“We Are Created from this Land”: Washat Leaders Reflect on Place-Based Spiritual Beliefs

Abstract

Washat leaders Rex Buck, Jr. (Wanapum), and Wilson Wewa (North Paiute, Warm Springs) help tribal members prepare for death, burials, and assist in spiritual ceremonies. They met with Oregon Historical Quarterly editor Eliza E. Canty-Jones following the Oregon Historical Society's September 2013 “Death and the Settling and Unsettling of Oregon” symposium to expand on the themes discussed that day. In this edited transcript, Buck and Wewa discuss Native spirituality and connection to the land: “We are created from this land. And out of the ground comes all of our medicine, all of our roots, all of our berries — all the things we need for our livelihood.” That connection also compels them to work to maintain Native traditions and lifeways through interactions with their communities.