MARQUETTE, MI-- Northern Michigan University will recognize Indigenous Peoples Day on the school’s calendar on the second Monday of October each year.
The Board of Trustees approved the recommendation last week. Native groups and others say Columbus Day ignores the colonization of America and subjugation of Indigenous peoples.
NMU President Fritz Erickson says Indigenous Peoples Day is important to campus as well as the region with its rich Native American culture and history.
Erickson says there is also legitimacy in the position of those who don’t like the change and those who support Italian heritage. He says at Northern people can have different opinions but they continue to respect different views and find ways to work together.
