Smithsonian Voices

From the Smithsonian Museums

Louie and Emmalani Longenecker

The Christmas Season in Indian Country

Celebrations, memorials, and gatherings during the winter holiday season

3 amigos at Capitol.jpg

Native Rights Are Human Rights

cover of If You Lived During the Plimoth Thanksgiving, showing a Native American man watching a ship in the bay

'If You Lived During the Plimoth Thanksgiving' by Chris Newell Exposes New Truths About a Major American Holiday

Theresa Secord (Penobscot, b. 1958). Ear of corn basket, 2003. Maine. 26/1694. By looking at Thanksgiving in the context of living cultures, we can make the holiday a more meaningful part of teaching and learning, in school and at home.

Five Ideas to Change Teaching About Thanksgiving, in Classrooms and at Home

Educator’s Blog: Land Acknowledgments as a Tool Towards Social Justice in Your Classroom

Coyote and Turkeys Illustration

Native Ghosts and the Supernatural

The National Native American Veterans Memorial at the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C.

National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C. to Reopen May 21

Deb Haaland speaks at the Groundbreaking Ceremony for the National Native American Veterans Memorial, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2019. Paul Morigi/AP Images for Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian.

Reactions From Indian Country to Deb Haaland's Confirmation as Secretary of the Interior

Hank Adams carries a letter from the White House to Chief Frank Fools Crow (Oglala Lakota) during the siege of Wounded Knee. Pine Ridge Reservation, South Dakota, 1973. (Hank Adams Collection)

“The Most Important Indian”—In Memory of Hank Adams (1943–2020)

“Hogan in the Snow,” ca. 1985. Painted by Robert Draper (Diné [Navajo], 1938–2000). Chinle, Navajo Nation, Arizona. 26/6481 (National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian)

Christmas Across Indian Country, During the Pandemic and Before

Volunteers with the Navajo & Hopi Families Covid-19 Relief Fund distribute food and other essential supplies to isolated communities and farmsteads on the Navajo Nation and Hopi Reservation. As part of the Smithsonian's virtual program 24 Hours in a Time of Change, Shandiin Herrera (Diné)—seated on the left, wearing a Duke University sweatshirt—describes how this grassroots response to the COVID-19 pandemic came together last spring and shares her experiences as the fund's volunteer coordinator in Monument Valley, Utah. (Photo by Karney Hatch)

Smithsonian Wants Your 2020 Stories

Percy Sandy (A:shiwi [Zuni], 1918–1974).

Seven Native American Chefs Share Thanksgiving Recipes

California Natives gather in front of City Hall to celebrate Los Angeles's second annual Indigenous Peoples Day. October 14, 2019, Los Angeles, California. (Photo courtesy of Helena Tsosie)

Rethinking How We Celebrate American History—Indigenous Peoples’ Day

Native American veterans of the Vietnam War stand in honor as part of the color guard at the Vietnam Veterans War Memorial. November 11, 1990, Washington, D.C. (Photo by Mark Reinstein/Corbis via Getty Images)

Native Americans Have Always Answered the Call to Serve: National VFW Day 2020

Cody Ayon (Tsistsistas [Southern Cheyenne]) enlisted in both the U.S. Navy and the New Mexico Army National Guard. The Native community of Albuquerque welcomed then-Lieutenant Ayon home with a Soldier Dance after his service during the Iraq War. (Steven Clevenger [Osage], courtesy of Cody Ayon)

“We took our way of life with us to keep us strong. We represented our tribes in keeping with these values.” —Captain Cody Ayon

An Indigenous couple marries on the beach at Assateague Island National Seashore and Assateague State Park. Many of the United States' National Parks are places of historical, cultural, and sacred meaning for Native communities. (Photo used with the permission of Desirée Shelley Flores)

How Native Americans Bring Depth of Understanding to the Nation’s National Parks

Dressed in ceremonial regalia, Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell (Northern Cheyenne), a veteran of the Korean War, stands with World War II veteran Senator Daniel K. Inouye and Native American veterans of the Vietnam War during the opening of the National Museum of the American Indian on the National Mall. September 21, 2004, Washington, D.C. (Mario Tama/ AFP for the National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian)

A Native American Remembrance on Korean Armistice Day

Normee Ekoomiak (Inuit, 1948–2009).

A Curator’s Fourth of July Message on the Long, Shared Work of Creating a Better America

Members of the Kiowa Gourd Clan Ceremony stand as the flag of Spencer “Corky” Sahmaunt is raised. Carnegie, Oklahoma; July 4, 2019. Mr. Sahmaunt served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War and was a member of the Kiowa Black Leggings Warrior Society, as well as the Kiowa Gourd Clan.The Kiowa Flag Song, analogous to the Star Spangled Banner, accompanied the flag-raising. (Photo courtesy of Mari Frances Sahmaunt, used with permission)

Do American Indians Celebrate the 4th of July?

Cegape or Strike the Kettle (Lakota, ca. 1841–?). Untitled painting, collected in 1893. North or South Dakota. 20/5176. Most large paintings of this kind focus on a single event, often a battle. This painting, made by a follower of Sitting Bull, shows warriors—figures on horseback carrying lances and shields—within the Lakota way of life. (National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian)

144 Years after the Battle of Little Bighorn, Lakota Values Endure

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The Christmas Season in Indian Country

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