Canoe Journey Guidebook - Squaxin Island Tribe

Tribal
warriors
Commitment to
Family & Community
From the early days of our culture,
young children have always been taught about
the importance of values, starting with a structured
community life built closely around the
teachings that come from our natural resources
and natural elements. Our families’ strong
system of rules of conduct strengthen respect
among individuals and respect for the land,
which has always been considered sacred and
one of the greatest teachers.
These teachings solidified important rites of
passage at different phases of life, from infant
to child to adult and elder, from puberty and
coming of age to marriage and death. An individual’s
life was more than life and death; it was
the teachings of the ancestors passed along as
a contribution to the unseen future world.
At death, one becomes an ancestor and the
teachings live on through new births. Squaxin
Island culture is based on an empowered sense
of commitment to these belief systems -
preservation of family, community and the
sacred lands and waters.
The Squaxin Island Tribe holds a strong commitment
to the defense of family and country.
Family connection is an important part of each
individual’s identity. When the United States
government was established, Indian people
readily served in the military even though there
were bitter moments in our past. Between
1917 and 1918, over 10,000 American Indian
people enlisted in the military to serve in World
War I. Although this was the greatest number
of enlisted people from any one non-Anglo
culture, citizenship for Native Americans was
not granted until 1924. Finally, natives were
granted the right to vote.
Native Americans account for less than one
percent of the total registered population
of the United States, yet they provide more
military members per capita than any other
ethnic group and utilize veterans’ benefits less
than any other group.
Photo courtesy of University of Washington
17 • paddle to squaxin 2012