S moke Signals
OCTOBER 1, 2004
OCTOBER 1, 2004
Smoke Signals
National Museum Off The fimezican Indian Opems In Washington, B.C.
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In The Lead Senator Ben Nighthorse-Campbell, left, leads the procession dressed in traditional Plains
regalia. Tens of thousands of Natives fromTribes across the United States joined in the opening day celebrations for
the National Museum of the American Indian, the culmination of years of planning, fund-raising and effort by both
Natives and non-Natives alike. The NMAI "is a monument to Native peoples' gifts to humanity," said Campbell.
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MUSEUM continued
from front page
sion made its way to the north side
of the museum.
Located directly in front of the
U.S. Capitol, the 250,000 square
foot Museum is home to the most
comprehensive collection of Ameri
can Indian cultural objects in the
world, according to the Smithsonian.
The five-story curvilinear build
ing sits on a 4.25-acre site and calls
to mind natural rock formations
carved by wind and water.
The structure is clad in Kasota
Limestone, with its natural maize
yellow color. The $199 million mu
seum was designed, curated and
landscaped with input from hun
dreds of Natives from all over North
and South America.
Special features of the museum
include an east-facing entrance, a
prism window projecting rainbows
across the floor and the nearly 100
foot high Potomac space devoted to
contemporary Native perfor
mances. These features are a di
rect result of extensive consulta
tions with Native peoples.
Tribal Council Chairwoman
Cheryle Kennedy said she was very
impressed with the museum.
"It's a wonderful addition. I think
the museum will be an asset and
people will come to view it as such.
Indian people have been very pa
tient... We still have our purpose,
which is to help people understand,
and I think the museum will help
with that."
But there was controversy as well
as celebration. In a press release
issued the same day, leaders of the
American Indian Movement said
the museum "falls short" by not
speaking to the "tragic history of
America's holocaust against the
Native nations and the peoples of
the Americas."
Jim Northrup, Native author and
syndicated columnist, was at the
capitol and shared a similar view.
"First of all, as the first people, we
should have been here first. It's sad
that it took so long and it took ca
sino money for it to happen," said
Northrup, referring to the contri
butions that wealthy Tribes such
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Inside View The interior of the National Museum of the American Indian features a 1 20-foot high gathering space
called the Potomac. The floor is made of maple and is composed of four quadrants that symbolize the four directions. A wall
of woven copper bands encircles the room, evoking traditional basketry patterns.
Opening Day Thousands of
tourists and spectators visited the
museum on opening day. The Museum's
opening also marked the launch of a six
day First American festival with songs, "
dance arts and demonstrations , held on
the National Mall.
as the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal
Nation and the Mohegan Tribe.
Both Tribes donated $10 million to
the museum.
Northrup also said that he would
have liked to have seen more liv
ing exhibits.
"I think that America prefers to
see us in the eighteenth century
as opposed to today."
Kennedy thought so too. Though
she still recommends the museum
"It was different than I expected,"
she said. "It didn't address the is
sues. I think they omitted them."
Joy Persall, an Ojibway from
Minneapolis who volunteered to
help with the event, saw the mu
seum in a opposite light. She said
that people often think of museums
as holding dead things, while she
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Pathway Spectators and participants for the opening of the museum began to arrive early at the Capitol Mall. Here Joy Pe irsall, an Ojibway from Minneapolis, looks
across the mall to the Washington monument. Soon the mall was filled with thousands of Natives from across the Nation.
thought "the whole building is alive
and flowing. If you get a chance to
go in, you'll see that it is very much
about living people."
Senator Ben Nighthorse
Campbell, a Northern Cheyenne
and the first American Indian to
Chair the Senate Committee on In
dian Affiars, spoke to the crowd say
ing "It is often said that Washing
ton is a city of monuments, but
there is not one to Natives. Now,
we have this beautiful building,
and in it we will tell our story."
He said that the NMAI was also
a monument to the more than
190,000 Native American Veterans
"who served with honor and cour
age, defending the nation in every
war since the Revolutionary."
NMAI director Richard West
greeted the procession dressed in a
traditional white buckskin outfit.
West said that the museum "is an
ongoing testimony to the vitality of
Native cultures."
Mark Trahant, an Editor with the
Seattle-Post Intelligencer and former
President of the Native American
Journalists Association, also had a
positive take on the new museum.
"So often the story that's told is the
story of dying Indians," he said.
"What's cool here is that you have a
museum about the future, the next
100 or 1,000 years. In a way, it's the
opposite of a museum."
Like all of the museums on the
National Mall, the NMAI is free and
open to the public.
Photos by PetaTinda
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Dressed Up A pair of Natives drei sed in traditional Plains regalia strike a
pose for a camera-toting tourist at the c pening ceremony.
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Courage Dozens of Color and Honor Guards marched in the procession. A much greater percent
age of Natives have served and are serving in the armed forces, compared to the rest of the population.
Future Photographer
HelissiTommy-TwoShoes, a Seminole
and Nakota Tribal member whose
name means "Medicine Gatherer,"
was at the NMAI opening. She is the
niece of Smoke Signals' photographer
PetaTinda and appears to already
like the camera.
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Sacred Obje CtS A collection of L iikota bibles and hyninals with beaded and
porcupine-quill embroidered covers, ""he museum is home to 8,000 such artifacts,
also including everything from ceram c figures to baskets, masks to totem poles.
This vast permanent display is free anc open to the public.
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