Peace on the Plains

The settling of the American West was fraught with conflict among the Indigenous American tribes displaced to and living in the West and those who sought to settle or find their fortune there- and particularly those sent to guard trails as they opened and expanded. 150 years later, the US continues to grapple with the effects of this period, most recently evidenced by attention drawn to egregious treatment of youth sent to American Indian boarding schools and the call to change names of school mascots and sports teams that present an outdated and offensive caricature of First Peoples.

Meanwhile, though the land has changed dramatically in the past 200 years, conflict sites dot the landscape, including remnants of forts, bridges and trails, as well as preserved and dedicated spaces that allow the visitor to glimpse- and to feel history.

Peace on the Plains is a nascent project, growing out of one person’s participation in the Peace Laboratory begun by the European Foundation for Shamanic Studies immediately following the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. All participants were asked to take on a personal peace project that would bring peace in some way to the world. A 20-year resident of Laramie, WY, I chose to center my project on conflict sites in the region, to listen and bring healing to the land, and to document the sites, their tortured history, and their current state.

How can we sit on the land and see the past, feel conflict, and help with healing? I look forward to illustrating efforts thus far and discussing and practicing methods with those interested in bringing peace to the land around us.

This is not a separate ticketed event. Your Higher Ground Fair ticket will get you entry.