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National Museum of the American Indian

Smithsonian Voices

Niuam (Comanche) peyote fan, ca. 1890. Oklahoma. 22/9197 (Ernest Amoroso, National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian)

Native Perspectives on the 40th Anniversary of the American Indian Religious Freedom Act

The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution states: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” Forty years ago, the American Indian Religious Freedom Act finally finally extended that right to the country's Native citizens. Here Native Americans who observe traditional ways talk about religious freedom.

Dennis Zotigh | November 30, 2018

Alaska Army National Guard Col. Wayne Don, then 38th Troop Command commander, pledges the Oath of Office, administered by Alaska Army National Guard Brig. Gen. Joseph Streff, Alaska Army National Guard commander, after Don was promoted to full colonel. Dena'ina Center, Anchorage, July 14, 2017.  (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. David Bedard)

A Tradition of Service: Colonel Wayne Don

Col. Wayne Don, a citizen of the Cupig and Yupik tribes, talks about his service in the Regular Army and the Alaska Army National Guard. Col. Don, who has been deployed to Bosnia, Afghanistan, and other overseas posts, is a member of the Advisory Committee helping to build the National Native American Veterans Memorial on the grounds of the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C.

Dennis Zotigh | November 28, 2018

Haudenosaunee bear effigy pipe, 17th c. Cayuga Lake, New York. 22/3765 (Ernest Amoroso, National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian)

"Words Spoken Before All Others," the Ohenten Kariwatekwen or Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address

When the museum asked Native Americans if their families celebrate Thanksgiving, a friend from the Crow Agency in Montana spoke for many Native people when she told us, "My Dad used to say, 'We give thanks everyday. . . .' " The Ohenten Kariwatekwen is often called the Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address, but translated directly the name refers to "words spoken before all others." The Haudenosaunee nations—the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, Mohawk, and Tuscarora—traditionally open and close every important gathering with a version of these thanks.

Six Nations Indian Museum and the Tracking Project | November 22, 2018

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