October 12 - Columbus Day

This year has brought to light a lot of racial injustice and opened our eyes to violence throughout our country's history. We have seen statues of Christopher Columbus come crashing down, and people are wanting to replace #ColumbusDay with #IndigenousPeoplesDay. To date, 14 states and the District of Columbia celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day in place of or in addition to Columbus Day. Rather than protesting Columbus, today let's celebrate the native peoples of our country, and recognize their contributions to our history.

HOW TO CELEBRATE INDIGENOUS PEOPLES' DAY as suggested by the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian -
• Add a native plant to your garden! Plants indigenous to your area support healthy ecosystems.
• Read a book written by an indigenous writer.
• Acknowledge the land you live on and name the indigenous people who originally lived there. For example: before my hometown was known as Salt Lake City, the indigenous tribes that lived on this land were the Eastern Shoshone, Goshute, and Núu-agha-tʉvʉ-pʉ̱ (Ute) Tribes.
• Help teach a more truthful history of Columbus and the Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean Islands.
• Attend an online Indigenous Peoples’ Day celebration. Today at 1 p.m. Eastern time, the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian is streaming an Indigenous Peoples’ Day program for middle- and high-school students, but all are welcome. Here is the link:
https://nmai.brand.live/c/indigenouspeoplesday