From aspiring breakdancer to accomplished artist, Ian Kuali’i traces his path so far

Ian Kuali’i (Native Hawaiian and Mescalero Apache) is known both for his cut-paper art and for his background in hip hop and graffiti. In this profile, the museum’s Justin Mugits talks to Ian about the creative influences in his life and finding his space in urban contemporary and Indigenous art.

"I Chose to Serve Because of My Mother. I Wanted to Make Her Proud."—Chief Warrant Officer Two Misty Dawn Lakota

Misty Dawn Lakota (Oglala Lakota) has been a member of the National Guard and a special agent with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Office of Justice Services. She currently serves as a Chief Warrant Officer Two in the U.S. Army Reserves, awaiting deployment to Afghanistan, and a supervisory special agent with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Law Enforcement. As the museum looks ahead to the dedication of the National Native American Veterans Memorial, Chief Lakota talks to us about the women in her family who have inspired her and the people for whom she serves.

“Developing Stories: Native Photographers in the Field” Presents Contemporary Native Experiences from the Inside

Since the turn of the 20th century, Native American photographers have taken the representation of their people into their own hands. In “Developing Stories: Native Photographers in the Field,” Russel Albert Daniels and Tailyr Irvine present original images that illustrate issues important to Native Americans today. Daniels (of Diné and Ho-Chunk descent) looks at the Genízaro people of Abiquiú, New Mexico. The Genízaro embrace the painful history of their ancestors and their perseverance in creating an enduring community. Irvine (Salish and Kootenai) visits the Flathead Reservation and nearby Missoula, Montana. She shows how blood quantum requirements for tribal enrollment complicate young people’s most personal decisions. Created in collaboration with the museum originally for exhibition in New York and Washington, as well as online, “Developing Stories” opens on the museum’s website with Daniels’ piece, to be followed this summer by Irvine’s essay.

From a Dance Performance on the Residential School Experience to a Symposium Celebrating Native Women's Art, Women’s History Month Matters at the National Museum of the American Indian

Most of the Native American art we see in museums, in the United States and around the world, was created by women. In many traditional tribal governments, women formed the upper council, responsible for decisions of war and peace, and women have been elected to the highest offices in 20th-century Native nations throughout the United States. In short, Women’s History Month is important to our museum. Here are highlights of programs on the calendar in Washington, D.C., and New York City throughout March 2020.

From new music and dance fusions to traditional festivals, the museum's Native American Heritage Month is something special

Everything people need to know to join the National Museum of the American Indian in celebrating the diversity and contributions of Native Americans and Alaska Natives during Native American Heritage Month this November. For friends unable to visit Washington, D.C., or New York, the museum is webcasting many of these public programs live, then archiving them online.

On the 75th Anniversary of D-Day, Native Americans Remember Veterans’ Service and Sacrifices

This year, 80 Native delegates have been asked to take part in the official commemoration of D-Day. Their responsibilities include offering ceremonies at American cemeteries and memorials in Normandy to honor the men and women who served during World War II—part a growing movement to acknowledge the historic service of Native Americans, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians in the U.S. Armed Forces.

Winyan (Woman) Power: New Art by Kevin and Valerie Pourier Honors Women Who Stand Up for the Rights and Welfare of Others

"Winyan Wánakikśin" (Women Defenders of Others), a buffalo horn belt created by Lakota artists Kevin and Valerie Pourier, honors the strength and perseverance of women activists. Inspired by the Native women who took part in the Dakota Access Pipeline protests, the art work represents an important event in Native American, American, and environmental history, and speaks across artistic, cultural, and national boundaries.

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.

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.

A Tradition of Service: Navy Veteran S. Joe Crittenden, Deputy Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation

S. Joe Crittenden, deputy principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, talks briefly about his service in the U.S. Navy in the mid-1960s and what it has meant to his life. Five years ago, Deputy Chief Crittenden testified in support of the Act of Congress creating the National Native American Veterans Memorial. Now he is a member of the advisory committee seeing the memorial through to its dedication in 2020.

"To Indigenize the Western World"—Artist and Organizer Jordan Cocker

Jordan Cocker describes herself as “Indigenous in two ways—as Native American from the Southern Plains, K’gou màyí, a Kiowa woman; and as Pasifika, a Tongan woman.” Thinking of herself “in halves,” however, doesn't reflect her lived experience. “The years spent on and between my two ancestral territories,” she says, “braided together my two lines in a good way. Everything is about the ancestors—who they are by name, what they did, where they went, and the legacy that they created and passed down to me. My ancestors on both sides of my family survived colonization, boarding school, and so many other types of trauma so that I can live in a good way.” The museum’s Dennis Zotigh interviews Jordan for Asian American Pacific Heritage Month.

"To Reach More, Serve More, Inspire More, and Just Live More"—Hip Hop Artist Supaman

Christian Parrish Takes The Gun (Apsáalooke Nation), who performs as Supaman, has won a Nammy (Native American Music Award), an Aboriginal Peoples Music Choice Award, and the 2017 MTV Video Music Award for "Best Fight Against the System"—the last as part of the group of Native and non-Native musicians who recorded "Stand Up/Stand N Rock." What motivates him, however, isn't recognition but spirituality, Native culture and values, the people he meets on the road, and the chance to make a difference in the world.

Just doing "what I could," Wilma Mankiller changed Native America