Press release from Change Our Name Fort Bragg:

Change Our Name Fort Bragg Invites the public to a Teach-in on Wednesday, January 3, at 7:30 p.m. at the Fort Bragg Library Community Room, 499 E Laurel St, Fort Bragg.

A local grass roots non-profit, Change Our Name Fort Bragg is dedicated to an educational process that leads to changing the name of Fort Bragg so that it no longer honors a military Fort that dispossessed Indigenous people or Braxton Bragg, a Confederate General. who waged war against our country.

Envisioned as a program to educate attendees about the issues involved in the name change and to hear neighbors’ ideas, the teach-in will last about one hour and will feature two speakers and a question and answer/discussion period.

Speakers will be:

Grace Maria Eberhardt, a PhD student in history at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she researches twentieth-century histories of biology, eugenics, race, and ethnicity in the U.S. Grace led the movement to change the name of the Slater Museum of Natural History at the University of Puget Sound, her alma Mater, which was named after a professor who taught eugenics post-WWII.

Buffey Wright Bourassa facilitates communication to cultivate and enhance relationships, with expertise in Tribal engagement consultation, capacity development, strategic implementation, and collaboration. She is a member of the Sherwood Valley Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians and has ancestral connections to the Little River Pomo, Wiyot, and Pinoleville Pomo. Currently, she holds the position of Tribal Secretary on the Sherwood Valley Tribal Council and is an engaged member of the Willits Rotary Club.

Discussing a controversial topic requires civility and respect for the opinions of others. This program is neither sponsored by nor affiliated with the Mendocino County Library/Museum.

This program is free and open to all.

for further information: changeournamefortbragg@gmail.com