We are still here

Virgil Two Eagle Sr., Two Eagle Buffalo Ranch, Pine Ridge, SD

We are coming up on the 250th year of this nation — 250 years of a history that tried and failed to erase Native communities and the Buffalo we've always called relatives. We are still here and so are they.

When we think about this history, and the Fourth of July specifically, the reality is our Tribal nations view it differently. Some have served this country as soldiers, while many others don’t see this as a time to commemorate. The backdrop has always been colonization. The removal from our ancestral lands and Buffalo murdered to near extinction. 

“For us it is a story of continued fight for survival,” said Phillip Gaudon, Tanka Fund Marketing Director and Mi’kmaq First Nations. “We are still here, fighting for our homelands and our Buffalo relatives.”

Bringing Buffalo to the land, lives, and economies of Native people is about reclamation and restoration. Buffalo restoration is one of the strongest ways to bring back in balance what was lost, stolen, and removed. Our relatives revitalize the land, and their restoration pushes back against generations of cultural and economic destruction. At numbers upwards to roughly 450,000, 250 years later their numbers continue to grow. 

This year we are asking you to stand with us. When you support Tanka Fund with a gift of $20 or more, you help return Buffalo to Native hands and you will receive a 2nd Edition “Infinity Journey of the Buffalo” wool blanket by Eighth Generation – the first Native-owned company to produce wool blankets. This gift is available while supplies last. 

Additionally, over the coming weeks we’re asking our rancher partners and staff what the last 250 years means to them. 

“We are still standing on this land as a reminder of our resilience — what we value and hold dear isn’t going anywhere,” Phillip added. “We won’t be silenced.”