6/17/2022 Gotcha, covered.
​Yesterday, I was waiting at a bus stop when, with about 15 minutes until the arrival of the bus, a man approaches the stop and joins me on the bench. Almost immediately, he opens his wallet and hands me a day pass for the bus in the form of a plastic card about the size and shape of a credit card or hotel room key. I told him that I already had a day pass and thanked him all the same when he suggested that I keep it to use the next day. So I thanked him again and told him that I really appreciated it, and he started explaining how and where he got it. There is an organization here in town that, first and foremost, connects people with holistic health care services, respecting Indigenous values, but they also offer a number of social and economic services like after school programs, diabetes awareness, advocating for Natives and fighting Native stereotypes, alcoholism counseling, help with rent and utilities, and...providing bus passes. Established in 1971 or so, they mainly serve Native Americans but have recently begun serving non-Native Americans as well. So the man explains, "I'm Native, so they give us bus passes." And I told him that I had seen the office when I was out, but I didn't know that they handed out bus passes. He repeated that "we're Native, so they give us the bus passes because," and as he struggles to complete the thought, I offer, "Sort of like a 'Sorry we killed your ancestors' thing?" I can tell by the immediate nod of agreement and "Yeah." That that's what he was having a hard time saying. Reparations. "Yeah, a coupla bus passes should cover it," I add sarcastically.
The organization is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, so I assume some of their funding comes from government grants of money, so indirectly perhaps a form of reparations, but the fact that this type of organization is necessary in the first place says it all. Comments are closed.
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