Honoring Indigenous Peoples’ Day

Hopefully, we have all been hearing and sharing more Land Acknowledgements, which recognize and honor the Indigenous Peoples who are the original stewards of the lands on which we now live. Acknowledging the land we occupy is by itself a small gesture. Yet this first step of showing respect and support can become more meaningful when coupled with informed action, authentic relationships, and work toward reconciliation.

To help ourselves and our children become more aware, informed, and accountable, we can start by sharing stories about the present-day life and culture of Native Peoples, celebrating indigenous activism, and learning about the history of the people whose land we live on. 

All too often our children have unconsciously absorbed harmful stereotypes about Indigenous Peoples or that Native Americans only existed in our country’s past. Thus, we need to be very intentional about providing current, accurate, and respectful information on Indigenous Peoples’ Day and throughout the year.

Show Representation

Mainstream culture often presents native peoples as fierce, war-like, and to be feared, or sometimes in a more romanticized, puristic way. Children absorb these kinds of stereotypes through sports mascots, books, movies, and even place names. Non-native authors sometimes also unintentionally reinforce stereotypes or conflate different tribes’ cultures and histories. Countering these messages takes conscious work. 

An easy way to begin is by infusing our home and school libraries with books that show native people living in our current time period. Young children cannot distinguish between the past and the present and showing Native Peoples in current day settings disrupts the false narrative that Native Americans are a “people of the past.” One of the best sources we’ve found is Rebekah Gienapp’s list of indigenous children’s books. 

In addition to reading stories and sharing books with more accurate representation, we can also incorporate books, art, and music created by American Indians. If you’d like some sources to help begin this journey, check out:

Native American Musicians We Should Know

Embracing Contemporary Native American Art as Contemporary Art

Why Study Native American Literature

Project 562: A multi-year national photography project dedicated to photographing over 562 federally recognized Tribes, urban Native communities, Tribes fighting for federal recognition, and Indigenous role models

Meet Indigenous Speakers and Learn How They’re Keeping Their Languages Alive

Through their own words, music, performance, and advocacy, Native American and Indigenous artists share important insights into their hopes, fears, traditions, and stories. In the process of taking in more respectful representation, our young people can offer more acceptance and experience more genuine appreciation. 

Focus on Your Community

We can also accompany our children on a journey of learning about the original people who lived on the land we now occupy. This investigation is most suitable for children as they enter their elementary years, as it means digging into some history. In this process, we can help our children appreciate how there are multitudes of Native American nations and that each has their own language, culture, history, and traditions. As we learn about the Native Peoples of our place, we can then be more specific as we talk about native culture. For example, “This book is about the Mohican people.” 

An amazing interactive resource that can help children also appreciate geography through a cultural lens is the Native Land Digital map. Because the map does not show political boundaries, children can visually discover some of the fluidity of native territories and languages. The site also provides links to local Native American nations for more information. 

Celebrate Activism

As we learn more about and honor our Native Peoples, it’s important that we and our children are also aware of indigenous struggles and victories. We can start by introducing one of the many movements for native rights. We can also find local events that feature Native Peoples and then ideally support those events that give back to the Indigenous community. 

As we learn with our children, we can also explore ideas for making reparations. The Land You Live On: An Education Guide by Native Land recommends first honoring a nation by taking the time to learn how to pronounce a nation’s name correctly. Three options listed in The Land You Live On are:

1. Respectfully ask someone from the nation.
2. Check the nation’s website for a phonetic pronunciation on their “About” page, an audio recording of their name, or videos that include people saying the nation’s name.
3. Call the nation after hours and listen to their voicemail recording.

The Native Land Education Guide also encourages thoughtful reflection in order to make Land Acknowledgements more meaningful. Helpful questions provided include: 

• Why is this acknowledgment happening?
• How does this acknowledgment relate to the event or work you are doing?
• What is the history of this territory? What are the impacts of colonialism here?
• What is your relationship to this territory?
• How did you come to be here?
• What intentions do you have to disrupt and dismantle colonialism beyond this territory acknowledgment?

On this Indigenous Peoples’ Day, let’s commit to having a greater consciousness and disrupting false narratives throughout the year. In this process, we can help our young people feel more empowered to provide support and take action!