Native American Heritage
On Friday, November 22, Eisenhower had a Native American Assembly celebrating Native American Culture. The Assembly discussed raising awareness for all the Native American victims of the past and present. It began by recognizing the land. As stated by Richie Lara, “The people of the Yakama Nation inhabited more than twelve million acres across Adams, Benton, Chelan, Douglas, Franklin, Grant, Kittitas, Klickitat, and Yakima counties. Today, we honor those native peoples who are tied to the land through history, legends, and culture.”
After a Tribal Song performed by Caseymac Wallahee and the Wild Rose Singers & Dancers of the Yakama Indian Nation, the Assembly continued with raising awareness for the Missing and Murdered Indigenous women and relatives. “For generations, Indigenous people have experienced extremely high rates of violence, murder, and being reported as missing - over 3 times higher than other groups.” Many people adorned a red handprint over their mouths to support and raise awareness for the Missing and Murdered Indigenous women and relatives.
They then spoke of the Indian Boarding Schools. The US government stole the Native children and sent them off to boarding schools run by the government, and catholic churches cut off from their families and culture. In these boarding schools, the children were stripped of their culture, having their long hair cut their native clothing taken away, and were punished where they were to speak their native language. Many of the children died in these schools and were buried in mass children's graves. Their bodies were not returned for a proper burial. In recent years, the remains have finally been returned for a proper burial. President Biden made an official apology on behalf of the US government for their past actions for their role in the Indian Boarding schools.
After all the discussion, Caseymac Wallahee and the Wild Rose Singers & Dancers of the Yakama Indian Nation performed cultural dances for all of us for the rest of the Assembly. Still, they were unable to finish what they had planned due to time.
