#365FeministSelfie tackles Native issues

One of the special parts of our retreats is giving space for participants to share their passion with the rest of us. One of our participants, Liz, has a grandfather who is a Native American, but was subjected to many of the injustices that Native Americans have suffered including residential schools. Residential schools were used in Canada for many years to remove Native children from their families and tribes. The children were abused, physically and sexually. They were forbidden from speaking their native language. Liz recounted that she once tried to say hello to her grandfather in their heritage language and he hung up the phone. Hearing that language was too much for him to bear. The USA has its own history with residential schools. We learned a lot Sunday morning.

During our retreat we covered a lot of topics. Writing, feminist theory, Native issues, art, body image and self-care in general.

We ended the retreat, before our field trip to Phoenix Rising Printmaking Cooperative, with a poem recited by Jessica. It was perfect. 

Thank you to everyone who attended and to the whole planning committee. I can't wait for us to meet again next year.