Hollywood celebrities, including, This Is Us star Mandy Moore and actress Julianne Moore, are calling on Joe Biden to nominate Representative Deb Haaland (D-NM) as United States Secretary of the Interior. Haaland is Native American and the stars say “Native people hold a sacred connection to the natural world.”
“It is in this spirit that we, Native American women and Indigenous peoples’ allies, write to urge you to appoint Congresswoman Deb Haaland as Secretary of the Department of the Interior,” the group of 100 women said in a letter published on Thursday.
The Hollywood figures who signed the letter include Uzo Aduba, Cher, Rosario Dawson, America Ferrera, Jane Fonda, Chelsea Handler, Catherine Keener, Alyssa Milano, Julianne Moore, Mandy Moore, Kathy Najimy, Piper Perabo, Zoe Saldana, Amy Schumer, Sarah Silverman, Gloria Steinem, Marisa Tomei, Kerry Washington, and Debra Winger, among others.
“We are alive at a time when each of our actions will determine the fate of the natural world, which we call Mother Earth,” the letter continues. “We call her Mother because without her life would not exist. The life support system that she provides, which is also called the climate, is now under terrible strain.”
The letter goes on to state that Rep. Haaland should be chosen for Interior Secretary due to her background, because Native Americans “hold a sacred connection to the natural world,” and the so-called “climate crisis” needs to be addressed.
“Fortunately despite all of the struggles we have endured, Native people hold a sacred connection to the natural world at the moment when the human species need it most,” the letter affirms. “The Department of Interior will play a critical role in your Administration to both address the climate crisis and to honor the Indigenous people of this country.”
“We believe it is critical at this time for the first Native American to serve in the President’s Cabinet, so we can begin to shift the focus back to caring for future generations and returning to a value system that honors Mother Earth,” the letter adds.
The women go on to call on Biden to be an “ally of the light” to Native Americans, echoing the former vice president’s sentiments from August, when he accepted the Democrat presidential nomination with a vow to be a unifying “ally of the light.”
The letter was signed by tribal leaders, activists, and professors, among others.
You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, on Parler at @alana, and on Instagram.
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