The Center of Southwest Studies, the Museum of Contemporary Arts, and the Artist Leadership Program Work Together to Support Native Artists

Through the Artist Leadership Program (ALP) for Museums and Cultural Organizations, the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) aims to rebuild cultural self-confidence, challenge personal boundaries, and foster cultural continuity while reflecting artistic diversity. The program's goal is for the museum and its collaborators to recognize and promote indigenous artistic leadership. At the same time, the ALP seeks to enhance the artistic growth, development, and leadership of emerging student artists and scholars through art workshops and other community-based projects. Here, museum professionals from the Center of Southwest Studies and the Museum of Contemporary Native Art talk about their experiences with the ALP.

Participants in the Artist Leadership Program for Museums and Cultural Organizations, 2014–15 (from left to right): John Joe (Diné/Irish), collections registrar for the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts, Institute of American Indian Arts; Jeanne Brako, curator of collections of the Center of Southwest Studies; Jay Harrison, then director of the Center of Southwest Studies; and Keevin Lewis (Navajo), outreach program coordinator for the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI). NMAI Cultural Resources Center, Suitland, Maryland.

I am Jay Harrison, and from 2012 to 2015 I was director of the Center of Southwest Studies (CSWS) in Durango, Colorado, a regional studies center and museum at Fort Lewis College. I am also a cultural historian of the early modern Americas with research interests in indigenous history and the history of colonial settlement in Mexico, the American Southwest, and the greater Atlantic world, now on the faculty of Hood College.

My goal in coming to Washington, D.C., while I was at the CSWS was to immerse myself and our curator, Jeanne Brako, who will administer the Artist Leadership Program (ALP) in Durango, in the workings of the program at the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI), and to see what collections Native artists in Colorado might wish to know about in the future as they continue their own work. These goals for the Washington trip were accomplished and then some as we met with personnel at the museum and elsewhere within the Smithsonian and in other academic centers.

The CSWS's growing connections with regional artists and collectors fueled our interest in extending our work in a proactive manner, much as the ALP experience does. The program is a perfect fit with the direction the center would like to take its work in the Four Corners region of the Southwest. The intensity and breadth of the experience at the museum are the main reasons I would urge others to apply for the program. The resources and ideas available at the NMAI are immense—overwhelming, really.

Most significantly for the CSWS as a museum, Jeanne and I were able to see the Artist Leadership Program at work and to realize just how diverse the experiences can be for visiting artists at the NMAI. This opened up our view of what the program at the CSWS can do and be for regional artists working in our museum's collections and other collections in the region.

I believe this trip expanded our views of just how wide a scope the program can potentially have in bringing Native artists to cultural materials and what a multitude of responses might ensue from that exposure.

I am Jeanne Brako, and I have always been intrigued by artistic expression and how it enhances our world. I have worked in and with museums since I was in high school. My career has included various specialty areas of museum work and has ranged from organizing collections (registration and collections management) and analyzing and stabilizing works of art (art conservation), to interpreting and displaying artifacts and artwork (publications and exhibits), to appreciating and sharing information and visuals with various communities (teaching, workshops, partnerships, and tours). Right now I work as curator of collections at the Museum of the Center of Southwest Studies.

I attended the NMAI Artist Leadership Program as an administrator on our awarded NMAI ALP contract. My expectation was that I would gain knowledge about management of the project, but my experience at the NMAI made me realize me that I need to be an active participant. The program is too exciting not to join in, in a very active way.

At the Center for Southwest Studies we work with many Native artists, but until recently this most often has been related to borrowing works of art for exhibition. More recently we have worked with Native artists who curate exhibits here at the center, and we want to help facilitate that in a number of different ways. We hope that the experience at the NMAI will be a gateway to expanding that type of collaboration.

While at the NMAI I talked to Lisa Rutherford, an artist and citizen of the Cherokee Nation. I met her for the first time at the NMAI, although we have had a feather cape she made on view in our gallery in Durango as part of a fashion exhibit. There was so much more we could have done if we had worked directly with her when the cape was suggested for display. Speaking with her made me want to bring more artists, not just artworks, to Fort Lewis College to engage in collaborative projects.

I find the value of my new ALP experience exciting in that I am now better prepared to connect more personally with Native artists. I hope to commit to fund-raise and friend-raise to continue this type of collaboration well into the future.

I am John Joe, and I am an interdisciplinary artist and a member of the Irish and Diné nations. I have been around art for most of my life and have worked with many different institutions, organizations, and individuals dedicated to art. I currently live and work in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and serve as the museum collections registrar for the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts (MoCNA). 

The initial goal of my trip to the National Museum of the American Indian was to visit, network, and further my professional development. My organization felt that my participation in NMAI's Artist Leadership Program for Museums and Cultural Arts Organizations would benefit our Social Exchange and Artist Residency here at the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts, which of course is supported by NMAI's Artist Leadership Program.

I would recommend that other Native museums and Native cultural arts programs apply and experience NMAI's Artist Leadership Program, because it’s important to our people and communities. By participating in this program you will walk away with insight, conversations, memories that will help you as you move forward and inform projects that you are involved with in your own community.

One of the more memorable moments of the program was entering into NMAI’s collections and seeing our collective artistic legacy as indigenous people. Very powerful! The second was meeting specific museum professionals whose experience I wanted to tap to help inform my own professional development. It was also great to meet the artists participating in NMAI's Artist Leadership Program. This experience will help me promote, encourage, and facilitate future collaborations between our people.

The experience at the NMAI reinforces what I share and have put into practice for many years. Our collective artistic legacy, our vision, and our voices as indigenous people are important and should be seen on equal terms globally. What I value from my experience with NMAI's Artist Leadership Program is the opportunity to participate and gain insight from some pretty amazing people who work there. I also appreciated the platform to gain more public speaking experience at the National Museum of the American Indian on the National Mall.

Do American Indians Celebrate Thanksgiving?

Five years ago, Dennis Zotigh wrote a short essay for the museum on the Thanksgiving story and how he observes the holiday. Since then, Dennis has asked Native friends to talk about how their families spend Thanksgiving Day. Here are some of the responses people gave him this year. Dennis's essay, including people's earlier answers to his question, appears below: 

Wellington, Kansas: Thanksgiving was a blending of two different cultures, one culture helping another to survive. The historical knowledge we have now of what was actually taking place may not be the same as what was being experienced in those days. Our assessment now may not be fair because of all that the Native people have endured. 

Exeter, California: Being the only Native American classroom teacher at a public school, raised mostly in an urban setting steeped heavy in traditional American holidays, and around many other native people on weekends while traveling to dance, this has always been a challenging question for me that I cannot claim to know the answer for. I see many other teachers I work with who are not native struggle with knowing how to address the issue comfortably. I have to say, I have fear that if we avoid the issue altogether, Native people will be forgotten about. I have seen some teachers decide to stop teaching about Native Americans for fear of offending. I personally get sad when I see that happen. I know Thanksgiving is a controversial subject, and there are so many viewpoints. I share the modern theme of Thanksgiving, which I think has good intentions—family and community. I have also chosen to teach about Native American culture, even more heavily in November because of Thanksgiving, even though it is no longer a part of the curriculum. I have found ways to integrate it while teaching something that I think is important. I do an assembly for the students in which we dance, and I emphasize how it is not possible to teach everything there is to know about Native Americans in just one assembly. I emphasize the diversity among native people. 

San Antonio, Texas: Except for the last four years, the twenty years before that I spent almost all of my Thanksgivings at the table of my brother-in-law. Our gatherings were about giving thanks for what we had. As for Native American history being left out of teaching, it is an outrage. Educate our fellow educators on how to teach it. It would be a great way to help others teach courses and show how to respect the culture.

Edmonton, Alberta: We have family members with addiction issues. The kids get to eat, which my mom loves. And we are thankful not only to survive colonization, but also grateful to feed family.

Norman, Oklahoma: We celebrate and give thanks for our loved ones' being able to be together again. But when my daughter was young and the realization hit, as it does all young American Indians, she said to me , "Do you think we should have helped them?" There will be extra prayers for Standing Rock at our table. 

Do American Indians Celebrate Thanksgiving?

The Wampanoag Nation Singers and Dancers, 2011. Salt Pond, Cape Cod National Seashore. Courtesy of the Wampanoag Nation Singers and Dancers. 

In thinking about my earliest memories of elementary school, I remember being asked to bring a brown paper sack to class so that it could be decorated and worn as part of the Indian costume used to celebrate Thanksgiving. I was also instructed to make a less-than-authentic headband with Indian designs and feathers to complete this outfit. Looking back, I now know this was wrong.

The Thanksgiving Indian costume that all the other children and I made in my elementary classroom trivialized and degraded the descendants of the proud Wampanoags, whose ancestors attended the first Thanksgiving popularized in American culture. The costumes we wore bore no resemblance to Wampanoag clothing of that time period. Among the Wampanoag, and other American Indians, the wearing of feathers has significance. The feathers we wore were simply mockery, an educator’s interpretation of what an American Indian is supposed to look like.

The Thanksgiving myth has done so much damage and harm to the cultural self-esteem of generations of Indian people, including myself, by perpetuating negative and harmful images to both young Indian and non-Indian minds. There are so many things wrong with the happy celebration that takes place in elementary schools and its association to American Indian culture; compromised integrity, stereotyping, and cultural misappropriation are three examples. 

Jean Leon Gerome Ferris (1863–1930), The First Thanksgiving 1621. Color halftone of an oil painting from the series The Pageant of a Nation. Library of Congress. (LC-USZC4-4961) 

When children are young, they are often exposed to antiquated images of American Indians through cartoons, books, and movies. But Thanksgiving re-enactments may be their most active personal encounter with Indian America, however poorly imagined, and many American children associate Thanksgiving actions and images with Indian culture for the rest of their lives. These cultural misunderstandings and stereotypical images perpetuate historical inaccuracy.

Tolerance of mockery by teachers is a great concern to Native parents. Much harm has been done to generations of Indian people by perpetuating negative and harmful images in young minds. Presenting Thanksgiving to children as primarily a happy time trivializes our shared history and teaches a half-truth. And while I agree that elementary-school children who celebrate the first Thanksgiving in their classrooms are too young to hear the truth, educators need to share Thanksgiving facts in all American schools sometime before high school graduation.

Jennie A. Brownscombe (1850–1936), The First Thanksgiving at Plymouth (1914). Oil paint on canvas. Courtesy of Pilgrim Hall Museum.

Let’s begin with Squanto (aka Tisquantum), a Patuxet, one of more than 50 tribes who formed the Wampanoag Confederacy. Around 1614, when he was perhaps 30, Squanto was kidnapped along with others of his people and taken across the Atlantic Ocean to Malaga, Spain, where they were sold into slavery. Monks in Spain bought Squanto, shared their faith with him, and made it possible for him to find his way to England in 1615. In England he worked for shipbuilder John Slany and became proficient in English. In 1619 Squanto returned to his homeland by joining an exploring expedition along the New England coast. When he arrived at the village where he has been raised, all his family and the rest of his tribe had been exterminated by a devastating plague.

What about the Pilgrims? Separatists who fled from England to Holland seeking to escape religious persecution by English authorities, and who later booked passage to North America, are now called "Pilgrims," though Americans did not widely use the term until the 1870s. In November, 1620, the Mayflower dropped anchor in present-day Provincetown Harbor. After exploring the coast for a few weeks, the Pilgrims landed and began building a permanent settlement on the ruins of Squanto’s Patuxet village, now renamed New Plymouth. Within the first year, half of the 102 Pilgrims who set out from Europe on the Mayflower had perished. In desperation the Pilgrims initially survived by eating corn from abandoned fields, raiding villages for stored food and seed, and robbing graves at Corn Hill.

Squanto was introduced to the Pilgrims in the spring of 1621, became friends with them, and taught them how to hunt and fish in order to survive in New England. He taught the Pilgrims how to plant corn by using fish as fertilizer and how to plant gourds around the corn so that the vines could climb the cornstalks. Due to his knowledge of English, the Pilgrims made Squanto an interpreter and emissary between the English and Wampanoag Confederacy.

What really happened at the first Thanksgiving in 1621? The Pilgrims did not introduce the concept of thanksgiving; the New England tribes already had autumn harvest feasts of thanksgiving. To the original people of this continent, each day is a day of thanksgiving to the Creator.  In the fall of 1621, William Bradford, the governor of the Plymouth Colony, decided to have a Plymouth harvest feast of thanksgiving and invited Massasoit, the Grand Sachem of the Wampanoag Federation, to join the Pilgrims. Massasoit came with approximately 90 warriors and brought food to add to the feast, including venison, lobster, fish, wild fowl, clams, oysters, eel, corn, squash and maple syrup. Massasoit and the ninety warriors stayed in Plymouth for three days. These original Thanksgiving foods are far different from the meals prepared in modern Thanksgiving celebrations.

Squanto died in 1622, but Massasoit outlived the era of relative peace in colonial New England. On May 26, 1637, near the present-day Mystic River in Connecticut, while their warriors were away, an estimated 400 to 700 Pequot women, children, and old men were massacred and burned by combined forces of the Plymouth, Massachusetts Bay, and Saybrook (Connecticut) colonies and Narragansett and Mohegan allies. Colonial authorities found justification to kill most of the Pequot men and enslave the captured women and their children. Pequot slaves were sent to Bermuda and the West Indies. In 1975 the official number of Pequot people living in Connecticut was 21. Similar declines in Native population took place throughout New England as an estimated three hundred thousand Indians died by violence, and even more were displaced, in New England over the next few decades.

Looking at this history raises a question: Why should Native peoples celebrate Thanksgiving? Many Natives particularly in the New England area remember this attempted genocide as a factual part of their history and are reminded each year during the modern Thanksgiving. The United American Indians of New England meet each year at Plymouth Rock on Cole's Hill for a Day of Mourning. They gather at the feet of a statue of Grand Sachem Massasoit of the Wampanoag to remember and reflect in the hope that America will never forget.

I turn to friends on the Internet to find out what Native people think of Thanksgiving. A few of the responses I have received over the years:

Hydro, Oklahoma: Could we just start over and go forward? We can't change the past, but we can work for peace and unity in the future. History needs to be taught correctly in our schools—that is what needs to happen. My daughter had to write a paper about Big Tree, Satank, and Satanta. She interviewed Satanta's great-grandson, who was in his 90s, and told the story as he told it to her, including their transport from Fort Sill and how the feather was turned into a knife as they passed the giant tree, causing the soldiers to shoot and kill Satank. She got an AAA+ from her teacher.

Ecuador via Bozeman, Montana: It's important to share the whole, true story of the first Thanksgiving. Many of us were told a fairytale lie that led us to believe the same old story: Colonization was good for everyone and colonization was relatively peaceful (the violence was necessary, the ends justify the means). Now, a lot of us are learning more, and that comes from educating ourselves with the help from those who do know. I will say this, the generic idea of thanksgiving, or taking the time to be with family and friends and give thanks for all the blessings in our lives, the big and small, is a great practice and should happen more often. I wonder how we can turn a negative into a positive? Can we have an honest Thanksgiving? Can we move forward and, if so, where do we begin?

Santa Fe, New Mexico: My family and I celebrate Thanksgiving, not so much in the way that the "Pilgrims" may have done with the Indians. We give pause, and acknowledge all of the blessings that we received in the past year. We think of family and friends; of the homeless; of those away from family in hospitals, elders in nursing homes, those incarcerated, the soldier men and women overseas, around the world, standing watch and guarding our freedom. We think of those in mourning, whose family have gone ahead of them. We also think of those in school, no matter what age. And, finally, we pray for traveling mercies said for folks traveling home. We are thankful each day for Creator's gifts but on Thanksgiving, it seems we focus and are concentrated in our thoughts about these blessings.

Fairfax, Oklahoma: Our folks and ancestors left a good road to follow and prayed for gifts or successes for us that they may not have achieved. We have opportunities even more than them in these days and days to come. Long time ago we sat down in thanksgiving and had a great day. That's what Thanksgiving is to me, to enjoy and continue to achieve for yourself and them. They are smiling when we achieve. Aho.

Sevierville, Tennessee: Yes, I celebrate Thanksgiving. I have a thankful heart and feel blessed, so I give thanks.

Lawton, Oklahoma, with gentle humor: Do we have to feed the Pilgrims? Again?

And here are a few people's thoughts in 2013: 

Aylett, Virginia: It is good to celebrate the concept of gratitude and thankfulness. When the holiday story is based on a lie that covers up the national moral atrocity of genocide, the statement about the people who celebrate is not good. Shining light on the truth will always bring about healing. 

Montville, Connecticut: Thanksgiving was celebrated for murder and slavery rather than friendship and harvest. 

Greenbelt, Maryland: I don't necessarily look at the holiday as pilgrims-meet-Indians-and-chow-down. I celebrate it as the time the cycle of alcoholism was broken in our family, and we have a feast to celebrate that. 

Norman, Oklahoma: It's pretty much a family reunion for me, and there is eating, visiting, being thankful, and having a good time. Because of that, there is no reason to worry about the history. Similar to the idea that our dances fall on the 4th of July and instead of celebrating independence, it is more like a homecoming to our Kiowa people. 

California: When I went to school there was two Indians in our class—me and a Hopi girl. Neither one of us had to endure any of this because her mother and my mother both raised hell with the principal. No fake headbands or feathers for us. 

Pala, California: When my kids were in pre-school is when I decided I needed to represent our people at this time of year more than any other. I would be damned if my kids were gonna wear paper bags like the other students. I wasn't having that. I learned to get the story across at their age level and show them the beauty and generosity of our people. I remember growing up and my mom getn upset with me because on Thanksgiving day I would come to the dinner table in my PJs and hair unbrushed, knowing the day was not a celebration. But now that I'm a mother of 3 and a grandmother of 1, I understand as Native people we give thanks to the Creator every day. On Thanksgiving Day I'm just grateful our people are still here and still stand strong. 

Salt Lake City, Utah: Thanksgiving, to me, is to be grateful for all the good blessings that came my way. Good health. Gift of family. Regardless of history, there are still many Natives in the land, and that shows how resilient we are. To honor those who went before us, let us share our culture and stories, teach the youth to learn from the past and to make our lives so our ancestors are proud of us. Example is a great educator. 

Alberta, Canada: It is an opportunity for those who do take note . . . . There will be those who roll their eyes, and others who may gain deeper appreciation, to honor (maybe even emulate) a more giving nature . . . , that of their Creator. 

Crow Agency, Montana: My Dad used to say, "We give thanks everyday, so if they want to give us a holiday to give thanks, I'll take it." 

Unfortunately, I didn't include where people were writing from in the essay when it first appeared in 2011:

I was infuriated when my daughter’s school had a mock feast complete with paper mache headdresses and Pilgrim hats!

When they did that to my kids in elementary, I TORE those items up and signed my kids out of school for that day.

For Thanksgiving I was the Indian. Umm Go figure . . . .

Someone took a picture of me in front of the class, and to this day . . . it bothers me. Don't get the whole making a fest in school.   

Tonight I have to lead a children's Bible class, and they want me to theme it around Thanksgiving. I will, but it's not going to be about the happy pilgrims and all that stuff. Thankfulness to God is one thing, but elevating pilgrims to hero status is out of the question.  

When my daughter Victoria was in grade school she had a teacher give them the assignment to write a report on Thanksgiving dinner, and Victoria wrote hers as to why our family doesn't celebrate Thanksgiving. Victoria got an F on the paper, and I threatened to go to the school board if the principal didn't get it changed. Victoria got an A, and the class got a lesson on Native American heritage. 

Ignorance and not near enough education in the school systems! It is very sad that a majority of what is taught is very superficial and the dark aspects of our history are neatly tucked away.Very sad!

Considered a day of mourning in our house.

For skins [American Indians], Thanksgiving should be the Last Supper. 

The United American Indians of New England meet each year at Plymouth Rock on Cole's Hill for a Day of Mourning. They gather at the feet of a statue of Grand Sachem Massasoit of the Wampanoag to remember and reflect in the hope that America will never forget.

Do I celebrate Thanksgiving? No, I don’t celebrate. But I do take advantage of the holiday and get together with family and friends to share a large meal without once thinking of the Thanksgiving in 1621. I think it is the same in many Native households. It is ironic that Thanksgiving takes place during American Indian and Alaskan Native Heritage Month. An even greater irony is that more Americans today identify the day after Thanksgiving as Black Friday than as National American Indian Heritage Day.  

—Dennis W. Zotigh

Dennis W. Zotigh (Kiowa/San Juan Pueblo/Santee Dakota Indian) is a member of the Kiowa Gourd Clan and San Juan Pueblo Winter Clan and a descendant of Sitting Bear and No Retreat, both principal war chiefs of the Kiowas. Dennis works as a writer and cultural specialist at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C.

The original version of this essay was published on November 23, 2011.

Artist Anita Paillamil empowers other Mapuche women by reconnecting them with their culture

The Artist Leadership Program (ALP) of the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) aims to rebuild cultural self-confidence, challenge personal boundaries, and foster cultural continuity while reflecting artistic diversity. The ALP's goal is to recognize and promote indigenous artistic leadership. At the same time, the program seeks to enhance the artistic growth, development, and leadership of emerging student artists and scholars through community art workshops in the artists' communities. Selection for the program is based on the artists’ proposed research, proposed workshops or public art projects, digital portfolios, resumes, artist statements, and letters of community support. Here, artist Anita Paillamil shares some of the important things she gained from the program.

Textile artist Anita Paillamil (Mapuche) outside the Museo Regional de La Araucanía in Temuco, Chile.

My name is Anita Paillamil, and I am Mapuche. I live in the town of Nueva Imperial, in the rural area of Lliuco in the Araucanía Region in southern Chile. My main job is to create and reproduce Mapuche traditional textiles, made with sheep's wool and dyed with natural elements such as leaves, mud, flowers, and fruits. Also I dedicate myself to teach this art to Indigenous women who for many reasons have been left with no knowledge of textiles and who today feel a need to reconnect with their ancestors through textile art.

Mapuche woman's ligchamall (dress) and trariwe (belt). Dress: ca. 1910; central Chile; wool. Belt: 2000; purchased from Fundación Chol-Chol, a non-profit organization focused on economic development for Mapuche people, Temuco, Araucanía Region, Chile; wool yarn, dyes. 17/6668 & 26/1561. NMAI Photo Services.

I applied to the National Museum of the American Indian to take part in the Artist Leadership Program because tangible and intangible Mapuche culture is losing its impact due to young people's lack of motivation to learn it. Our parents belong to the generation that encouraged their children to stop practicing their culture because of shame. As a result so much knowledge and so many stories were lost. I was fortunate—everything I know I learned from my mother. So for me as a Mapuche woman and instructor of this art, it is very important to reconnect with our culture. Only then will I be able to transmit it to the different generations of Mapuche and non-Mapuche people, ensuring that the traditions will not be lost.

When I started my research at the museum's Cultural Resources Center in Suitland, Maryland, my main goal was to examine the collection of trariwes, or women's traditional belts, identifying iconographic patterns that were lost in the textiles that are produced today. My goal was to be able to reproduce the patterns, working together with the women of the group Wallontu Witral to which I belong and of which I am president. The trariwe is one of the most sacred pieces for us as a people, and I thought that during the trip to Washington, I would only get to see trariwes. When I got to the Cultural Resources Center, however, and started my project, I was impressed by the number of objects in the collections and the care with which they are treated. That was something I did not expect, because here in rural communities we see very old textiles thrown on the floor or hung on a fence. Also I do not speak English, and I was a little worried that I might not be able to communicate and work independently. I thought it would be difficult, but it was not, because the museum's whole team was very willing to help me at all times.

Individuals artists who took part in the Artist Leadership Program for 2014–15 (left to right): Keevin Lewis (Navajo), the museum's outreach program coordinator; Lisa Rutherford (Cherokee Nation), Anita Paillamil Antiqueo (Mapuche), Jacob Butler (Salt River Pima Maricopa Indian Community), and Irma Alvarez Ccoscco (Quechua). National Museum of the American Indian Cultural Resources Center, Suitland, Maryland.

To all the artists who are applying, especially those who do not speak English, do not to be afraid of the language. The feeling of being there with some of your own living culture is invaluable, and the team is always looking for ways in which you're right! Do not be frustrated if you cannot be selected immediately. Do try again, because you can always count on the support and guidance of Keevin Lewis, the Artist Leadership Program's outreach coordinator and now a very good friend. It is also a unique opportunity to re-meet your own people.

Many moments I experienced during my stay in Washington were very significant, but what I think I remember most was my visit to the pre-Columbian collection at Dumbarton Oaks. I was not able to finish that visit because I felt very bad—not physically, but of the spirit. Looking at the objects and feeling the energy that was in that place it was as if there was part of me there and perhaps something that belonged to my family, my direct ancestors.

Anita's community workshops explored traditional Mapuche dyeing, among other techniques. To create black, white wool is first boiled with maqui tree leaves, which turn the wool yellow. Oily mud from a local swamp is then added to turn the yellow wool black.

This made me think that this time I am living is something unique, something very important, and that reconnecting with our culture is a task that must continue. One of the ways to assure that is through my community art project. My goal is to share that experience with all who feel this attachment to nature and the land that gives us life, because it is important to preserve and disseminate the knowledge of our grandmothers.

Thanks to my trip to the museum, from February 16 to 20, 2015, I conducted many activities in different communities in my area, retransmitting my experience in Washington, much of what I could see in the museum's collections, as well as my own feelings as a Mapuche woman. About 200 people were involved in this project, mostly Mapuche women who have been my students. Now they’re continuing to develop traditional textiles in their own communities. Among the most important activities was the rescue of natural dyeing to give white wool a black color—important knowledge for Mapuche culture because black represents security. Also during the week of my community art project we had very important discussions about the protection of our textile iconography, as it is part of us as a people and belongs to and is characteristic of our culture.

I think the most important aspect of my experience in the program is that I have gained more confidence in my work, and more appreciation for it at different levels. I feel my role within my culture is to continue working so that knowledge is not lost—teaching women, children, young people, and all those who are interested in learning. When I was in Washington, I realized that this is part of my purpose in life—to preserve traditions, spread awareness, and support Mapuche women who are somehow reconnecting with all this ancestral knowledge.

—Anita Paillamil (Mapuche)

Meet Native America: Vinton Hawley, Chairman of the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe, President of the Executive Board of the Inter-Tribal Council of Nevada, and Vice-Chairman of the National Indian Health Board

In the interview series Meet Native America, the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian invites tribal leaders, cultural figures, and other interesting and accomplished Native individuals to introduce themselves and say a little about their lives and work. Together their responses illustrate the diversity of the indigenous communities of the Western Hemisphere, as well as their shared concerns, and offer insights beyond what’s in the news to the ideas and experiences of Native people today. —Dennis Zotigh 

Vinton Hawley, chairman of the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe, president of the Executive Board of the Inter-Tribal Council of Nevada, and vice chairman of the National Indian Health Board (NIHB). NIHB Board of Directors meeting, January 2016, U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C. Courtesy of Chairman Hawley.

Please introduce yourself with your name and title. 

My name is Vinton Hawley. I'm chairman of the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe, or Kooyooe Tukaddu (Kooyooe Eaters); president of the Executive Board of the Inter-Tribal Council of Nevada; and vice-chairman of the National Indian Health Board (NIHB). I am an enrolled member of the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe and also Hopi–Tewa (Tobacco Clan). 

Can you share your Native name and its English translation, or your nickname? 

Two Native names I've been given are Sahkoo Penge (Black Pipe) and Saah Ehnoo (Tobacco Boy). There are many other names that were given, as well. 

Where is your tribal community located? 

Pyramid Lake is located 27 miles northeast of Reno, Nevada. We have three towns that comprise our reservation—Wadsworth, Nixon, and Sutcliffe—and a huge water base in rural Nevada. On the Hopi–Tewa side of my family, I come from the Tewa Village First Mesa, Polacca, Arizona. 

Where is your tribe originally from? 

Pyramid Lake is the traditional homeland of the Kooyooe Tukaddu (Kooyooe Eaters). The arid desert and mesas in Arizona are the traditional homeland for the Hopi–Tewa people. 

What is a significant point in history from your tribe that you would like to share? 

Pyramid Lake has been at the forefront with water rights. The tribe recently finalized the Truckee River Operating Agreement (TROA), a 20-plus-year water negotiation between the tribe, local governments, the City of Reno, and the City of Sparks that will provide economic development opportunities and funding to the tribe. We are working with the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and the Department of the Interior Office of the Special Trustee to gain access to the economic development funds that are attached to the finalization and implementation of TROA. 

The tribe’s Section 17 Corporate Charter was also recently approved by the BIA. 

In somewhat older history, the tribe recognizes battles that took place on the reservation against settlers and the U.S. Army. 

The Pyramid and Domes, 1867. Pyramid Lake, Nevada. Photo by Timothy O'Sullivan. Collections of the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/98503891/.

How is your tribal government set up? 

The Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe is governed by ten Tribal Council members who are elected biannually in December to staggered two-year terms. The officers, including the chairman and vice-chairman, are part of the ten-member council. The tribe operates under the Indian Reorganization Act Constitution and By-Laws approved in January 1936 by the Department of Interior. 

How often does your Tribal Council meet? 

The Pyramid Lake Tribal Council meets three times a month. Council meetings are held every first and third Friday of every month, and we have a Water Team meeting on the third Wednesday of every month. The Water Team meeting is held with the tribe’s water attorney and addresses only water issues. 

Is there a functional, traditional entity of leadership in addition to your modern government system? 

Unfortunately, we have lost a large portion of our people who have this kind of traditional knowledge. The majority of our members are now involved in Native religions outside of our own Paiute culture. They are mostly involved in the Native American Church and Sundance religions. There are a few families who continue to practice our old way, but Paiute life is simple and I think that is why it can’t compete with the more popular and glamorous Native cultures. 

How did your life experience prepare you to lead your tribe? 

I was raised in most part by my great-grandmother Gussie Dunn Williams, who lived the old ways. We would get up in the morning and eat breakfast and then go visiting our relatives on our reservation. We didn’t own a car and we walked all over. Each visit involved conversations in Paiute about everyday happenings, dropping off food for those who needed help, checking on others who might not be able to leave their homes, and just plain old visiting. 

I learned traditional activities such as weaving, gathering, doctoring, etc. It wasn’t the show that it seems to have become today; it was just day-to-day living. I learned the priorities of our old people and I was taught what is really important to our tribe to ensure our survival. My life was simple, and our life is simple, but what is most important is that our people survive, that our environment is protected, and that water is life. I learned to understand the language at an early age and began speaking. I learned the survival arts of the Pyramid Lake Paiutes. I also learned a lot from my Hopi–Tewa grandparents, who were very hard workers and have instilled in me what exactly a simple life is. 

The Truckee River shortly before it drains into Pyramid Lake. Pyramid Lake Paiute Indian Reservation near Nixon, Nevada. Photo courtesy of truckeeriver.org. 

What responsibilities do you have as tribal chairman? 

It is my responsibility to make decisions that ensure our way of life continues. So many people associate money with success, but that isn’t our way. The level of our lake is our success. To ensure that our tribal language and traditions are sustained is my priority. My people are my responsibility. It is my commitment to this that I carry each day. 

Decisions made must ensure that the future membership is cared for and protected, our lake is sustained, and our land and its boundaries remain as close to their original state as possible. 

I continue to advocate for the sustainability of the Paiute culture. However, despite my position, culture is not funded by the tribe, nor do we have a grant to assist cultural sustainability. Tribal members in our community volunteer to maintain the culture and have classes on a weekly basis. I have to give high praise to those individuals who are as passionate about cultural preservation as I am. 

Who inspired you as a mentor? 

I am inspired by my elders, by our old people who have lived a simple life filled with our beautiful language and traditions. 

Are you a descendant of a historical leader? If so, who? 

All Natives are historical leaders. Without their leadership and courage, none of us would be where we are today as Native peoples. We are still here! 

Approximately how many members are in your tribe? 

Currently our tribe has increased to 2,803 enrolled members. 

What are the criteria to become a member of your tribe? 

All persons of Indian blood whose names appear on the official, certified Constructed Base Roll of the Pyramid Lake Indian Reservation as of January 1, 1935; or all children born to any enrolled regular member of the tribe who is a resident of the reservation at the time of the birth of said children, provided it is proven that said children are direct lineal descendants of a Base Enrollee as identified above.

Is your language still spoken on your homelands? If so, what percentage of your people would you estimate are fluent speakers? 

A handful of tribal members still speak Paiute. The number of tribal members who understand Paiute is a lot higher, but they do not speak. Our language is going to become extinct if we do not take measures to sustain and teach our people! 

What economic enterprises does your tribe own? 

Currently our Tribal Enterprises comprise three stores on our reservation. We are in the process of increasing our economic development and are looking at a multitude of business opportunities that will generate revenue for the tribe. 

What annual events does your tribe sponsor? 

We have an annual powwow and handgame tournament in the summer and a rodeo in the fall. 

What other attractions are available for visitors on your land? 

Pyramid Lake is widely acclaimed as North America’s most beautiful desert lake, but it’s actually the world-class fishery that has brought Pyramid Lake worldwide fame. Pyramid Lake is the only habitat in the world for the kooyooe (cui-ui) fish that has been around for over two million years. 

The Pyramid Lake fishery also includes the famous Lahontan cutthroat trout that have grown to record sizes and have lured fishermen from all over the world for several decades. Celebrities, foreign royalty, and even a U.S. president have come here in hopes of catching trophy fish at Pyramid Lake. 

How does your tribe deal with the United States as a sovereign nation? 

The Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe has a government-to-government relationship with the federal government. The tribe contracts with or receives grants directly from federal agencies or the State of Nevada, to provide services to tribal members and residents of the reservation addressing issues that will impact the tribe. 

What message would you like to share with the youth of your tribe? 

To learn your language and your traditions; to commit yourself to higher education and to bringing back your knowledge to sustain our tribe; and to see what you have been blessed with, which is to be Numu, and to always be proud of who you are and where you come from! 

Thank you. 

Thank you. 

To read other interviews in this series, click on the banner below. 
From left to right: Representative Ponka-We Victors (Tohono O’odham/Southern Ponca) taking the oath of office in the Kansas House of Representatives; photo courtesy of Kansas Rep. Scott Schwab. Bird Runningwater (Cheyenne/Mescalero Apache) at the Sundance Film Festival; photo courtesy of WireImage. Sergeant Debra Mooney (Choctaw) at the powwow in Al Taqaddum Air Force Base, Iraq, 2004; photo courtesy of Sgt. Debra Mooney. Councilman Jonathan Perry (Wampanoag) in traditional clothing; photo courtesy of Jonathan Perry. Suzan Shown Harjo (Cheyenne/Hodulgee Muscogee) at Blackhorse et al. v. Pro Football, Inc., press conference, U.S. Patent and Trade Office, February 7, 2013; photo courtesy of Mary Phillips. All photos used with permission. 

Freddie Bitsoie, the museum's new executive chef, shares his background and some new ideas for the Mitsitam Cafe

^{Freddie Bitsoie (Diné [Navajo]), the museum's new executive chef, at the grilling station in the Northwest Coast area of the Mitsitam Native Foods Cafe. September 2016, National Museum of the American Indian, Washington, D.C. NMAI staff photo.} 

Please introduce yourself with your name and title.

I'm Freddie Bitsoie, executive chef of the Mitsitam Native Foods Café at the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C.

Can you share with us an introduction in the traditional way?

I am born of my mother’s clan, the Tábąąhá (Edgewater People). I am born for my father’s clan, the Nát'oh dine' é Táchii'nii (Red Running into the Water People). My maternal grandfather’s clan are the Tł'ááshchí'í (Red Bottom People) and my paternal grandfather’s are the Tsi'naajinii (Dark Streak Wood People). This is how I identify myself as Diné (Navajo).

Where is your community located?

I was born in Monticello, Utah. My mother is from Aneth, Utah, near the Four Corners, and my father was from Birdsprings, Arizona, just north of Winslow, Arizona.

Where did you grow up?

I grew up in the Southwest, mainly in Arizona. However, we moved around a lot when I was growing up. I like to tell people that I lived in almost every town along Interstate 40 from Albuquerque, New Mexico, going west to the California–Arizona border.

Are you a descendant of a historical leader?

Not as far as I know. I have yet to hear a story of any.

When did you decide to get into the culinary and food industry?

I was a senior in college. My major was Anthropology and my minor was Art History. It started with a conversation with my Anthropology professor, Dr. David Stewart. He asked about my interest in Ancient Puebloan food ways. He encouraged me to look into studying food from a different perspective and to question why Indigenous food didn’t have a prominence of any sort. I left my studies at the University of New Mexico (UNM) and moved to Phoenix to enroll in the Scottsdale Culinary Institute.

I went to learn how the kitchen works and to discover the discipline of cooking. I ended up loving the work environment and the people. As I tell people all the time, “In the beginning, it was the best $8 an hour I made." I didn't go back to UNM, which was my original plan. I stayed in the culinary field.

What educational and employment path did you follow to become an executive chef?

After culinary school in Scottsdale I worked hands-on in a kitchen. For about five or six years I was in and out of the kitchen. Then I got a teaching job at another culinary school in Scottsdale, the Classic Cooking Academy. They no longer give professional cooking classes. I was their director of Native American Programs. Then I stated my own business, training kitchens throughout the continent

What does Native cooking mean to you?

Traditional cooking has much to do with storytelling. I don’t think there has ever been a time when I have not experienced someone telling stories over cooking. My grandmother used to do it all time, no matter if the stories were repeated.

What are some stereotypes you hope to break concerning Native foods?

“Boring," "bland," and "grainy” are descriptions I hear of Native foods. But there are big differences when it comes to these ideas. Foods and dishes are different things. Many people think that Native foods have no capacity for expression, as European dishes do.

What are some challenges you foresee as the executive chef in a Native museum?

My work style is very laid back. I'm not one of those chefs people see on TV throwing things around. I’m passionate about what I do. I love what I do and I am where I want to be. If there are any challenges, I gladly welcome them. I am sure they will only make me stronger. But, to answer your question directly, one challenge will be acquiring very rare traditional ingredients from around the Western Hemisphere.

Who inspired you as a mentor?

The people who have inspired me are the other Native chefs I've worked with. We have the same goals, the same passion about what we do. The directions may be different, but the destination is the same: to promote Native foods and tells stories through food.

What traditional foods are your specialty?

I specialize in southwestern cooking and the differences in the ways tribes cook and prepare food. I also specialize in preparing and cooking game.

What is your personal favorite food to eat?

I love osso buco, which is known as an Italian dish. It's braised veal shank.

What is your favorite food to cook?

I like to cook Italian foods. I enjoy the rustic elegance of most Italian country dishes. They are much closer to Native dishes, just with more cheese. During cold months I also enjoy ground beef and potato with onion and New Mexican green chile wrapped in a tortilla.

Where are some of the places you worked before coming to the Mitsitam Cafe?

I worked for casinos, colleges, and tribes as a consultant and trainer for kitchens and communities—Leech Lake Community College, Sky Ute Casino, Talking Stick Resort, the College of the Holy Cross, Idyllwild Arts. My most recent job before coming to the museum was as executive chef at the Navajo casino in Gallup, New Mexico.

What are some barriers you have faced in redefining Native American cuisine?

“There is no such thing as a Native chef." Or, "There is no such thing as Native cuisine.” Many times when I do jobs around the country, one of the first reactions I get is, “What are Native foods?” Then, "Is there actually a career in that?"

Is there any pressure associated with being the first Native to serve as executive chef at the National Museum of the American Indian?

The changes I plan to bring will be to promote Native foods and dishes that are as authentic as possible. The main source of pressure will be staying true to Native cooking technique.

What food changes or new ideas do you hope to offer visitors to the Mitsitam Cafe?

I feel would like everyone to be able to experience classic dishes from each region. I plan to place more truly classic dishes on the menu.

What educational path and experiences would you recommend for Native people who would like to break into the culinary foods industry?

I would recommend that people attend a college that has a culinary program and taking other classes that will enrich their intellect as well. Many aspiring chefs go to culinary programs at a trade school. But those credits are not transferable, and students often do not have the choice to take classes other than culinary subjects. Not many people make it far in the culinary business because of how demanding it can be, so having credits in other disciplines would be a big plus.

But first, I stress working in the field and getting used to the hours and time—people knowing full well what they will be getting themselves into. I have worked every Thanksgiving since I became a cook. There are hardly any holidays off.

What message would you like to share with young people who are pursuing careers in the culinary arts?

The culinary profession is a very romantic field. Most of the images people see from outside are of chefs traveling and enjoying life. In truth, most chefs wash dishes and mop. Teamwork is the most important thing anyone has to know before entering a kitchen.

It is a great field for self-discipline, spiritual and creative enrichment, and self-fulfillment. Well, that is what it has done for me.

Thank you.

Thank you.

—Dennis Zotigh, National Museum of the American Indian

Dennis W. Zotigh (Kiowa/San Juan Pueblo/Santee Dakota Indian) is a member of the Kiowa Gourd Clan and San Juan Pueblo Winter Clan and a descendant of Sitting Bear and No Retreat, both principal war chiefs of the Kiowas. Meet Native America, his interview series with tribal leaders, appears regularly on the museum's blog and on the Indian Country Today Media Network.

 

National Native American Veterans Memorial to Be Created in Washington, D.C.

Members of the Ton-Kon-Gah, or Kiowa Black Leggings Society, discuss what it means to be a veteran before the start of a ceremony in memory of those who fought. The tipi depicts battles in which Kiowas participated and lists the names of all Kiowas killed in combat since World War II. Near Anadarko, Oklahoma, 2014. Photo by Nicole Tung.

 

In December 2013 the U.S. Congress charged the National Museum of the American with creating a memorial on its grounds to give all Americans the opportunity “to learn of the proud and courageous tradition of service of Native Americans” in our nation’s Armed Forces. “The significance of such a memorial on the National Mall is obvious,” declares museum director Kevin Gover, “and we welcome the opportunity to accord these veterans the honor they have earned. The project will give affirmation to the patriotic contributions of Native American veterans by the federal government as a whole and by the Smithsonian Institution in particular. For these reasons the National Museum of the American Indian will do as good a job on the National Native American Veterans Memorial as it deserves.”

Another key question, then, is why would American Indians serve a nation that suppressed their cultures and took away their own freedoms and homelands? The response by Jeffrey Begay, a Navajo veteran, reflects the sentiments of all Native veterans: “We serve this country because it’s our land. We have a sacred purpose to protect this place.”

For whatever reason, Native Americans not only serve, they do so at a higher rate in proportion to their population than any other ethnic group. They served in high numbers even before the United States passed the American Indian Citizenship Act in 1924: According to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, during World War I 10,000 Native Americans served in the Army and 2,000 in the Navy; three out of four were volunteers. 

Left: Choctaw telephone squad, returned from fighting in World War I. Camp Merritt, New Jersey, June 7, 1919. From left: Corporal Solomon B. Louis, Private Mitchell Bobb, Corporal Calvin Wilson, Corporal James Edwards, Private George Davenport, Captain E. H. Horner. Photo by Dr. Joseph K. Dixon. Courtesy Mathers Museum of World Cultures, Indiana University. 
Right: Charlotte Edith Anderson Monture, 1919. Charlotte Edith Anderson Monture (Six Nations of the Grand River, 1890–1996) was the first Native Canadian registered nurse. Rejected from Canadian nursing schools because of her Native heritage, she sought training in the United States. In 1917, she volunteered for the U.S. Medical Corps and served in a hospital in France. She was one of 14 Native Canadian women who served in the Army Nurse Corps during World War I. Courtesy John Moses.

World War II witnessed an even more astonishing wave of American Indian patriotism. In fact, had all eligible non-Indian males in the United States enlisted in the same proportion as tribal people, there would have been no need for the Selective Service System. The Department of Defense later reported that, exclusive of officers, 24,521 reservation and 20,000 non-reservation Indians saw military service during the war. Native Hawaiians also responded in overwhelming numbers after the attack on Pearl Harbor, as did Alaska Natives, who were the first ashore on each island that Allied forces occupied during the Aleutian Campaign. All told, ten percent of the country’s American Indian and Alaska Native population of 350,000—including nearly 800 women—saw active duty during World War II. This represented one-third of all able-bodied Indian men from 18 to 50 years of age. In some tribes, the percentage of men in the military reached as high as 70 percent. For their service they earned at least 71 Air Medals, 34 Distinguished Flying Crosses, 51 Silver Stars, 47 Bronze Stars, and 5 Medals of Honor. 

General Douglas MacArthur, commander-in-chief of the Allied forces in the South Pacific, on an inspection trip of American battlefronts, late 1943. From left: Staff Sergeant Virgil Brown (Pima), First Sergeant Virgil F. Howell (Pawnee), Staff Sergeant Alvin J. Vilcan (Chitimacha), General MacArthur, Sergeant Byron L. Tsingine (Diné [Navajo]), Sergeant Larry Dekin (Diné [Navajo]). U.S. Army Signal Corps.

This exemplary record of military service continues to this day. American Indians, both men and women, have served with honor, distinction, and in overwhelming numbers on each of our nation’s battlefields since World War II. Although the United States has given scant heed to their remarkable contribution to our nation’s safety and well-being, Native servicemen and women are among the most honored members of their communities across Indian Country. They are honored for their service by their families and their tribes. They are honored before going into service. They are honored upon their return. Honor songs are composed and sung in their memory. The most visible expression of that honor is at powwows, where veterans are asked to lead the Grand Entry, to carry the tribal and U.S. flags, and to dance.

The Native American Women Warriors lead the grand entry during a powwow in Pueblo, Colorado, June 14, 2014. From left: Sergeant First Class Mitchelene BigMan (Apsáalooke [Crow]/Hidatsa), Sergeant Lisa Marshall (Cheyenne River Sioux), Specialist Krissy Quinones (Apsáalooke [Crow]), and Captain Calley Cloud (Apsáalooke [Crow]), with Tia Cyrus (Apsáalooke [Crow]) behind them. The organization, founded by Mitchelene BigMan in 2012, raises awareness about Native American women veterans and provides support services in health, employment, and education. Photo by Nicole Tung.

Although not all tribes approve of warfare, they all honor their soldiers. For some, especially the Pueblo peoples of the southwest, there is concern about being a soldier and the possibility of taking another human’s life. Nonetheless, as one Hopi leader explained, “The fact that American Indians are fighting for this great country of ours needs to be recognized. We may have been a conquered people, but we were not a defeated people, and our warriors will always rise to the call of battle.” One of those warriors was Private First Class Lori Ann Piestewa, who died in 2003 during Operation Iraqi Freedom. A member of the Hopi Tribe from Tuba City, Arizona, Private Piestewa is believed to be the first Native American woman to die fighting in our nation’s armed forces.

Another unfortunate distinction for Native American warriors was the death of Master Sergeant Joshua Wheeler, a Cherokee from Roland, Oklahoma. Sergeant Wheeler is the first known U.S. casualty in the fight against ISIS. A member of the Army’s elite Delta Force and the recipient of 11 Bronze Stars during his military career, he died October 22, 2015, while attempting to rescue prisoners near Hawija in Northern Iraq. Cherokee Principal Chief Bill John Baker eloquently stated, “Like so many of our Cherokee warriors, Joshua died serving our great country. We are forever indebted to him for his bravery and willingness to accept the most dangerous missions. Joshua is a true American hero, and we will always honor his life and sacrifices at the Cherokee Nation.”

United States senators Ben Nighthorse Campbell, at left in regalia, and Daniel K. Inouye stand with members of the Vietnam Era Veterans Inter-Tribal Association during the groundbreaking ceremonies for the National Museum of the American Indian. Washington, D.C., September 28, 1999. Campbell (Northern Cheyenne, b. 1933), a Korean War veteran, is one of the few American Indians to ever serve in Congress. For his actions during World War II, Inouye (1924–2012) received more than 15 medals and citations, most notably the Medal of Honor and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. MARIO TAMA / AFP / Getty Images.

Working together with the National Congress of American Indians and other American Indian groups, the National Museum of the American Indian has begun preliminary plans to construct the National Native American Veterans Memorial in the next five years and has formed an Advisory Committee chaired by Chickasaw Nation Lieutenant Governor Jefferson Keel and former U.S. Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell of the Northern Cheyenne, who affirms: “I am American and I am Indian and I am a vet. I believe I was compelled to serve to honor the warrior tradition which is inherent to most Native American societies—the pillars of strength, honor, pride, devotion, and wisdom.”

In the months ahead, this blog will feature stories from our Native veterans about their service and provide updates on the progress of the memorial project, including the status of the funding goal of $15 million.

—Herman J. Viola
Senior advisor, National Native American Veterans Memorial

Dr. Herman J. Viola is a curator emeritus at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. A specialist on the history of the American West, he served as director of the Museum's National Anthropological Archives in addition to organizing the major exhibitions Magnificent Voyagers and Seeds of Change. His many books include Warriors in Uniform: The Legacy of American Indian Heroism. Before joining the staff of the Smithsonian, Dr. Viola was an archivist at the National Archives of the United States.