By: Miguel V. and Andres C.
Native American Heritage Month is a month where we honor Indigenous culture, influences, and individuals in our community. It started in 1986 as “Native Indian Week” and then moved on to be Native American Month in 1990 for the month of November. However, have these gestures led to a greater understanding of Indigenous people? For people outside of the community, what can be done to truly learn from the first inhabitants of this land? Speaking from the outside, how can we improve?
To answer our questions we interviewed Colton Griffith, a 4th grade educator at Coral Springs, Pre-k-8. Griffith was born in Broward County. He has Ojibwe, Saginaw and Cherokee ancestry. In his childhood years attending elementary school, many of his classmates were in disbelief of his heritage. “You can’t be Native American, Native Americans are dead,” they would say. His teachers would give false information about his ancestors which made him doubtful about the information he was learning at school.
In addition to childhood experiences, Griffith also stated that there is a lack of confidence among Indigenous people when it comes to public schools. This is due to experiences with Europeans in the past. We asked Colton why there are so few Native students enrolled in our school, even though tribes like the Seminole are so close by. Griffith said, “I’m not a Seminole so I cannot speak for them but I can speak from what I’ve been told and from a broader perspective. In the U.S. and Canada they had residential/boarding schools from the 1800s - 1970s in the United States and the 1990s in Canada. Children were forced into these schools and children were beaten, and much worse, and forced to assimilate into white Christian culture. The philosophy was “Kill the Indian, Save the Man”. There’s a deep distrust of American education from tribes.”
We also asked what outsiders could do to help honor Native Americans during the Thanksgiving season. Griffith explained, “Thanksgiving is a cultural practice not just for Indigenous people of North America but all over the world. I think it is important just to acknowledge that we should give thanks more frequently, and listen to what Native people have to say.”
However, there are still actions that we as Americans can take to honor our Indigenous tribes here in Florida. Griffith recommended that we learn about the cultures that are here in Florida. We can learn more about the Miccosukee and the Seminole tribes by going to their public events, their powwows, and their museums. We must acknowledge who came before us and always remember that they are still here.
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