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Why Is Indigenous People's Day Important?

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Why Is Indigenous People's Day Important?

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My interest in the topic of Indigenous Peoples' Day was sparked when I watched "Native Americans Discuss Why To Celebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day Instead Of Columbus Day." This is a very serious topic. Before this video, I had no idea how Columbus Day can be offending to others.

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Berkeley was the first U.S. city to observe the holiday in 1992. Here's why.

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Native Americans Discuss Why To Celebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day Instead Of Columbus Day

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Since time immemorial, American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians have built vibrant and diverse cultures - safeguarding land, language, spirit, knowledge, and tradition across the generations. On Indigenous Peoples' Day, our Nation celebrates the invaluable contributions and resilience of Indigenous peoples, recognizes their inherent sovereignty, and commits to honoring the Federal Government's trust and treaty obligations to Tribal Nations.

Our country was conceived on a promise of equality and opportunity for all people - a promise that, despite the extraordinary progress we have made through the years, we have never fully lived up to. That is especially true when it comes to upholding the rights and dignity of the Indigenous people who were here long before colonization of the Americas began. For generations, Federal policies systematically sought to assimilate and displace Native people and eradicate Native cultures. Today, we recognize Indigenous peoples' resilience and strength as well as the immeasurable positive impact that they have made on every aspect of American society. We also recommit to supporting a new, brighter future of promise and equity for Tribal Nations - a future grounded in Tribal sovereignty and respect for the human rights of Indigenous people in the Americas and around the world.

In the first week of my Administration, I issued a memorandum reaffirming our Nation's solemn trust and treaty obligations to American Indian and Alaska Native Tribal Nations and directed the heads of executive departments and agencies to engage in regular, meaningful, and robust consultation with Tribal officials. It is a priority of my Administration to make respect for Tribal sovereignty and self-governance the cornerstone of Federal Indian policy. History demonstrates that Native American people - and our Nation as a whole - are best served when Tribal governments are empowered to lead their communities and when Federal officials listen to and work together with Tribal leaders when formulating Federal policy that affects Tribal Nations.

The contributions that Indigenous peoples have made throughout history - in public service, entrepreneurship, scholarship, the arts, and countless other fields - are integral to our Nation, our culture, and our society. Indigenous peoples have served, and continue to serve, in the United States Armed Forces with distinction and honor - at one of the highest rates of any group - defending our security every day. And Native Americans have been on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, working essential jobs and carrying us through our gravest moments. Further, in recognition that the pandemic has harmed Indigenous peoples at an alarming and disproportionate rate, Native communities have led the way in connecting people with vaccination, boasting some of the highest rates of any racial or ethnic group.

The Federal Government has a solemn obligation to lift up and invest in the future of Indigenous people and empower Tribal Nations to govern their own communities and make their own decisions. We must never forget the centuries-long campaign of violence, displacement, assimilation, and terror wrought upon Native communities and Tribal Nations throughout our country. Today, we acknowledge the significant sacrifices made by Native peoples to this country - and recognize their many ongoing contributions to our Nation.

On Indigenous Peoples' Day, we honor America's first inhabitants and the Tribal Nations that continue to thrive today. I encourage everyone to celebrate and recognize the many Indigenous communities and cultures that make up our great country.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim October 11, 2021, as Indigenous Peoples' Day. I call upon the people of the United States to observe this day with appropriate ceremonies and activities. I also direct that the flag of the United States be displayed on all public buildings on the appointed day in honor of our diverse history and the Indigenous peoples who contribute to shaping this Nation.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighth day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-one, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-sixth.

JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

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A Proclamation on Indigenous Peoples' Day, 2021 | The White House

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Since time immemorial, American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians have built vibrant and diverse cultures - safeguarding land, language, spirit, knowledge, and tradition across the generations. On Indigenous Peoples' Day, our Nation celebrates the invaluable contributions and resilience of Indigenous peoples, recognizes their inherent sovereignty, and commits to honoring the Federal Government's trust and...

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For the third year running, a U.S. president has officially recognized Indigenous Peoples' Day.

President Biden issued a proclamation on Friday to observe Monday, Oct. 9, as a day to honor Native Americans, their "resilience, strength, and perseverance" and "determination to preserve cultures, identities, and ways of life," even as they have faced "violence and devastation," he said.

The move shifts focus from Columbus Day, the federal holiday celebrating Christopher Columbus, which shares the same date as Indigenous Peoples' Day this year. (A Columbus Day proclamation, also issued Friday, celebrates "all the Italian Americans ... who, for generations, have helped realize the full promise of our Nation.")

Biden first issued a proclamation recognizing Indigenous Peoples' Day in 2021.

Dylan Baca, a 19-year-old Arizonan who was instrumental in helping broker the first proclamation, was overwhelmed by the gravity of Biden's action.

"I still don't think I've fully absorbed what that has meant," he said to NPR in 2021. "This is a profound thing the president has done, and it's going to mean a lot to so many people."

Five years ago, the Native leader started an organization alongside Arizona state Sen. Jamescita Peshlakai, the Indigenous Peoples' Initiative, with a similar mission: to tell a more positive and more accurate tale of Native Americans by replacing Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples' Day.

What is Indigenous Peoples' Day?

Indigenous Peoples' Day advocates say the recognition helps correct a "whitewashed" American history that has glorified Europeans like Italian explorer Christopher Columbus who have committed violence against Indigenous communities. Native Americans have long criticized the inaccuracies and harmful narratives of Columbus' legacy that credited him with his "discovery" of the Americas when Indigenous people were there first.

"It is difficult to grapple with the complete accomplishments of individuals and also the costs of what those accomplishments came at," said Mandy Van Heuvelen, the cultural interpreter coordinator at the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian.

There are no set rules on how one should appreciate the day, said Van Heuvelen, a member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe from South Dakota. It's all about reflection, recognition, celebration and an education.

"It can be a day of reflection of our history in the United States, the role Native people have played in it, the impacts that history has had on native people and communities, and also a day to gain some understanding of the diversity of Indigenous peoples," she said.

The idea was first proposed by Indigenous peoples at a United Nations conference in 1977 held to address discrimination against Natives, as NPR has reported. But South Dakota became the first state to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples day in 1989, officially celebrating it the following year.

Biden's proclamation signifies a formal adoption of a day that a growing number of states and cities have come to acknowledge. According to the Pew Research Center, 17 states and the District of Columbia now have holidays honoring Native Americans. More than 100 cities celebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day, with many of them having altogether dropped the holiday honoring Columbus to replace it with Indigenous Peoples' Day.

Native Americans have borne the brunt of the work to make that happen.

What might seem to some like a simple name change can lead to real social progress for Indigenous Americans, said Van Heuvelen.

"What these changes accomplish, piece by piece, is visibility for Native people in the United States," she said. "Until Native people are or are fully seen in our society and in everyday life, we can't accomplish those bigger changes. As long as Native people remain invisible, it's much more easier for people to look past those real issues and those real concerns within those communities."

What about Columbus Day?

Columbus Day remains a federal holiday that gives federal government employees the day off from work.

The day was first founded as a way to appreciate the mistreatment of Italian Americans, and Congress eventually made it a federal holiday in 1934.

"Italian American culture is important, and I think there are other times and places to recognize that. But I think it's also important to also recognize the history of Columbus Day itself," said Baca. "Should we recognize a man whose labors killed children, killed women and decimated the Native American population here? I don't think that is something that we want to be honored."

Oregon marked its first statewide recognition of Indigenous Peoples' Day, in place of Columbus Day, in 2021 after its legislature passed a bill brought by its Indigenous lawmakers. Rep. Tawna Sanchez, one of those lawmakers, said the movement to recognize the day is an ideal time to capitalize on the momentum of political recognition.

"I don't know that we'll ever get to a place where people have their land back or have the recognition of who they are, to the degree that we that we need to or should. But the fact that people are paying attention at this very moment - that's important, because we will have a greater opportunity to educate people and help them understand why we are where we are right now," she told NPR in 2021.

"History is always written by the conqueror," said Sanchez. "How do we actually tell the truth about what happened and where we sit this very moment? How do we go forward from here?"

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Goodbye, Columbus? Here's what Indigenous Peoples' Day means to Native Americans

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A growing movement recasts the second Monday in October as a day to appreciate the history of Indigenous communities. That visibility, say Native Americans, can help us see what else needs to change.

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How is Indigenous People's Day relevant today?

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How is Indigenous People's Day relevant today?

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Indigenous Peoples Day growing in popularity

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The controversy behind Indigenous People's Day.

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The controversy behind Indigenous People's Day.

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INDIGENOUS PEOPLES' DAY OR COLUMBUS DAY: Lessons in Leadership and Risk-Taking: How a social media post sparked a larger conversation about P&R's role in social equity.

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The controversy behind Indigenous People's Day.

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The controversy behind Indigenous People's Day.

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Debate Over Indigenous People's Day Continues

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How is Indigenous People's Day relevant today?

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How is Indigenous People's Day relevant today?

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Indigenous People's Day is still relevant today. In fact, more attention is continuing to be brought to this topic day by day.

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National Indigenous Peoples Day Virtual Event- June 21, 2021

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Indigenous People's Day falls on the second Monday of October every year since 1937. This holiday is also known as Columbus Day. 

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Indigenous People's Day  is day for Native Americans to be recognized and their culture to be celebrated.

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Indigenous People's Day  is day for Native Americans to be recognized and their culture to be celebrated.

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Indigenous People's Day  is day for Native Americans to be recognized and their culture to be celebrated.