THERE'S NO OTHERING.

LIKE SPENCER SAID, THERE'S A LOT OF INCLUSIVITY FROM THE NEWBORN BABY TO THE YOUNG TEENAGER TO THE MOTHER, TO THE DAD, TO THE GRANDPARENTS, EVEN TO THE SEVENTH GENERATION.

THAT'S HOW FAR AHEAD THAT WE THINK OF EVERYBODY, AND THAT NO ONE IS HIGHER THAN ANYBODY ELSE.

AND THERE'S A LEVEL PLAYING FIELD.

BUT I THINK FOUNDATIONALLY, SOME OF OUR CORE VALUES IS THAT EVERYTHING GOES BACK TO THE MOTHER.

AND THAT'S WHAT I LOVE ABOUT WHO WE ARE, IS THAT THE FOUNDATION IS SO SOLID AND SO SENSICAL IN TERMS OF, WHERE WE COME FROM AND UNDERSTANDING THAT MOTHERS AND THE BIOLOGY OF WOMEN IS SO CLOSELY LINKED TO THE NATURAL RHYTHMS OF THE EARTH AND TO NATURE, AND THAT WE'RE DEEPLY WOVEN TOGETHER IN KINSHIP AND HOW WE RELATE TO EACH OTHER.

IT'S ALWAYS BASED ON FAMILY, THAT KAHWA:TSIRE, THE FIRE THAT IS THE ESSENCE TO, WHAT PROPELS US TO DO, AND OUR DEEP LOVE FOR EACH OTHER AND OUR CHILDREN AND THAT, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T LOOK AT RIGHTS, BUT WE LOOK AT LIFE IN A WAY OF RESPONSIBILITY, HOW WE'RE GOING TO HOLD THAT UP.

SO, YOU KNOW, HAUDENOSAUNEE AND MATRILINEALITY IS VESTED IN THE INCLUSIVITY OF ALL, AND THE DECISION MAKING DOESN'T JUST REST ON THE HEADS OF HOUSEHOLD OR THE HEADS OF GOVERNMENT.

THERE'S A REACH INTO ASKING EVERYBODY FOR THEIR THOUGHTS AND IDEAS.

AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT CENTRAL TO MATRILINEALITY IS THAT WE CREATE THAT SPACE, AND THAT THERE'S, SYSTEM OF FILTERING AND BRINGING FORWARD THOSE IDEAS FROM THE FAMILY LEVEL TO THE COMMUNITY LEVEL TO THE NATIONAL LEVEL AND INTO THE INTERNATIONAL LEVEL.

AND THERE'S A PROCESS THERE THAT'S JUST BEAUTIFUL.

BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, OUR OHEN:TON KARIHWATEHKWEN LIKE THAT YOUNG MAN DID IS OUR GRATITUDE.

AND I THINK THAT'S OUR CORE VALUE IS TO ALWAYS GIVE THANKS AND TO ALWAYS PUT PEACE AT THE FOREFRONT OF OUR MINDS, YOU KNOW, HOW ARE WE GOING TO ACHIEVE THAT?

WE RECOGNIZE CONFLICT QUITE EASILY.

BUT, YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE THE PATHWAYS TO PEACE?

AND I THINK OUR ANCESTORS DID A BRILLIANT JOB IN LEAVING US FORTIFIED WITH THE ABILITY TO MAKE THOSE STEPS TOWARD ALWAYS RECONCILING OUR DIFFERENCES AND TO HAVE THE ABILITY - YOU KNOW, I LOVED WHAT WENDY SAID EARLIER TODAY.

>> AND SO, HOW DOES GRATITUDE LEAD YOU TO PEACE?

>> WELL, YOU KNOW, LIKE THEY SAY, GRATITUDE CHANGES YOUR ATTITUDE.

SO, I MEAN, WE CAN SIT ALL DAY AND COMPLAIN WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE WORLD, BUT, YOU KNOW, IF - YOU CAN EVEN GIVE THANKS FOR THE UGLY, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE EVEN IN THE STORY OF OUR TWINS, THERE'S ALWAYS THAT CHALLENGE TO, EVERYTHING THAT IS GOOD, THERE'S ALWAYS THAT COUNTERBALANCE, THAT BINARY CALLING THAT REMINDS US TO NOT GET CAUGHT UP IN OUR EGOS AND THINK THAT EVERYTHING IS ALWAYS GOOD.

THERE'S ALWAYS SOMETHING ELSE TO BALANCE IT OUT, AND THAT MAINTAINS OUR GRATITUDE.

BECAUSE IF YOU FORGET HOW TO GET GRATITUDE, THEN YOUR EGO INFLATES AND YOU BECOME A FANATICAL.

AND I THINK WE'RE WITNESSING THAT ON THE WORLD STAGE RIGHT NOW, SO• BOY, WHAT I'D GIVE TO BE TRUMP'S CLAN MOTHER.

[LAUGHTER, APPLAUSE] >> WELL, HERE'S A QUESTION.

YOU KNOW, HOW DOES THE NATURAL WORLD GIVE US INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO BE HUMAN BEINGS?

>> I THINK THE NATURAL WORLD GIVES US A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF SYMBIOSIS.

EVERYTHING IS CONNECTED, AND EVERYTHING LIVES IN BALANCE WITHIN THE NATURAL WORLD.

AND IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE TOLD TO DO OTHERWISE.

AND I THINK A PART OF THAT BEING ONGWHEHONWHE AND BEING A HUMAN BEING ON EARTH IS WE, LIKE YOU SAID, WE HAVE THIS GIFT OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT'S GIVEN TO US BY CREATOR, AND WE GET TO CHOOSE OUR PATH.

AND WE'RE SUPPOSED TO NEVER PUT OURSELVES OUTSIDE OF THAT.

WE'RE SUPPOSED TO BE LOOKING AT NATURE AND MIMICKING NATURE AND LEARNING FROM ALL OF THOSE THINGS AND THE INTERRELATIONSHIP OF ALL NATURE, AND MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE WALKING ON THE EARTH TO NEVER DISRUPT THOSE CYCLES, TO NEVER DISRUPT THAT RELATIONSHIP, TO BE A CONSCIOUS PART OF THAT RELATIONSHIP.

>> ROBIN, I KNOW THAT'S SOMETHING THAT YOU'VE ALSO GIVEN A LOT OF THOUGHT TO AND WRITTEN ABOUT AS WELL.

AND SO BEING A HUMAN BEING, HOW DOES THE NATURAL WORLD INSTRUCT US ON BEING HUMAN?

>> I LOVE THAT QUESTION BECAUSE OF WHAT THE - WHAT IT ASKS OF US IS TO NOT LEARN ABOUT THE LIVING WORLD, BUT TO LEARN FROM THE LIVING WORLD, TO REALIZE THAT OUR MORE THAN HUMAN RELATIVES ARE OUR TEACHERS.

AND WHAT I TRY TO THINK ABOUT AND ENCOUNTER EVERY TIME I'M, YOU KNOW, OUT LOOKING AT PLANTS OR BEING IN THE WOODS, IS THAT THERE ARE EXAMPLES ALL AROUND US.

THERE ARE THESE MODELS ALL AROUND US.

AND IF WE TAKE THE MINDSET OF WHAT THESE BEINGS ARE TEACHING ME IN THIS MOMENT AND OPEN OURSELVES TO THAT, WE SEE SO MANY LESSONS OF GENEROSITY, OF CREATIVITY, AND TO FOLLOW ON THE NOTION OF GRATITUDE AND LIVING IN RIGHT RELATIONSHIP, THEY TELL US THAT EVERYTHING IS IN A CIRCLE, THAT WE CAN'T JUST TAKE WITHOUT GIVING BACK.

I THINK THE LIVING WORLD IS A POWERFUL TEACHER OF RECIPROCITY AND THAT CALLS ON US TO SAY, WHAT WILL WE GIVE BACK IN RETURN, FOR THE FOODS, FOR THE MEDICINE, FOR THE WATER, FOR THE SONG OF THE RED WING BLACKBIRDS - DID YOU HEAR THEM THIS MORNING?

THEY'VE JUST COME BACK.

ALL OF THESE GIFTS THAT ARE AROUND US CALL ON US TO SAY, HOW DO WE CARE FOR THEM?

AND WHAT ARE OUR HUMAN GIFTS THAT WE CAN GIVE BACK?

AND, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THOSE FUNDAMENTAL TEACHINGS FROM ANISHINAABE WAYS OF BEING, OUR SEVEN GRANDFATHER TEACHINGS, ONE OF THOSE THAT I HOLD MOST DEAR IS THE WORD DBAADENDIZIWIN, WHICH MEANS HUMILITY.

IT IS ONE OF THE CHIEF VIRTUES.

AND WHEN I'M IN THE PRESENCE OF ALL THOSE TEACHERS IN THE WOODS OR IN THE SWAMP OR WHEREVER, I REMEMBER THAT, DBAADENDIZIWIN.

AND IT DOESN'T MEAN LIKE THE KIND OF HUMILITY THAT OFTEN WE HEAR IN THE OUTSIDE WORLD, YOU KNOW, THIS MEEKNESS, IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT AT ALL, IT MEANS I RECOGNIZE THAT I AM NOT MORE IMPORTANT THAN ANY OF THESE OTHER BEINGS WHO ARE HERE.

AND, YOU KNOW, WE THINK PRETTY WELL OF OURSELVES.

YOU KNOW, WE THINK WE ARE IMPORTANT.

SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS ALL OF THEM ARE IMPORTANT TOO.

THOSE BIRDS, THE CATTAILS, THE MEDICINES, ALL OF THEM ARE IMPORTANT TOO.

AND SO IT TAKES DBAADENDIZIWIN, THAT HUMILITY TO READ THOSE LESSONS FROM THE LAND.

AND I THINK IT ALSO TAKES PAYING ATTENTION.

PAYING ATTENTION.

AND WE ARE LIVING IN A WORLD WHERE OUR ATTENTION TO THE NATURAL WORLD HAS BEEN HIJACKED NATURAL WORLD HAS BEEN HIJACKED TO PAY ATTENTION TO CORPORATIONS AND SCREENS AND ALL SORTS AND SCREENS AND ALL SORTS OF OTHER THINGS.

SO I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE RECLAIM THAT AND USE THAT HUMAN GIFT OF PAYING ATTENTION.

>> WONDERFUL, YEAH.

SO ROBIN AND DEVERY, THE TWO SO ROBIN AND DEVERY, THE TWO OF YOU ARE SUPERSTARS IN INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY AND WITHIN THE MAINSTREAM.

AND YOU BOTH AS CREATORS, IMMERSING YOURSELF IN SCIENCE, IMMERSING YOURSELF IN THE ARTS AND CREATIVITY.

I AM JUST, YOU KNOW, REALLY, IT'S SO WONDERFUL FOR ME TO SEE A BOOK LIKE BRAIDING SWEETGRASS OR TO HAVE THE SERIES RESERVATION DOGS, WHAT IF EPISODE IN MARVEL AND ALSO IN ECHO, AND JUST SEEING INDIGENOUS STORYTELLING, SEEING INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE, GOING OUT INTO THE MAINSTREAM IS JUST SO BEAUTIFUL TO EXPERIENCE, BECAUSE I THINK WE CAN ALL SAY, LIKE WE GREW UP AND DIDN'T REALLY SEE THAT, WE DIDN'T HAVE THOSE REFLECTIONS OF OUR OWN SELVES AND OUR OWN STORIES BEING OUT IN THE MAINSTREAM.

AND WE HAD TO LEARN A LOT ABOUT UNITED STATES HISTORY, CANADIAN HISTORY, WESTERN CIVILIZATION, ETC., RIGHT?

AND EVEN WITHIN THE SCIENCES.

AND SO, YOU KNOW, WHAT HAS THAT EXPERIENCE BEEN LIKE FOR YOU, IN BRINGING FORWARD THE SCIENCES YOU ARE AT SUNY ESF, AND YOU'RE SHAPING AN ENTIRE CULTURE WITHIN THAT SPACE BY CREATING SPACE FOR INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE TO COME FORWARD, WHAT HAS THAT EXPERIENCE BEEN LIKE?

>> YOU KNOW, I THINK ABOUT MY BEGINNING IN THIS AND THE TREMENDOUS CHALLENGE THAT, I THINK BACK ON MY YOUNGER SELF, YOU KNOW, I KNOW THAT I MADE A LOT OF MISTAKES WHEN I WAS BEGINNING THIS SCIENCE PATHWAY, BECAUSE WHEN I WAS THE ONLY ONE, RIGHT?

IN MANY CASES, THE ONLY WOMAN AND CERTAINLY THE ONLY INDIGENOUS PERSON IN A SCIENTIFIC CIRCLE, THE MISTAKE THAT I MADE IS THAT MADE ME REALLY QUIET.

IT MADE ME THINK, NO ONE WANTS TO HEAR WHAT I HAVE TO SAY, NO ONE WILL EVEN GET THIS.

THAT WAS TRUE.

THAT WAS DEFINITELY TRUE.

BUT THEN IT TOOK, YOU KNOW, IT TOOK GROWING UP TO RECOGNIZE THAT I WASN'T ALONE, THAT MY ANCESTORS WERE STANDING THERE NODDING AT ME AND SAID, “AND?

“AND WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO “ABOUT IT?” AND THERE WERE YOUNG PEOPLE, YOUNG NATIVE PEOPLE WHO TOO ALSO WANTED TO TAKE THEIR KNOWLEDGE TO CARE FOR THE EARTH, AND SCIENCE DOESN'T CREATE A PATHWAY OFTEN FOR OUR KNOWLEDGE.

AND SO BOTH AS A SCIENTIST, AS A WRITER, I THINK ONE OF THE BIG CHALLENGES THAT I HAD TO FACE WAS TO NOT FEEL ALONE, TO CLAIM MY VOICE.

AND, I THINK WHAT REALLY HELPED THAT TO HAPPEN WAS OWNING THE SACRED IN THE LIVING WORLD.

YOU KNOW, WHEN WE WERE TALKING YESTERDAY ABOUT THE WONDERFUL WORK OF WHAT DO WE MEAN BY REMATRIATION, RETURNING THE SACRED TO THE MOTHER.

IN THE WESTERN SCIENCE COMMUNITY, OH MY COLLEAGUES, I RESPECT THEM, I ENJOY THEM BECAUSE YOU'RE PASSIONATE ABOUT BIRDS AND WATER AND SALAMANDERS AND FERNS AND, OH, THESE ARE MY PEOPLE!

I LOVE THIS.

BUT THEY ARE LEARNING ABOUT THE LIVING WORLD, NOT FROM THE LIVING WORLD.

AND THERE IS THE SENSE OF THE SACRED, OF THE LIFE AROUND US, OF THAT SACRED WEB, ISN'T THERE.

AND THAT WAS A BIG CHALLENGE FOR ME, AND IT'S WHY I WANTED TO BECOME A WRITER.

IT'S WHY I WANTED TO TELL THE STORY, TO RESTORE THAT SENSE OF RELATIONSHIP AND GRATITUDE AND HUMILITY.

TO BE LEARNING FROM THE WORLD, NOT JUST LEARNING ABOUT THE WORLD.

AND SO IT WAS BOTH A CHALLENGE AND THE MOTIVE FORCE THAT HELPED GUIDE ME.

I REALLY FELT LIKE, YOU KNOW, THOSE - I'VE LITERALLY SPENT MOST OF MY CAREER ON MY KNEES BEFORE PLANTS, YOU KNOW, AND WHAT I REALLY WANTED TO DO WAS TO TELL THE TRUTH ABOUT THEM, I WANTED TO TELL THAT THEY ARE OUR TEACHERS.

ISN'T IT FUNNY THAT AS A SCIENTIST, I HAD TO GO TO STORYTELLING IN ORDER TO TELL THE TRUTH?

AND TO BRING INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE TO THE PICTURE, AS YOU ALL KNOW, INDIGENOUS SCIENCE IN THE ACADEMY HAS SIMPLY NOT BEEN PRESENT.

BUT WITH THE INSPIRATION OF TEACHERS AND SCHOLARS BEFORE ME, OF ELDERS IN MY COMMUNITY AND IN THIS COMMUNITY, YOU KNOW, TO CREATE THAT INSPIRATION TO MAKE THE CENTER FOR NATIVE PEOPLES IN THE ENVIRONMENT SO THAT NATIVE SCIENCE, NATIVE ETHICS AND PHILOSOPHY HAVE A PLACE IN GUIDING THE NEXT GENERATION OF EARTH CARETAKERS.

>> I LOVE THAT, YEAH.

AND STORYTELLING, RIGHT, IT'S A GREAT SEGUE.

DEVERY, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE.

WHAT A GREAT HONOR THAT WE GET TO HAVE YOU COME JOIN US HERE FOR THIS EVENT.

AND SO, YOU KNOW, SPEAKING OF INDIGENOUS STORYTELLING, YOU ARE OUT THERE AND YOU ARE NOT ONLY AN ACTOR, BUT YOU'VE ALSO DIRECTED AND YOU'RE A WRITER.

SO WHAT HAS THIS EXPERIENCE BEEN FOR YOU IN TERMS OF BRINGING INDIGENOUS STORYTELLING TO THE BIG SCREEN?

>> FOR SURE, I MEAN, I THINK GROWING UP IN MY COMMUNITY AND SEEING SO MANY RICH STORIES, WHEN I ENTERED INTO THIS INDUSTRY, THE FILM AND TELEVISION INDUSTRY, WHICH IS ONE THAT I WAS PROFOUNDLY MOVED BY GROWING UP AND SEEING STORIES FROM ALL OF THESE DIFFERENT CULTURES.

BUT I HAD NEVER SEEN SOMETHING LIKE REZ DOGS.

I HAD NEVER SEEN SOMETHING LIKE WHAT IF GROWING UP, AND WHEN I FIRST KIND OF STARTED OUT, I THOUGHT THAT THERE WOULD BE AN INDUSTRY FULL OF INDIGENOUS STORYTELLERS, AND I DIDN'T REALIZE HOW FAR AND FEW BETWEEN IT WOULD BE.

AND IT ACTUALLY TOOK SOMEBODY, IT WAS LIKE A JEWISH-AMERICAN FILMMAKER WHO WAS JUST LIKE, WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR DREAM ROLES?

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU WANT TO SAY?

AND I WAS FLABBERGASTED.

NOBODY HAD EVER ASKED ME THAT BEFORE.

AND I WAS LIKE, I WILL GET BACK TO YOU, I PROMISE.

AND IT TOOK LIKE, I DON'T KNOW, THREE MONTHS OF DIGGING DEEP AND SOUL SEARCHING, AND I GOT BACK TO HER.

I WROTE LIKE THE EMAIL OF MY LIFE OF ALL THESE DIFFERENT THINGS THAT I WANTED TO SEE AND STORIES THAT I WAS INTERESTED IN AND THINGS THAT I THOUGHT SHOULD BE TOLD IN THE WORLD.

AND THIS WOMAN GOT BACK TO ME SAYING, LIKE, THESE ARE ALSO INSPIRING AND INCREDIBLE, BUT UNFORTUNATELY, I'M GETTING BACK INTO MY FAMILY BUSINESS OF REAL ESTATE, SO GOOD LUCK WITH THAT.

WHICH WAS THE KICK IN THE ASS THAT I NEEDED TO BE LIKE, WHY AM I WAITING FOR, I DON'T KNOW, A JEWISH-AMERICAN WOMAN FROM BROOKLYN, NEW YORK TO TELL THE STORIES FROM MY COMMUNITY AND ONES THAT I SAW, ESPECIALLY OF WOMEN WHO RAISED ME AND THE ONES WHO MADE UP MY COMMUNITY.

AND SO THAT WAS WHEN I STARTED WRITING, AND I THINK THAT'S WHEN I WAS ABLE TO REALLY TAP INTO THE IDEA OF STORYTELLING.

AND I THINK I HAVE LEARNED A LOT FROM NOT ONLY BEING KANIEN'KEHA:KA, NOT ONLY BEING ONGWHEHONWHE, BUT ALSO LEARNING FROM A FRIEND OF MINE WHO IS ALSO A STORYTELLER, HE'S OJI-CREE, HIS NAME'S JOSH WHITEHEAD, AND HAD WRITTEN JONNY APPLESEED, BUT HE TALKED ABOUT, SIMILARLY IN BRAIDING SWEETGRASS HOW EVERYTHING IS LIKE AN ANIMATE BEING AND STORIES ARE ALSO ANIMATE BEINGS.

AND I THINK IN BEING ABLE TO - I REALLY BELIEVE IT.

AND I THINK BY TAPPING INTO THESE STORIES AND BREATHING LIFE TO THEM, THAT THEY BECOME REAL.

AND I THINK THEY WERE REAL FOR MYSELF, BUT I THINK THAT THEY ARE REAL FOR EVERYBODY WHO IS WATCHING THEM.

AND I DON'T KNOW, IT'S EASY TO DISMISS MY PROFESSION AS SOMETHING THAT'S REALLY FLUFFY AND LIKE, I DON'T KNOW, GLAMOROUS AT TIMES, BUT I DO THINK THAT BY SEEING THESE STORIES, I CAN ONLY IMAGINE WHAT IT WOULD HAVE BEEN LIKE FOR ME GROWING UP HAD I - BECAUSE I ALWAYS KNEW ONGWHEHONWHE WERE SO COOL, BUT I DIDN'T KNOW IT BY SEEING IT REFLECTED IN MEDIA.

AND I THINK BY POINTING THE CAMERA AT WHOSE STORIES ARE IMPORTANT AND BY HAVING A LACK OF OUR STORIES BE ON SCREEN, IT'S BEEN SUBCONSCIOUSLY TELLING US THAT WE ARE UNIMPORTANT.

BUT I KNOW, LIKE FOR ME, HOW MUCH VALUE WE HAVE AND WE'RE ONLY STARTING TO SCRATCH THE SURFACE IN THAT MEDIUM AND IT'S MY HOPE TO BE A PART OF A GENERATION WHO BUSTS THE DOOR OPEN AND GETS AS MANY COUSINS IN AS YOU CAN, AND SO THAT WE CAN REALLY CREATE STORIES FOR OURSELVES THAT CAN ALSO BE SHARED WITH OTHERS AND CAN BE LEARNED FROM WITHIN OUR COMMUNITIES, BUT ALSO AT A GLOBAL LEVEL.

>> YEAH, THANK YOU.

SO ROBIN AND DEVERY, YOU KNOW, WHAT YOU'VE CREATED IS REALLY INCREDIBLE.

I AM ALWAYS EXCITED TO SEE WHAT YOU HAVE COMING OUT NEXT.

YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS THE CHALLENGES YOU'VE FACED IN BRINGING INDIGENOUS STORYTELLING, THROUGH BOOKS, THROUGH FILM, AND JUST YOUR EXPERIENCE IN PUTTING THAT OUT THERE INTO THE WORLD?

>> YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT MUCH OF IT IS A REFLECTION OF WHAT YOU WERE JUST SAYING OF WHEN I WANTED TO TELL INDIGENOUS PLANT STORIES I THOUGHT, WHO IS GOING TO READ THAT BOOK?

BUT I NEEDED TO WRITE IT, BUT I NEEDED TO WRITE IT.

I NEEDED TO HONOR THOSE PLANTS, AND FOR ME ONE OF THE CHALLENGES, WHICH COMES BACK TO WHAT I WAS SAYING BEFORE, OF CLAIMING MY VOICE, OF BEING ABLE TO SAY, WELL, I HAVEN'T SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS BEFORE, BUT THAT MEANS I NEED TO DO IT, AND TO OWN THE BEAUTY OF OUR KNOWLEDGE SYSTEMS AND THOSE RELATIONSHIPS.

TO KNOW THAT, AS YOU WERE SAYING, MAMA BEAR, ABOUT THE MEDICINE, THAT OUR KNOWLEDGE, OUR STORIES, OUR RELATIONSHIP TO THE LIVING WORLD IS MEDICINE.

AND I WAS ALWAYS TOLD, IF YOU HAVE THE MEDICINE, YOU HAVE TO SHARE IT.

AND SO BELIEVING - WELL, I GUESS REALLY IT'S BELIEVING THAT IT DIDN'T MATTER WHETHER ANYONE WAS GOING TO READ THAT BOOK, I NEEDED TO WRITE IT.

>> WHAT ABOUT WITH YOU, DEVERY?

HOW'S IT BEEN GOING INTO HOLLYWOOD AND - I DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY CALL IT IN CANADA.

WHAT'S THE EQUIVALENT?

>> I DON'T KNOW.

>> IS IT ALL JUST CHANNELED TO HOLLYWOOD - BUT YEAH.

>> YEAH, I MEAN SO MANY PEOPLE WHO WERE IN THE WRITER'S ROOM OF REZ DOGS, LIKE ALL OF US HAD COME FROM INDEPENDENT FILM, AND SO MANY OF THE FOLKS IN THAT ROOM HAD BEEN TOLD "NO" FOR DECADES, THAT INDIGENOUS STORIES ARE TOO NICHE, THAT PEOPLE ARE NOT INTERESTED IN HEARING FROM THIS PERSPECTIVE, AND THAT THERE'S NOT GOING TO BE A BIG ENOUGH AUDIENCE FOR IT.

AND I THINK IT'S INCREDIBLY FRUSTRATING, BECAUSE AS SOMEBODY WHO, SOME OF MY FAVORITE FILMS ARE FROM CULTURES THAT ARE VERY DIFFERENT FROM MINE, WITH PROTAGONISTS WHO HAVE VERY DIFFERENT LIVED EXPERIENCES, BUT THERE'S LIKE, THERE'S A CONNECTEDNESS THAT I FEEL TO IT THAT, WHO'S TO SAY OTHER FOLKS CAN'T EXPERIENCE WHEN WATCHING INDIGENOUS STORIES AND PROTAGONISTS?

AND I THINK STORIES LIKE REZ DOGS HAVE PROVEN THAT THERE IS AN APPETITE FOR OUR STORIES, HAVE PROVEN THAT PEOPLE ARE INTERESTED AND CURIOUS AND - WE ARE AS PEOPLE, WE ARE STORYTELLERS, AND THAT'S HOW OUR HISTORIES HAVE GONE ON.

AND WE HAVE SOME OF THE SCARIEST STORIES I CAN IMAGINE, WE HAVE SO MANY DIFFERENT RANGES OF GENRES AND, YEAH, TO OVERLOOK IT IS SUCH AN INJUSTICE, IT FEELS LIKE TO ME, BECAUSE I KNOW OUR COMMUNITIES, I KNOW WHERE WE COME FROM.

AND I THINK THEY'RE SO RICH AND THERE'S SO MUCH THERE.

WITH OUR ADMINISTRATION GOING BACK TO, ROLLING BACK DEI INITIATIVES, I THINK WITH - WHICH IS NOW REFLECTED IN STUDIOS AND NETWORKS SAYING, OH, WELL, NOW WE WANT TO GO BACK TO WHITE STORIES, TO STRAIGHT STORIES TO GOOD OLD FASHIONED HOLLYWOOD WHERE THE WHITE GUY'S THE PROTAGONIST AND THERE'S THE INDIAN IN THE WESTERN IN THE BACKGROUND, AND IT'S TIRED, I THINK.

I HAVE TO HAVE FAITH THAT WITH US TELLING OUR STORIES, WHETHER IT'S AT AN INDEPENDENT LEVEL, WHETHER IT'S FOR EACH OTHER, OR WHETHER IT'S AT A BIG SCALE, THAT HAVING THAT TRUTH IS GOING TO RESONATE WITH MANY PEOPLE, BECAUSE I DO THINK THAT THERE IS SO MUCH HEALING TO BE HAD IN OUR STORIES.

IT'S ONE OF MY FAVORITE PARTS ABOUT BEING A PART OF RESERVATION DOGS, IS THAT IT WAS ULTIMATELY A HEALING STORY, AND I HAD NEVER EXPERIENCED A SPACE IN EVEN THE ENVIRONMENT OF SET, WHERE IT WASN'T HIERARCHICAL THE WAY THAT WESTERN FILM SETS USUALLY ARE.

IN THIS - WE MADE SURE ELDERS FIRST, WHETHER THEY WERE BACKGROUND PERFORMERS OR ACTORS OR CREW MEMBERS, AND LIKE, THERE WAS WAYS OF BEING THAT WE WERE ABLE TO TRANSLATE AND SUPERIMPOSE ONTO THIS MEDIUM, AND I THINK IT WAS INFUSED THROUGH ALL THE DIFFERENT LEVELS OF STORYTELLING, AND I THINK THAT'S WHY IT RESONATED SO MUCH WITH OTHER FOLKS.

AND IT'S JUST MY LIFE MISSION AND WORK TO BE A PART OF CREATING MORE STORIES LIKE THAT IN ALL GENRES, WHETHER IT'S BASED ON OUR SCARY-ASS LEGENDS OR ROM COMS OR WHAT HAVE YOU.

BUT LIKE THAT IT'S STORIES FROM OUR COMMUNITIES THAT ARE FOR US, THAT OTHER PEOPLE CAN BE WELCOMED INTO THE CIRCLE TO EXPERIENCE.

>> I LOVE THAT.

I MEAN, THERE'S JUST BEEN A COMMON THEME OF INCLUSIVITY, RIGHT, WHICH IS REALLY, REALLY WONDERFUL, AND I APPRECIATE YOU SHARING THE CHALLENGES AND JUST THE - MAYBE JUST WANT TO SAY, JUST LIKE THE LACK OF UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT THE POINT OF VIEW, RIGHT, LIKE WHERE WE'RE COMING FROM IN THE STORYTELLING.

AND THE THING ABOUT IT IS I THINK, YOU KNOW, NOW THE TIMES HAVE ALSO CHANGED, RIGHT?

AND SO ONCE YOU KNOW SOMETHING, YOU CAN'T GO BACK.

HOW CAN YOU UNLEARN - FOR SOMEBODY WHO HAS READ BRAIDING SWEETGRASS, WHO'S WATCHED RESERVATION DOGS, WHO HAS LEARNED ABOUT THE HAUDENOSAUNEE, WHO'S LEARNED ABOUT THE ROOTS OF DEMOCRACY IN THIS COUNTRY?

ONCE YOU KNOW, YOU CAN'T GO BACK, RIGHT?

AND SO - AND THIS IS A REALLY GREAT SEGUE LEADING TO YOU, KATHRYN, AND THE WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING.

YOU KNOW, WE INVITED YOU HERE THIS EVENING BECAUSE WE REALLY CONSIDER YOU AND THE WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING BEING AN ALLY.

AND YOU HAVE WORKED WITH THE ROCHESTER MUSEUM AND SCIENCE CENTER FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS, AND YOU HAVE BEEN ABLE TO WORK ALONGSIDE ONE OF OUR KNOWLEDGE KEEPERS, JAMIE JACOBS, WHO'S FROM THE SENECA NATION.

AND RECENTLY, THERE'S A NEW PERMANENT EXHIBIT WITHIN THE MUSEUM.

I JUST REALLY APPRECIATE WHAT YOU'VE CREATED, AND SO CAN YOU SHARE A BIT ABOUT, LIKE, WHY DID YOU FEEL IT WAS IMPORTANT TO CREATE THIS NEW PERMANENT EXHIBIT, AND WHAT ROLE DID YOU PLAY?

>> YEAH, WELL, I JUST WANT TO START BY SAYING THAT I'M SO HONORED AND GRATEFUL TO BE CONSIDERED AN ALLY, TO BE PART OF THIS CONVERSATION, SO THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.

BUT AS FAR AS WHAT INSPIRED THE EXHIBITION, YOU KNOW, I THINK WE ALL KNOW THERE'S NO DOUBT THAT MUSEUM PRACTICES HAVE HARMED INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES.

AND SO MUSEUMS EVERYWHERE ARE REALLY THINKING ABOUT HOW CAN WE BEGIN TO REPAIR THAT HARM?

HOW CAN WE BEGIN TO BUILD RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE PEOPLE THAT ARE REPRESENTED IN THE COLLECTIONS IN A NEW WAY, USING A NEW MODEL THAN WE HAVE IN THE PAST?

SO PART OF THAT COMMITMENT IS REPATRIATION.

AND FOR QUITE A LONG TIME WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON REPATRIATION, BUT PART OF THIS HAS BEEN ABOUT REDEDICATING, RECOMMITTING TO MOVING FORWARD REALLY PROACTIVELY THROUGH THAT WORK.

AND ONCE THAT SPACE WAS DE-INSTALLED, IT REALLY CREATED THIS NEW OPPORTUNITY TO MOVE FORWARD WITH A DIFFERENT WAY OF ENGAGING.

AND SO I HAD APPROACHED JAMIE JACOBS, AND SAID, "JAMIE, YOU KNOW, WHAT WOULD YOU DO WITH THIS SPACE?

"WHAT STORIES DO YOU THINK ARE IMPORTANT TO TELL IN THIS SPACE?

"WHAT WOULD YOU DO TO REIMAGINE AND RECLAIM THIS SPACE FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE?"

AND SO, YOU KNOW, HE THOUGHT ABOUT IT FOR A MINUTE AND VERY QUICKLY CAME BACK WITH THIS IDEA OF HAUDENOSAUNEE CONTINUITY, THAT'S THE STORY THAT NEEDS TO BE TOLD IN THIS SPACE.

SO THAT'S HOW THE EXHIBITION CONCEPT WAS BORN.

THE RMSC ENGAGED JAMIE AS THE CURATOR OF THE EXHIBITION.

AND IT WAS REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE WERE SUPPORTING HIS VISION, TO SUPPORT THE RIGHTS OF PEOPLE TO TELL THEIR OWN STORIES.

AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WAS SO IMPORTANT TO HIM WAS THIS GOAL OF RECONNECTING HAUDENOSAUNEE PEOPLE, HAUDENOSAUNEE COMMUNITIES WITH TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE AND ANCESTRAL MATERIAL CULTURE.

SO REALLY POINTING BACK TO THIS IDEA OF REMATRIATION, THAT WAS A GOAL THAT WAS REALLY IMPORTANT FOR HIM TO CREATE A SPACE WHERE THAT KIND OF PROCESS COULD HAPPEN, WHERE IT WOULD BE SO WELCOMING TO HAUDENOSAUNEE PEOPLE, AND OFFER THEM SOMETHING.

SO, YOU KNOW, I THINK OF BEING - WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO BE WELCOMED INTO A HAUDENOSAUNEE SPACE, LIKE THE SPACE WE'RE IN TONIGHT.

AND, YOU KNOW, IT FEELS LIKE A WARM EMBRACE, SO HOW CAN WE ACTUALLY MAKE MUSEUMS FEEL THAT WAY FOR HAUDENOSAUNEE AND OTHER INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES?

SO THE OTHER PIECE THAT WE WANTED TO MOVE FORWARD WITH IS THIS IDEA OF BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS.

SO ONE OF THE IDEAS THAT CAME UP IS THIS IDEA OF PRO-PATRIATION.

SO COMMISSIONING CONTEMPORARY ARTISTS TO CREATE NEW PIECES FOR DISPLAY IN A WAY THAT REPAIRS HARM AND BUILDS RELATIONSHIPS, SO WORKING VERY MEANINGFULLY AND CLOSELY WITH PEOPLE.

YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE JUST PURCHASING ART AT A MUSEUM, FOR EXAMPLE, THAT'S NOT BUILDING A RELATIONSHIP NECESSARILY.

BUT IF YOU'RE COMMISSIONING A WORK AND COLLABORATING, THAT'S PART OF BUILDING A RELATIONSHIP.

SO WORKING WITH JAMIE AND SEVEN OTHER ARTISTS WHO WERE FEATURED IN THE EXHIBITION, WE REALLY CENTERED THOSE VALUES, AND I THINK IT HAS CREATED A REALLY POWERFUL OPPORTUNITY.

AND ONE OF THE ARTISTS FEATURED IN THAT EXHIBITION, KATSITSIONNI FOX, IS HERE TONIGHT AS WELL.

>> THAT'S GREAT.

[APPLAUSE] SO IN THE PROCESS OF LEARNING ALONGSIDE ONE OF OUR CULTURE BEARERS, WHAT ARE SOME OF THE THINGS MAYBE THAT YOU'VE LEARNED?

HOW HAS THIS IMPACTED YOU PERSONALLY?

>> YEAH, SO THERE ARE A LOT OF WAYS THAT WORKING WITH JAMIE JACOBS, WORKING WITH OTHER HAUDENOSAUNEE PEOPLE, WORKING WITH THE ARTISTS INVOLVED IN THE EXHIBITION, HAVE REALLY CHANGED THE WAY I APPROACH MY WORK IN PARTICULAR.

AND SOME OF THE IDEAS THAT EVERYONE HAS TOUCHED ON TODAY ARE THINGS THAT I'VE REALLY BEEN ABLE TO INCORPORATE INTO MY WORK PRACTICE, THE WAY I APPROACH COLLABORATION, FOR EXAMPLE, THINKING OF RECIPROCITY AS PART OF THE VALUES OF THAT RELATIONSHIP, NOT TRANSACTIONAL RELATIONSHIPS, BUT REALLY FOCUSING ON RELATIONSHIP BUILDING.

COMING TO THE WORK WITH A GOOD MIND, SO REALLY TRYING TO BE MINDFUL OF INTENTIONS AND THOUGHTS THAT ARE BEHIND WHAT WE'RE DOING AND WHY WE'RE DOING THINGS.

EVEN JUST THINKING ABOUT AND UNDERSTANDING AND HOW WE SEE THE COLLECTIONS AS PEOPLE WHO ARE WORKING WITH THOSE COLLECTIONS THAT ARE NOT FROM OUR COMMUNITY, HOW CAN WE TREAT THEM WITH THE UTMOST OF RESPECT?

HOW CAN WE BRING TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE FORWARD IN WORKING WITH HAUDENOSAUNEE ELDERS AND KNOWLEDGE KEEPERS IN ORDER TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE DOING THE RIGHT THINGS BY THOSE OBJECTS, WHICH ARE NOT JUST OBJECTS, THEY'RE ANIMATE BEINGS, RIGHT, SO ECHOING A LOT OF THE THE THINGS THAT EVERYONE HAS BEEN SAYING.

SO JUST REALLY COMING AT THINGS FROM A MUCH DIFFERENT MIND WITH A DIFFERENT LENS IS PART OF THE INFLUENCE OF HAVING THAT CONNECTION.

AND I THINK JUST TO SAY ONE OTHER THING ABOUT PERSONALLY FOR ME, YOU KNOW, I THINK IT'S REALLY BEEN LOOKING AT THE RESILIENCE OF HAUDENOSAUNEE COMMUNITIES AND INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES MORE BROADLY THAT HAS REALLY AFFECTED THE WAY THAT I MOVE IN THE WORLD.

IT REALLY GIVES ME STRENGTH AND HOPE TO MEET THIS HISTORIC MOMENT WHERE WE ARE SEEING AN ATTACK ON THE CIVIL AND HUMAN RIETH OF ALL PEOPLE.

>> SO FOR ME, IN MY LIFE, A VERY BIG INSPIRATION - YOU KNOW, THERE'S THINGS THAT WE HEAR THROUGHOUT OUR LIFE THAT INSPIRES US OR ENCOURAGES US TO TAKE ACTION.

AND ACTUALLY, TADODAHO, CHIEF LEON SHENANDOAH WAS ASKED ONE TIME, IF YOU COULD WISH AWAY ALL NON-NATIVE PEOPLE AND MAKE THIS NATIVE LAND ONCE AGAIN, WOULD YOU DO IT?

AND HE SAID, "NO," HE SAID, "BECAUSE CREATOR PUT EVERYBODY HERE FOR A REASON.

"I DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT REASON IS, BUT IT'S UP TO ALL OF US TO FIGURE THAT OUT."

AND SO IT MAKES ME REALLY THINK ABOUT THE TIME THAT WE'RE IN, BECAUSE THERE IS - WE CAN LOOK OUT AND LIKE YOU SAID, WE CAN WE CAN LOOK AT THE CONFLICT, BUT WE CAN ALSO LOOK AT WHAT IS THE REASON WHY WE'RE ALL HERE, RIGHT?

WHY ARE WE GATHERED HERE EVEN TONIGHT, HERE IN THE HEART OF THE HAUDENOSAUNEE CONFEDERACY?

RIGHT?

SO FOR ME, I THINK ABOUT THOSE WHITE ROOTS OF PEACE.

IT CONTINUES TO BRING PEOPLE FROM AROUND THE WORLD HERE.

AND SO MAYBE EVEN ON A CONSCIOUS OR UNCONSCIOUS LEVEL, THERE'S SO MUCH HERE, THERE'S SO MUCH HERE, THERE'S SO MUCH.

AND SO, I JUST WANT TO ASK, YOU KNOW, WHAT INSPIRES YOU?

WHAT KEEPS YOU MOTIVATED, WHAT KEEPS YOU MOVING FORWARD IN YOUR WORK?

>> YOU KNOW, PART OF CHANGING THE EXPERIENCE, AND CHANGING OUR ABILITY TO REPEAT HISTORY AND TRYING NOT TO IS HOW WE TALK ABOUT THINGS.

AND, I TOOK NOTE OF THE NARRATIVE OF WORKING IN A MUSEUM, AND THIS ISN'T A CRITICISM.

BUT IT'S JUST ABOUT THINKING IMPECCABLY ABOUT HOW WE SPEAK.

AND SO WHEN YOU ARE IN A MATRILINEAL SOCIETY, IT DOESN'T FIT WHEN YOU SAY REPATRIATION.

SO THIS WORD UP HERE, REMATRIATION, PART OF IT IS HOW WE RETHINK OURSELVES AND HOW WE TEAR DOWN THOSE OLD NARRATIVES.

AND SO ME AND MICHELLE HAVE HAD THIS CONVERSATION SO MANY TIMES ABOUT RETURNING THE SACRED TO THE MOTHER, BECAUSE ALL THOSE OBJECTS THAT COME FROM THE EARTH ARE SUPPOSED TO RETURN TO THE EARTH, IT'S LIKE YOUR BABY'S UMBILICA, YOU TAKE THAT AND YOU RETURN IT TO THE EARTH.

AND IT'S THE RELATIONSHIP THAT YOU HAVE WITH THE LIVING, AND HOW WE ADDRESS EACH OTHER, AND THE TITLES THAT WE CARRY WITH EACH OTHER.

AND SO IT'S THAT RELATIONSHIP BUILDING ALWAYS VESTED IN FAMILY.

SO, YOU KNOW, THOSE CORE VALUES THAT YOU TALK ABOUT IS, AND THE INSPIRATION TO MY WORK, IS HOW DO WE CREATE FAMILY?

YOU KNOW, EVEN PEOPLE WHO DON'T WANT TO BE YOUR FAMILY.

HOW DO YOU REMIND THEM WHO FAMILY IS?

AND SO PART OF MY INSPIRATION IS TO POUR MY HEART AND SOUL AND MOVE HEAVEN AND EARTH FOR ALL OUR WOMEN AND THEIR INFANTS, AND TO ENSURE THAT THEIR VALUE IS NOT ERASED AND THAT THEY'RE NOT INVISIBLE.

AND THAT FUNDAMENTALLY, IN THE BASIC BIOLOGY OF ALL HUMANKIND, IS THAT YOU DON'T ENTER THIS WORLD UNLESS YOU HAVE A MOTHER.

THE MOTHER IS THE VESSEL BY WHICH WE ENTER THIS EARTH, RIGHT, SPENCE?

SO ANYWAYS, YOU KNOW - AND IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE BREAK DOWN THESE BARRIERS THAT RELEGATES THE WOMEN TO THE KITCHEN, THAT RELEGATES THEM TO DO THE MINIMAL COOKING AND CLEANING AND MAKING BABIES, AND IT'S BEEN SO DEVALUED, BUT YET YOU DON'T COME INTO THIS LIFE UNLESS YOU GO THROUGH THAT PROCESS.

SO FOR ME, IT'S CHANGING THE NARRATIVE, AND BY CHANGING THE NARRATIVE, YOU CHANGE THE EXPERIENCE OF OUR WOMEN.

AND WHEN OUR WOMEN ARE STRONG AND STOOD UP AGAIN, THEN OUR NATIONS WILL RISE.

THEY WILL RISE, AND OUR CHILDREN WILL BE SAFE AGAIN.

SO UNLESS WE ALL EMBRACE THAT NARRATIVE, YOU KNOW, WE'LL CONTINUE TO REPEAT HISTORY.

AND SO THAT'S MY INSPIRATION IS TO CHANGE THAT NARRATIVE AND TO GO TO THE SKY WORLD AND BACK FOR ALL WOMEN AND OUR ALLIES, AND I THINK THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT REMATRIATE - BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE.

>> SO I'M JUST IMMEDIATELY [ APPLAUSE ] >> SO I'M JUST IMMEDIATELY REMINDED BY YOUR WORDS, SOMETHING ONE OF THE TEACHINGS THAT COME FROM THE GREAT LAW, WHEN IT TALKS ABOUT WHY THE FAMILY TITLES ARE VESTED INTO THE FEMININE, INTO THE WOMEN, INTO THE CLAN MOTHERS AND THEIR RESPONSIBILITY.

IT'S THAT, ONE OF THE MANUSCRIPTS TALKS ABOUT, IT SAYS LIFE ARRIVES HERE THROUGH THE SUFFRAGE OF THE WOMEN AND THAT THEY UNDERSTAND LIFE IN A DIFFERENT ASPECT AND THAT'S WHY THE TITLES ARE PASSED DOWN FROM GENERATION AND IT'S THE CLAN MOTHERS WHO OVERSEE THOSE - OVERSEE THE SELECTION OF THE CHIEFS OF OUR - NOT OUR LEADERS, BUT THE ONES THAT WILL CARRY THAT RESPONSIBILITY AS HODIYAHNEHSONH.

AND SO THAT ASPECT TO US AS MEN, WE UNDERSTAND THAT - WE HAVE A DIFFERENT RELATIONSHIP ON NURTURING LIFE THAN WOMEN HAVE.

AND WOMEN UNDERSTAND HOW TO NURTURE LIFE IN A VERY PARTICULAR WAY.

AND WITH THAT, YOU WERE ASKING ABOUT MY INSPIRATION, AND I THINK THOSE THINGS HAVE CHANGED OVER TIME AS I WALK MY PATH AND AS I'M LIVING OUT MY JOURNEY, I CAN THINK BACK TO BEING INSPIRED BY - YOU HAD TALKED ABOUT LEON, SO WHEN I WAS FIRST ABLE TO GO SIT ON THE MEN'S SIDE OF THE LONGHOUSE AND CEREMONY, MY MOTHER TOLD ME, GO SIT RIGHT BEHIND THAT MAN, AND EVERY TIME THEY TALK, ASK HIM WHAT'S BEING SAID.

I HAD NO IDEA WHO HE WAS AT THAT TIME, I WAS JUST A LITTLE BOY, AND THAT'S WHAT I DID.

AND HE TOOK THE TIME TO TELL ME ALL THESE THINGS THAT WERE HAPPENING DURING CEREMONY AND SHARED THE DIFFERENT TEACHINGS, AND I HAD NO IDEA WHO I WAS ACTUALLY SITTING BEHIND.

THE OTHER INSPIRATION - SO THAT WOULD KIND OF INSPIRE ME WATCHING THOSE THINGS, GOING THROUGH CEREMONY WITH THIS PERSON, BEING MENTORED AND TAUGHT ABOUT THESE THINGS, BUT THE OTHER ONE IS MY GREAT GRANDMOTHER, WHO WAS A FIRST LANGUAGE SPEAKER, AND MY GRANDMOTHER WASN'T A SPEAKER AT ALL.

AND I REMEMBER RUNNING AROUND HER HOUSE AND SHE WAS SPEAKING ONONDAGA - SHE WAS SITTING AT A TABLE, SHE WAS A CLAN MOTHER AND ALL OF HER CLOSEST BEST FRIENDS WERE ALL CLAN MOTHERS, TOO.

AND AGAIN, BEING A LITTLE KID, I HAD NO IDEA THAT THEY WERE ALL SPEAKING ONONDAGA, AND I HAD STOPPED AND I JUST WATCHED THEM FOR A WHILE AND I SAID, I WANT THAT FOR MYSELF.

I WANT TO KNOW WHAT THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT IN THE LANGUAGE.

AND IT WOULD ONLY BE BECAUSE I'M A SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNER, THAT IT WOULD GIVE ME A FURTHER UNDERSTANDING OF WHO I WOULD BECOME LATER.

BEING A HOYANE AND BEING A PART OF HAVING THAT RESPONSIBILITY, I UNDERSTAND WHAT IT SAYS IN MY LANGUAGE, SO I UNDERSTAND THE RESPONSIBILITY OF WHAT IT TAKES TO BE THAT IN THE TRUEST FORM THAT I UNDERSTAND TO BE HAUDENOSAUNEE.

THE OTHER THING THAT REALLY INSPIRES ME IS THE RESILIENCE THROUGH HISTORY.

I UNDERSTAND AGAIN, LEARNING ABOUT OUR CULTURE AND HEARING THE STORIES NOT ONLY IN OUR OWN LANGUAGE, BUT ALSO SEEING ALL THE DIFFERENT MOVEMENTS THROUGH WRITTEN HISTORY AND SEEING ALL THE RESILIENCE AND TO THINK ABOUT ME BEING A YOUNG PERSON AND WATCHING THOSE PEOPLE WHO HAD HELD THOSE RESPONSIBILITIES THAT I NOW CARRY, AND CARRYING THAT TORCH FOR OUR PEOPLE, UNDERSTANDING THAT THEY WENT THROUGH A LOT OF DIFFERENT THINGS TO FIGHT FOR US, TO BE ABLE TO EXIST IN THE SPACE WE ARE.

AND THE GENERATION BEFORE DID THAT, AND THE GENERATION BEFORE THEM DID THAT, ALL THE WAY UP TO CONTACT AND PRIOR TO CONTACT, THROUGH OUR ORAL TRADITIONS, THEY ALL MET, WHATEVER MEANS THAT THEY HAD, THEY ALL MET THOSE AND WERE ABLE TO PRESERVE OUR KNOWLEDGE AS HAUDENOSAUNEE PEOPLE, SO WE CAN TRULY CALL OURSELVES HAUDENOSAUNEE PEOPLE.

SO WHEN I'M SITTING IN CEREMONY AND I HEAR A BABY CRY ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE LONGHOUSE, THAT'S THE OTHER SIDE OF MY INSPIRATION IS WHAT IT MEANS FOR ME TO BE ABLE TO CARRY THAT ON, AND NOW CARRYING THAT TORCH TO MAKE SURE THAT I CAN PRESERVE AS MUCH AS I UNDERSTAND IT TO BE, AND STANDING IN MY TRUTH AND UNDERSTANDING IT THE WAY THAT I UNDERSTAND IT IN OUR LANGUAGE, TO PRESERVE ALL OF THAT FOR THE CRYING BABY SO THAT THEY CAN BE THE ONES MAYBE THAT MIGHT SIT BEHIND ME, OR MIGHT SIT BEHIND SOMEONE AFTER ME, AND THAT THEY'LL BE ABLE TO CALL THEMSELVES HAUDENOSAUNEE IN A TRUE MANNER.

[APPLAUSE] >> I COULD LISTEN ALL DAY TO YOU.

>> RIGHT?

>> I WANT TO NAME, AS INSPIRATION, AND THERE'LL BE A COMMON THEME HERE, A GREAT GREAT GRANDMOTHER WHOSE NAME WAS SHANODA, THE WIND BLOWING THROUGH, AND I THINK OF HER I THINK OF THE RESILIENCE OF OUR PEOPLE IN REMOVAL, OF HOW - I MEAN, WHEN WE THINK ABOUT THE JEOPARDY OF CLIMATE CHANGE RIGHT NOW, THEY EXPERIENCED CLIMATE CHANGE FROM THE GREAT LAKES TO KANSAS IN THREE SHORT MONTHS WHEN THEY WERE FORCED TO WALK THERE, YOU KNOW.

AND I THINK ABOUT - WE'RE STILL HERE, YOU KNOW, WHAT WAS THEIR RESILIENCE?

THEY LEARNED FROM THE LAND.

THEY RELIED ON EACH OTHER.

AND SO I THINK SO MUCH ABOUT THAT RESILIENCE THAT ALLOWS US TO STILL BE HERE.

[ APPLAUSE ] >> WHAT INSPIRES YOU, DEVERY?

>> I THINK THERE WAS A MOMENT FOR ME - AND THIS ISN'T ACTUALLY ABOUT MYSELF AT ALL.

IT WAS WHEN THERE WAS A COMMUNITY SCREENING OF THE WHAT IF EPISODE THAT WAS ENTIRELY IN KANIEN'KEHA, BUT SITTING TO THE RIGHT OF ME WAS MY TOTA, ANNETTE KAIA'TITAHKHE JACOBS, WHO IS A FIRST LANGUAGE KANIEN'KEHA SPEAKER.

AND THEN TO THE LEFT OF ME WAS MY NIECE, WHO IS FOUR YEARS OLD, AT THE TIME SHE WAS THREE, BUT SHE'S BEING RAISED AS A FIRST LANGUAGE KANIEN'KEHA SPEAKER.

AND BEING ABLE TO WATCH HER WATCH THE SCREEN, NOT NEED THE SUBTITLES, KNOW EXACTLY WHAT'S GOING ON, AND THEN SEEING MY TOTA TO THE RIGHT OF ME SEE AN INDIGENOUS WOMAN, A MOHAWK WOLF CLAN WOMAN BE THE PERSON WHO IS SAVING THE DAY, WHO IS GOING IN AND COMBATING THESE COLONIZERS AND REWRITING HISTORY AND, AND TO HAVE BEEN A PART OF BRINGING THOSE THINGS TO LIFE AND TO DEDICATE THOSE STORIES TO THE PEOPLE SITTING TO THE RIGHT AND LEFT OF ME WAS AN EXPERIENCE I NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD BE ABLE TO TO HAVE, BUT THAT'S WHO INSPIRES ME, ARE MY ELDERS, ARE MY ANCESTORS, THE PEOPLE WHO'VE COME BEFORE, PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN TRAILBLAZERS, BUT ALSO THE YOUNG PEOPLE COMING UP, IS THE PEOPLE TO THE RIGHT AND LEFT OF ME.

[APPLAUSE] >> AND KATHRYN, WHAT INSPIRES YOU?

>> YEAH, I THINK - YOU KNOW, JAMIE JACOBS DEDICATED THE HAUDENOSAUNEE CONTINUITY EXHIBITION TO A WOMAN CALLED ADELE DEROSA, AND SHE HAD BEEN A LONG TIME RMSC EMPLOYEE.

SHE HAD A VERY QUIET STYLE OF LEADERSHIP, BUT SHE WAS SOMEONE WHO REALLY BROKE THE DOORS OPEN AND INVITED PEOPLE IN, PEOPLE FROM THE COMMUNITIES REPRESENTED IN THE COLLECTIONS.

AND SO I THINK SHE IS SOMEONE WHOSE LEGACY I REALLY ADMIRE.

I HOPE THAT, YOU KNOW, I CAN DO THE SAME THING FOR GENERATIONS OF PEOPLE.

I HOPE THAT WE CAN CHANGE THE SYSTEM TOGETHER TO WHERE WE DON'T NEED THE PEOPLE TO BREAK DOWN THE DOORS, BECAUSE THERE WILL BE NO DOORS.

AND SO I'M REALLY INSPIRED BY THE WORK OF EVERYONE HERE AND THE OPPORTUNITY TO CONTINUE LEARNING AND GROWING, I THINK FOR AS LONG AS THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO ARE WILLING TO EDUCATE AND RAISE AWARENESS - AND THANK YOU, MAMA BEAR FOR THAT CORRECTION, THAT I AM SO INSPIRED BY YOU BECAUSE I KNOW THERE'S HOPE FOR A BETTER DAY TOMORROW.

PEOPLE WOULDN'T CONTINUE TO EDUCATE AND SHARE THEIR KNOWLEDGE IF THERE WEREN'T HOPE FOR A BETTER FUTURE.

SO THAT'S WHAT INSPIRES ME.

[APPLAUSE] >> THANK YOU.

SO AS WE WRAP UP THIS REALLY GREAT CONVERSATION, I WANT TO GIVE YOU THE LAST WORD.

AND AS WE'RE THINKING ABOUT COMING TOGETHER, BUILDING BRIDGES OF RELATIONSHIP AND UNDERSTANDING SO THAT WE CAN HAVE A BETTER TOMORROW, AND SO THAT OUR FUTURE GENERATIONS WE KNOW CAN HAVE A GOOD LIFE, I'D LIKE TO LEAVE THE LAST WORD WITH YOU.

>> WOW.

I GUESS MY MESSAGE WOULD BE FOR ALL THE LADIES IN THE HOUSE.

ALWAYS REMEMBER THAT IT'S THE SPERM THAT CHASES THE EGG.

[LAUGHTER, APPLAUSE] YOU DON'T GOT TO CHASE NOTHING.

YOU'RE ALREADY COMPLETE, ABSOLUTE.

YOU'RE THE LAW, YOU'RE THE AUTHORITY.

AND I WANT TO GO BACK TO PAT MCCABE'S COMMENT THE OTHER - YESTERDAY, ONE OF THE WORKSHOPS WHERE SHE SAID, YOU KNOW, WOMEN ARE BORN INTO THIS WORLD ALREADY A GRANDMA AND, WITH EPIGENETICS.

AND SHE ALSO SAID THAT WE WEREN'T CREATED, WE ALREADY ARE.

SO OUR DESIGN HAS ALREADY - IS A MASTERPIECE, AND WE DON'T NEED TO FIX ANYTHING.

WE'RE ALREADY COMPLETE AND WE'RE ABSOLUTE.

AND, I GUESS ONE OF MY NEW THINGS, AND I WAS TALKING TO CHARITY ABOUT RESEARCHING THE ORIGINAL ESSENCE OF AMERICA IN THIS HEMISPHERE, AND GOING TO FIND AMERICA, THE INDIGENOUS WOMAN, BECAUSE THAT STORY WAS NEVER TOLD, NEEDS TO BE TOLD AND ILLUMINATED AND UPHELD.

AND IT'S GOING TO KICK PATRIARCHY BACK ACROSS THE SALT WATER.

BUT IN SAYING THAT, YOU KNOW, I ALSO WANT TO SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, LEAVE OUR ALLIES HERE, LEAVE THE WOMEN HERE BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, IT'S TIME FOR US GIRLS TO HAVE SOME FUN.

[LAUGHTER] >> WELL, I HAVE - I DO HAVE TO ASK A QUESTION THOUGH.

>> OKAY.

>> BUT WHAT DOES IT MEAN THOUGH, BEING BORN A WOMAN THAT YOU'RE ALREADY A GRANDMA?

I WANT TO KNOW, BECAUSE I THINK EVERYBODY HERE WOULD LEAVE TONIGHT AND SAY, WHAT DID SHE MEAN BY THAT?

>> WELL, YOU KNOW, I SAID THAT EARLIER IN ONE OF THE FILMS THIS MORNING, IS THAT WHEN A BABY GIRL IS BORN INTO THE WORLD, SHE COMES FROM THE SKY WORLD ALREADY WITH HER GRANDCHILDREN WITHIN HER.

SO EVERY GIRL IN HER CYCLING WITH THE MOON, IS A CONSTANT REENACTMENT EVERY MONTH OF OUR CREATION STORY.

SHE IS CREATION, SHE IS THE CREATOR.

AND EVEN IN OUR STORIES, THE GUY THAT WE CALL SHUKWAYA'TISU, OR HE WHO CREATED US, IS ONE OF THE TWINS, AND EVEN THE TWIN HAS A MOTHER AND A GRANDMOTHER THAT HE'S ACCOUNTABLE TO.

SO IT'S REALLY GOOD TO KNOW THAT THE WOMAN IS THE BEGINNING OF ALL THINGS, AND THAT'S THE ONLY WAY YOU CAN CREATE A NEW WORLD, IS THAT THE WOMAN, THE MOTHER, HAS TO BE THE VEHICLE IN ORDER TO CREATE THAT NEWNESS, AND MEN ARE HERE TO UPHOLD IT.

AND I LOVE MEN, DON'T GET ME WRONG, BUT PART OF THAT STORY IS WHEN OUR BABIES, BABY GIRLS, ARE BORN INTO THIS WORLD, SHE IS BORN A GRANDMA ALREADY, AND SHE ALREADY BRINGS THOSE ORIGINAL SEEDS FROM THAT ORIGINAL - FROM THE OTHER PLACE, AND SHE'S ALREADY DESTINED - HER - THE SCHEMATICS TO HER LIFE IS ALREADY LAID OUT.

SHE HAS THAT POWER WITHIN HER ALREADY TO REGENERATE, TO RECREATE, TO PROCREATE.

AND THAT'S A GIVEN FOR MOST WOMEN.

AND THAT'S THE BEAUTY WHEN YOU LOOK AT YOUR DAUGHTER OR YOUR GRANDDAUGHTER, YOU'RE ALREADY A GRANDMA OR A GREAT GRANDMOTHER AT THE MOMENT YOUR DAUGHTER IS BORN.

AND I HAVE MANY DAUGHTERS.

>> WONDERFUL.

WELL, THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE, SHARING YOUR STORIES, SHARING YOUR INSPIRATION.

AND GIVING INSPIRATION AND HOPE TO OTHERS TO TAKE ACTION BECAUSE IT'S THE TIME OF ACTION.

>> OH, NO DOUBT ABOUT IT.

YEAH, WE GOTTA ROCK IT.

>> YEAH, YEAH.

TIME TO ROCK IT, RIGHT?

>> IT'S TIME.

IS IT TIME, LADIES?

[APPLAUSE, CHEERING] >> DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE YOU'D LIKE TO SHARE TO OUR TREATY PARTNERS, TO OUR ALLIES AND FRIENDS IN TERMS OF TAKING ACTION AND MAKING CONNECTION WITH INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY?

>> LADIES, WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO CATCH UP TO US?

LIKE, COME ON, LIKE WE - THE ALLYSHIP WAS NEVER REALLY MADE BECAUSE IT WAS INTERRUPTED.

AND, YOU KNOW, I'D CALL UPON OUR WHITE SISTERS, OUR BLACK SISTERS, ALL NON-INDIGENOUS SISTERS TO COME AND STAND WITH US BECAUSE WE CAN'T DO IT ALONE.

COMMON SENSE TELLS US THAT.

BUT I THINK IF ALL WOMEN STAND TOGETHER IN A UNIFIED FRONT, THAT WE CAN CHANGE THE WORLD FOR A BETTER PLACE.

AND I BELIEVE IT HAS TO BE HAUDENOSAUNEE WOMEN LEAD.

BUT WE ALSO CAN'T GO OUT THERE ALONE AND I THINK ALL US WOMEN NEED TO BE TOGETHER ON THAT.

AND I WELCOME YOU, YOU KNOW, LIKE SPENCE SAID, AND ANYBODY WHO TRACES THEIR ROOTS TO THE SOURCE IS WELCOME TO TAKE SHELTER THERE, AND, YOU KNOW - I DARE YOU, YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE UNHAPPY WITH WHAT'S GOING ON IN YOUR COUNTRY, RESCIND YOUR OATH OF CITIZENSHIP AND COME AND JOIN THE HAUDENOSAUNEE.

[LAUGHTER, APPLAUSE] ♪ WHEN I SEE A STAR LIT NIGHT, I SEEK THE ONE THAT SHINES REAL BRIGHT ♪ ♪ THEN I THINK OF A PRECIOUS MOTHERS AND I HOPE THAT THEY'RE ALL RIGHT ♪