U.S. Senator Recognizes Everyday Native's Salish Indian Poet

Walnut Creek, Calif. (November 8, 2018) – Everyday Native, a free 4th to 12th grade online teacher's resource, continues receiving praise for its poetry, photography and roots in cross-cultural collaboration that aim to help heal racism. On October 11, 2018, U.S. Sen., Jon Tester (D, MT), recognized Everyday Native poet, Victor Charlo, for his role in assuring culturally sensitive representations of Native youth and families. Additionally, images of Everyday Native youth by resource photographer Sue Reynolds are featured in two photo exhibitions documenting diverse communities. Everyday Native's cross-cultural artists and collaborators continue their mission of combatting hate by healing divisions, heading into Native American Heritage Month.

In recognition of Charlo, Sen. Tester congratulates the Everyday Native Salish Indian poet from the Flathead Reservation in Montana on "earning national recognition" and further comments, "thanks for your guidance to educators on creating their understanding of all Montanans."

On October 27, 2018, an image of Native youth Joe Parizeau by Everyday Native photographer Reynolds was selected and featured in the Social Documentary Network's 10th Anniversary Exhibition and Party, an evening acknowledging the global documentary community, held at Bronx Documentary Center in Bronx, NY.

Another of Reynolds' Everyday Native images, 'Red Fancy Dancer,' created on the Flathead Reservation in Montana, is currently featured in the East Bay Photo Collective's (EBPCO) first annual exhibition, "Bay Area Big Shots," up through Dec. 31st at Panorama Framing, in Oakland, CA.

A mid-show reception on Dec. 6th and a closing reception on Dec. 29th are free and open to the public.

Everyday Native Celebrates Native Experiences

The Native youth featured in Everyday Native are based on the real stories of the resiliency and struggles of Native families today. Opposing stereotypes of Native youth and families lies at the core of Everyday Native's mission, which emphasizes relationship building through understanding as the antidote to hate. In Charlo's poem, 'Journey,' featured in Everyday Native, he writes, "Think of...grandmothers, of great grandfathers, of my children...So, sing this time when time is ripe...to thunder again."

Everyday Native recognizes and honors Native American Heritage Month through its new Everyday Native Facebook page, launched November 6th.

Cross-Cultural Collaboration: A Long Friendship

Everyday Native was born out of the collaboration between non-Native documentary photographer, Sue Reynolds, and Victor Charlo, a Salish Indian poet-playwright and venerated member of the Salish Kootenai Tribes. Reynolds and Charlo's first collaboration included a photo-poetry book, Still Here: Not Living in Tipis, which saw success and recognition from then-U.S. Congressman George Miller and then-California State Senator Mark DeSaulnier. Both Reynolds and Charlo's works strive towards healing racism and have appeared in national and international outlets.