#motahkomikuk — Public Fediverse posts

#Maine - Gubernatorial Candidates Take Part in #WabanakiAlliance Forum

"Eight gubernatorial candidates and more than 150 people attended the Wabanaki Alliance 2026 Gubernatorial Forum March 19 at the Houlton Community Resource Center. Hosted by the #HoultonBandOfMalisset Indians, the forum included eight candidates who responded to questions from moderators and forum attendees about nonpartisan issues and policy affecting the #WabanakiNations.

"Candidates received questions from #MaulianBryant, citizen of the #PenobscotNation and executive director of the Wabanaki Alliance; #MalleahBrown, a citizen of the #PassamaquoddyTribe at #Motahkomikuk and youth lead with the #WabanakiYouth Policy Initiative; and #OsihkiyolCroftonMacdonald, #HoultonBand of Maliseet Indians Ambassador and president of the Wabanaki Alliance Board. #ClarissaSabattis, Tribal Chief of the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians, made opening and closing remarks.

"Participating candidates included (in alphabetical order)

- #ShennaBellows (D)
- #RickBennett (I)
- #JohnGlowa (I)
- #TroyJackson (D)
- #DerekLevasseur (I)
- #HannahPingree (D)
- #NiravShah (D)
- #AngusKingIII (D)

"The primary election for Democratic and Republican candidates is Tuesday, June 9. The general election is Tuesday, Nov. 3."

Source:
https://wabanakialliance.com/gubernatorial-candidates-forum-2026/

Recording of the forum:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLzaxN-YE7k&t=29s

#MaineGovernor #MainePol #Elections2026 #TribalRights #Wabanakik #WabanakiSovereignty
#LandBack #Dawnland #MaineSettlementAct #WaterIsLife #WabanakiConfederacy

Another #Nihkaniyane Honoree, #EmmaSoctomah, is the daughter of Elizabeth Neptune and #DonaldSoctomah -- Donald being another person I learned a lot from when I was covering the #MaineRivers conference! Emma is also the grandchild of renowned #Passamaquoddy #Basketmaker #MollyNeptuneParker.

"Emma Soctomah is a Passamaquoddy citizen of #Motahkomikuk and was the 2025 class valedictorian at University of Maine Machias,where she majored in psychology and community studies. She was an active participant in the college’s Kinap Mentorship Program, which creates both on- and off-campus programs aimed at bringing together #Wabanaki cultural values and Indigenous ways of knowing with Western education. She plans to continue working at the elementary school in Motahkomikuk and will pursue a master’s degree beginning in fall 2026. Soctomah is the daughter of Donald Soctomah and Elizabeth Neptune and the granddaughter of world renowned basketmaker Molly Neptune Parker. Soctomah is also a nationally recognized basketmaker and was among the first artists to receive an #AbbeMuseum Wabanaki #Artist Fellowship."

Learn more about Emma:
https://www.wabanakialliance.com/nihkaniyane2025-emmasoctomah/

#CulturalPreservation #PreservingHistory #IndigenousLanguage #IndigenousHistory #TraditionalArts #NativeAmericanArtists #valedictorian