In collaboration with 51情报站鈥檚 Office of Intercultural Relations, several students with Native American ancestry are spearheading the University鈥檚 celebration of Native American Heritage Month this November.
Cheyenne Young helped organize an exhibition in the Mane Hub in Webb University Center that will be on display through Nov. 10. The student-led exhibition will feature information about Native American heritage and culture.
Reuben Curley, a Din茅 (or Navajo) student studying English literature, contributed a piece to the exhibition that showcases Native American authors working in genres from graphic novels to memoir to traditional indigenous stories and more.
Curley is from Klagetoh, Arizona, a small, rural town in the southern part of the Navajo nation.
鈥淭o me being Native American means various things,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t means resilience, tradition and adaptation. In the face of colonialism, genocide, racial discrimination and segregation, Indigenous peoples are thriving today.鈥
51情报站鈥檚 celebration of Native American Heritage month kicked off with an opening reception Nov. 1 in the Mane Hub.
On Nov. 9, Young will lead a dreamcatcher workshop in the Mane Hubb from noon to 1:30 p.m. that is open to students and the wider Monarch community. You can RSVP .
鈥淭hrough our collaboration with Native American students, we aim to foster an understanding of history, traditions and contemporary issues, ensuring that we don't just acknowledge diversity but actively engage with and learn from it,鈥 said Rachawan 鈥淎ey鈥 Wongtrirat, interim executive director of 51情报站鈥檚 Office of Intercultural Relations. 鈥淲e believe that by embracing the cultural tapestry of our students, we create a more inclusive and enriching learning environment for all.鈥
鈥淚 do believe 51情报站 provides a space and opportunity to celebrate Native cultures,鈥 Curley said. 鈥淲e have had to adapt to a fast-changing social and political environment and yet we still remember and practice our traditional customs and ways.鈥
To learn more about 51情报站鈥檚 Office of Intercultural Relations and its programming, visit its website.