Nevada's Native Nations Must Unite to Counter the Project 2025 Agenda, Protect Our Cultural Treasurers, and Get Out the Native Vote Now

Banner encouraging voters to get to the polls in 2018. (Photo/PLAN Nevada)

By A. Brian Wallace, Chairman (Ret.) Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California 

 

September 23, 2024

Guest Opinion. As a retired chairman of the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California, I have witnessed firsthand the struggles and triumphs of our people as we have fought to protect our lands, our sovereignty, and our way of life. Today we stand at a critical crossroads - The Project 2025 Plan and Agenda, a conservative blueprint developed by The Heritage Foundation and other aligned groups, poses a threat to everything we have fought for. It seeks to roll back decades of progress in safeguarding our rights, our lands, and the keystone cultural species and sacred places that are integral to our identity and first peoples of Nevada.

The time has come for Nevada's Native Nations to unite - not only to defend our sovereignty but also to forge alliances with communities of color, equity advocates and environmental justice movements. Together, we can resist this agenda, and protect our cultural heritage, and mobilize our communities with a powerful "Get Out the Native Vote" campaign to ensure our voices are heard and our future is safeguarded.

Protecting Sovereignty: A Collective Imperative

For Native Nations like ours, the principles of sovereignty and self determination are not abstract concepts - they are the bedrock of our existence. The Project 2025 agenda's push for deregulation and smaller government might seem distant from our day-to-day lives, but its impacts will be felt deeply in our communities. By reducing federal oversight and empowering states to prioritize deregulated resource extraction, the agenda threatens to strip away the protections that safeguard our lands, waters, and keystone cultural species - those plants, animals, and places that are central to our cultural identity and survival.

As Indigenous peoples, we must stand firm in asserting our sovereignty. Our right to govern our lands, resources, and communities is non-negotiable. This responsibility includes the sacred responsibility to protect the species and ecologies that are integral to our cultural heritage. But this fight is not our's alone. We must seek common cause with other communities of color who have been marginalized and exploited. Our struggles are interconnected, and our strength lies in unity. By joining forces with equity and social justice movements, we can amplify our voices to ensure that the defense of Indigenous sovereignty and cultural heritage becomes a rallying cry for all who believe in biodiversity, equity and justice.

But we cannot achieve this without political power: Get Out the Native Vote Now must be our battle cry. Our vote is our voice, and it is key to ensuring that our leaders respect our sovereignty, protect our lands, and honor our histories. By turning out in record numbers, we can make sure that our interests are represented and that those who seek to undermine our rights are held accountable.

Environmental Justice: Our Sacred Responsibility

The landscapes of Nevada are not just places of natural beauty, they are sacred spaces that hold deep cultural and spiritual significance to our people. Many of these landscapes are homes to cultural keystone species - like the pinion pine, which has sustained our peoples for generations, or the salmon that are essential to the life ways of many tribes. The Project 2025 agenda emphasis on deregulation poses a direct threat to these sacred lands and species, as it seeks to open them up to unregulated mining, drilling, and other forms of exploitation. This is not just an environmental issue - it is a violation of our rights as Indigenous peoples.

But we are not alone in this fight. Communities of color across Nevada, from the urban centers of Las Vegas and Reno to the rural heartlands, are also on the front lines of environmental injustice. Polluted air, contaminated water, and toxic waste dis-proportionately impact our communities, making the fight for environmental justice a shared responsibility. By aligning with these communities, we can build a powerful coalition that demands accountability and prioritizes the health and well being of all Nevadans while also protecting the species and ecologies that are central to our cultures. Getting Out the Native Vote Now is crucial to this effort. Elected officials who support environmental justice, protect sacred places, and respect Indigenous peoples rights are more likely to be held accountable when we show up at the polls. By voting, we ensure that our voices are heard in the halls of power, where decisions about our lands and our futures are made.

Equity and Social Justice: A Unified Movement

In the face of the Project 2025 agenda, it is clear that the fight for Indigenous Rights cannot be separated from the broader struggles for equity and social justice. Our histories are intertwined with those of other marginalized communities, and our futures are equally connected. Whether it is the fight for affordable housing, access to healthcare, educational opportunities, or fair wages, the issues that impact our neighbors also impact us. Moreover, the protection of cultural keystone species and places is not just an Indigenous concern; it is a matter of equity and justice for all who value the preservation of cultural heritage and biodiversity.

By building alliances with equity advocates, labor unions, and civil rights organizations, we can create a unified movement that is stronger than the sum of its parts. Together, we can challenge the systematic inequalities that have kept our communities oppressed for too long. This is not just about resisting the Project 2025 agenda - it is about envisioning and working toward a Nevada where all people, regardless of race or background, can thrive and where our cultural heritage and ecological treasures are safeguarded for future generations.

Our Vote is a critical tool in this fight. By coming together to Get Out the Native Vote Now, we can ensure that our elected officials prioritize equity and social justice. When we vote, we make it clear that we will not stand for policies that harm our communities and that we will hold our leaders accountable for their actions.

Indigenous Rights: Leading the Way Forward

As Indigenous peoples, we have a unique role to play in this movement. Our deep connection to the land and our long history of resistance to colonialism give us the moral authority to lead the fight against the Project 2025 agenda. But leadership does not mean going it alone. It means reaching out to others, and building bridges, and fostering solidarity across lines of race, class, and geography. Central to this leadership is our commitment to protecting the cultural keystone species and places that are vital to our identity and survival.

The challenges we face are daunting, but they are not insurmountable. By coming together - Tribal Nations, communities of color, equity advocates and environmental justice warriors - we can resist this agenda and create a Nevada that honors the Rights of all its people, protects the lands and species we hold sacred, and upholds the principles of justice and equity for all. But this vision will only become a realty if we make our voices heard at the ballot box. Get Out the Native Vote Now is not just a slogan; it is our Call to Action. It is our way of ensuring that our leaders respect our rights, protect our lands and work for the wellbeing of all Nevadans.

 Conclusion: A Call to Action

The Project 2025 agenda represents a clear and present danger to the future of Nevada's Native Nations and to all who value justice, equity, environmental stewardship, and cultural heritage. But we have the power to resist. By uniting with our allies and building a broad-based movement that centers Indigenous rights and the protection of cultural keystone species, we can protect our sovereignty, defend our lands, and create a future where all Nevadan's can live with dignity, respect, and a deep connection to the natural world.

And we can only do this if we Vote! Get Out the Native Vote Now is our path to ensuring that our voices are heard and that our rights are protected. The time to act is now. Let us stand together, in solidarity and in strength, to ensure that Nevada remains a place where justice, equity, and the protection of our cultural and ecological treasures are not just ideals, but realities for all.