Focus on history and activism at this year’s Native American Heritage panel
URI’s Multicultural Students Services Center and College of Arts and Sciences have planned a variety of events that will celebrate art, culture, history and activism over the course of the month.
Organizers say events aim to make the larger URI community “fluent” in the history, practices and traditions of the University’s local Native American tribes with a focus on the Narragansett Tribe.
Alumna Silvermoon LaRose ’04 of the Tomaquag Museum will be
one of the panelists on this year’s panel.
Junior Tre Hamlin is vice president of URI’s Native American
Student Organization (NASO) and says the organization is focused on building
awareness and outreach at the University, by informing and educating the larger
community here.
Hamlin often reads the University land acknowledgement
before events at URI.
“Every time I read it, all I hope is that people listen,” he says, noting that the school has made progress toward more inclusion by adding Narragansett-taught classes about the tribe’s culture. “But there is always more work to be done in terms of involvement.”
On Wednesday, Nov. 6 at noon, Hamlin will
provide the acknowledgement when the Multicultural
Student Services Center hosts its annual kickoff for the month, with
tribal members and other student leaders from URI’s Native American Student
Organization. This year’s community luncheon and panel discussion, “Narratives
on History and Activism,” will focus on activism in the Native American
community. Catering will be provided by Sly Fox Den Too of Charlestown; the
James Beard Award winning restaurant specializes in authentic Northeast
Indigenous cuisine. Seating is limited. Register here.
This month’s events celebrate the history of Native American
activism at the University, building on events like this student-organized pow
wow on campus in 1980 (URI Photo / University Archives).
Panelists include alumni Mack Scott ’02 of the Native
American and Indigenous Studies Initiative, Brown University; Silvermoon LaRose
’04, assistant director of the Tomaquag Museum; junior Mark Edmonds, a member
of NASO; Bella Noka, human rights activist/advocate and tribal elder of the
Narragansett Indian Tribe: and Sonia Ascawawa (Flowers that Grow Wild) Thomas,
College Unbound. Raymond “Two Hawks” Watson MCP ’05, founder and CEO of the
Providence Cultural Initiative, will moderate.
“I am honored to have this opportunity to return,” says
Scott. “My experience at URI was formative. I arrived on campus believing I
knew who I was and what I wanted from life. However, the lessons I learned and
the relationships I cultivated at URI profoundly changed me.”
The Carothers Library display this month presents a
sample of books available for checkout by members of the URI community.
Scott graduated from URI with his degree in education and
says that teaching about history and its continued relevance is his activism.
“I appreciate the harvest season because it is when our past
becomes foremost in our minds,” he says. “The reality is that, as Americans,
our harvests are often inequitable. Historical social, political, and economic
conditions have helped to raise or lower yields based on race, ethnicity, sex,
sexual orientation, and socio-economic status. As we pause during this season
of reflection, it is essential that we also consider how it is that we have
come to enjoy our individual and collective harvests.”
Kayla Soares ’12 ’16, a member of the Narragansett Indian
Tribe, the Language Center coordinator, and an assistant teaching professor at
URI, says this month’s events are focused on bringing local communities
together, both indigenous and non-indigenous.
This month’s Native American Heritage celebration also
includes:
On Wednesday, Nov. 6, at 3 p.m., the Tomaquag
Museum will visit URI to present “Traditions and Lifeways” in the Multicultural
Student Services Center.
On Tuesday, Nov. 12, at 2 p.m., author Emily
Bowen Cohen, author of Two Tribes, will discuss her graphic novel
in the Language Center at Swan Hall 301. Cohen creates comics that explore
intersectional identity; she is Jewish and a member of the Muscogee (Creek)
Nation. Cohen grew up in rural Oklahoma, daughter of the chief of staff at the
community’s tribal hospital and “a nice Jewish girl from New Jersey.” Today,
Cohen uses personal experience to tell stories examining contemporary American
and Jewish culture.
That evening, alumna artist AGonza ’15 returns to URI for a
continuation of the Culture and Canvas series, this time highlighting the
Native American community. This program will take place in the Multicultural
Student Services Center at 5 p.m. A revolutionary artist whose work can be seen
in murals across Providence, the Talent Development graduate maintains a strong
connection with her alma mater. The work created through Culture and Canvas
decorates the center’s shared spaces.
Nickommoh is the traditional harvest celebration of the
Narragansett people and a Nickommoh Social Celebration — with song, dance and
food — will take place in the Memorial Union on Wednesday, Nov. 13 at
5 p.m.
On Monday, Nov. 18, URI hosts a conversation
with Narragansett Tribal Elders at 3 pm. in the Alumni Center.
And on Wednesday, Nov. 20 at 3 p.m., the
Multicultural Student Services Center will host a talk centered on student
perspectives with members of NASO.
Organizers say they hope these events bring the community
together in celebration of a rich cultural heritage, represented in URI’s
history and present.
“Gatherings like this connect students with the community,”
says LaRose. “It’s an opportunity to learn from your neighbors, and those you
may be working with when you leave these grounds. Sometimes, institutions can
become microcosms of the world around us and we need to remember to engage with
those outside of campus spaces. A great education should expand your worldview.
These discussions help to do that work.”
These events are sponsored by URI’s College of Arts and
Sciences, Multicultural Student Services Center and Native American Student
Organization.