Tucson Honors World’s Indigenous Peoples

On August 9, 2015 the local group Alianza Indigena Sin Fronteras celebrated 18 years of promoting respect for Indigenous Peoples by hosting an event in honor of the United Nation’s International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples.

Speakers include Jose Matus and James Anaya. Executive Director Jose Matus talks about the origin of the Indigenous Alliance without Borders. He is a Yaqui Ceremonial Elder and Leader of the Yaqui Community of the City of South Tucson’s Barrio Libre. In 1997, the Indigenous Alliance Without Borders came together as a result of persistent law enforcement abuse against indigenous peoples living in the southern United States and Mexico border region.

James Anaya is a Regents Professor and the  James J. Lenoir Professor of Human Rights Law and Policy at the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law, where he teaches and writes in the areas of international human rights, constitutional law, and issues concerning indigenous peoples. He is also the former United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.