Indigenous Peoples Day

Mohegan, Mashantucket Pequot, Eastern Pequot, and Nipmuc.  These are the peoples who lived here in Mansfield for centuries before us.

The Town of Mansfield has redesignated the second Monday in October to be Indigenous Peoples Day.  As Town Council's Proclamation states, our community is committed to  "encourage understanding and appreciation of Indigenous Peoples, their traditions, cultures and our shared history on these ancestral land."

Read the Town Council's full Proclamation from January 25, 2021

The Mansfield Historical Society provides an overview of what we know about our area's Indigenous Peoples.  Learn more.

How to Celebrate Indigenous People's Day and Learn More:

● Attend an event hosted by the Institute for American Indian studies (visit https://www.iaismuseum.org/events/ for more information)

● Visit the Indian Burial Grounds in Norwich (information on its Uncas Monument can be found here)

● Visit Nowashe Village in South WIndsor from 11am-3pm for its first annual Indigenous People’s Day Celebration. Featured presentations include: Why Celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day?; A Day in Woodland Life; The Importance of Waterways to Indigenous Peoples Then and Now; and much more. (visit https://nowashe.org/ for more information)

● Yale University Art Gallery to see “Place, Nations, Generations, Beings: 200 Years of Indigenous North American Art.” The gallery is open Fridays 3-7 pm and Saturdays and Sundays 12-4 pm. (more info: https://artgallery.yale.edu/exhibitions/exhibition/place-nations-g enerations-beings-200-years-indigenous-north-american-art)

● Visit the Mashantucket Pequot Museum (tickets at https://www.pequotmuseum.org/)

Movies

Documentaries:

● "Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance" by Alanis Obomsawin

● "Lorena, Light-footed Woman" by Juan Carlos Rulfo

● "The Seventh Fire" by Jack Pettibone Riccobono

● "Basketball or Nothing" series by Matt Howley

● "Awake: A Dream From Standing Rockf" by Myron Dewey

Dramas

● "The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open" directed by Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers and Kathleen Hepburn

● "Boy" by Taika Waititi (Māori)

● "Rhymes for Young Ghouls" by Jeff Barnaby (Miꞌkmaq)

● "Mekko" by Sterlin Harjo (Seminole-Muscogee)

● "Smoke Signals" by Chris Eyre

● "Atanarjuat, The Fast Runner" by Zacharias Kunuk

● "American Masters: N. Scott Momaday: Words from a Bear"

Local Resources:

● Native American and Indigenous Students' Association - represents Native American and Indigenous students at the University of Connecticut (open to non-Indigenous students who identify with their cause as well)

● The Indian & Colonial Research Center - combined library, research center, historical society, and museum: highlighting Native American and Colonial history back to the 1637 Pequot War and other Americana based on the collections of Eva Lutz Butler

● https://www.mohegan.nsn.us/ - Learn about the Mohegan Tribe on whose land Mansfield was settled

● https://www.nipmucnation.org/ - Official website of the Tribal Government and Citizens of Nipmuc Nation

● http://easternpequottribalnation.org/about-us.html - Official Website for Eastern Pequot Tribal Nation

● https://bportlibrary.org/hc/south-end/the-golden-hill-paugussett-tribe/#prettyPhoto - Read about The Golden Hill Paugussett Tribe who are still fighting for federal recognition

● https://www.mptn-nsn.gov/default.aspx - Official Website for the Mashantucket (Western) Pequot Tribal Nation

● https://schaghticoke.com/ - Official website for the Schaghticoke Tribal Nation to learn bout their ongoing land dispute and fight for recognition

National or International Resources:

● National Congress of American Indians - established in 1944 for the purpose of preserving the rights, cultures, and legal autonomy of American Indigenous tribes

● Inter-Tribal Environmental Council - national nonprofit dedicated to the protection of the health of Native Americans and the natural resources and environment of their various designated reservations

● Native American Rights Fund - provides legal representation for American Indigenous tribes, organizations, and individuals utilizing existing laws and treaties

● International Indian Treaty Council - An organization defending the sovereignty and self-determination of Indigenous peoples in the Americas, the Caribbean, and the Pacific

Educational Links:

● https://www.cga.ct.gov/2002/rpt/2002-R-0072.htm - Information about Connecticut's recognition of Native American tribes, their relationship with the state government, and their legally-guaranteed rights and autonomy

● https://www.unc.edu/posts/2019/10/11/what-is-the-history-behind-indigenous-peoples-day/   - A history of Indigenous People's Day

● https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/red-power-movement-radical-fight-native-american-sovereignty - A history of the Red Power movement, an Indigenous-led movement of the Civil Rights era challenging the federal government's practices with regard to Native Americans

● https://native-land.ca/ - Link to discover what historic tribes’ land you live on

Other Resources/Links

● https://www.poetryfoundation.org/collections/144560/native-american-poetry-and-culture--A selection of poets, poems, and articles exploring the Native American experience

● https://www.akomawt.org/ - An organization dedicated to the dissemination of knowledge bout Indigenous America via approaches intended to impact the teaching of history and contemporary social events

● https://www.loc.gov/ghe/cascade/index.html?appid=be31c5cfc7614d6680e6fa47be888d c3 - Interactive website page providing information about the histories of various Indigenous poets and their respective tribes