No More Indigenous Erasure: It’s time to teach the truth about the Abenaki
“But I suppose the most revolutionary act one can engage in is... to tell the truth.” ―Howard Zinn
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“But I suppose the most revolutionary act one can engage in is... to tell the truth.” ―Howard Zinn 〰️
Burlington High School student Miranda Brown wrote an article in the student newspaper about indigenous identity in Vermont entitled Erasing the True History. She asks, “As researchers and undisputed Abenaki leaders condemn the teaching of ‘false histories’ by state-recognized groups, local teachers and school leaders default to a neutral stance – are teachers allowing misinformation to become the truth?"
For the past two years, the Education Justice Coalition of Vermont has been learning and wrestling with the issue of indigenous identity in Vermont and its educational impact. In March 2024, we shared a statement calling on the community to pursue a rigorous factual and historical analysis on the claim made by Odanak tribal members and various other sources that members of Vermont's four state-recognized tribes were race-shifting and not indigenous. When the “American Abenaki” curriculum was released we shared another statement in May 2025 “Abenaki Curriculum Should Reflect the Complexity of the Current Moment”.
The Education Justice Coalition of Vermont affirms that the Abenaki First Nations, not the state-recognized tribes, are the indigenous people of the land now called Vermont.
We support truth in education. This means we must teach about Palestine, ethnic studies, climate change, racism, and the original people of this land.
If we can't accurately teach settler colonialism, students don't have a foundation to learn the rest of our history and systems. It is our responsibility and beyond time to correct false histories.
Our position that the Abenaki First Nations are the indigenous people of Ndakina (where Vermont located) is grounded in established public findings, including the Vermont Attorney General’s response to the Abenaki petition (2003) and the Bureau of Indian Affairs’ Final Determination denying federal recognition, both of which concluded that the organizations making up the state-recognized tribes failed to demonstrate historical continuity or descent from documented Abenaki communities.
These conclusions align with peer‑reviewed scholarship on settler self‑indigenization and race shifting, including Darryl Leroux’s research, “State Recognition and the Dangers of Race Shifting”. The sustained objections from the federally recognized Abenaki First Nations of Odanak and Wôlinak further support this position.
Educators who wish to teach about Abenaki history and culture are encouraged to work directly with resources and contacts from the Abenaki First Nations, listed below this statement.
Further, we call on the Vermont legislature to revisit the state recognition process with the consultation of federally recognized tribes.
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There are people who grew up being taught that they were indigenous. There are students in Vermont schools who were raised in a state-recognized tribe. Just as with children who were raised as Zionists or white supremacists, they should be treated with compassion. It is not their fault they weren’t taught the truth. There are people who are willing to lead conversations with these young people to help them unpack their identity. We hope to provide more resources on this as it’s an important issue for educators to consider.
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“Race-shifters” are white people (and occasionally mixed-race people) with no or a small amount of Indigenous ancestry who identify as Indigenous. (NB Media Coop)
Race-shifting contributes to the erasure of indigenous people. Indigenous scholar Kim Tallbear likens race-shifting to the last stage of an ongoing indigenous genocide. (2023). White supremacy upholds the stories and voices of white people pretending to be indigenous thereby silencing and erasing indigenous people and their truth. White supremacists twist facts that are falsely perpetuated and result in mis-education. Sudan, Palestine, Myanmar, Rwanda and the Congo are examples of places that have incurred race shifting and erasure from education.
On this Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we are taking a firm stance for truth in Abenaki education. Trying to remain neutral is supporting indigenous erasure.
Resources from Abenaki First Nations:
Visit Odanak
Abenaki Foodways Curriculum, developed in collaboration with Abenaki citizens from Odanak and Wôlinak.
Additional Resources:
