Seattle-based David Mesenbring is a public speaker, social entrepreneur and traveler who's worked as an anti-apartheid activist; Africa-focused grant maker; nonprofit founder; and social justice animator.  A committed ecumenist, he was ordained by Africans after being raised Lutheran and is now an Episcopal priest.  His volunteer passions include Oikocredit (a global cooperative that finances FairTrade … Continue reading Troubling questions

Helen Hudgens is a missionary kid raised among Aboriginal people in north Brazil. She is on the faculty of the North Park University School of Music in Chicago, where she co-directs the Gospel Choir. She is an Anabaptist living in intentional community and currently serves a Black Baptist church in Evanston. She is the proud … Continue reading Report from Standing Rock

The following article is a cross-post from Christian Peacemaker Teams. The original post from December 4, 2016, can be found here. By Tim Nafziger The U.S. Army corps of engineers has today, December 4, 2016 announced that they will deny key permits for the construction of the Dakota Access pipeline and explore alternative routes, one … Continue reading The spiritual roots of resistance at Standing Rock run deep

Fellowship of Hope, a Mennonite congregation from Elkhart, Indiana, recently moved their bank account from Chase Bank after learning that it's one of the 38 banks that are funding the Dakota Access Pipeline through its parent company, Energy Transfer Partners. You may find the letter they wrote below to be helpful as you contemplate ways to be … Continue reading A Concrete Act of Solidarity with Standing Rock

Our Coalition member, Sarah Augustine, recently had an essay on "Urgency" published in The Mennonite on-line. Here's the link to the article.

This article by Coalition member Sarah Augustine was recently published in Response, a magazine of the United Methodist Women. Sarah is an assistant professor of sociology and the director of student spirituality at Heritage University in Toppenish, Washington. She is also co-founder of Suriname Indigenous Health Fund. The Doctrine of Discovery is a body of law … Continue reading The Ongoing Harm of the Doctrine of Discovery

Sarah Augustine is co-director of Suriname Indigenous Health Fund and chair of the Coalition's Structures Committee. You can read more about the situation Sarah describes below here. Over two years ago Miskito leaders living in exile contacted our small human rights organization, Suriname Indigenous Health Fund, to ask us for help.  The Miskito are an … Continue reading Join Us in Prayer

Anita Amstutz, a member of the Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery Coalition, is a beekeeper, writer and pastor who blogs at https://thinklikeabee.org. She recently traveled with a delegation from the Coalition to Standing Rock to show solidarity and support with the Lakota Sioux resisting the Dakota Access Pipeline, and shared her reflections in a post on … Continue reading Journey to the Heart of the Hive

Karin Kaufman Wall is the Peace and Justice Education staff person for Mennonite Central Committee Central States and a member of New Creation Mennonite Church in Newton, Kansas.  The word “settler” reminds me that I’m not indigenous to this land. How might things be different if we thought of ourselves as guests? Not visitors, but … Continue reading Why I Use the Word “Settler”

Here is another reflection from our forthcoming Study Guide! This one comes to us from Jennifer Henry of KAIROS, Canada, an ecumenical organization working for human rights and ecological justice. She reflects on Isaiah 58 and what it has to say about true and false religion in our postcolonial context today:  Henry_Isaiah58.