Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Welcome to Redwood Community Radio's special series celebrating Women's History Month. Throughout history, women have led, innovated, and broken barriers in every field, often against the odds. Let's dive into their stories and celebrate their achievements.
[00:00:19] Speaker B: Cheryl A. Seidner is Cultural liaison and former councilwoman for the Wiat Tribe in Humboldt, California.
Cheryl A. Sidener's passionate work on behalf of Indigenous communities has enriched the lives of people throughout the United States.
Ms. Seidner is recognized for her ability to foster cooperative activism among American Indians at the regional, state, and national level. She has taken leadership roles with a number of organizations and on a number of issues. Her work has included serving on the Executive Committee for the National Congress of American Indians as the travel Chair for the Wiatt tribe. Ms. Seidner has dedicated herself to numerous efforts to honor Wiatt worldviews and cultural practices.
She helped organize an annual candlelight vigil as a memorial to those who died in the massacre of 1860, which held space and developed into a movement for the return of Tuluat. She oversaw the return of Tuluat, a sacred site for her people, and was instrumental in bringing back the Wiatte Young Women's Coming of Age Ceremony, which had not been held in more than a century. Ms. Seidner is a published writer and a poet whose work has appeared in the Humboldt Historian, News from Native California, as well as books including California Fault, Abalone Tales, Gold, Greed, and Genocide. She has given lectures about the Wiatte people throughout California and the nation. Ms. Seidner retired from the Educational Opportunity Program after 28 years of service at Humboldt State University, located on Wea ancestral land. In this role, she was involved in student outreach and made frequent trips to disadvantaged communities. She has been an important mentor to students, many of whom are now in regional leadership roles.
[00:02:04] Speaker A: These women's stories remind us that courage, resilience, and vision can transform the world. Keep celebrating, keep learning, and keep lifting each other up because history is still being written.
[00:02:19] Speaker C: Oh, I get ha.
