Brad Carson: “this week, thousands of indigenous people from across the Western Hemisphere have come to Washington, DC. It is arguably…”

“this week, thousands of indigenous people from across the Western Hemisphere have come to Washington, DC. It is arguably the largest gathering of native people in U.S. history. By planes, cars, metro, and on foot, native people have come to celebrate the opening of the National Museum of the American Indian. The museum is a stunning and long overdue tribute to indigenous people across this land. If is entirely fitting and appropriate that the National Museum of the American Indian join the United States' other national treasures, and take its place among the family of Smithsonian museums on the Mall. For, the history and culture of our nation is inseparable from the history and culture of Indian people. Through centuries of great hardship, Indian people have struggled to maintain their social and cultural identity. The museum opening marks a revolution in this struggle, for it is a reclaiming of native identity. It is the culmination of thousands of hours of work by Indian people to tell their story. It links the past, present, and future of Indian people in a way that visitors can experience and understand the native perspective. The design and construction of the museum, itself, reveals an animate, live entity. And inside visitors find the living cultures of Indian people in language, history, dance, arts, cultural values, and spirituality.”