The Coco Canary Monthly Newsletter
September 2022
Summary:
A Grounding, A Personal LandBack Story, News and Calls to Action, Coco Canary Music, and More.
Welcome to Coco Canary!
Hello from Molly C. 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. Learn how to go beyond a land acknowledgment by reading this guide by the Native Governance Center.
Art drawn by Molly C. O’Connor
A Grounding
News, Learnings, and Opportunities for Growth:
“Thank you to everyone who rallied together to stop this bill. We will keep fighting alongside you. Our letters, calls, rallies, and grassroots activism secured this victory.”
Jessica Corbett, Nation For Change. 9/28/2022
- Check out Showing Up for Racial Justice’s (SURJ) new video, Our Story, Our Stake. If you didn’t know, SURJ is the largest organization explicitly organizing white communities in US history. Join me in this critical work of bringing millions of white people to movements for social justice:
“We hope you see yourselves and your work in this video– and that you share it far and wide to join us in bringing in the numbers of white people we need to win.”
SURJ September 2022 Newsletter
Simply put, Minneapolis did not defund the police. It’s the opposite. The police are defunding Minneapolis.
Eamon Whalen, Mother Jones. Minnesota Spokesman Recorder. 9/7/2022
- MnDOT to rebuild I-94 through Twin Cities—or not: A great article highlighting the history of the Rondo Neighborhood and how decisions could be made to “repair” past injustices.
- ‘It is beyond bleak’: Pakistan floods affecting 16m children, says Unicef
- Mahsa Amini: Protests over woman’s death claim more lives in Iran
- Midterm elections are coming up!!!! Check out volunteering opportunities in your communities to make sure people show up to vote. I’m left-leaning, so I’m volunteering with these orgs: Swing Left local & virtual events and Vote Forward Letter Writing Campaigns. You can also reach out to your local political offices to see what volunteering opportunities they have.
Black Lives Matter. Justice For:
- George Floyd: Former Minneapolis police officer Thomas Lane sentenced to three years in state case
- Elijah McClain: Amended Autopsy Shows Ketamine Injection Caused Elijah McClain’s Death
- Donate to Keep Georgia Blue:
BLM PAC is preparing for the most critical midterm election yet. Every single race is an opportunity to build Black political power. Most importantly, we’re combating the hundreds of voter suppression laws being introduced in states across the entire country.
BLM September Newsletter
Native-Led Movement Calls to Action
- Enbridge Line 3 Damage to Water Continues! Please add your name to email your officials asking them to take action now for our water.
- Support the Western Alaska community affected by Typhoon Merbok. Donations will provide immediate relief and support ongoing rebuilding and restoring efforts.
- “Help Puerto Rico, not Pipelines.” Donate to the Fiona Community Response Fund. This fund aims to address BOTH the immediate humanitarian needs AND long-term power-building work to advance an equitable recovery.
- Native Governance Center published a guide about recreating and acknowledging sovereignty in public outdoor spaces. Check out the Sovereignty and Outdoor Spaces Guide here.
Business Updates
Benefiting from Stolen Lands and the Process of Land Back to the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe: A Personal Story
As many of you know, for folks in the United States, we are living on unceded lands. Meaning the land you are on was (and likely still is) occupied by its original inhabitants, who were forced off due to violent colonialism. I’ve spent the last several years learning more about Minnesota’s history, especially how politicians and people in power caused profound harm to native people.
As a white person reading about dark history—in which white people caused irreparable harm— it can feel so distant. Though, often you can find threads in which your ancestors benefited from those harms, which then ripple to your lived experience today. Here’s a personal example of how one side of my family benefited from buying unceded lands of the Anishinaabe off a lake in Aitkin County, MN, and how we’re trying to give back.
First, a Brief History of the Anishinaabe: For centuries, the Anishinaabe have lived on “Turtle Island” (now known as North America). Before settlers came, their territory was vast, reaching as far as the Atlantic Ocean. When white settlers arrived about 500 years ago, many Anishinaabe migrated West due to disease and violence. One of these groups was the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, who settled in central MN. Here is a brief history:
- Treaty of 1837: All Anishinaabe people ceded millions of acres of land in what is now Minnesota and Wisconsin to the United States but reserved the right to hunt, fish, and gather on the ceded lands. With the caveat, the Ojibwe people would not revolt, go against the government, etc.
- The 1850 Sandy Lake Tragedy: High-ranking officials in the federal government planned the unlawful and unconstitutional removal of the Ojibwe people. In doing this, they forced 19 bands of Ojibwe (nearly 3000 people—mostly men) to travel to Sandy Lake in Minnesota in late fall to retrieve their annuity payments. Full knowledge that money wouldn’t be there, little food would be reserved, and the weather would be dangerous. Over 400 hundred people died due to cold, measles, starvation, and dysentery while waiting for money/supplies or during their arduous return to their homes in the middle of December.
- I want to uplift that the Minnesota Territory Governor at the time was Alexander Ramsey, who helped plan and implement this tragedy. The county I live in is named after this awful man.
- There is a memorial off Big Sandy Lake and a yearly ceremony to remember and respect those who died. Learn more here.
- Treaty of 1855: The United States government set aside 61,000 acres of land south and west of Mille Lacs Lake, which became the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Reservation (“Misi-zaaga’iganiing”). This treaty also included the creation of Sandy Lake Indian Reservation (“Gaa-mitaawangaagamaag”), a part of the Mille Lacs Band but north in Aitkin county. Several other reservations were made under this treaty as well.
- Initially, a treaty made it so the Sandy Lake Band were the sole occupants of this area, but it was later opened to non-Indian settlements.
Where My Ancestors Come In:
Starting in 1887, the US Government sold parcels of land once meant for the Sandy Lake Band. They sold it to the Northern Pacific Railroad Company (NPRC); to Allured (Alvred) Bayard Nettleton, who worked for the NPRC—and who, interestingly enough, was the founder of the Star Tribune, the local paper here in the Twin Cities. A parcel was also sold to Stephen William White, an employee of several railroad companies and once the private secretary of Jay Cooke (who helped sell these lands). These are only a few examples.
Over several years, this land was sold over and over until one parcel reached my grandparents, who bought it in the 1960s (learn more about my ancestors here). My Mom tells me they loved the outdoors, especially my grandma, and that the cabins (on the mainland and an island) were beautiful rustic escapes from the city. She has a lot of fond memories of going there. My grandparents owned/stewarded that land until the passing of my grandma in 2014, which then went to my uncle, who passed away this year. So, now, the cabin land estate is in my Mom’s hands.
Current Day:
Before my uncle passed, my Mom and I talked about the cabin land and how developers called my uncle often about buying it. My Mom said it didn’t feel right to sell it to a developer who didn’t care about the natural value of the land. She wanted to sell it to someone who would treat it right. That’s when I started researching the local history, whose lands we were on, and which Native Nations were nearby. I found the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe (and Sandy Lake Band) and asked my Mom if she would be okay if I called the Mille Lacs Band to see if they would have any interest in buying the land. She said sure. I called the Mille Lacs Band’s Department of Natural Resources and was connected to their realty division. After chatting with a few staff, they said they would check out the land and let us know. Shortly after, they got back to us and said they were interested! This gave my Mom and me so much joy. 🙂
Today, we are still in the process of sorting things out with the Mille Lacs Band (estate stuff sounds really confusing), but my Mom is slowly but surely going through the list of things to check off for them. I’ll let you all know when it’s sorted out.
Until then, I hope you’ve found this meandering history lesson and personal story informative and inspiring to see how you can be a part of Land Back. <3
Note: I want to thank the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe’s Treaties page, Colin Mustful’s Resisting Removal, my mother’s ancestral knowledge, and, of course, Wikipedia for the history noted above. Also, I want to acknowledge that history is complex, so even though I did lots of research, there are likely mistakes in my retelling.
Other Business Updates
Listen to Coco Canary The Band’s Light in the Distance!
Some of you may not know that I’m in a band with the same name as my company, Coco Canary, and we’re working on our first album! Our recording days in the studio start in mid-October, so look for updates in our next newsletter! BTW, for the curious, the band came before the consulting firm. 😉
Like Being Creative?? BareBone’s Puppet Theatre Needs Community To Help Make Puppets!
One of my favorite annual traditions is to attend the BareBones Puppet Extravaganza in Oct. Learn more about how you can get involved with Community Builds, being a part of the show, or watching it! I attended a community build 2 weeks ago and had so much fun making baby bear cub masks with my partner and friend, Monica!
Personal Update
A Visual Representation of September 2022 – A Photo Collage
Photo descriptions go from the top left corner to the bottom right corner.
Photo 1: I went to a backyard concert where a local band, spaceport, played, as well as my friend’s band, Keller & Griffin Partners in Injury LLC. Here’s a photo of my friend and their bandmate singing their new song, “I Want, A Millenial Dad.”
Photo 2: My bandmate, Matt, and my friend (and new bassist) Ranjit in my backyard prepping for band practice.
Photo 3: A photo of Michael, my partner, and my old roommate, Allison, on a beach at the Atlantic coast. Mike and I took a well-needed relaxing vacay, part of which happened on the barrier islands of North Carolina.
Photo 4: This is a photo of the commune house (plus Teresa’s partner, Bradley) chilling in a cabin’s living room in Alexandria, MN. Mike is braiding Jillian’s hair, and Teresa is sleeping on the floor, using Birch, the dog, as a pillow.
Photo 5: My partner and I performed at a local poetry reading event. Mike and his brother, Bill, have a band called “Brother’s Lloyd.” Here’s a pic of me playing Angel From Montgomery.
Photo 6: I attended a tree planting for a friend, Paul Holt, who passed away in 2015. His tree and bench are off the Midtown Greenway, a bike path that cuts through south Minneapolis. It is always an honor to be with Paul’s family and friends during times of remembrance.
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
