Native American Heritage Month (also referred to as American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month) is celebrated in November to honor the contributions indigenous people have made in the United States, to increase knowledge around their history and culture and to better understand the truth and reconciliation needed to repair the trauma.
Before it was a month, the awareness started off with efforts to have a recognized day. To honor the contributions of the first people of the land, Indian and non-Indian Americans began to advocate for a special day. The first “American Indian Day” was declared on the second Saturday in May 1916 by the governor of New York, due to the efforts of Red Fox James, a Blackfeet Indian who in 1915 rode from state to state seeking approval to have state governments acknowledge and honor American Indians. After the declaration by New York, several states later either celebrated it on the fourth Friday in September or designated Columbus Day as Native American Day.
The awareness spread to the federal government in 1976 with the Senate Joint Resolution (S.J. Res.) 209 to proclaim October 10 to 16 as “Native American Awareness Week” and afterwards Presidents Regan and Bush made different proclamations regarding when the week would be recognized. In 1990, the November month-long recognition for Native Americans was signed through the joint congressional resolution, H.J. Res 577, signed by President George H.W. Bush.
Did you know?
- SUNY Oswego is on the ancestral land of the Haudenosaunee (Pronounce: Ho-de-no-sau-nee) Confederacy. Read the SUNY Oswego Land Acknowledgment Statement.
- SUNY Oswego was one of the first institutions in SUNY to offer a Native American Studies program. You can pursue a minor in Native American Studies or start by taking one class in spring 2023 to learn more about indigenous people.
- You can find the Skä•noñh Great Law of Peace Center at 6680 Onondaga Lake Parkway in Liverpool. The center and museum tells the story of the native peoples of Central New York through the lens of the Onondaga Nation.
- The terms “American Indian,” “Indian,” “Native” or “Native American” are used interchangeably in the United States but each person or group of people may have their own preference. In order to find out, ask what term they prefer.
- The Haudenosaunee people prefer to be recognized as “First Nations”.
Events:
Tuesday, Nov. 1: "Negotiating Native Nations and Names" in Seneca Hall. For those who are not residents of Seneca Hall, you are encouraged to come between 6:45 pm to 7 pm for participation in the event.
Be on the lookout via email and the James A. Triandiflou ‘88 Institute for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Transformative Practice’s social media (Instagram: @ozinstitute) for more information next month as November is Native American Heritage Month.
-- Submitted by the James A. Triandiflou ‘88 Institute for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Transformative Practice