On Oct. 12, Lawrence mayor Mike Amyx declared that Columbus Day would now be seen as Indigenous Peoples’ Day. This is great news since the city of Lawrence is a place that was built by the Konza and Osage people.
When the news of this decision hit, there was much celebration; however, the festivities came to a cease when the bill was viewed more profoundly. Apparently, the bill had left out the phrase “every year here after,” which only assured this celebration would occur this present year.
As many are aware, Lawrence is the home to the University of Kansas and Haskell University. Haskell University is a federally operated tribal university for members of any tribe. Haskell has been federally recognized in the United States and has a great deal of history, as it was founded in the year 1884 as a residential boarding school for Native American children.
The purpose of the boarding school was to force Native children to assimilate into the “American culture.” The children were forced to cut their hair, practice Christian beliefs, speak only English, and essentially forced to leave their entire identity behind. Many of these children had no contact with family or their native culture. Physical abuse was something that many native children also went through as a process for assimilation. Today, however, Haskell has become a university designated for individuals of tribes that are federally recognized in the United States.
Declaring Oct. 12 as Indigenous Peoples’ Day is important because the indigenous community has inhabited the city of Lawrence for a very long time. The Indigenous community has endured many hardships and is mostly erased in Lawrence’s history and image. Many KU students have never been to or even heard of Haskell’s campus, which is quite devastating.
Trying to implement Indigenous Peoples’ Day for only one year is atrocious and, as a community, we should not settle with this. We should accompany the Indigenous community in fighting for this holiday to be an annual occurrence. A petition has been started to activate an original proclamation from the Indigenous community that declares “Oct. 12, and every year hereafter.”
Here is the link for the petition to make Indigenous Peoples’ Day on Oct. 12 every year hereafter.
https://www.gopetition.com/petitions/indigenous-peoples-day-lawrence-ks.html
Photos from:
http://www.theindianleader.com
http://www.theindianleader.com/2015/01/26/there-are-plenty-of-places-on-campus-to-support-students/