History, care, and joy — a surprising mixture — were shared Monday at Shackamaxon, also known as Penn Treaty Park, on a gorgeous fall day during the eighth annual celebration of Indigenous Peoples’ Day there.
The event, put on by Indigenous Peoples’ Day Philly, Inc., honored the Lenape tribe and Indigenous communities originating or residing in the Northeast of the U.S.
Indigenous Peoples’ Day commemorates the history and legacy of native tribes within the U.S. The holiday is celebrated on what had previously been marked as Columbus Day, with the intent to decenter the perspective of European explorers like Christopher Columbus and other historical figures who sought to destroy Native cultures.
Before honoring other tribes, IPD Philly introduced visitors to the Lenape, or Delaware, tribe, whose ancestral lands span southeastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey and southern New York.
Curtis Zunigha, co-director of the Lenape Center in New York, spoke to the audience about the relationship between the Lenape and Quaker settlers who arrived here initially, as well as the shift from peace to strife, and the colonists dubbing the Lenape as the Delaware tribe.
To recenter the joyous aspect of the day, Zunigha led the Bean Dance, a Lenape tradition that illustrates the growth of bean plants. Many children were happy to participate, and adults were welcome to join in.
Bart “Standing Elk” Cartwright was one of those adults. The self-employed Lenape carpenter believes that the event is a sign of progress, from focusing only on the narratives of settlers from the past to highlighting the survival of the tribes across the Americas.
During the performances and speeches, people from various organizations educated attendees on the perspectives of Native groups from the early days of American settlements to more recent events like residential boarding schools.
Joy Frazier and Sherry Wack interacted with people who wanted to learn about the Carlisle Indian School,the first residential boarding school, which brutally assimilated Indigenous children into American culture. It led to the creation of 30 more residential schools in the U.S. More recently, it has led to educational resources to explain the school and reckon with its impact.
Not all activities were so focused on the past. Many vendors helped visitors engage with Native cultures in a modern way. Adniel Avendano is a Zapotec screen printer who owns a business called Nocheztli Clothing, which sells T-shirts with depictions of gods and goddesses worshiped by tribes in Mexico. Avendano wants to reach out to the Mexican diaspora in Philly to help youth of Indigenous descent reclaim their cultures.
“A lot of them, they don’t know much about their heritage,” he said, “so they feel like [they’re] lost.” He claimed some Mexicans in Philly are unsure about claiming their Native heritage because they were born in the U.S.
Others came looking for connection. City employee Cynthia Solis was eager to connect with anyone from the Navajo or Hopi tribes, as she used to live near their reservations in Arizona.
City and state government officials participated in the event and spoke at the start the day. Andrew Dodd, of the Office of Community Empowerment and Opportunity, acknowledged that making marginalized communities feel seen and heard required non-Indigenous people to “reflect on the strength and the struggles of the original stewards of this land.”
State Representative Chris Rabb echoed Dodd’s remarks and was excited to see a large gathering of children, since Pennsylvania sparked the “cultural genocide of Indigenous youth.” Rabb said young people need to be educated on the injustice that Native people faced, so those actions aren’t repeated in the future.
Overall, the event helped IPD Philly accomplish its goal: encouraging people to honor the first people to inhabit the land and connect members of different Native groups.
“Despite the centuries of targeted genocide by these colonial forces across Turtle Island and Abya Yala,” said event host Charles Under Baggage, “the spirit of our communities continues to thrive here.”
