Photograph courtesy Briana Mazzolini-Blanchard
Briana Mazzolini-Blanchard, a member of the CHamoru (the Indigenous people of Guam), is executive director of the Urban Native Collective, the region’s only nonprofit to strengthen and promote the communities of First Nations, Indigenous Native American people. Taking the reins last year, she has infused the organization with new blood, opened up its revamped Northside HQ to the public, and expanded its ambitions.
How many Indigenous people live in Greater Cincinnati?
About 98,000. That includes American Indian and Alaskan Natives, Central and South Americans, and Island Natives.
Is invisibility an issue for Native Peoples?
Authentic representation is important to us. It’s important we let people know we’re still here. We are often considered as a people of the past. There’s a romanticized notion about what Native People should look like; maybe today we look ethnically ambiguous and others don’t see us as Indigenous. That mentality contributes to the erasure of Native culture.
Are there any reservations in the area?
No. There are no state or federally recognized tribes or reservations in Ohio even though more than 50 tribal nations called this land home. The Miami, Shawnee, and Wyandott were among the largest tribes. In 1843, the last tribe, the Wyandott, was forcibly removed via steamboat on the Ohio River here in Cincinnati. The Great Removal resulted in Native People’s forced relocation out West.
Were you always proud of being CHamoru?
No. I went to a Catholic middle school in Cleveland with white kids who made fun of the way I looked. I had a lot of deeply rooted insecurity and shame for who I was. My culture was something I didn’t talk about. It was something I did with my family that was cool and interesting; the dancing and ceremonies, hearing family members speak the language. It took a while for me to feel completely confident in who I am, to think “I am not alone.” I think that a lot of people in urban Native communities understand that struggle.
As executive director, you have rebuilt the UNC from the ashes of its predecessor, the Greater Cincinnati Native American Coalition. What changes have you made?
I want us to be as transparent as possible. At the Native Sovereignty Center, which was previously just used as an office space, it’s now a community space with a lending library with more than 400 books. We host small events here, like a book club and movie nights.
How do you serve such a large community with a small staff?
The three pillars of our work are education, advocacy, and support. We partner with a lot of other organizations. We work with institutions such as museums to do trainings. For something like health and wellness support, we work with the Urban Indian Health Institute in Washington [state], which helps us address wellness in a traditional Indigenous way. In our urban gardens/food sovereignty program, we grow traditional foods and medicines in urban garden spaces. One is on the side of our building and the other is within Gorman Heritage Farm. We invite the community to plant seeds and be part of that process to carry on that knowledge from generation to generation. We feed our bodies in a way that can curb chronic diseases prevalent in Native communities.
What’s the main education project?
Our podcast, Life on the Margins: An Urban Native Experience. It’s a perfect example of our focus being regional but our reach being national. It’s where we can talk about everything from Turtle Island [an Indigenous name for this continent] to Leonard Peltier [the imprisoned Native American activist] to a punk rock band that features pow-wow drumming. The downtown library and Playhouse in the Park help us record the podcasts and provide the space for a live audience.
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