Honoring Indigenous Resilience, Resistance, and Presence

As a Quaker school grounded in the values of Equality, Integrity, and Community, Brooklyn Friends School acknowledges that we inhabit the unceded ancestral lands of the Lenape, known as Lenapehoking. This truth invites us to move beyond acknowledgment toward relationship, reciprocity, and action. Indigenous life is not past tense—it is present, enduring, and central to our shared humanity. 

Just as Quaker testimonies call us to listen deeply, live truthfully, and honor the Light in every person, Indigenous teachings call us to live in right relationship—with one another, with the land, and with all living beings. Both traditions affirm interconnection, stewardship, and care for the earth as sacred responsibilities.

We honor the histories and ongoing presence of Indigenous communities, recognizing the breadth of Indigeneity —a legacy of resilience, sovereignty, and resistance to systems of dispossession and erasure. We lift up the Afro-Indigenous, Afro-Caribbean Indigenous and Mixteca communities, whose traditions and activism continue to bridge ancestral knowledge, migration, and resistance. 

In partnership and reflection, may we continue to live into a future grounded in justice, belonging, and the Light within every being, honoring the shared call of Quaker and Indigenous traditions to live with integrity, reciprocity, and peace. 

Listen: Tell stories: Sisserou and the Secret Flower: Indigenous Caribbean Stories; The Sea-Ringed World: Sacred Stories of The Americas; Blancaflor, the Hero with Secret Powers: A Folktale from Latin America; We are the Water Protectors

Act: Do a “Land Walk” through a Brooklyn Bridge park; Choose an organization to support or learn about by sending a letter of appreciation; Host a circle inspired by Indigenous values of interconnection, reciprocity, and care for the earth.

Learn: Explore local Indigenous-led organizations who model strength, care, and creativity in our community:

• Six Local Indigenous Nonprofits You Should Know (Brooklyn.org)
• The Lenape Center
• Environmental & Climate Justice
• Soulfire Farm 

• Louisiana Indigenous Center
• Urban Indigenous Collective (UIC)
• United Federation of Taino People
• Redhawk Native American Arts Council