Blaeser (White Earth Nation Ojibwe) is the founder of Indigenous Nations Poets organization. This talk kicks off a year-long focus on “Methodologies of Acknowledgement” led by Anne McNiff Tatlock ’61 Chair in Multidisciplinary Studies Molly McGlennen.

A radical, dynamic, and engaging conversation with Amber Starks about Black and Native solidarity and kinship as Black, Native, and Afro-Indigenous kin move from survivance to thrivance and futurity.

In this talk, author Koa Beck will examine the history of feminism, from the true mission of the suffragists to the rise of corporate feminism—paying careful attention to the ways capitalism and racism have functioned as structuring forces within dominant feminist culture.

Join visiting artists and members of our campus and local communities for a conversation about Indigenous arts, land acknowledgments, and more. 

Welcome to Indian Country is an evening-length celebration of Native culture through music and storytelling. A world-class, five-piece musical ensemble is joined by storyteller and Washington State Poet Laureate Rena Priest. Together they weave new compositions and songs with witty, wise, and poignant poetry and satire to honor the elders and ancestors.

Audio

Chabitnoy, a Koniag descendant (Aleut) and member of the Tangirnaq Native Village in Kodiak, is an award-winning writer and an Assistant Professor of English at UMass Amherst. Her works include How to Dress a Fish, which addresses the lives disrupted by the Indian boarding school policy of the U.S. government.

Chacon, the first Native American awarded the Pulitzer Prize for music, will join Loeb curator John P. Murphy for a conversation about art, music, and Indigenous cultural expression. Their dialogue will be followed by a performance of the experimental composition Horse Notations. Registration required.

Video

Vocalist, actress, dancer, composer, poet-lyricist, and artist, Joan Henry will lead an embodied conversation about the ethical display of Indigenous culture in museums.

Artist, Joan Henry discussed and sung about land acknowledgment practices and their importance to Native communities.

The talk will consider issues of (mis)representation, the complexities of identity, and the challenges of defining what it means to be “American.”

Dr. Gould will discuss the concept of Institutional Will as it relates to NAGPRA, and how it is defined and experienced within the academy and other institutions

Renowned author speaks at the Starr Distinguished Lecture at Vassar College.

Featuring Delana Studi (Cherokee Nation)

Featuring Jaune Quick-to-See Smith (Salish & Kootenai). An opening reception and a panel discussion with four speakers with distinct perspectives on contemporary Indigenous art.

Dallas Goldtooth, an indigenous peoples activist and co-founder of the 1491s, an all-indigenous social media group that uses comedy and satire as means of critical social dialogue, came to Vassar for a brief residency through the Creative Arts Across Disciplines Initiative.

Video

Shannon Martin (Gun Lake Pottawatomi and Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe) speaks on how Native American tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations have been working diligently to repatriate their ancestors and restore their basic human dignity through reburial. 

Film screening and Q&A with filmmakers Chris Eyre, Jack Riccobono, and Shane Slattery-Quintanilla.

Shannon Keller O'Loughlin (Choctaw) will provide a history of United States policy in American Indian affairs that will allow students to critically analyze their own professional and personal desensitization of American Indian
peoples, their cultures, status and beliefs.

Featuring artist Sarah Sense (Chitimachi and Choctaw)