UND observed Indigenous Peoples’ Day Oct. 12
On Monday, the University released a special video, in honor of Indigenous Peoples’ Day (Oct. 12), detailing the reasons for and background behind UND’s recently approved Land Acknowledgement Agreement (LAA) – an official recognition of the University’s position on ancestral homelands of regional American Indian Tribes.
Due to the on-going pandemic, the video was done in lieu of an in-person celebration on campus.
The video is hosted by Stacey Borboa-Peterson, director of UND student diversity & inclusion, and includes interviews about the development of the LAA with Keith Malaterre, an American Indian student success specialist at UND. The video also has special appearances by UND alumnus Dr. Russ McDonald, enrolled member of the Spirit Lake Nation and president of United Tribes Technical College in Bismarck; Kathleen Fredericks, an enrolled member of the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation and a college coordinator for the UND Indians into Medicine program; and President Andrew Armacost, who officially unveiled and recited the LAA.
The UND Land Acknowledgement Agreement reads as follows:
“Today, the University of North Dakota rests on the ancestral lands of the Pembina and Red Lake Bands of Ojibwe, and the Dakota Oyate – presently existing as composite parts of the Red Lake, Turtle Mountain, White Earth Bands, and the Dakota Tribes of Minnesota and North Dakota. We acknowledge the people who resided here for generations and recognize that the spirit of the Ojibwe and Oyate people permeates this land. As a university community, we will continue to build upon our relations with the First Nations of the state of North Dakota – the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation, Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate Nation, Spirit Lake Nation, Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, and Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians.”
Virtual speaking event (Zoom link below)
UND’s Native American Law Students Association had two speakers discuss Native American culture via Zoom in observance for Indigenous Peoples’ Day in America. The speakers, both from the Turtle Mountain Reservation, are Jt ShiningOne Side and Vincent Grant. Topics are the traditional culture of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians and the current issues facing Native American tribes and its members, specifically about the efforts to have Two-Spirited Rights recognized by the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians.
