Friday August 29th, 2014

Hundreds of activists and leaders from all corners of the community gathered outside the doors of St. Marks Cathedral in Seattle’s Capitol Hill before moving indoors for a totem pole blessing ceremony.

From the event press release… “…The cornerstone of Northwest Native American art, the totem pole, became a cross-cultural rallying point this morning, as a large crowd welcomed the 19-foot totem to Saint Mark’s Cathedral. The event marks the halfway point of a 2,500-mile binational journey by members of the Lummi Nation to demonstrate the strength and diversity of opposition to a proposal by Gateway Pacific Terminals that would locate North America’s largest coal terminal at Xwe’chi’eXen, the Lummi name for Cherry Point, near Bellingham…The Seattle event featured remarks from King County Executive Down Constantine and a welcome by Ken Workman of the Duwamish Tribe in Lushootseed, the language of the Salish people. All in attendance were invited to join in blessing the 19-foot Western Red Cedar totem pole.

The unusual juxtaposition of a totem and Christian church results from an unprecedented alliance between tribal nations and faith leaders around coal exports. Recently, 10 of Washington’s bishops and denominational executives signed a formal letter of support for the Lummi’s totem pole journey…”