Planning a visit to our Washington, DC museum? Our spaces have resumed normal operations. The Mitsitam Native Foods Cafe is open until 4 PM, and the Espresso bar is open until 5 PM. See what’s on at .
We are thrilled to announce Cynthia Chavez Lamar as the new director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian. She is the first Native woman to be named as a Smithsonian museum director.
Read more:
Thanks to
@Apple
's support we can continue telling Indigenous stories and fulfilling our mission. We applaud how "Killers of the Flower Moon" has led to history-making milestones, increasing the visibility of Indigenous creatives on the world stage.
We are honored to announce that the jury has unanimously selected a design concept for the National Native American Veterans Memorial, to be built on the grounds of the museum in Washington, D.C.—"Warrior's Circle of Honor" by Harvey Pratt (Cheyenne and Arapaho).
#NAVM
#NNAVM
What a great morning!
@LibnOfCongress
Carla Hayden today appointed Joy Harjo U.S. Poet Laureate, the first Native American to serve in the position. "Words are powerful and can make change when understanding appears impossible."—Joy Harjo (Muskogee Creek)
In 1847 the
#Choctaw
people sent money to help the Irish poor during the Great Famine. Less than two decades after their own Trail of Tears, the Choctaws responded to suffering with kindness. New on Smithsonian Voices for
#StPatricksDay
.
@SmithsonianMag
Monday is
#IndigenousPeoplesDay
. Looking for a way to celebrate from home, by doing something fun or meaningful and in the spirit of the day? Our teacher services coordinator in Washington has ideas! NEW
@SmithsonianMag
Has anyone ever told you that American Indians get a free ride from the government, or that being used as a mascot is an honor? Just in time for
#Thanksgiving
dinner, the director of the museum gives brief, factual replies to 5 popular myths.
NEW on Smithsonian Voices: Everyone's history matters. The
#Thanksgiving
story deeply rooted in America’s curriculum reduces the Wampanoag Indians to supporting roles. The true history of Thanksgiving begins with the Indians.
@SmithsonianMag
A super bowl that's also a superb owl: Owl effigy bowl, ca. AD 250-800. Burnt Mill Creek, Bay County, Florida. 8/4157
Enjoy the
#Superbowl
, everyone.
#MuseumSuperBowl
@Philbrook
On Sept 21, 2004, some 25,000 representatives of Indigenous nations & tribes from throughout the Americas—the largest known gathering of Native American people ever—opened the museum on the National Mall in Washington. Photo: Cheyenne chiefs in the opening procession (AP).
#OTD
Happy Birthday Zitkála-Šá, aka Gertrude Simmons Bonnin (Yankton Sioux) a dedicated activist for
#NativeAmerican
rights. A gifted writer, she was an outspoken critic of Indian boarding schools, having experienced as both student and teacher their policy of forced assimilation
#OTD
Native Americans have been serving in the US Armed Forces since the country’s earliest days. And Native veterans and their families have long looked forward to this recognition. Join us in celebrating a very special
#VeteransDay
.
#nnavm
#NativeVeterans
Construction of the National Native American Veterans Memorial on the grounds of the museum in Washington DC is almost finished. Join us online this Veterans Day—11/11—at 11am ET, when we mark completion of the memorial with a brief ceremony and virtual tour.
#NNAVM
#Veterans
It's
#NativeAmericanHeritageDay
and a beautiful day to be on the
#NationalMall
. Our museum in Washington is hosting hands-on activities for young minds of all ages. Admission and participation are free. Details:
Celebrate
#NativeAmericanHeritageMonth
by watching
#Indigenous
cinema. Nov. 12-18 Native Cinema Showcase, the museum’s celebration of Indigenous films. This virtual program features 47 films representing 39 Native nations in 13 countries.
#SmithsonianNAHM
Is it just us or does the design on this quilt look like a firework or a sparkler? 🎆
Wishing everyone who celebrates a safe and happy Fourth of July.
_
Almira Buffalo Bone Jackson (Almira Cox Jackson), Assiniboine (Stoney), 1917-2004, "Sparkling Star," ca. 1968-1988. 26/6329.
🐝Arctic bumblebee queens emerge in May as willows blossom. Among some Inuit peoples, bees and other insects are symbols of revival, used in amulets or sewn into clothing. Miriam Naryak Akanakpiaq (Inuit, b. 1947), bee figure carved from antler, 1975. Nunavut. 26/303
#WorldBeeDay
This
#IndigenousPeoplesDay
, "If you value history, justice, and the vibrancy of Indian culture,... encourage schools to replace outmoded histories with rigorously researched content that presents a more complete American history." Kevin Gover
@USATODAY
“If you really want to honor us, learn something about the history of the country. And in doing that, you are going to learn something about your own history that is tremendously important.”
@theundefeated
talks to the museum's director.
#hardhistory
@espn
Calling
#K12
#Educators
! Our 2022 Indigenous Peoples' Day Teach-In with
@teachingchange
is this Saturday, Oct. 1. Our virtual workshops will feature resources from our online education portal Native Knowledge 360° & the
@ZinnEdProject
.
Christmas Eve Navajo Country, ca. 1980. Beatien Yazz (Diné, 1928–2012). Arizona. 25/8487
Wishing you and everyone you love a joyful holiday season.
To read descriptions of Christmas in Indian Country, see
#Christmas
#WinterSolstice
#NativeTwitter
Indians are <1% of the US population, yet Indian images & names are all around us. How did Pocahontas, Thanksgiving, the Trail of Tears & Little Bighorn become so central to our national story? Americans opens 1/18 in DC or online tonight:
#NDNsEverywhere
Maria Martinez is renowned for the perfect symmetry of her ceramics and for their flawless, highly polished surfaces. Maria began signing her work in 1923, but pottery-making was always a family enterprise....
#WomensHistoryMonth
#5WomenArtists
@WomenInTheArts
The Smithsonian is open, but we're still celebrating America's shared history and ever-richer cultural heritage.
#HappyKwanzaa
, everyone! Photo: Trumpeter & vocalist Doc Cheatham (Cherokee & Choctaw heritage) w/ trombonist Vic Dickinson and alto saxophonist Earle Warren.
#umoja
🔥
#IndigenousPeoplesDay
10/12 at 1pm, join us online for a special
#YouthInAction
. Young Native activists address the tension between history and memory, and the current movements happening across America. Plus a performance by hip-hop artist
@FrankWaln
.
Final countdown! The design competition for the National Native American Veterans Memorial closes on January 9, 2018, at 3 p.m. Eastern time. For more information, go to:
#NAVM
#NativeAmericanVeteransMemorial
The museum extends condolences to the family of George B. Willie Sr. (Navajo), who served as a Code Talker during WWII. Mr. Willie, who was Tó Dích’iínii (Bitter Water) and born for Tábaahá (Near the Water Edge), died yesterday at age 92.
Without black ash trees, there would be no black ash baskets. Without beeches, no beech-bark canoes. Without willows, no willow-shoot fish traps. Without cedars or spruces, no cedar-bark and spruce-root hats.
Happy National Love a Tree Day!
#loveatreeday
🌳
Wishing you and everyone you love a happy new year.
📸 Michelle Tsosie Sisneros (K'apovi//Diné/ Laguna Pueblo, b. 1960). The Canyon, ca. 2000. Santa Clara Pueblo NM. 26/4497
#NewYearsEve
#Hello2021
Zitkala-Ša, also known as Gertrude Simmons Bonnin, was raised on the Yankton Indian Reservation in South Dakota. She worked tirelessly for American Indian citizenship rights, independence and sovereignty.
Full story in our spring issue magazine:
At one time, Almira Jackson could make a quilt in a day. In her 70s, a quilt a week was about right. She made each member of her family at least one. Happy 1st day of summer! Almira Jackson (Assiniboine, 1917–2004). “Summer Storm,” ca 1976. Fort Peck Reservation, Montana. 26/6304
Stories of enslaved Indigenous peoples have often been absent from the historical narrative. Join the
@Smithsonian
for
#TheOtherSlavery
virtual symposium that explores the hidden stories of enslaved Indigenous peoples, Sept. 24-27.
#RaceAndOurSharedFuture
🇺🇸 Ralph Zotigh (Kiowa) sings his honor song for women veterans at the museum in DC. Tomorrow, 11/10, at 11am, Mr. Zotigh will sing again and bless the World War I memorial being built in Pershing Park, Pennsylvania & 14th, near the White House grounds.
@WW1CC
#VeteransDay
#NNAVM
Make a New Year's resolution to strive for equity & social justice for the Native peoples of the Western Hemisphere through education, inspiration, and empowerment, in partnership with Native peoples and their allies, like you. How? By connecting with us!
″We are not powerless. The existence of our museum is a blow to racism. Each of our lives is a blow to racism.″ An open letter from Kevin Gover (Pawnee) on the challenges America is confronting—the pandemic and “the much older sickness” of racism.
This
#VeteransDay
we honor the service and sacrifices of of American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian veterans & service members and their families.
"Veterans", Jesse T. Hummingbird (Cherokee Nation, 1952-2021). 2016, acrylic on canvas. 26/9780
“Back when I was growing up in the early '60s, my grandpa was one of the head leaders on our reservation.... He used to have giveaways because he had so many horses, a lot of horses.... And that's how he honored his grandchildren....
Seneca girl holding a puppy in her lap; on the ground in front of her are apples. Seneca Nation of Indians, New York; 1904–1908. Photo attributed to Alanson B. Skinner. P28303
Happy
#NationalPuppyDay
!
"Winyan Wánakikśin" (Women Defenders of Others), an award-winning belt created by Kevin & Valerie Pourier (both Oglala Lakota) depicts 8 Indigenous women defending and preserving Indigenous rights, sovereignty, and cultures through arts, education & advocacy. /1
#SmithsonianWHM
The Wampanoag Celebration ends today. Check out our website to see the videos available on demand and enjoy listening to the traditional stories of members of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe and the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah).
MORE:
“When you see something that is not right, not just, not fair, you have a moral obligation to say something. To do something. Our children and their children will ask us, ‘What did you do? What did you say?’”
#JohnLewis
, 2019
📸"Peace Seeker," Harold Littlebird. (See Comments.)
Our exhibition "Trail of Tears: A Story of Cherokee Removal” is on view through January 6. This exhibition takes a deeper look at Indian removal from the Cherokee perspective. How did it happen? Who made the decisions? What was the human cost?
#CherokeeNation
@CNB_Media
Small wood carving of a rabbit, Eastern Band of Cherokee. Purchased from an unknown source by Indian Arts & Crafts Board (IACB) representatives in 1951. Qualla Boundary, North Carolina. IACB Headquarters Collection at the museum. 25/6145
#HappyEaster2018
#Easter
@VisitCherokee
As a national holiday, Thanksgiving glosses over this very difficult truth about the United States: that the country is a national project that came about at great expense to Native people.
Learn more about the history of Thanksgiving from curator Paul Chaat Smith.
🎥: NMAI
We're starting our celebration of
#WomensHistoryMonth
with a piece by one of the earliest Native women artists whose name we know—a basket with Spanish coin designs made by Juana Basilia Sitmelelene (Chumash, 1782–1838). Read how she came to make it at
Deb Haaland (Laguna Pueblo) has been sworn in as the first Native American Secretary of the Interior. We reached out to Indian Country to find out how they're reacting to this historic event.
We will never fully know what
#Pocahontas
thought of her life or the clash of empires at the heart of her world. But an understanding can be built around her, based on scholarly research and Pamunkey tribal knowledge. From April:
Meet the Code Talkers of World Wars I and II. Learn about their lives and military achievements. Explore classroom materials for educators and students.
MORE:
We’re delighted to welcome visitors again. Bundle up & come visit us in Washington DC or
@AmerIndianNYC
.
Doll family made by Rebecca Malliki (Inuit), 2003. Commissioned by the museum from the Inullariit Society of
#Igloolik
. Qikiqtaaluk,
#Nunavut
. 26/9726
#GovernmentShutdown
The museum on the Natl Mall is open from 10a to 5:30p, w/ restrooms, places to sit, water fountains, and food and drink for purchase in the cafe & coffee bar. Bringing you lunch? Please feel welcome to eat on the low walls along the grounds.
#MarchForOurLives
#MarchForOurLivesdc
The Shipibo of the Ucayali River, a tributary of the Upper Amazon, produce some of the finest polychrome prefire slip-painted earthenware pottery in the world. The Shipibo are also one of the few Indigenous groups in which the primary artists are women....
#womenartists
#Amazon
"I am not your mascot, and I don't live in a tipi. See me for who I am." Join us today through Dec. 31 for performances (11:30 am & 1 pm). In collaboration with
@SmithsonianKids
, this original multimedia play tackles America's assumptions about
#NativeAmericans
#Free
#Smithsonian
We're sharing stories of American Indians that have shaped this country, from the arts to activism to military service. Follow along & then learn more that might surprise you with our exhibition "Americans":
#NDNsEverywhere
#NativeAmericanHeritageMonth
Today with
@SmithsonianNMAI
, we are sharing the stories of Native American individuals you might not have known who shaped America. Learn from across the Smithsonian in this thread.⬇️
#NDNsEverywhere
The
#REDressProject
calls attention to missing and murdered Indigenous women and represents their absence. See the installation by artist Jaime Black (Métis) on the grounds of the museum in Washington March 1–31.
#MMIW
#REDressProject
#WomensHistoryMonth
Outdoor portrait of a Yup'ik mother and her two young children, 1935–1936. Alaska. Hand-colored lantern slide by Leuman Waugh. L02288
Happy Mother's Day, everyone!
#MothersDay
“The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, ‘all slaves are free.’” —Maj. F.W. Emery, on behalf of Union Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger, June 19, 1865
How do Native people make peace with a holiday that romanticizes 1621 and erases the deadly conflicts that followed? Do American Indians celebrate Thanksgiving? Native readers answer on
@SmithsonianMag
. Plus the witty
#Thanksgiving
video from "Americans."