Carolina celebrates American Indian Heritage Month
A keynote talk on the concept of indigenizing a university headlines a month of cultural and scholarly events.
Indigenous studies scholar, columnist and commentator Niigaan Sinclair will speak about what it means to indigenize a university at the Michael D. Green Lecture in American Indian Studies during Carolina’s celebration of American Indian Heritage Month in November.
The keynote speech, “Indigenizing the University: A Call to Action,” is on Nov. 9 at 3 p.m. in Hyde Hall with a reception afterward. It is free and open to the public.
Sinclair is a professor in the native studies department at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada. He is Anishinaabe and from St. Peter’s (Little Peguis) Indian Settlement near Selkirk, Manitoba. Sinclair regularly comments on Indigenous issues for Canadian news media such as CTV News, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network. He has written for The Exile Edition of Native Canadian Fiction and Drama, newspapers like The Guardian and online with CBC Books: Canada Writes.
He has co-edited three award-winning texts — “Manitowapow: Aboriginal Writings from the Land of Water,” “Centering Anishinaabeg Studies: Understanding the World Through Stories” and “The Winter We Danced: Voices of the Past, the Future and the Idle No More Movement.”
“American Indian Heritage Month offers us all an opportunity to celebrate and honor the many contributions American Indians have made,” said Danielle Hiraldo, director of the UNC American Indian Center. “Consider ways to recognize American Indian contributions beyond the month of November. One way to do this is by staying connected with the American Indian Center, so be sure to sign up for our listserv.”
The UNC American Indian Center, the American Indian and Indigenous Studies program in the College of Arts and Sciences and the Institute of Arts and Humanities are sponsoring the lecture.
Other area events include:
•Nov. 1, 6 p.m., “Normalizing the Language: A Conversation on Language Revitalization Strategies” with Benjamin “Ben” Frey, assistant professor of Indigenous studies in the College of Arts and Sciences’ American studies department, and Marvin “Marty” Richardson, a member of the North Carolina American Indian Heritage Commission. Frank Porter Graham Student Union art gallery. Free.
•Nov. 2, noon-1 p.m., Indigenous Foodways: Reclaiming Native Cuisine and Culture, a Hybrid Lunchbox Talk. North Carolina Botanical Garden. Free; preregistration required.
•Nov. 3, 4-8 p.m., Chapel Hill/Carrboro Schools Celebration. Honor and learn about all North Carolina American Indian tribes through storytelling, dancing, singing, Native foods, arts and more. Carrboro Town Commons, 301 W. Main Street. Free.
•Nov. 9, noon-1 p.m., Salish Ethnobotany for Community Wellbeing, a Hybrid Lunchbox Talk, North Carolina Botanical Garden. Rose Bear Don’t Walk, doctoral student in Indigenous and rural health at Montana State University, is the speaker. Free; preregistration required.
•Nov. 11, noon-3 p.m., American Indian Heritage Celebration. Enjoy dancers, drumming and family-friendly activities. Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art, 750 Marguerite Drive, Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Free.
•Nov. 13, 6:30 p.m., Carolina Indian Circle’s annual Culture Showcase. Frank Porter Graham Student Union, Great Hall.
Check the UNC American Indian Center’s events calendar for updates.
