Last week, over 70 residents of this place we now call Yarmouth had the opportunity to explore Wabanaki Maine history through an interactive story-telling experience presented by Maine-Wabanaki REACH. Wabanaki REACH is a cross-cultural collaborative of people working in Wabanaki and Maine communities to support truth, healing, and decolonization.
On two separate evenings hosted by the Merrill Memorial Library and the Yarmouth Historical Society, we learned about events in the history of the relationship between Wabanaki people (the Indigenous people of Maine) and Europeans and their descendants. The REACH facilitators led us through a 2-hour participatory program which engaged our bodies, hearts and minds. The experiential approach increased our understanding of colonization and also awakened compassion in our hearts. Many of us left the program committed to educating ourselves further and listening for and responding to the Wabanaki calls for action today.
YCARE thanks everyone who helped make these 2 special learning opportunities possible: Merrill Memorial Library, Yarmouth Historical Society, Royal River Conservation Trust, St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church, First Universalist Church, and the First Parish Congregational Church.
Please visit the Wabanaki REACH website to learn more. To work on these issues with your neighbors, join YCARE's Indigenous Awareness Group (YIAG) that meets twice a month.