First Peoples

“For thousands of years the world has known
Countless peoples living in many different ways
With their own language, art, and songs
Respecting the bounty of nature”

Huron Cree Ojibway Yanomami
Kaiapo Penan Nisga’s Lakota
First peoples of this world
First of all our voices heard
Mother father ancient kin
Spirit names of countless tribes

Carve and paint, chant and drum
Gift and glory of an olden time
Weave and spin tales of a new day come
Hand in hand, walking free
Children of the land and sea
Dreams and visions dancing in the wind

Iroquois Carib Navaho Inuit Saami
Miskito Dene Kelabit Haida

“And today, First Peoples enrich the Earth family
Share the wisdom of ages for future generations
And remind us to protect our sources of
Beauty, health, and wonder”

Father Sky, Mother Earth, all of our relations’ birth
Eagle bear turtle whale, moving in creation’s tale
First Peoples of this world, the test of time endured
Brothers, Sisters in the sun, circle life in a spiral run

Carve and paint, chant and drum
Gift and glory of an olden time
Weave and spin tales of a new day come
Hand in hand, walking free
Children of the land and sea
Dreams and visions dancing in the wind

Gitk’san Ainu Fulani Arawak Arapaho
Maya Maori Huichol Oromo
Shoshone Hopi Innu Embera Quechua
Lubicon Salish Dandami Munda Gurindji Kalinga