“Being an Indian is not about being part something; it is about being part of something.”
-Angela Gonzales (Hopi), 2007
The National Museum of the American Indian is the 18th of the Smithsonian Institution’s museums. The museum, located on The Mall, opened in 2004 serving as a major exhibition space and a center for performances and events. When you first enter, you step into the Potomac Atrium. When I visited, there was an exhibition of canoes and boats. However, when I visited a few years ago, there was a live drum performance which was great. The exhibit I enjoyed the most was called “Indivisible” which tells the story and history of how African and Native peoples came together through both cooperation as well as strife. For example, early in the 1800s, some Cherokees acquired slaves and in the 1830s, enslaved African Americans accompanied the Cherokees when the federal government forced them to move to Indian Territory (Oklahoma) where the tribe struggled to rebuild its culture. The exhibit also highlights how to officially become a member of a Native nation and what criteria must be met for enrollment. Among them, some criteria include a certain percentage of Native ancestry (“blood quantum”) and residency on tribal land. However, African and Native communities also interacted positively, intermarrying, establishing communities, and sharing their traditions. The blended tribes worked to preserve their land and rebelled against displacement. At the end of the exhibit, there was a movie that interviewed African-Native American people; it was a moving piece that illustrated the hardships some of the people faced in forming and embracing their identity. The rest of the museum was also very interesting and informative and I highly recommend going- there is amazing beadwork, artwork both old and new, as well as a great outdoor space!
-Angela Gonzales (Hopi), 2007
The National Museum of the American Indian is the 18th of the Smithsonian Institution’s museums. The museum, located on The Mall, opened in 2004 serving as a major exhibition space and a center for performances and events. When you first enter, you step into the Potomac Atrium. When I visited, there was an exhibition of canoes and boats. However, when I visited a few years ago, there was a live drum performance which was great. The exhibit I enjoyed the most was called “Indivisible” which tells the story and history of how African and Native peoples came together through both cooperation as well as strife. For example, early in the 1800s, some Cherokees acquired slaves and in the 1830s, enslaved African Americans accompanied the Cherokees when the federal government forced them to move to Indian Territory (Oklahoma) where the tribe struggled to rebuild its culture. The exhibit also highlights how to officially become a member of a Native nation and what criteria must be met for enrollment. Among them, some criteria include a certain percentage of Native ancestry (“blood quantum”) and residency on tribal land. However, African and Native communities also interacted positively, intermarrying, establishing communities, and sharing their traditions. The blended tribes worked to preserve their land and rebelled against displacement. At the end of the exhibit, there was a movie that interviewed African-Native American people; it was a moving piece that illustrated the hardships some of the people faced in forming and embracing their identity. The rest of the museum was also very interesting and informative and I highly recommend going- there is amazing beadwork, artwork both old and new, as well as a great outdoor space!
-LJB
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