August 01, 2021
August 9, 2021
World Indigenous Peoples’ Day is a holiday that celebrates Native American and Indigenous people. This year’s theme for World Indigenous Peoples’ Day is Leaving No One Behind: Indigenous peoples and the call for a new social contract.
Each year, August 9 commemorates World Indigenous Peoples’ Day to promote and protect the rights of the world’s indigenous population. This day recognizes the achievements and contributions that indigenous people have made and continue to make to improve world issues and honors the beautiful indigenous traditions, cultures, and lives worldwide.
History of the Day
On December 23, 1994, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly decided, in its resolution 49/214, that the International Day of the World’s Indigenous People shall be observed on this day forward. It marks the date of the inaugural session of the Working Group on Indigenous Populations at the UN in 1982.
National and International Celebrations
While it is not considered a federal holiday in the United States, it is observed by many states and local governments, including Alaska, Hawaii, Maine, New Mexico, and Oregon. People are encouraged to celebrate in observing the day to spread the UN’s message on indigenous peoples.
Celebration Suggestions
Reading indigenous literature - Some must-read books include A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies by Bartolomé de las Casas; 1491: New Revelations Of The Americas Before Columbus by Charles C. Mann; An Indigenous People's History Of The United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz; and Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee by Dee Brown.
Hosting a movie screening - Watch a movie with your friends and have a discussion afterward. There is a plethora of films to choose from like “Dances with Wolves” (1990), “Songs My Brothers Taught Me” (2015), “Gather” (2020), and “Indian Horse” (2017).
Symbol of World Indigenous Peoples’ Day
Artwork by Rebang Dewan, a Chakma boy from Bangladesh, was chosen as the visual identifier to promote World Indigenous Peoples’ Day. The artwork features two ears of green leaves facing each other and cradling a globe resembling planet earth. Within the globe, two hands embrace in a handshake over landscape background.
Did You Know…?
- Native American women fought alongside men in battles, the most popular among them being the Buffalo Calf Road Women of the Northern Cheyenne tribe.
- The Indigenous Americans were the first to domesticate the strains of maize that produced popcorn thousands of years ago.
- The first Native American (and American) to dance at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow and with the Paris Opera Ballet was Maria Tallchief.
- The Native American tribes of Foxes, Saux, and Assiniboine played a game called shinny, which is where hockey originated from.
- The sequoia tree is named after the revered Cherokee leader Sequoyah, who created an alphabet for his people.
For more information on local involvement, please visit Greater Cincinnati Native American Coalition.
Happy World Indigenous Peoples’ Day!
Glad to see the Indigenous peoples posted. Thanks!
Posted by: Nanette Guest on August 05, 2021
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