2020 Native American Heritage Month

"100 Years: One Woman's Fight for Justice" Film Viewing and Discussion

11/19/20 at 5:30pm

100 YEARS documents the David vs. Goliath story of Elouise Cobell's courageous fight for justice for hundreds of thousands of Native Americans who were cheated out of billions of dollars by the United States Government.

Over 100 years ago, the United States Government broke up numerous Indian reservations and allotted millions of acres to 300,000 individual Indians. They promised to manage their land and send lease payments for oil, gas, timber, and grazing to the Indian Trust Fund, but instead the Department of the Interior grossly mismanaged the money owed them. As the Treasurer of the Blackfeet tribe, Elouise Cobell noticed issues with the trust account and raised questions about the missing money which lead her into a 30-year fight that resulted in the largest class action suit ever filed against the federal government.

Watch the Full Film

"RUMBLE: The Indians Who Rocked the World" Film Discussion

Zoom on 11/19/20 at 7:00pm

Native American Studies (NAS) and the Organization for Native American Interests (ONAI) hosted a virtual discussion of the film "RUMBLE: The Indians Who Rocked the World". NAS instructor Bob Pirner, member of the Ironwood Singers traditional Lakota Drum and a former musical performer, shares audio samplings illustrating the wide range of Indigenous influence on the American music genres we know and love.

RUMBLE Trailer on PBS

"AMÁ" Film Screening and Discussion

11/16/2020 at 6:00PM

"AMÁ", the untold story of the involuntary sterilization of Native American women by Indian Health Services well into the 1970s. Discussion moderated by NAS Coordinatort Bonnie Brown, joined by WVU Students for Reproductive Justice.

"This film is so important because these stories need to be heard — this is the untold history of Native America. Indigenous people hold an intimate knowledge that our women are sacred — we carry life, and the very act of pregnancy is an assertion of sovereignty and resilience. AMÁ seeks to reaffirm our history so that we can continue to center our women. CSVANW hopes this film begins a critical conversation about breaking cycles of violence that have affected our women for far too long."
Angel Charley, Interim Executive Director, Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women

AMÁ Trailer and Information

"Thunderstruck" Exhibit Virtual Tour

11/18/2020 at 12:00-1:00PM

Paint with bold primary colors in a color block style depict three native american women walking across a plain. One woman carries a baby on her back. Native American Studies Program hosted a virtual tour of the exhibit "Thunderstruck: Artwork that stops you in your tracks" at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. The exhibit featured artwork from former Native American Studies instructor and committee member Urban Couch (Cherokee descent).

The docent for the virtual tour is Kay Miller. Miller has been a docent at the Minneapolis Institute of Art for 11 years. Prior to serving in this role, she was a journalist for 31 years, 29 of them as a writer and editor for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. She holds a master’s degree in print journalism from American University.

2020 Peace Tree Commemoration in a time of pandemic

Due to the pandemic, this year’s annual Native American Studies Peace Tree Ceremony was a small, private event involving just six people. Wearing masks and observing social distancing, they met at the Peace Tree outside Martin Hall on Saturday afternoon, November 7.

The gathering marked the 28th anniversary of WVU’s Peace Tree, planted by Haudenosaunee (Iroquoian) leaders and commemorated yearly by Native American guests from tribes all over the country. The nearly 1,000-year-old Peace Tree tradition began when the Peacemaker united the warring Seneca, Cayuga, Oneida, Mohawk, and Onondaga Nations by planting the original Tree of Peace at Onondaga, thus forming the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, which the Tuscarora joined later.

This year’s Peace Tree gathering was dedicated to honoring those who are suffering or have been lost due to covid-19. Dr. Ellesa Clay High, former NAS Program head and Department of English Professor Emerita, organized the event. High led a group effort with her Preston County neighbors and friends to create a garland of nearly 500 tobacco ties in honor of those who have died in West Virginia as a result covid-19. The handmade ties took many hours to create and consist of a small bit of tobacco bundled in red fabric and tied with ribbon. (Many Native Americans regard tobacco as a sacred component of prayer and ritual.) Dr. High reflected on the experience, “As I put the memorial garland together, each tie touching another, I thought, ‘the spiritual does not have to social distance.’ It was such an honor, and was very moving to create it.” In addition, she made a larger gold and blue tobacco bundle to pay tribute to all those at WVU who are struggling in some way due to the covid crisis.

Because the large-scale annual Peace Tree ceremony and public lecture were not held due to covid19 restrictions, we opened our video archives. Recordings of the 2019 Peace Tree Ceremony and Lecture Presentation by Jamie Jacobs (Tonawanda Seneca) are archived through the WVU Libraries. Mr. Jacobs is a Ceremonial Custodian, Seneca Language Instructor, and Cultural Educator.