Putnam City Schools

Native American Heritage Month

November is Native American Heritage Month. Below you'll find information and resources related to this special month.

Presentation
Click here to see a short PowerPoint presentation on Native American Heritage Month.

Proclamation
By The President Of The United States Of America
Oct. 29, 2010

For millennia before Europeans settled in North America, the indigenous peoples of this continent flourished with vibrant cultures and were the original stewards of the land. From generation to generation, they handed down invaluable cultural knowledge and rich traditions, which continue to thrive in Native American communities across our country today. During National Native American Heritage Month, we honor and celebrate their importance to our great Nation and our world.

America’s journey has been marked both by bright times of progress and dark moments of injustice for American Indians and Alaska Natives. Since the birth of America, they have contributed immeasurably to our country and our heritage, distinguishing themselves as scholars, artists, entrepreneurs, and leaders in all aspects of our society. Native Americans have also served in the United States Armed Forces with honor and distinction, defending the security of our Nation with their lives. Yet, our tribal communities face stark realities, including disproportionately high rates of poverty, unemployment, crime, and disease. These disparities are unacceptable, and we must acknowledge both our history and our current challenges if we are to ensure that all of our children have an equal opportunity to pursue the American dream. From upholding the tribal sovereignty recognized and reaffirmed in our Constitution and laws to strengthening our unique nation-to- nation relationship, my Administration stands firm in fulfilling our Nation’s commitments.

Over the past 2 years, we have made important steps towards working as partners with Native Americans to build sustainable and healthy native communities. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act continues to impact the lives of American Indians and Alaska Natives, including through important projects to improve, rebuild, and renovate schools so our children can get the education and skills they will need to compete in the global economy. At last year’s White House Tribal Nations Conference, I also announced a new consultation process to improve communication and coordination between the Federal Government and tribal governments.

This year, I was proud to sign the landmark Affordable Care Act, which permanently reauthorized the Indian Health Care Improvement Act, a cornerstone of health care for American Indians and Alaska Natives. This vital legislation will help modernize the Indian health care system and improve health care for 1.9 million American Indians and Alaska Natives. To combat the high rates of crime and sexual violence in Native communities, I signed the Tribal Law and Order Act in July to bolster tribal law enforcement and enhance their abilities to prosecute and fight crime more effectively. And, recently, my Administration reached a settlement in a lawsuit brought by Native American farmers against the United States Department of Agriculture that underscores our commitment to treat all our citizens fairly.

As we celebrate the contributions and heritage of Native Americans during this month, we also recommit to supporting tribal self-determination, security, and prosperity for all Native Americans. While we cannot erase the scourges or broken promises of our past, we will move ahead together in writing a new, brighter chapter in our joint history.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim November 2010 as National Native American Heritage Month. I call upon all Americans to commemorate this month with appropriate programs and activities, and to celebrate November 26, 2010, as Native American Heritage Day.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand ten, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-fifth.

Notable Oklahoma Native Americans

• John Bennett Herrington (born Sept. 14, 1958) is an American astronaut and a veteran of one space shuttle mission. He is the first enrolled member of a Native American (Chickasaw) tribe to fly in space. William R. Pogue, of Choctaw ancestry, was the first Native American astronaut, but was not an enrolled member of a tribe.

• Harvey Phillip Pratt (born 1941) is an American forensic artist and Native American Artist (Cheyenne & Arapahoe) who has worked for more than 40 years in law enforcement, completing thousands of composite drawings and hundreds of soft tissue postmortem reconstructions. He is one of relatively few people in his field of forensic art. In the mid-1980s, Pratt created and developed the soft tissue postmortem drawing method.

• Wilma Pearl Mankiller (Nov. 18, 1945 – April 6, 2010) was the first female Chief of the Cherokee Nation. She served as the Principal Chief for 10 years from 1985 to 1995.

• Jacobus Franciscus "Jim" Thorpe (Sac & Fox) Wa-Tho-Huk) (May 28, 1888 – March 28, 1953) was an American athlete of mixed ancestry (mixed Caucasian and American Indian). Considered one of the most versatile athletes of modern sports, he won Olympic gold medals for the 1912 pentathlon and decathlon, played American football (collegiate and professional), and also played professional baseball and basketball.

• Geronimo (Chiricahua Apache): Goyaałé, "one who yawns" (June 16, 1829 – Feb. 17, 1909) was a prominent Native American leader of the Chiricahua Apache who fought against Mexico and the United States and their expansion into Apache tribal lands for several decades during the Apache Wars.

• William Penn Adair "Will" Rogers (Nov. 4, 1879 – Aug. 15, 1935) was an American cowboy, comedian, humorist, social commentator, vaudeville performer and actor and one of the best-known celebrities in the 1920s and 1930s. Known as Oklahoma’s's favorite son, Rogers (Cherokee) was born to a prominent Indian Territory family. He traveled around the world three times, made 71 movies (50 silent films and 21 "talkies"), wrote more than 4,000 nationally-syndicated newspaper columns, and became a world-famous figure. By the mid-1930s, Rogers was adored by the American people. He was the leading political wit of the Progressive era, and was the top-paid movie star in Hollywood at the time. Rogers died in 1935 with aviator Wiley Post, when their small airplane crashed near Barrow, Alaska.

• Maria Tallchief (born Jan. 24, 1925) (Osage) was the first American prima ballerina. From 1942 to 1947 she danced with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, but she is best known for her time with the New York City Ballet from 1947 to 1965.

• Standing Bear (1834(?) - 1908) was a Native American chief (Ponca) who successfully argued in U.S. District Court in 1879 in Omaha that Native Americans are "persons within the meaning of the law" and have the right of habeas corpus.

• Sequoyah, named in English George Gist or Guess, was a (Cherokee) silversmith who in 1821 completed his independent creation of a Cherokee syllabary, making reading and writing in Cherokee possible. This was the only time in recorded history that a member of an illiterate people independently created an effective writing system. After seeing its worth, the Cherokee Nation rapidly began to use his syllabary and officially adopted it in 1825. Their literacy rate rapidly surpassed that of surrounding European-American settlers.

• Navarre Scott Momaday (born Feb. 27, 1934) is a (Kiowa – Cherokee) writer from Oklahoma. Momaday's novel House Made of Dawn led to the breakthrough of Native American literature into the mainstream. It was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1969.

• Allie Pierce Reynolds (Feb. 10, 1917 - Dec. 26, 1994) (known as the Superchief) was a pitcher in Major League Baseball. He was born in Bethany Oklahoma. His first major league game was on September 17, 1942, for the Cleveland Indians and in 1946 he was traded to the New York Yankees. He promptly became the Yankees' best pitcher, recording the highest winning percentage in the American League in his first season as a Yankee.

• Wesley "Wes" Studi (born Dec. 17, 1947) is an American (Cherokee) actor, who has earned notability for his portrayals of Native Americans in film. He has appeared in well-received Academy Award-winning films, such as Kevin Costner's Dances with Wolves, Michael Mann's The Last of the Mohicans, the award-winning Geronimo: An American Legend and Academy Award-nominated The New World (2005).

Source: Wikipedia