The Coco Canary Monthly Newsletter
July 2022
Summary:
A Grounding, Calls to Action, Woodland Steward Project Published Article, and More.
Welcome to Coco Canary!
Hello from Molly O’Connor, the principal and founder of Coco Canary Consulting, LLC, a creative evaluation firm.
We are based in St. Paul, MN, and acknowledge that we are on the stolen lands of the Dakota People (specifically the Wahpekute Band of Dakota, who are among the Oceti Sakowin (“Seven Council Fires”). These people were the first stewards of the lands we occupy, and they are still here. We honor their connection to this land and their ongoing resilience in the face of violent colonialism.
Art drawn by Molly C. O’Connor
A Grounding
Hi all. I hope you are all feeling healthy and loved. There’s lots of news both locally, nationally, and globally that I wanted to uplift today:
- Young ‘peace builders’ aim to de-escalate violence in North Minneapolis. “Elijah O’Neal, one of the local Peace Builders, said he hopes to stifle narratives that area residents are only capable of violence. He said he wants his peers to know they can overcome stereotypes and think about the bigger picture. ‘We’re not used to talking,’ said O’Neal. ‘All we’re used to doing is yelling and screaming and trying to get somebody to hear us. But I’m trying to get them to understand that we could talk it out without getting so violent.'”
- The Court’s ruling on Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta is bad for Indian Country and bad for non-Native people, too. “Oklahoma v. Castro Huerta sets an unfortunate new precedent: states have jurisdiction over Native lands, unless Congress acts directly to limit this power or it’s determined that states’ jurisdiction unlawfully infringes on Tribal sovereignty.”… “The key takeaway here? Native nations should have the authority to prosecute any crime that happens on their lands.”
- Funerals Held for Dom Phillips and Bruno Pereira After Their Murder in Brazil: Two individuals trying to protect the Amazon Rainforest and support indigenous folks were murdered.
- The original arrest warrant for Carolyn Bryant (the white woman who lied about Emmett Till, leading to his gruesome murder) was found in the basement of a Mississippi courthouse. Highly recommend reading the article: Shed no tears for Carolyn Bryant Donham, who led her husband to murder a 14-year-old child.
- Love and Compassion for Arabella Yarbrough, who was stalked and shot at by Tekle Sundberg. She survived the incident, but Sundberg did not. He was murdered by police after Yarbrough called 911. In full acknowledgment of Sundberg’s imperfections (toxic, misogynistic tendencies and mental health disorders), he did not deserve to die by police. Justice needs to be served for Sundberg AND Yarbrough.
Native-Led Movement Calls to Action
- Tell Biden to Declare a Climate Emergency! Honor the Earth petition.
- The Akiing Land Back Project: There is a farm across the street from an elementary school that spreads toxins in the air and ground. Donate if you can! Honor the Earth aims to raise 350K to buy that land back to heal the landscape and the local community.
- There are many Calls to Action in the Indigenous Solidarity Networks Newsletter. Please check out the newsletter here and sign the petitions!
- Also, if you haven’t already, Call Governor Walz’ Office to appoint Minnesota Attorney General Ellison as special prosecutor for the most egregious cases against those who tried to #StopLine3.
- Water is Life Festival – Sept 4th in Duluth, MN. All proceeds go to Honor the Earth to assist them in fighting the current and future challenges to Indigenous lands, communities, and climate justice right here at home in Minnesota and around the globe.
- I attended a panel webinar led by FLOW (For Love Of Water) giving history and updates about Enbridge’s Line 5. I highly recommend watching it to get up-to-date about the first people’s fighting for their treaty rights and the allies trying to support the right to water and natural resources. There was also a fantastic telling of the Creation Story of Turtle Island and its significance to the Mackinac (“Mac-e-naw”) / Bay Mills Indian Community
Business Updates
Check Out Our Most Recent Published Article: Who Wants To Be A Woodland Steward? Understanding Barriers to Forestland Stewardship in Minnesota
In June 2022, I finished a 1-year project with the University of Minnesota (UMN) Forestry Department called the Woodland Steward Project. I was invited in by Matthew Russell to specifically help coordinate a research/evaluation project using an equity lens—BTW, Matt is now independent at Arbor Custom Analytics; check him out!
As a team of five researchers (three from the UMN, one from the USDA Forest Service, and me, the external consultant), we discussed the roots of this project, its intentions, how it perpetuated white dominant/supremacy culture, and how to adapt the project to feel less extractive. We planned and implemented the project with openness for experimentation and change, which was different, and a little uncomfortable for many of the folks on the team—including me! In the end, we interviewed a small group of individuals who gave us great insight into some of the barriers and motivations of woodland stewardship. We published the results through the UMN Digital Conservancy.
This project was incredibly formative for me in learning the difference between conducting evaluations with an equity-lens and conducting evaluations grounded in equity. There is a nuance that I knew existed but hadn’t experienced until this project.
You can read more about this project here—and I highly recommend reading the Equity Grounding section. Here’s a snippet of the section below.
“First, it is important to name the beginnings of the Woodland Steward Project (WSP), which its original title was: Who wants to be a woodland owner? Understanding barriers to private forestland ownership in Minnesota. Its original intent was to conduct interviews with Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color (BIPOC), and their motivations for purchasing, owning, and managing private forestland. Let’s briefly dissect the paragraph above, because when viewing it with an equity-lens, the above paragraph uses and implies white-dominant language and culture.”
O’Connor, Molly C.; Russell, Matthew B.; Gupta, Angela S.; Blinn, Charles R.. (2022). Who Wants To Be A Woodland Steward? Understanding Barriers to Forestland Stewardship in Minnesota. University of Minnesota Department of Forest Resources. Retrieved from the University of Minnesota Digital Conservancy, https://hdl.handle.net/11299/228062.
Other Business Updates
The Dilemma of the Fourth of July
“This is the dilemma that Native ‘Americans’ face every day. The foundations of the United States of America are blatantly unjust. This land was stolen. Native peoples, Africans, and many other minority communities have long been recipients of systemic racism. And the roots of it are right there for the entire world to see, printed in many of our founding documents…”
It’s a good article, and you can read the rest here.
Developing Evaluations that Center Racial Equity Panel Discussion Recording
If you missed out on the panel that I was on, you can Check it out here! It was titled: Developing Evaluations that Center Racial Equity. There was some great discussion about creative evaluation, equity, and justice work.
Finding Freedom: White Women Taking on Our Own White Supremacy
Earlier this year, I took a workshop for white women trying to take on internalized white supremacy. It was fantastic, and I wanted to uplift that more trainings are coming up. You can check it out here.
Personal Update
A Visual Representation of July 2022 – A Photo Collage
Photo descriptions go from the top left corner to the bottom right corner.
Photo 1: A photo of my partner’s Mom, Mem, and uncle, John, in the Jungle Theatre entryway. We all went to a play/musical called Cambodian Rock Band, which was fantastic! John is an expert in Cambodian history and likes to go to events that uplift Cambodian culture and history. He was underwhelmed by the historical accuracy of the play (learn more about the Khmer Rouge here), but the music and acting were fantastic.
Photo 2: A photo of my bedside with a new diffuser misting amazing smelling essential oils. This is something that gave me a lot of joy this month. My friend, and old roommate, Allison, gifted it to us.
Photo 3: A photo of my friend, Teontre and his band Papa Blue (and the Fist Bump Congress) performing at a local brewery. He just released an EP; check it out here!
Photo 4: A picture of Lucky, the cat, curled up into the cutest ball.
Photo 5: A framed handwritten letter from when I was 14 years old to my late grandma, Mimi. My mom found it in a box while going through papers from Mimi’s house. The letter reads, “Dear Mimi, I know you love handmade things and my handwriting. So, I learned how to sew a lot better on my present for you. The pillow symbolizes your soft and caring inside. The poem on it shows how fun and energetic you are on the outside. Also, I thought of making a shirt for you, but I don’t think you like wearing that stuff. Pillows will last forever and so will my love for you. With a whole bunch of love, Molly. P.S. I hope you like it.” With a hand-drawn heart and a child-like cartoon self-portrait of Molly’s head.
Let’s Stay Connected!
To keep up to date with my business news, connect or follow me on Linkedin. Don’t forget to follow our newsletter (and share with others), as well! And, of course, if you know of anyone who may benefit from our services, send them our way. Referrals are what make the world go round.
In solidarity,
Molly O’Connor (she/her/hers)
Founder, Principal Consultant, and Creative Evaluator
direct: (612) 868-0364
email: moconnor@cococanary.com
website: cococanary.com
