Indigenous Roots

In 2023, the Organization significantly expanded on its youth programming and culturally rooted wellness initiatives. It also leaned into capital improvement to address some long overdue repairs and updates to its 7th Street building and maintained and expanded on the artist and culture bearer support provided.Indigenous Roots also fulfills their mission by focusing its efforts in the following primary service areas: Culture Bearers :Culture Bearers practice intergenerational lifeways and living, evolving cultural art practices that educate, exchange, and share in order to preserve ancestral knowledge. In this work, Culture Bearers hold a direct throughline from ancestors and teachers and center sharing their practice with youth. The role of a culture bearer is particularly important within ancestral cultures undergoing transition or experiencing threat from outside and dominating culture(s). Culture Bearers accept a responsibility to share ancestral and cultural knowledge. The practice of being a Culture Bearer is distinct from other individual art practices because the practice is a full life tradition (not separate) and includes intergenerational transmission of learning. While we honor the role of guests within lineages, the intent of this opportunity is to first resource individuals and cultures that are from the cultural and heritage lineage that they practice. Culture Bearers recognize a need in the community for reconnection with ancestral teachings, a need of Culture Bearers for space. Additionally, funding and supportive structures share their teachings and a need to connect across cultures. The Organization will continue to build the Culture Bearer Exchange Network. This network will be centered around processing decolonization with our participants to make space for intercultural, intergenerational, and intertribal learning and connection to encourage a flourishing exchange of traditional arts and cultural practices extending far beyond our neighborhood and city.

Artist and Business Incubation:Indigenous Roots IRoots is a coalition of artists, culture bearers, business owners, cultural groups and organizations dedicated to building, supporting and cultivating opportunities for and with Brown, Black, Native and Indigenous Peoples through cultural arts and activism. As such, they lend their space, resources and networks to emerging BIPOC artists, culture bearers and small business owners seeking to establish themselves. They do this for example by hosting 8-10 emerging artists gallery exhibitions throughout the year, sharing storefront space with small businesses, grant writing assistance and more. Their collective partners include BLCK Press, City Mischief, Indigenous Lotus, Videos de Sancho, Karaya Guey, Kalpulli Yaocenoxtli, Conferencia Alianza Latinx, Filipinx for Immigrant Rights and Racial Justice in Minnesota, Esencia Mexicana, Cypher Side and a dozen other artists and groups and the Organization acts as fiscal sponsor for a large variety of smaller organizations.

Youth-Led and Youth-Centered Programming:Indigenous Roots is home to the Interthrival Indigenous Youth Coalition (IIYC) which is a youth council that acts as the driving force behind the representation of youth voice in our space. As such, the Organization has a variety of youth-centered programming and events taking place. At the core of their youth work is Roots Cafe - a youth led, creative economy development program. Roots Cafe not only offers a safe environment to develop employment skills, but provides a space for youth to form positive adult relationships, connect with their cultural identity and connect

Community Responsive Programming, Advocacy and Special Events:Beyond its regular programming, Indigenous Roots receives a lot of requests for partner- and allyship for events, social justice and community related projects, events and more. As they continually aim to meet the ever changing needs of a widely diverse community, their programming shifts throughout the years, including a variety or staple events that activate community and provide opportunities for engagement with large audiences.In this work, they are often leveraging their vast network of community partners as well as being called on for policy work, advocacy on various level and engage in policy work that pushes for adequate representation and funding for core issues identified within the communities they serve.