It's time to recognize that celebrating the life of Christopher Columbus also celebrates the erasure of Indigenous existence. While there is a growing movement around the country to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples Day, more work remains to be done. We are excited to share some local and national events celebrating Indigenous Peoples and Indigenous Peoples Day.
In the United States, 30 states now celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day, or a holiday of a similar name, on the second Monday of October, as an official holiday or via proclamation. In 2021, Biden issued the first-ever presidential proclamation of Indigenous Peoples Day, however, he did not replace Columbus Day.
By Phoebe Farris (Powhatan-Pamunkey)
By Tia-Alexi Roberts (Narragansett, CS Staff)
This article shares the history of Indian residential schools in Canada and the colonial violence that harmed Indigenous Nations, particularly children. The content may be upsetting. If you need emotional support, please contact the 24-hour Residential School Crisis Line at 1-866-925-4419.
By Phoebe Farris (Powhatan-Pamunkey)
Every year around the 23rd of June, Mixtec people from the municipality of San Juan Mixtepec gather to celebrate their patron saint. The music echoes between their respective gathering places in Oaxaca and Lamont, California.
For decades, legal challenges have been launched with an underlying goal of undermining Tribal governance and sovereignty across the United States. Last year, in Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta (2022), the Supreme Court narrowed the scope of its previous landmark ruling in McGirt v.
My landlord hasn’t removed the wooden boards from my windows yet. So, every morning I wake up to a dark apartment. It’s disorienting as much as it is a reminder of the darkness that is consuming our island; a darkness that is both literal and figurative. Literal, because half of the island’s power has yet to be restored. Figurative, because economic disparity is palpable (and sickening), especially in this time. This time that is post-disaster.
On May 6, 2023, as England was coronating a new king after weeks of mourning the passing of their previous ruler, Mashpee Wampanoags were also taking the day to fill the void of leadership left by the death of Vernon “Silent Drum” Lopez, the chief of Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe for the last 25 years of his life.
Land Acknowledgement
We acknowledge that we are headquartered on Massachusett land, in Cambridge, MA, and we thank the past, current, and future Indigenous stewards of this territory.
