One way to honor the sacrifices of our ancestors is to send a Message in a Bottle. Drink the water, affix appropriate postage and a mailing label addressed to:

Write your message on a piece of 8 1/2 inch x 5.5 inch paper. Roll paper tightly and place in bottle. Drop in any mailbox.

Many historical events indicate how Governments have tried to eliminate Indigenous People and First Nations since the first treaty was signed. Those who protested unfair treaties, such as Chief Leschi, were imprisoned, murdered and otherwise persecuted. Leschi’s execution near Lake Steilacoom in 1858 is memorialized by a small monument in a strip mall in Lakewood, WA. Due to questionable events in his trials, the hangman “felt (he) was hanging an innocent man.”

Then there is “Blood Quantum”, the idea that Tribal membership depends on the percentage of Tribal blood each member posesses. As generations move on and marry out of their tribe, the individuals “blood” is “diluted” to the point where Native people no longer qualify to be part of their ancesteral tribe. Thus each generation gets closer to loosing their identity. Blood Quantum filters people out of the tribe.