DIRECTOR’S LETTER .............................


PARTNERSHIPS ARE OUR MISSION


W


ith the longer daylight of sum- mer upon us, I enjoy watching visitors of all ages engaging in our tribal festivals, music and dance performances, and


exhibitions, both indoors and out. The National Museum of the American Indian building on the National Mall was purposefully designed to minimize the barriers between inside and out, infusing natural light, brilliant color and organic materials into the indoor experience. At our Museum in New York, our popular summer programs are often hosted on the cobblestones outside the front entrance and envelop visitors and passersby alike with the sounds, movements and languages of Native artists and musicians. Our dynamic lineup of programs, sympo-


sia and exhibitions is the direct result of our many partnerships. Only with the steadfast support of our donors and board members and by working with cultural associations and tribal communities across the hemisphere are we able to achieve our mission through the dynamism of collaboration. To better reflect this, we recently revised our mission statement, which now states: In partnership with Native peoples and their allies, the National Museum of the American Indian fosters a richer shared human experience through a more informed understanding of Native peoples. I am proud to share success stories of part-


nerships that are on full display in our programs and exhibitions, including some featured in this issue. This spring the Museum in Washington, D.C., unveiled two new exhibitions brought to us by tribal communities as well as a significant treaty from the National Archives within a gal- lery in the exhibition “Nation to Nation.” In March, the Museum partnered with the


Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians to open “Section 14: The Other Palm Springs, Cali- fornia,” an exhibition that the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum developed and which will be on view through January 2020. The Museum immediately recognized the need to share this lesser-known contemporary story exposing another tragic conflict between Western ex- pansion and Indigenous peoples. Section 14, a


6 AMERICAN INDIAN SUMMER 2019


In April, leaders of three Cherokee tribes—Chief Joe Bunch of the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians, Councilman Richard French of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation Bill John Baker (left to right)—attended the installation of the Treaty of New Echota at NMAI in Washington, D.C.


1-square-mile tract in Palm Springs, California, forms the heart of the Agua Caliente Tribe’s res- ervation. Between the 1940s and 1960s, com- peting interests vied for this valuable land and it became a battleground over issues of tribal sovereignty, land zoning, leasing, economics and race (see page 28). On April 12, leaders and representatives of


three Cherokee communities came together at NMAI to view the installation of a treaty of major significance. The Treaty of New Echota was negotiated in 1835 by a minority party of the tribe. The elected government of the tribe challenged the treaty all the way to the floor of the U.S. Congress, yet it was used by the U.S. government to justify the removal of Cherokees from their homelands beginning in 1838 along what became known as the Trail of Tears. The treaty (see above) will be on display through September. The installation coincided with the opening of the Cherokee Days festival—also hosted by the three tribes—as well as an exhi- bition produced by the Cherokee Nation titled “Trail of Tears: The Story of Cherokee Removal,” which is on view through October. An interac- tive website of the same name was released in April as part of our national education initia- tive, also developed in partnership with the


Cherokee Nation. The online module offers sixth- through 12th-grade students and educa- tors primary sources, quotes, images and videos of contemporary Cherokee people recounting how the Cherokee Nation resisted removal and persisted to renew and rebuild their community. Through their exhibitions, the Agua Caliente


and Cherokee communities offer the Museum’s visitors distinct and detailed histories. Each tells stories of struggles for justice, reparation and recovery after the devastation of forced removal from traditional lands yet from very different perspectives and moments in time. We keep the goals of equity and social justice firmly in our sights in seeking new collaborations for, as Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Bill John Baker said so eloquently when he addressed those present for the treaty installation, “The more we can tell our story, the less likely history will repeat itself.” I encourage you to visit the Museum to


learn more about these remarkable tales of survival and continuance of culture. If you are not able to visit in person, view our on- line exhibition pages for more information at AmericanIndian.si.edu. X


Kevin Gover (Pawnee) is the director of the National Museum of the American Indian – Smithsonian.


PAUL MORIGI/AP IMAGES FOR NMAI


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52