Feb. 4, 2025  

Media Contacts:     
Marcine Miller, Executive Director, Public Information Office, 509-682-6582, mmiller2@wvc.edu

Wenatchee Valley College Omak Professor Kestrel Smith, Ph.D., will present “Fish Wars: Tribal Rights and Resiliency in the Pacific Northwest,” part of the WVC Speaks Lecture Series, on Feb. 19 at 6 p.m. The public is invited to this free event in the Music and Art Center’s Grove Recital Hall on the Wenatchee campus. 

In the 1960s and '70s, tribes throughout the Pacific Northwest launched protests and acts of civil disobedience to pressure the government to recognize their fishing rights. Now known as the “Fish Wars,” the lessons from these events remain relevant today. In this talk, Dr. Smith surveys the evidence and events before and after the Fish Wars, which rocked Washington state for decades. Encompassing tribal sovereignty, treaties, statehood, and the fish themselves, the Fish Wars are a powerful reminder of our interconnectedness. Understanding these events is a first, and essential, step in achieving social, cultural, and political justice. 

Participants will have an opportunity to ask questions during a Q&A session at the end of the lecture. 

Dr. Smith is the instructor and program chair of the American Indian Indigenous Studies (AIIS) program at Wenatchee Valley College Omak. Much of her work has focused on how to place Indigenous epistemologies and education within broader historical and cultural contexts to better understand the contemporary Indigenous experience. In 2014, Smith completed her M.A. in American Indian Studies (AIS) at the University of Arizona with a thesis examining the social impacts of Tribal Colleges and Universities. In 2018, she received her Ph.D. in AIS with a minor in Higher Education from the University of Arizona, completing her doctoral dissertation on American Indian student access to college preparatory resources. In the fall of 2018, she moved to Washington state to begin building a new AIIS program at Wenatchee Valley College Omak, the state's first full AIIS program at a community college. 

WVC Speaks is Wenatchee Valley College’s monthly lecture series that celebrates our faculty and staff’s expertise on a range of topics relevant to life in North Central Washington. Our speakers are inspirational members of our faculty, staff, and community. WVC invites our community to come together to learn, engage with new perspectives, and connect. 

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About Wenatchee Valley College 

Founded in 1939, Wenatchee Valley College enriches North Central Washington and delivers relevant, innovative, and experiential educational opportunities for thriving and healthy communities. Learn more at www.wvc.edu.  

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