Top left: Miguel Wandering Turtle Walks with No Fear, Lino Covarrubias, CEO JFS, Jesse Edwards, City of Framingham Chief DEI Officer, and Andre StrongBearHeart Gaines, Jr., Cultural Steward for the Nipmuc Nation; Bottom left and center: Andre StrongBearHeart Gaines, Jr. and Miguel Wandering Turtle Walks with No Fear share their wisdom, insight, and dance traditions with participants; Right: A representative of Temple Shir Tikva and CJP’s Jewish Teen Initiative shares his thoughts about Indigenous Peoples Day and the importance of understanding different perspectives and histories.
JFS was proud to celebrate and recognize Indigenous Peoples’ Day on Monday, October 14th during the gathering held in the Barbieri School gym in Framingham.
This 4th annual celebration included a land acknowledgement recognizing that “WE ARE ON INDIGENOUS LAND” – we cannot change the past, but what we can do is honor the land, ancestors, and indigenous traditions.
The event featured student speakers and presentations city officials and local leaders including JFS CEO Lino Covarrubias, as well as representatives from the Nipmuc Nation, including Cultural Steward Andre Strongbearheart Gaines, Jr. and Miguel Wandering Turtle Walks with No Fear, who shared their wisdom, insight and dance traditions with participants.
JFS is committed to taking social justice action and Tikkun Olam– repairing the world, and this powerful event reminds us that Framingham was once one of the Nipmuc Tribe’s largest territories and that it is important to acknowledge the past while building strong relationships that work towards a better future.
Thank you to our collaborative partners City of Framingham, Greater Framingham Community Church, Open Spirit, Framingham Public Schools, CJP, Jewish Teen Initiative, No Loose Braids, Islamic Center of Boston Wayland, Framingham State University, MassBay Community College, Temple Beth Am, Framingham and Temple Shir Tikva of Wayland for working to accelerate social justice and equity in our community!