Indigenous Mestiza Researcher Features Indigenous Stories from Latin America and the Caribbean
Cynthia Vidaurri, folklorist at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian, travels the world conveying the stories of Indigenous peoples. In her recent American Indian Magazine article, “Mexico’s Legendary Xoloitzcuintli, the Hairless Dog,” Vidaurri highlights one of the first known dog breeds domesticated in the Americas by Indigenous people.
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.
Q’eswachaka, the Last Inka Suspension Bridge
Suspension bridges, which connected Andean peoples who had previously been isolated from one another, were essential to the organization and administration of the Inka Empire and played a crucial role in the social history of the region into the 20th century. No wonder neighboring communities take pride in getting together each year to rebuild the last Inka bridge.