Decolonization focused on colonization, and what needs to be done to avoid further hardship for Native Peoples. In the first story, Tome Goldtooth talks about his work with the Indigenous Environmental Network, which is a group of Indigenous people working for environmental and economic justice within North America. Traditional knowledge states that we have a responsibility to the land, we being all people, but especially the Indigenous peoples. Yet, due to the structure of today's society, the people charged most prominently with protecting the land have been stripped of their land, and must fight to protect what they still have. Goldtooth calls for all people to come together, as we are all of the same origin, and we are all related. Together, we would not need to fight each other for land or for knowledge (biopiracy makes a return in this section); instead, we would take care of each other and take care of our environment, because it is as much a part of us as we are to each other.
Ohki Simine Forest talks about her time in Chiapas, and the Zapatista revolution in 1994. In Mexico in 1994, the Zapatista people took up arms against the Mexican government, demanding they be heard. This was a fairly peaceful armed rebellion, as little blood was shed, but the strength of the action itself was enough to make a statement. The Mexican government was trying to change a law that gave the Zapatista their land rights. The government was committing other crimes against the Zapatista people (like ignoring a cease-fire agreement). As a movement, the rebellion got the Zapatista nowhere fast, yet their decision to fight their oppression has served as an inspiration to other Indigenous peoples. It also acted as a wake up call to the world. The Zapatista people were fighting for food, water, education, and health care, not for power. Forest emphasizes several times how humble these people are, wanting nothing but the basics, and having to provide those for themselves when the government refused. The uprising was prophecized long ago as the coming of the Plumed Snake to take back the land from the Smoking Mirror. There is also some talk about the council system of government, which Forest supports due to its inclusive nature (both of people and of topics).
Another member of the Indigenous Environmental Network gives the third story, about his own experiences. Clayton Thomas-Muller works with tribes to prevent the intrusion of oil and mining corporations on tribal lands. Indigenous peoples are some of the poorest in the country, and oil tycoons know it. Since oil and mining companies are running out of product in the obvious places, they are having to search farther and farther to get what they want and make a profit. Indigenous people suffer through constant cycles of abuse from the government, and corporations stride in, thinking they've got easy prey, and promise big gains in return for the land the Native people live on. Thomas-Muller attempts to mitigate or prevent agreements from being made by education tribes on the horrors drilling and mining have on sacred lands. It is a scathing persecution of capitalism and materialism, blaming the economic system not only for the current poor quality of land, air, and water, but also for the wars of the past century. What is interesting is that Thomas-Muller doesn't call for the downfall of capitalism. Instead, he wants to redefine it to be something better. To do this, communication and respect between all groups must be established, and everyone must sit down at the table. The summits cannot be just the super powers. All people must live with the decision, so all people must agree to the decision.
The last speech is a quick anecdote about a class trip to Richard DeerTrack's apple tree. His daughter brings her class over to his tree to pick an apple. DeerTrack sees this, and is inspired. He uses the quintessential "Save the Earth!" argument - do it for the kids. This isn't a bad argument, as this generations children will have to deal with the world we leave them, but it is a little tired, and a little overused. His take on it is refreshing, likely due to the exuberance evident in his writing. He really believes in this. The idea of corporate greed is brought up, but not much time is spent discussing it.
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