Real Rent Duwamish allows residents of Seattle to pay rent to Duwamish Tribe

Before Seattle, Washington became the bustling city it is today, it was the home to the Duwamish Tribe. But to this day, they are not recognized by the United States government as the original inhabitants of the land.

The Coalition of Anti-Racist Whites started a campaign for Seattleites to — at least financially — give back to the tribe.

Real Rent Duwamish is a campaign that allows people to contribute money to the tribe, sometimes as monthly rent, but there's also the opportunity for one time payments.

"It creates a regular, predictable and sustainable source of income for the tribe with essentially no strings attached," said Patrick Tefft, who is part of the coalition.

"It was in large part inspired by something that Cecil Hansen, the Duwamish Tribal Chairperson said, that if every person who lives in Seattle would donate a dollar per year, then they would be in a much better situation."

Tefft said he first got involved in the initiative to learn more about local Seattle history.

"I first got involved because I realized that I had been living, working and benefiting from living on Duwamish lands … and I knew virtually nothing about the local history," said Tefft.

"It has allowed me to view Indigenous people and their place in history … [when most people] learn about Indigenous people it tends to focus on the past and I'm now fully engaged in how they deserve to be part of the local present, and future."

The initiative was launched in 2017 on Indigenous Peoples' Day, which is celebrated in the United States on Oct. 14.

Since launching, the campaign has taken off — currently there are more than 2300 real renters.

"People give $10, some people give $18.55 to represent the 1855 treaty … and then there's some bigger donors, but those aren't regular," said Jonlene Haas, who is Duwamish and works at the Duwamish Longhouse.  

Haas said that when she first received a call from the coalition about the initiative, she was a little surprised.

"I was intrigued and a little confused because I wasn't sure what real rent meant … it became quite clear to me that this was a sort of act of reparation," said Haas.  

"It's quite a shocking thing to us every month when we receive a cheque — so it's a very humbling experience."