UnSelling Mama Earth

August 17, 2025

The article describes an initiative called "UnSelling" in which Indigenous and houseless peoples created a document to decommodify land, challenging the capitalist system that treats Earth as a commodity. On August 10th, participants symbolically "UnSold" a portion of land in Oakland (referred to as occupied Ohlone/Lisjan village of Huchiun) as part of the Homefulness project. The "Liberation Easement and Peoples Agreement of Homefulness" document asserts that participants are stewards rather than owners of the land.

Who is affected

Indigenous peoples, particularly the Ohlone/Lisjan communities
Houseless/homeless individuals and families
Poor communities and communities of color
Elders facing displacement and eviction
Future generations mentioned in the Homefulness agreement

What action is being taken

Creation and signing of the "UnSelling" document to decommodify land
Implementation of the "Liberation Easement and Peoples Agreement of Homefulness"
The Homefulness project is actively working to provide alternatives to land ownership
Leaders like Corrina Gould (Ohlone/Lisjan leader), Aunti Frances Moore and Tiny (Homefulness co-founders) are signing and promoting the UnSelling document

Why it matters

Challenges the normalized system of treating land as a commodity that can be bought and sold
Addresses historical injustices of settler colonialism and land theft
Confronts ongoing issues of homelessness, displacement, and gentrification
Reconnects to pre-colonization concepts when homelessness didn't exist
Proposes an alternative relationship with land based on stewardship rather than ownership

What's next

No explicit next steps stated in the article

Read full article from source: San Francisco Bay View National Black Newspaper