Sovereignty and food aren’t two words usually heard together.
“Food sovereignty in a nutshell means the rights that we have to not only grow and procure our own food but also to have access to water, land and resources to grow our own food,” Brenda Golden said.
Golden is a policy analyst for the Muscogee Creek Nation and a longtime native rights activist. The two back to back conferences next week are close to her heart and she takes pride in the fact that her tribe will be host.
Monday and Tuesday, September 8 and 9, is the 2nd International Indigenous Peoples Corn Conference followed by the International Indian Treaty Council conference September 10 through 12.
“On Monday the International Indian Treaty Council and the Muscogee Food Sovereignty Initiative are hosting the 2nd Indigenous Peoples Corn Conference here at the Creek Nation at the Muscogee Dome,” Golden said. “They will have seed sharing available. There will be round table discussions on the spiritual, cultural and nutritional meaning of corn.”
Golden said the conference will address what work is going on internationally in support of food sovereignty now and for the future. The Corn Conference is also a way to network and communicate about this staple of life.
“We do plan to have some booths for people to come and share their seeds and their recipes and things like that with others. So we're encouraging people to do that so that we can exchange information and exchange recipes,” Golden said.
Corn was first introduced to Europeans and settlers by Native Americans and most tribes have their own corn specialties they make.
“It’s one of the major staples of our Muscogee Creek diet and traditional foods. We have several different dishes but one of our most famous is called Sofkee,” Golden said.
“It’s white corn that is ground up, then boiled with ash and lye and a few other things, traditionally. Sometimes people will put a little sugar in it. It’s more of a soup and we drink it hot, or they can let it sit out and cool off and then drink it,” Golden said.
On Wednesday, the 40th anniversary conference of the International Indian Treaty Council will take place where it began, in Oklahoma on the land of a revered elder.
“It’s been 40 years since our traditional leader Phillip Deere helped found the International Indian Treaty Council. So they're bringing the conference back out to Phillip Deere's land,” Golden said. “Through collaboration with the Creek Nation the Round House has been rebuilt.”
“They've named this conference Commemorating 40 Years Defending the Rights and Recognition of Indigenous Peoples,” Golden said.
“That will be happening September 10, 11 and 12 out at the Phillip Deere family land, eight miles east of Okemah."
Golden expressed excitement at meeting the international participants.
“We are going to have so many dignitaries from all around the world here. I'm really excited to meet an elder and cultural leader from New Zealand who's coming in. He'll be here all week. We'll also have a couple of people from the U.N. from Nicaragua and Guatemala who will be here at the same time. We have some people from Puerto Rico,” Golden said.
“Then for our international night we are going to have 50 Hawaiians performing some of their traditional dance and feeding us some of their traditional foods. So we'll have the head of state for the indigenous contingent over in Hawaii that has not surrendered their sovereignty to the United States or any other nation, coming to be a part of this,” Golden said.
Golden said the first day of the conference will be on local issues.
“Oklahomans like Casey Camp, David Hill and Rodney Factor will talk about the struggles of indigenous tribes in Oklahoma, the fracking issue, environmental issues, which is what Casey Camp is known for,” Golden said. Racism, criminal justice, and more discussion on food sovereignty are also on the agenda.
Golden said the last two days will focus on environmental health, climate change and reproductive health. Campsites and meals will be provided.
Two buffalos have been donated from the Inter-tribal Bison Cooperative, one from South Dakota and one from the Cheyenne and Arapaho Nation, to feed attendees at the conference.
Participants can register online for both conferences at treatycouncil.org.
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