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OUR COMMUNITY PRIORITIES
CONSERVATION, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, AND COMMUNITY BUILDING
A far-reaching vision for our future generations...
Through various initiatives that promote our intersectional vision of restorative and environmental justice, conservation, and sustainable development, the Schaghticoke now have the potential to make a real and positive change for our present and future generations. Following consultations with community members and allies, Schaghticoke First Nations is developing a "Schaghticoke Life Plan" that prioritizes a programmatic focus on reconnecting with our lands and building a healthy, sustainable future. These priority areas are now designated as the programmatic focus of Schaghticoke First Nations, Inc., which is the Tribe's non-profit organization. To our achieve our goals, our community is focused on reconnecting peoples, right relationships, and healing the land primarily via a visionary program entitled "The Schaghticoke Land Reclamation Project." This #Landback initiative seeks to restore the physical and spiritual connection of the Indigenous Schaghticoke Peoples in the Hudson Valley to conserve land for future generations, repair the damaged ecosystem, increase biodiversity, contribute to the mitigation of climate change, and promote sustainable agro-food-forestry using Indigenous traditional knowledge.
SFN LANGUAGE PROJECT
Doing What’s Needed
Language is a defining characteristic of a culture, it tells the story of a people's values. English and other colonial have inherently evolved to accentuate the importance of property and currency, ideas that have supported the separation of people from other peoples and encouraged the destruction of our Earth Mother. The Schaghticoke are now in a process of reclaiming our ancestral language. Using remnants of spoken Algonquin language, the journals of the Moravians who lived peacefully with our ancestors, and what was recorded of the Delaware Lenape Language, recognized as the base for all Algonquin dialects, SFN is reviving the Schaghticoke dialect. The mindset of our ancestors is realized when we begin to think in our language. “Akiin” which was recorded in colonial documents as a term our ancestors used to describe oneself, not only means “I” but “I, the land that in which I stand on and everything that is supported by that land.” In this light, One self, “Akiin,” cannot own property as the idea of what property cannot be supported through this mind set. Documents later recorded the word “Akii,” a modification made to adhere to this idea of property and shows how colonial influences were altering our ancestors' way of life.
TRIBAL REGISTRY & GEONEOLOGY
Filling in the gaps of our history...
Tribes of the New England region were under immense pressure from colonial forces. During the King Philp’s War leaders of many Algonquin speaking tribes unified to preserve their way of life by making a deal with the colonies. Schaghticoke loosely translates into English as ‘the mingling of waters,’ as peoples from Munssee, Mahican, Lenni Lenape, Wamponoag banded together in 1676. If you have family history that carries the name Schaghticoke, send us an email and we can begin to verify your family history and get you registered and involved with tribal engagements.
EDUCATION & OUTREACH
Lectures/Presentations/Land Acknowledgements....
Schaghticoke First Nations wants to share both our history and the story of the land. We have been engaged in various initiatives to let our ancestors' traditional knowledge ring through contemporary society. SFN representatives participate in lectures for Universities and the public, sit on panels discussing climate change solutions, and prepare presentations for grade schools now in our ancestral territory. SFN also participates in opening events with Land Acknowledgement, so we can give respect to our all our indigenous ancestors, the original stewards of the Hudson Valley region. SFN has also launched a new racial justice program called "United Against Oppression" centered on coalition building and advocacy.