Project S.T.O.P.

Over the years through separatist/racist laws that have been implemented to erase or reclassify a person self -identifying Native descent in official documents, as other than.  Years of submission to rules such as .01% of Negro blood has alienated parts of our tribal families from their heritage and culture. Not everyone of Native blood identifies with the Native culture, but the ones that do have been left out by systemic brainwashing to choose race on how they looked and not how they identified themselves. This has generationally left many tribal members with a form of borderline personality disorder (BPD) struggling with identity issues, self-doubting and an unstable sense of self. We propose a database that gives a digital historical footprint representation of ourselves and by committing to mending our culture, one tribal family at a time we are supporting a future that is reflective of our past.

Being a part of the African American race and being seen only as

such, has hindered our growth as human beings to development and fully
participate also in our indigenous culture and to understanding
ourselves.  Our solution is creating a digital footprint for anyone
desiring to also embrace this part of their culture. But, having to
fight against 400 years of brainwashing will take generations to undo,
in allowing ourselves to be identified as Indigenous people of Rhode
Island. We will create a database that allows us to even stop ourselves
from the ingrained indoctrination that we can only identify as African
American: because of 1% Negro blood, because our mothers were chattel,
because we don’t look Native, because, because, because. Not everyone
feels this way, this is for the ones that have always felt
disenfranchised and have so much to offer and contribute to their
birthright. The state statistics in Rhode Island due to these criterias
have a 1% Native Population equaling 6,000 people and a 12% African
American and 2 or more race population equaling 98,000. Even half, that
is over 48,000 Indigenous voice's that have not been heard since the
illegal Detribalization of the Tribe in 1881.

A Data based website of Indigenous footprints from the past, fingerprints of present and hopes from future.  To collect and organize information on each tribal family member from percentage of Native blood from DNA results, a paper trail to include birth, death, marriage certificates, census, petitions that show indigenous descent, and a collection of oral traditions. We are obliged to create, monitor, store and maintain a basic API database tool for collecting and organizing accessible electronic information for Indigenous family members. Given the propensity to systematically erase indigeneity in Federal and local data collections in less than a decade we would cease to exist and be pigeon holed into another demographic as what has been done in the past. Having such a ready made base will allow better communication towards making tribal members more aware of their Indigenous culture, language, and identity as a source of knowledge and empowerment. This will allow the next generation to be born without self doubts and into a world where their birthrights were not taken away from them in a genocidal paper trail of tears.

My target population to start is the 12% , possibly 48,000

people in the state of RI alone, not including surrounding states
considering themselves as Native, but not in some cases allowed to
identify as such. I have several social media pages that connect local
and distance family members with each other while sharing our Native
heritage, lineages and culture. When I realized that so many were
hungry, no matter what circumstance brought them to the decision to
trace their heritage and pursue their DNA background found that they
always identified with being Native, but felt that the way they looked
and the fear of rejection in a world that has already rejected their
skin hindered their acceptance of themselves.  I then realized that a
database, more than a page on Facebook with proof of Native descent
would be more easily accessed to find lineages, heritage and ways to
revive all the traditions that for some over the years have been a life
changing and saving epiphany .

In 1881 the Nahagansett Tribe of Rhode Island was illegally Detribalized
and a list from a commission report based on that if your mother was an
enslaved person and your father Native, you were not Native, because of
the chattel slavery laws - Partus sequitur ventrem(Latinfor"that
which is brought forth follows the belly (womb)''). Ironically, this
same list is used by the tribe today for membership. Disenrollment is a
disease in Native country, but a proof based family website of direct
Native lineal descent can heal the identity crisis reviving our cultural
heritage denied by others.

We are in the beginning stages of collected data and figuring the correct process to and continuously gather and maintain uploaded data.

The innovation would be using the same legal documents that were set up to take away our heritage will be used to reclaim it.

My use of the technology will be an Application Programming Interface

online genealogical database. It would just be what is, but inputting
the correct information into the database would be my part of the
solution.

It is used in all Online Genealogical databases, such as Ancestry.com and 23 and Me to name a few. 

Using Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) Research to Extend Your Pedigree - Marilyn Thomsen

https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

There is a possibility of the risk privacy issues, but our past lineage and heritage has to be an open book and very transparent and the solution that would be addressed is reopening and reclaiming the information is correct that was found or seen by anyone.

The immediate impact would be a Native community filled with all family members feeling a part of their long lost culture and a revival of traditions and the long term impact will be no more generations born without a cultural heritage and a sense of belonging.

I noticed in family members before they joined my family Facebook
genealogical page that they would speak of Native peoples and themselves
as separate, until I showed them a paper trail of a petition that one
of the ancestors signed to stop the selling of tribal lands and they
began to see themselves as an extension of that person and heritage.
Some have joined conservatory groups and feel their natural inclination
to be caretakers of the earth, as our ancestors before us.

Currently - 370

In one year - 6,000

In 5 years - over 40,000

We plan to utilize technology as a source of continuous connection to
revitalizing and reviving our Native communities, by education and
employment resources. Our goal is to impact the denied voices of the
Indigenous people of the First Light (Wampanoag) to once again be the
caretakers of our respective states and start farming whether on land or
sea, to be self sustained and capable of living as our ancestors once
did. Lovely story. But, to accomplish this we need first to re-educated
our people on who they are, not who they were told they could only be.

Being a part of the African American race and being seen only as
such, has hindered our growth as human beings to development and fully
participate also in our indigenous culture and to understanding
ourselves.  Our solution is creating a digital footprint for anyone
desiring to also embrace this part of their culture. But, having to
fight against 400 years of brainwashing will take generations to undo,
in allowing ourselves to be identified as Indigenous people of Rhode
Island. We will create a database that allows us to even stop ourselves
from the ingrained indoctrination that we can only identify as African
American: because of 1% Negro blood, because our mothers were chattel,
because we don’t look Native, because, because, because. Not everyone
feels this way, this is for the ones that have always felt
disenfranchised and have so much to offer and contribute to their
birthright. The state statistics in Rhode Island due to these criterias
have a 1% Native Population equaling 6,000 people and a 12% African
American and 2 or more race population equaling 98,000. Even half, that
is over 48,000 Indigenous voice's that have not been heard since the
illegal Detribalization of the Tribe in 1881. The US census and the participation of tribal members in pow wows and other local indigenous  activities will indicate if we are getting through to the masses.

Financial is the only barrier for this year that is our hindrance. In the next 5 years with the help of creating a pay online subscription website that will lessen the barrier.

By having partnerships with local business to support our events and tribal participation with selling and buying indigenous products.

2 part time staff

We are both local activist and family tribal members and have been making aware for decades the importance of heritage and lineage as a resource to creating a future with a past.

We both come from diverse backgrounds, but have kept our Native heritage at the forefront. It was something would not let be a conflicted source on how we see ourselves or community. We maybe the leaders of our goals, but everyone in the tribe share in the responsibility of the Still Standing movement...if there was such a movement.