Native American Heritage Month

Native American Heritage Month Events 2024

Native American Heritage Month Timeline

When: Friday, November 1, 2024
Time: 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Where: UTC Lupton Hall 1st floor
Sponsor: Office of Multicultural Affairs

Visit the Multicultural Center in Lupton Hall 119, to learn through our visual timeline about Native American Heritage Month from November 1- 29, 2024.

Honoring Native Veterans

When: Monday, November 11, 2024
Time: 11:00 a.m. and  2:00 p.m.
Where: Virtual, click links to view livestream (Free event)
Sponsor: Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian

• 11 AM: Keynote by US Air Force veteran Teresa Lynch Chrapkiewicz (Navajo)   
• Teresa Lynch Chrapkiewicz (Navajo) is the first Navajo woman to receive a pilot's license and was recently honored as a "Hometown Hero" by Joint Base Charleston in South Carolina. Chrapkiewicz is a US Air Force veteran, having served in the Reserve at Luke Air Force Base and the Arizona Air National Guard as a life support technician, and currently teaches science at a secondary school. Chrapkiewicz is also a published author. Her book, The Yaz Tree Recipe: A Navajo Girl’s Dream, details her journey. Chrapkiewicz also volunteers at local schools, sharing her book and encouraging the next generation to pursue their dreams, particularly aspiring aviators.
• Watch LIVE: https://www.youtube.com/live/zqrJfC_zVeE
• 2 PM: Healing Our Veterans
  Hear from artist, National Native American Veterans Memorial designer, and US Marine Corps Vietnam veteran Harvey Pratt (Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes), US Air Force veteran and mental health counselor Shannon E. Ayres, and Diné historian and traditional practitioner Shawn Price on the importance of health and healing for service members once they return home to their communities. The conversation will touch on community-based wellness practices rooted in traditional knowledge as well as Western medicine.
• Watch LIVE: https://www.youtube.com/live/yPJHva2zxZ0

Native Cinema Showcase 2024

When: November 22 - 29, 2024
Where: Virtual, click here to explore
Sponsor: Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian * All films are offered free of charge

The National Museum of the American Indian’s Native Cinema Showcase is an annual celebration of the best in Native film. This year’s series explores the challenges still confronting Indigenous peoples on disparate fronts, including sports, missing and murdered Indigenous women, intergenerational trauma, and rematriation of the land with buffalo.

FEATURES

• Uproar (New Zealand, 110 min.)
• The Electric Indian (USA, 56 min.)
• Homecoming (Máhccan) (Finland/Norway, 76 min.)
• No Maori Allowed (New Zealand, 44 min.)
• Veins of the Amazon (Peru, 72 min.)
• A'-t'i' Xwee-ghayt-nish (Still, We Live On) (USA, 41 min.)
• I’m Just Here for the Riot (Canada, 77 min.), preceded by Dau:añcut (Moving Along Image) (USA, 15 min.)

GOOSEBUMPS SHORTS

• Tales from the Rez: Taxi Me to Hell (Canada, 13 min.)
• Happy Thanksgiving (USA, 8 min.)
• Unborn Biru (Norway, 19 min.)
• Taumanu (Reclaim) (New Zealand, 22 min.)
• Mary Margaret Road Grader (USA, 25 min.)

FUTURE FOCUSED SHORTS

• The Queen’s Flowers (USA, 11 min.)
• My Whole Healthy Life: Meet (USA, 7 min.)
• CHUMS: Spirit of the Land (Canada, 11 min.)
• Ni wapiten (Canada, 3 min.)
• Maka‘ala Bay: Lessons from the Sea Episode 2 - Hoʻokele (USA, 9 min.)
• Talking about Race: The Clutes (USA, 9 min.)
• Freddy (Canada, 3 min.)
• Nangulvi (Ecuador, 5 min.)

BELONGING SHORTS

• NIGIQTUQ ᓂᒋᖅᑐᖅ (The South Wind) (Canada, 16 min.)
• Gabriela (USA, 16 min.)
• Belonging (USA, 14 min.)
• Radio Bingo (USA/Canada, 8 min.)
• Mothertown (USA, 11 min.)
• Tiny (Canada, 17 min.)

RISE ABOVE SHORTS

• Winding Path (USA, 10 min.)
• Ekbeh (USA, 9 min.)
• ÁHKUIN (Finland, 19 min.)
• El Cielo Es Muy Bonito/The Sky is Very Pretty (Mexico, 17 min.)
• We Ride for Her (USA, 18 min.)

This program is funded in part by the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians.

Prominent Native American sites in the Chattanooga area

Red Clay State Historic Park

1140 Red Clay Park Road S.W. Cleveland, TN 37311
(Learn More)

Citico Mound

Citico Town and Mound was a major center of the Coosa confederacy, at the mouth of Citico Creek in the area of what is now Chattanooga, Tennessee.  (Learn More) See short video exploring the Citico Mound (Pyramid) - (Learn More)

THE PASSAGE   

100 Riverfront Pkwy, Chattanooga, TN 37402
(Learn more) The Passage is a pedestrian link between downtown Chattanooga and the Tennessee River and marks the beginning of the Trail of Tears.

Ross’ Landing

Cherokee Chief John Ross "John Ross (Guwisguwi)" - Ross' Landing and the origin story of Greater Chattanooga ( Learn more  ) Short documentary film shared by WTCI PBS. Explores the Cherokee Nation of the Tennessee Valley and the leadership of Chief John Ross in shaping the Chattanooga area.

Virtual Resources and Exhibits

Virtual Exhibits offered by Smithsonian Institute's National Museum of the American Indian 

ANCESTORS KNOW WHO WE ARE , WHY WE SERVE, DEVELOPING STORIES, AMERICANS, NATION TO NATION, THE GREAT INKA ROAD, INDELIBLE, INFINITY OF NATIONS, CIRCLE OF DANCE, A SONG FOR THE HORSE NATION, HIDE

Where: Virtual, click here to see gallery of the titles listed above.

Details: Virtual exhibits hosted by the Smithsonian Institute's National Museum of the American Indian in Washington D.C showcasing various aspects of the Native American experience. 

Inventions and discoveries that have changed the way we live. (Learn more)

Native American History Timeline 

As explorers sought to colonize their land, Native Americans responded in various stages, from cooperation to indignation to revolt.(Learn more)

Native Land Digital

Where: Virtual, Click here to explore

Virtual interactive map project that is working to identify Native/Indigenous Lands. 

Stay engaged with

Native American Student Alliance ( N.A.S.A.) 

There has been student interest expressed in establishing an organization that promotes and preserves Native American and Indigenous heritage.

If you would like to learn more or be included in updates on bringing this organization to UTC, complete the MocSync form below. The survey form asks general information that would be helpful in addressing your goals and assisting with the establishment of this new organization here on campus. Click here to complete the interest form.

Preservation and Education Organizations

Chattanooga InterTribal Association(CITA) (Learn More)

Cherokee Indian Removal Memorial and Museum (Learn More)

Native American Indian Association of Tennessee (Learn More)

Native American Services - Center for Cherokee Heritage Museum and Gallery (Learn More)

Native History Association East Tennessee (Learn More)

Additional Resources - 

NATIVE AMERICAN HISTORY IN CHATTANOOGA - Chattanooga Tourism Co. (Learn More)

THE UNTOLD STORY OF NATIVE AMERICAN ACTIVISM IN CHATTANOOGA - Rising Rock (Learn More)

INDIGENOUS HISTORY AT AUDUBON ACRES - Chattanooga Audubon Society (Learn More)