MARQUETTE, MI-- Northern Michigan University is celebrating its first official Indigenous Peoples’ Day Monday.
The holiday recognizes the past and current state of colonization for Native peoples. An opening ceremony, featuring drum songs by the group Morning Thunder and remarks by NMU President Fritz Erickson, begins at 10 a.m. in the academic mall. Students and faculty members from the Native American Student Association will also speak.
The evening session features keynote speaker Frank Ettawageshik, executive director of the United Tribes of Michigan. It will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. on Zoom, with a panel discussion to follow.
The NMU Board of Trustees approved a motion to recognize Indigenous Peoples’ Day on campus at its July 2020 meeting.
For more information on the opening ceremony and to access the livestream link, visit https://tinyurl.com/ipdnmuoc. To register for the evening Zoom session, visit https://tinyurl.com/ipdnmu2020. In the case of inclement weather, the opening ceremony will be held via Zoom at https://tinyurl.com/rainipd2020.
