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P=Poetry, N=Nonfiction, F=Fiction
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PFN – Call for Submissions to Friends Journal on the Theme: Indigenous People and Friends
The history of Quaker relations with Indigenous peoples is full of contradictions. William Penn famously negotiated the Treaty of Shackamaxon with the Lenape when he arrived in their territory (what is now known as Pennsylvania), but 55 years later his sons famously cheated them out of huge tracts of lands. There are stories of Friends organizing food aid, but then part of the starvation was due to the mass deaths caused by diseases Friends brought. Friends opened boarding and day schools for Native American children, but then ran them with a patronizing zeal that cut students off from their families, culture, language, and spirituality.
In January 2026 we’re looking at Indigenous Peoples and Friends, both the history and current relations.
We’d like to center Indigenous perspectives for this issue, but we realize that even this brings up complicated identities: how much Native ancestry does one need to qualify? What kind of cultural background suffices? I hope a lot of personal storytelling explains the nuances of identity.
We’d also like to lift up the various choices Indigenous peoples and Indigenous Friends have made. There are majority-Native Quaker meetings, both individual congregations and yearly meetings, which have adopted but also adapted the colonizer’s Christianity. Other Indigenous Friends have sought to maintain and reclaim Native spiritualities, and of course there are those who fall along the various points in the theological spectrums of worldwide Quakerism. We’d like to know what kind of powerful resources you’ve found in your own tradition and also what oversights and corrections might be needed.
Friends Journal is also seeking out voices from outside the United States for this and all issues. Friends in regions such as Latin America and Africa are welcome to share their stories.
Fast Facts
- Features run 1200-2500 words.
- Questions? Email editors@friendsjournal.org
- Learn more general information at Friendsjournal.org/submissions.