What is Matriarchland?

What is Matriarchland? Totá is the traditional Diné (Navajo) place name for what was later named Farmington in the designated San Juan Valley located in northwest New Mexico, USA. This cultural landscape is the original traditional Diné (Navajo) homelands of the People. The land, landmarks, plants, trees and waters encompass a wealthy cultural history of the Diné, but also to other Indigenous people: Jicarilla Apache, Southern Ute, and various Pueblo groups. As a multi-disciplinary artist and poet I can trace the oral history of my family’s matriarchs in this place. The land is a part of our identity and epistemologies. We will always be a part of this land, it is ours and we think of the places as our family. This photograph was designed by Venaya Yazzie who is the originator of the concept of “Matriarchland” which expressed that in the land of Diné (Navajo), belongs to the female members of each Diné familial clanship. Be Matriarch,

VJ Yazzie, 2023 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Southwest Poetry Gathering in Totá - Matriarchland

Poets Venaya Y., Sonja H., Mia S., and Landon S. stand in front of the historic Totah Theatre in downtown Farmington, NM.

In celebration of America’s recognition of National Native American Heritage month the Northwest New Mexico Arts Council hosted a poetry reading and writing workshop in historic downtown Totá (Farmington), New Mexico, USA. Among the featured poets were: Mia Sutanto (Zuni/ Indonesian Chinese), Sonja Horoshko, Landon Succo (Navajo) and Venaya Yazzie (Dine'/Hopi). This cultural event was made possible by grants from: National Poetry Foundation, Connie Gotsch Foundation, Northwest New Mexico Arts Council.

This day-long event included a poetry and writing workshop lead by Venaya Yazzie. Also, the event included a book fair and arts fair. There is gratefulness for such an event in the Totá (Farmington), New Mexico community.

Gathering of 4Corners Poets & Writers - community event!

....................................................... In recognition of National Native American Heritage Month the community of Tota' (Farmington) will celebrate those who create and write. The Northwest New Mexico Arts Council and affiliated entities are sponsors of this multi-cultural experience! EVENT DETAILS- Featured poets and writers include: Mia Sutanto, Poet ( Indonesian Chinese/ Zuni Pueblo) Zuni, NM Landon Succo, Slam Poet (Dine') Navajo Preparatory School, Tota', NM Sonja Horoshko, Painter/ Poet Cortez, CO Venaya Yazzie, Poet/ Artist (Dine'/ Hopi) Tota', NM

Memory of a one-of-a kind Matriarch.....blog post by Venaya Yazzie

Grief............ It always seems to follow behind or stand beside me. It seems to lingers in the shadows of the giant cottonwood trees. It seems to lie beside bosque at the Animas river. I have witnessed how grief has changed my life path. So, what do I do when grief becomes so grand in my path? Well, I chose to walk around it. I intentionally chose to move on and scold it away. Even though I still mourn the passing of my family's matriarch, I know I must always choose to keep going, or as my grandmother would say "keep trucking."............. It's been over three years since my "masani'" my "mom" - my maternal grandmother passed onto the next world. I miss her daily, I think of how she was, smiling and gleaming with happiness for life. I miss the everyday tasks of home life with her. She made amazing dough for bread torillas. I miss seeing her in the kitchen. I miss just driving with her beside me, telling her stories of the past - about our family and about the land and historical landscape. She was my best friend, my heart..............

I am so very grateful to have lived beside her and to have laughed and cried with her when she was here in the space called earth. Because of my faith in God, I know I will see her again....

I share this because I was honored to write a blog post for the New Mexico Humanities Council, for the Pasa por Aqui blog. I have titled my post, Pre-pandemic grief, ancestral memory, mourning the world in 2020 and healing in the present. ................................... I composed it for many reasons that I feel are universal in much of humanity's experience, both past and present. Please vist at: .................................................................................. Pre-pandemic grief, ancestal memory, mourning the world in 2020 and healing in the present

New Mexico Poetry Anthology 2023 & Venaya's Poetry

--------------------New Mexican poet and member of the eastern Dine' people groups, Venaya Yazzie (Navajo/Hopi) was selected among a myriad of other state poets to be included in the 2023 edition of the New Mexico Poetry Anthology. Venaya's poem titled, Ancestors in Us, with Us is based on memories of ther childhood at the homelands of her great grandparents, Jim and Louise Werito at Huerfano, NM.-------------------

Blessed to be a part of this wonderful anthology of creatives in the 505! A link to the New Mexico Magazine article: & A link to purchase the anthology: Museum of New Mexico Press link

Shima' Jane was a Navajo weaver

Photo credit VJYAZZIE, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, 2023 Family love. Shima' Jane was a weaver. She sat at her loom envisioning traditional designs, walking in the world of her creativity. Shima' Jane was a beauty way of life. She was happiness and kindness and where ever she roamed she emitted true love. She is missed. Blessings, VJ Yazzie, 2023 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Paying respect to our family Matriarch Jane Werito Yazzie

Rest in Peace Shima' Jane Werito Yazzie Hooghanlani'Asdzaa'(Manyhogans) Woman

September 1930 - February 4, 2020

She was born into the chill of autumn among the heirloom corn and Navajo melon varieties. Our family's Matriarch was the 'glue' to our family. She is truly missed each day, but we continue to live on and keep her in our memory. . In the early morning of February 4, 2020 Jane left this space of existence. We, her daughter's were with her, by her side as she left. . It's been 3 years and 3 months since that 3 am moment and I still miss her like it was yesterday. All that she taught me stays with me as I continue this walk of life. Though she is no longer walking beside me, she is with me. I carry her memory and knowledge and I continue this life. . Shima' was a tresure to all places she visited and to all humans she came in contact with. Love you Mom. . Blessings all around. VJ Yazzie, 2023 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Our Diné right to OUR water

As a Diné Nation, Navajo Nation citzen, I am applauded that my people have to practically beg for water, our communal human right to water in 2023. This modern situation we ind ourselves, as a group of people, is a good example of what the goverment thinks about us. We know we were not meant to be here in 2023. For it was their hope that we would have all died out. But, we as Diné did not. WE ARE HERE, present and thriving. That is our truth, and we need our WATER! Blessings

Dine' Nation - Navajo Nation WATER RIGHTS in 2023 national news

LINK HERE below: Dine' Nation - Navajo Nation Water Rights

SUpreme CourT cases could RESHAPE Navajo Nation WATER RIGHTS (online article) interview

FROM N P R Supreme Court cases could reshape Navajo Nation water rights March 19, 20235:43 PM ET Heard on All Things Considered HEAR STORY/ READ STORY online from N P R PIEN HUANG, HOST: Tomorrow, the Supreme Court will hear arguments in a case involving water rights for the Navajo Nation. The issue at hand is, what does the federal government owe to tribal nations when it comes to water and access to it for drinking and growing food? It's a pretty complex set of issues that go way back in time and could change things for the Navajo Nation going forward. We've called Gregory Ablavsky to help break things down. He's a professor at Stanford Law School, where he teaches courses on federal Indian law. Greg, welcome. Thanks for joining us. GREGORY ABLAVSKY: Thank you for having me. HUANG: So, Greg, the Supreme Court tomorrow is hearing a case related to water needs in the Navajo Nation. Help us understand what is at issue in this case. ABLAVSKY: When the federal government establishes a reservation for Native peoples, the law has been since 1908 that it also then implicitly sets aside water rights for the purposes of providing agriculture and supporting the people who are going to be living on that reservation. Twenty years ago, the Navajo Nation sued the federal government as the nation's trustee, arguing that the federal government had a trust obligation to provide water to the Navajo Nation from the main stem of the Colorado River that flows, actually, right next to the reservation. So the question in this case is whether the federal government, as the trustee, is in fact obligated - it has a judicially enforceable trust obligation to provide that water, to figure out how much water is actually owed to the Navajo Nation from the Colorado River. HUANG: Can you also just explain quickly what a trust obligation actually means? It sounds like one of these legal terms that, you know, I certainly haven't heard a lot before. ABLAVSKY: If we think about ordinary trust law, someone might create a trust, you know, let's say, for their grandchildren or their children. Or if you just have an ordinary trust, there is a trustee who manages the benefits for a beneficiary. So, you know, in this case, the beneficiary would be the grandchildren. And there's a whole body of law - of trust law - that applies in those circumstances. Here, the argument is, is the federal government in this same - has it established this trust with respect to the Navajo Nation and other Native peoples? In other words, is the federal government the trustee and the Navajo Nation the beneficiary, such that ordinary trust law principles can be applied? So, ordinarily, a beneficiary can sue a trustee for accounting or for mismanaging the trust corpus, as it's called - the body of the trust, which in this case would be water. And so the question is, do those ordinary principles of trust law apply in this case as well? HUANG: And, Greg, what is the water situation on the Navajo Nation right now? You know, is the argument from the Navajo Nation that they just don't have enough of it? ABLAVSKY: I mean, the water situation on the Navajo Nation is pretty bleak. A very high percentage - almost a third, I think - of Navajo homes lack running water. And this was a major factor that contributed to the extreme outbreak of COVID that they experienced there. So the Nation argues pretty forcefully that the water situation there is extreme. And, of course, as we've all been seeing, the entire Southwest is going through a dramatic drought. Water levels in the Colorado River have dropped pretty dramatically. And so the Nation, I think, is - I mean, they initiated this lawsuit a long time ago, but the Nation has long been concerned in making sure that its citizens have access to reliable, clean, safe water. And that hasn't yet happened, in large part because of sort of resource constraints. HUANG: So as you mentioned, this particular case focuses on getting access to water from the Colorado River in a time of drought. You know, water levels are dropping in the rivers, you said. So help us understand, what are the arguments on each side of the case? ABLAVSKY: So the argument that the Navajo Nation is advancing is that because of this decision from 1908 called Winters, saying that the federal government implicitly reserves water rights, that decision created a trust obligation on the part of the federal government that can be enforced in court. The argument on the other side that the federal government is making, as well as several states that have intervened, is actually that that decision is not enough to actually create a judicially enforceable trust obligation. HUANG: Before we let you go, we know that oral arguments are going to take place tomorrow, so what are you going to be paying attention to as the case is argued? ABLAVSKY: I mean, I think what I'll be looking for in tomorrow's arguments is to see how the justices are understanding this relationship between the federal government and Native nations and whether they think this 1908 decision, coupled with the treaties of the Navajo Nation, is enough to create that judicially enforceable trust obligation. It'll be interesting also to see how much they dive into some of the technicalities of water law and of trust law in this instance and how much they're concerned about sort of the broader question of the difficult water situation that confronts the U.S. West right now. HUANG: That was Professor Gregory Ablavsky from Stanford Law School. Professor Ablavsky, thank you. ABLAVSKY: Thank you very much. Copyright © 2023 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

Navajo Water Rights hears Navajo Nation over rights to Colorado River LIVE

LISTEN LIVE! SUPREME COURT HEARING

Wet, Anthology of Water Poems and Prose from the High Desert and Mountains of the Four Corners Region

NEW poetry anthology from the Four Corners community. I am a contributor along with some Dine' (Navajo) poets also from the AZ, UT, NM and CO communities of Native Lands. The topic of our collective works are based on 'water' as a source of inspiration. The poem I contributed is titled, She is Water, which is derived from my experience during the loss of my maternal grandmother in Feb. 2020. Thus the poem/prose is ode to her. Please follow link for more info! Blessings, VJ

Nava.Zine Ba Hane Poetry event

Southwest Matriarchy, Cultural Migrations at Aztec Ruins National Monument

In August of 2022 I was invited to lecture with Aztec Ruins on the topic of the Southwest Matriarchy, and themes of cultural migrations into the neo-culture of Indigenous peoples. Here is a link to learn more: Venaya Yazzie Lecture Blessings to you and your circle! VJY