Yesterday I responded to Indigenous Peoples Day by sharing some of my family's history.
I have one more story for you.
My mother was born Wailaki and lived on the Round Valley Reservation.
At least seven families lived on the ranch. Three generations of grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins.
My mother always said that while the country was starving during the depression they had ample game to hunt, fish in the Eel River and a massive garden. But when she was sent to Indian Boarding School she starved.
I tell you this because her later health issues were likely the result of malnutrition as an adolescent.
I was her end of life caregiver.
The doctors were convinced that the atrophy of her brain was from alcohol. She was Indian but never a drinker. They wouldn't believe us and didn't help.
Prejudice can manifest in so many different ways.
She deserved better.
This is why I seek out care for myself at my Indian Health clinic. They believe me when I tell them the truth