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Tsidi is the Navajo word for bird. In the field and out in the community, our team has become known as the “bird people”, as we are messengers, collecting, carrying, and sharing information across Dinétah increasing our peoples’ collective knowledge and connectivity to one another.
Across Hopi, the communities of Upper and Lower Moenkopi have welcomed our WB88 family of canvassers. We continue to enjoy our educational chats about voting rights, voting date changes, local community challenges and issues that affect all Arizona residents, like the recent Arizona Abortion Ban. Although, Moenkopi residents struggle daily with feeling like they are a forgotten community, we hear their heart pleas and are actively working with the county and state to create plans for tangible progress.
Tara Benally, Field Coordinator and Liv Knoki, Executive Director, have been regularly attending Moenkopi Board Meetings connecting with local leadership and community members to ensure Moenkopi is met with kinship care, love and respect.
Likewise, this past month, Tara and Liv have refreshed connections with the Apache, Navajo, and Coconino County Recorders Offices/Teams to strengthen collaboration and a sound line of communication during this busy election season. Our WB88 canvassing team recently renewed their voter registration training with the Apache County Deputy, alongside a delicious pot of lamb stew and frybread. HUGE THANKS to Craig Tsosie and his family for acknowledging our kinship care mission by reciprocating ké (system of kinship) with food, camaraderie and memorable stories about family, ancestral lands and traditional hunting practices! Taking time to discuss and create plans for effective collaboration AND taking care of one another as relatives, is the best part of being a WB88 family member!
As of today, April 15, 2024, our WB88 team is on a steady path of registering voters and assisting with Google Plus Codes across Apache, Navajo and Coconino Counties.
Canvassing (the Wingbeat 88 way): Connecting with relatives to spark community compassion and engagement while organizing sentiments about shared issues and needs.
We have a dream to lead, provide and advocate for our people on our own terms. We canvass to educate and inform our people about their voting rights and how present day governance systems, propositions, bills and elected officials affect our everyday lives. We canvass also to collect both qualitative and quantitative data relative to voting patterns on and around Dinétah. Canvassing the Wingbeat 88 way is defined less by Westernized systematic approaches for continued assimilation and more by what it means to create internal community trust and reliance among Diné relatives.
We recognize that voter participation and education is a colonized means to organized leadership among our people. It is crucial for Diné to develop and implement our own balanced principles and methodologies for traditional leadership. We make progress on this endeavor through Kinship Organizing. Until then, we must keep up with the polities forced upon us so we have a strong collective voice continuously and loudly advocating for equality, sustainability and safety for all our kinship relations.
In partnership with the operations group, we organized:
3 Northern Arizona counties
registered 7,178 voters
& completed 13,286 voting plans
YOUR VOTE IMPACTS:
YOU CAN:
We canvass to educate and inform our people through data about voting rights and how present day leadership affects our everyday lives.
Follow Angel as she canvasses and connects with Diné community members. Angel has a heart of gold and makes her job look super easy and fun! What she doesn't share are the behind the scenes challenges of canvassing on the Dinétah - like having to walk long distances in the cold and being chased by dogs and roosters. She endures a lot and keeps herself and her team motivated knowing her efforts are for her relatives/community.
Diné canvassers Shelby, Miranda, Chanel and Angel share glimpses of their beautiful compassionate hearts for our community members. Watch, listen & connect with meaningful heartfelt stories about the rewards and struggles of community organizing on Dinétah.
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